Original subtitles

I was actually looking forward to this lesson

because it's a free-form lesson.

This lesson, as the boot camp has led

up to this point, has been largely driven

by your participation, by people's participation online.

I really, really, really want to connect the

dots because at this point in time you

will have seen five lessons worth of a

wedding day.

You will have seen bride prep, you will

have seen how we shoot families and bridesmaids,

you'll see how I shot the ceremony in

that amazing, glorious light.

That was just so easy to shoot in.

You'll see how I shot the reception.

So now that we have gotten up to

this point, there were things that probably happened

throughout the day.

And I want to make sure that I'm

connecting the dots and creating a fuller picture

because, yes, the CreativeLive cameras were there to

document behind the scenes, but I do think,

as we all know, that there's a behind

the scenes and then there's a behind the

scenes.

So I want to make sure that we

get into that today.

Now, we're going to start largely.

The studio audience, you will have and find

your microphones around.

So please, just for the sake of efficiency,

because you guys know by now, you guys

know I'm efficient.

Like, so if we can save the, oh,

wait, where's the mic?

Oh, wait, where's the mic?

No, no, you pass that mic.

You take that mic and you go.

You guys know that that's how I work

now.

So what I want to start off with

is I first and foremost want to get

things going in regards to the lovely Facebook

group.

Now, this is how you can find the

group on Facebook.

And you can also search Jasmine Star 30

Day.

That should bring up the group.

You can request to get in there.

But this group has been such a phenomenal,

amazing community.

Everyone has been really positive.

Everyone's learning a ton.

So when I ask, hey, can you guys

give me a list of questions that pertains

just to the wedding?

People delivered in spades.

So we're going to start by reading one

or two from here.

And then I want to turn it over

to the studio audience.

And then we're going to flip into the

group because I want to make sure that

we are including those of us online, those

in person, and then those for future who

are going to be watching in future episodes,

future lessons.

So let's get on to our first question.

So Stacy, I'm sorry, Sarah Chris Purdy asks,

what was the one thing from the day

you think you did wrong or could have

done differently in area, prep, ceremony, et cetera?

Well, Sarah, let's just start.

OK.

I think that this is how life works.

So we in previous lessons, I talked to

you how I prepare my clients for success.

I talked to you about effectively articulating how

much time I need for certain portions of

the day.

I talked about I talked about managing expectation.

Right.

So I come up here like with a

big bat, like I'm a Babe Rufus, right?

I'm Babe Ruth, the wedding.

Here I go.

And what happened was that everything, how confident

I was in teaching, this is what I

do.

And this was this is what works was

thrown out the window in the first 10

minutes of the day.

So this is the first time I have

ever done anything to this capacity.

This is the first time that I had

ever any sort of I was going to

say live wedding experience, but that would be

a lie because I did a live wedding

with Creative Live.

But to such a degree and to and

with companies and organizations that have no experience

with live weddings.

So there were so many different pieces.

And if I can do anything different again,

like one, obviously, I wouldn't have a ceremony

at noon.

Right.

I mean, I would maybe try to find

a venue that maybe had a tree for

shade, maybe.

But those are things that could not I

cannot change, nor that's just the nature of

it.

And I have shot weddings at noon on

the beach.

I know how difficult that is.

So that's not actually the thing that I

would say what I could do different.

What I wish I could have done differently.

Had I known that there was going to

be so many expectations from so many different

people on me, I would have set up

in advance.

What do you need?

How do you need it?

I need to ask for time in the

timeline for that.

I, in all honesty, got an email from

one of the producers at The Knot, and

she said, Revlon has a shot list for

you.

Revlon was a major sponsor for the wedding.

I did not know that they were a

major sponsor for the wedding.

I found out they were a major sponsor

of the wedding in Sonoma when I did

the walkthrough less than 24 hours before the

wedding.

So then when I got a shot list

just of products, I didn't have any time

to kind of explain one, I'm not a

product photographer.

Two, the timeline does not reflect a time

for product photography.

And three, I had no ability to manage

expectation.

Everything I talked to the class about in

advance was playing against me.

So I had two options at this point.

I can try to connect with somebody from

Revlon and or The Knot and say, guys,

is there any way that I can get

an extra, I don't know, 15 minutes to

do this.

But I was functioning with people with limited

internet because when we were at the winery

or when we were at in Sonoma, we

had terrible reception.

I had the option to be really frustrated

and hurt and upset, and I was.

But then I had to make the decision

to say, it is what it is.

I have been given this and I cannot

change it.

So I did know going into the wedding

day that there were going to be shots

that I needed to take.

What I did not anticipate were these large

chunks of time that The Knot was going

to say, we need everybody out of the

room.

We have to do behind the scenes filming.

So I was losing time on my timeline.

I was given lists of photos that I

had to take.

And then I was given a deadline at

3.30 p.m. on the wedding day

when the wedding ended at 4 p.m.

I needed to send 25 to 30 sneak

peek images the day of the wedding.

So yes, okay.

Thank you for going.

I mean, I was really built.

I was working for that build up.

I was like, give it to me.

Give me the reaction.

Because this right here is the reaction I

needed.

The reaction I got from my husband was,

you can do it.

You do this.

You're okay.

And so this reminds me, totally off topic.

Okay.

So there's this movie, White Boys Can't Jump.

And there's a scene with Woody Harrelson and

Rosie Perez.

And he's trying to empathize and understand.

And she says, I'm thirsty.

And he says, I'll get you a cup

of water.

And she's in bed.

And she turns to him, and she says,

when I'm thirsty, I don't want you to

get me a cup of water.

I want you to say, I too know

what it is like to thirst.

Okay.

So when I'm telling JD, I'm really stressed

out, and his response is, you'll be okay.

No, no, I don't want a cup of

water.

What I'm trying to say is, I want

you to say, we're both stressed.

I feel you.

It doesn't that suck?

Like, I need that.

But he's just like, no, you got it.

You got it.

And I'm just like, okay.

So what I would have done differently, I

would have managed expectations.

I would have asked for things.

I would have had a far better understanding

of the day.

That's my biggest regret.

Because what happens is the time that I

lost in the timeline for prep, for details,

for bridesmaids photos, I felt that in a

way, if I'm going to be completely honest,

I felt like I was being set up

to fail.

I do not think it was intentional.

I have mad respect for the companies that

came on board.

I do.

So when I look back at some of

the photos, we're going to get into some

of the questions people had asked a few

questions about technical stuff.

And I'm like, I know, this isn't that

great.

But do you see what I was working

with?

Now that you guys know more of the

backstory that was going on with that wedding

day, do you see what was the inner

turmoil that was going on in that day?

And so again, here's Woody Harrelson, AKA my

husband.

And he says, you should be glad the

wedding was so hard.

Because now people can see what we go

through normally.

There has been a misnomer.

And I don't know where it came from,

because I know it's on my end.

But people think that I have excess time

for bride and groom photos.

They think that I have people who are

always happy, and clean, and organized, and on

time.

I don't know where that came from.

This wedding was extreme.

But most of my weddings are very much

like that.

Not the timeline does go off.

The light really does suck.

People are angry.

And we have to make them look happy.

So JD's like, if people can see you

do that in this situation with literally seven

camera crews, people can do this on weddings

on their own.

So what people walked away with do I

think that they learned because of the difficulties?

Yes.

And if that is my silver lining, I'm

okay with that.

Totally okay.

So we're going to, there's mics here.

Whoever, just pass the mic around, and then

I'm going to get into a question so

I can answer the question.

So whoever has the mic is ready to

go, because you know we're all about efficiency.

So I'm going to go into the next

question right now before we get into the

mic.

I was getting you prepped.

I saw you, Boo.

Okay, and so once you're done, you're going

to pass on the mic to whoever else

needs it.

So Anna Packard asks, with regards to the

Revlon thing and your timekeeping, you had a

schedule to work to and already had shot

the rings and flowers.

So when Revlon then asked you to nip

in and do other things, how do you

accommodate this and make sure you don't get

behind and miss a better shot, i.e.

Samantha getting her dress on?

This is a question that I saw quite

often pop up in the Facebook group and

people in chat rooms.

Now, because everything was happening in the same

room, I think what you saw a lot

of times was that I kept on looking

up, and I probably didn't have a pleasant

face.

I was like, I was watching everything.

So I was a waitress about five years

through college and then just after college, and

what I learned being a waitress is I

can hear multiple conversations.

So it's like if I had a table

and I was taking an order and someone's

like, I wish I had an extra napkin,

I'd be like, oh, so you said you

wanted extra well done?

Okay, great.

Do you want a side of rice?

And so I'm dropping off a napkin and

I'm taking your order at the same time.

It's super helpful when I do this as

a wedding photographer, so I can hear what's

going on.

And there were times when I was shooting

and I heard the girl say, oh, we

should put our jewelry on.

And then I would back up, no jewelry

right now.

Thank you.

And then go back to me shooting what

I was shooting.

So I was very aware what was happening.

If I felt that Samantha was going to

be compromised in a real way, I would

have stopped with Revlon.

I'm not contracted with Revlon.

I'm contracted with Samantha.

But I understand that the not needs to

give Revlon collateral.

And who's the collateral creator?

Me.

So I was really not trying to burn

any bridges.

Do I think I lost a few moments

of Samantha in prep?

Yes.

But it was candids.

Do I think that I captured enough candids

to placate my client?

Yes.

So in that situation, I felt like I

met the demands on both sides.

So we're going to go here and take

a question.

I noticed that there were other photographers out

there.

At one point, they were standing in the

middle of the aisle taking photographs down the

aisle.

And you like walked up next to this

person and then started taking photos.

Who were those people?

How did you work with?

I mean, you were already working with two

other shooters and a videographer and the camera

crews.

There were a ton of cameras.

There were press.

The not had invited Mashable.

They had invited other tech sites.

It was pitched as a tech savvy wedding.

So that was the angle.

They were going to get a lot of

tech bloggers.

They were going to get wedding bloggers.

And they had invited them.

And so they wanted to get their own

collateral, even though I had stipulated that the

photos, at least sneak peeks, would be ready

the day of the wedding.

But they wanted to do their own.

And that was difficult to navigate.

It was very difficult to navigate.

And you guys saw how it unfolded.

And there's a part where you have to

say, I have to let go for my

sanity, for my health, for my peace of

mind.

I'm like, I see, you know, the highlight.

The highlight of this is that were there

cameras in the background?

Yes.

But have JD and I become so accustomed

to shooting around things like at our weddings?

Maybe there's not seven cameras, but maybe there's

two strollers.

Maybe there's a wheelchair.

Maybe chairs are out of order.

Maybe a flower decor down the aisle fell

down.

I'm listing things that truly happen on wedding

days.

So I just said, I'm going to make

the decision to shoot this as I shoot

every other wedding.

I'm proud and I stand by the gallery.

When I look through the gallery, of course,

there are a thousand things I wish I

could do differently.

But when I look through it, I'm just

like, you know what?

We don't see a lot of the cameras

that are there.

And that alone makes me darn proud.

So as part of the course download, you

will be able to see all the galleries,

the galleries from the engagement session, the galleries

from the wedding.

You will see what Samantha and Taylor got.

So in order for you to kind of

get a well-rounded understanding, both from video

and photo, you guys will be able to

do that.

So we have a mic here.

And then if there's anybody else that has

a question, we can just pass it on

back or I see you have one.

Oh, great.

I noticed that you're using the 51.2

a lot throughout the day.

It seems like.

But I'm wondering if with regard to all

those other cameras, was there a point where

you needed to sacrifice and use something wider

so you didn't have a million people in

your shots or.

You mean something tighter?

Yes.

Yeah.

Less because I didn't want to shoot as

wide.

I wasn't.

I will use the 35 millimeter a little

bit more on a wedding day.

But this time I was making the decision

to not shoot as wide because we had

so many things going on on the side.

So I used my 50 quite often at

the wedding.

I did not want to sacrifice.

We started this course by saying, know your

style, right?

Oh, I think the first or second lesson

was to define your photographic style.

My photographic style is lifestyle.

If I were to, because I felt really

overwhelmed with all the other cameras and then

I started shooting extensively or exclusively with the

85 and the 70 to 200, just so

I could say, I need to crop everything

out.

It wouldn't reflect my portfolio.

I was chosen for this wedding because my

portfolio reflects what the If I had betrayed

my roots, it would have been revealed.

And I had to just stay true to

what I do.

What you saw is very close, very close

to what I would shoot on a normal

wedding.

Did that answer the question?

If it doesn't, because sometimes I go on

detours.

So you dig, dig in, dig in.

No, it does.

It just seemed like there were a lot.

I mean, there were a lot of obstacles

backing up and having enough room for you

to shoot.

And that happens on a wedding day, a

regular wedding day.

And so you saw me shoot some of

the family members.

And even when I was shooting ceremony details,

I had to back up and people were

behind me like talking and I have to

smile.

I have to make jokes.

I have to be extra warm when I

don't feel like it.

So what you saw is very darn close

to what I shoot on a wedding.

Those obstacles, very similar, like on an average

wedding day, maybe not as extreme, but very

similar.

Awesome.

I think there's another mic here.

Um, so one thing that I found was

really relatable at the knot wedding, although none

of us will probably ever shoot anything like

the knot wedding.

But one thing that I found was relatable

is that, you know, the timeline does get

away from you.

Hair and makeup lasts a half an hour

longer or the decor is not ready or

somebody's late.

And so we have to push the ceremony

back by half an hour because grandma's not

there.

So when the timeline does get kind of

haywire, like it with the knot wedding, how

do you, um, kindly kind of fight for

the time, you know, you need, even if

the time is cut for, you know, bridal

party for, um, bride and groom photos for

all your photos.

That's fantastic.

So, um, yes, timelines do get away from

us.

My answer depends on where the timeline got

away from me earlier in the day, halfway

through the day, late in the day.

If it's earlier in the day.

And I think that the makeup artist is

taking too long.

It is very common for me to come

up and be like, Oh, you look so

beautiful.

I will touch the makeup artist on her

hand.

It's like, we're running in front of the

bride.

I make no qualms running about 10.

She should have been getting into her dress

right now.

So we're running about 30 minutes late.

How much longer do you need?

And she'll be like, Oh, I need another

15 minutes.

How about we get seven?

Because then I could kind of work with

it.

Are you okay with that?

Can I check back with you in five

minutes?

Like if there is not a coordinator, you

are the coordinator.

So that's what I do beginning of the

day.

If I feel like a bridesmaid, um, lost

her shoe and we got pushed back 15

minutes, 10 minutes, I will tell the bride.

Okay.

So this is what happened because Jennifer are

running a little bit late.

I'm going to work extra fast, but I

need you and your girls to work with

me.

There's a chance.

I will not be able to shoot you

in each individual bridesmaid because we are running

late, but just work with me.

And at the end of the day, if

we have time for that, I'll loop back

down to it.

So I'm managing her expectations every step of

the way.

So that later, later point in time, she

can't come back and be like, why didn't

I get a photo of me and each

of my bridesmaids?

So, um, if it happens later in the

day, maybe during, I actually, if we're running

late, I do not compromise family photos.

I just eat it.

I just eat it.

Um, if we're running really late, like going

into the reception, um, if there is a

coordinator or if there's a banquet captain, there's

always somebody at the venue, regardless of the

client has paid for it.

You have to just, I'll go up to

them and be like, is there any way

that you can work with me?

Everything got pushed back.

I have had five minutes of the bride

and groom.

Can you give me 10 minutes?

Can you give me 10 minutes?

And I promise I will deliver images to

you guys.

I will do whatever I can to make

sure that we get back on timeline.

But right now I just need something.

And I've never had somebody say no, ever.

It's just effectively articulating what you need and

when you need it and then managing those

expectations.

Cool.

Okay, cool.

Let's get into a question from the group

and then we'll pass those mics around and

make sure that they are divvied up.

Let's go into this next question from um,

actually Ashley, Chris, she asked a very similar

question.

Who are all the other photographers that I

kept seeing around?

I know J star has JD and a

third, but it keeps seeing so many more.

So in a previous lesson I had mentioned,

but it bears repeating today is that JD

and I shoot our weddings exclusively alone.

That's how we roll.

When we signed contracts with the knot, it

was contingent that we brought an assistant with

us.

So I brought Tammy page and she's a

photographer based in Chicago.

I actually met her here on creative live.

She was one of my students and it

was fantastic to see what her career has

done.

And I specifically chose her for a lot

of other reasons that people may or may

not understand.

But I chose somebody based on the qualities

that they possessed as a person for what

I needed on that day.

And both she and JD delivered in spades.

So the other photographers, just to bear repeating,

guests were given cameras to be shooting.

Um, the bride had a GoPro in her

bouquet, right?

I mean, just, let's just add more.

We need more cameras, bring in more cameras.

So, I mean, there's just a lot going

on and largely by and large, it was

bloggers, writers and press.

Um, we're going to go into a mic.

Yes, Mike, there you go.

With the whole, um, tech savvy or whatever

you called it, um, theme that you had

going, I noticed in the ceremony that there

was, um, the stick and what do you

call it?

The, um, selfie selfie stick.

Somebody had that like in one of your

pictures and, um, all the thousands of cell

phones and everything on a normal day, normal

wedding.

Do you ever request unplugged?

Like, do you require that?

Or do you just roll with it?

I absolutely positively roll with whatever is there.

If they want to bring in 15 cameras

and have different angles, that's not my prerogative.

I was hired to shoot photos.

I never asked for unplugged weddings because if

I was at a friend's wedding, you better

believe I'm going to be Instagramming that.

Like it's just the nature of what the

industry has become.

I started about 10 years ago.

That was not like I'm not even, I

mean, I'm going to date myself.

Somebody had brought a PC, plugged it into

the wall and added like this 60 foot

ethernet cord so that they could broadcast it

to their family in Vietnam.

So things have changed in the last 10

years.

So, um, no, I don't ask for it.

If my clients do, I'm just like, but

it's not my wedding.

It's not.

And especially with the predominance of hashtagging clients

now use this as a photo archive.

Like I've had clients like, I love your

photos, but there's just so many things that

happened during cocktail hour when we are away

that I can look back and see it.

And okay, I get it.

I get it.

Is there another mic that we want to

So this ceremony was really short, which is

really nice and ideal, but for those super,

super long, hour long ceremonies, what you deliver

for something like this in a short ceremony,

how does that differ from what you deliver

in a longer ceremony?

And how do you keep the pictures from

looking all the same?

That's great.

Great question.

Fantastic.

This is filling in the gaps.

I love it.

What you see, what you will see in

the gallery from this not wedding is very

similar to what, even though this ceremony was

about 15 minutes, um, is very similar to

what a client would get in an hour

long ceremony.

If there weren't a lot of other things

going on.

So let's just say at all respect, my

family hails from Catholicism, Catholic weddings have a

tendency of being long.

And if they do a full on communion

for everybody, it's an hour to hour and

15 minutes.

So, uh, during Catholic weddings, it's very, uh,

common for us to sit when the priest

delivers, um, homily.

Thank you.

When he delivers a homily one, I think

it's respectful and then people would understand why

we're doing it.

But as he's doing different delivering the homily,

it's nothing.

There's nothing to shoot.

So, um, it's going to be really close

to that.

I don't want to overwhelm my clients with

once I know, okay, this is one thing

I wish I would have said day of

is I have a list in the back

of my mind.

So I have a wedding photo day shot

list.

I sell it in the store, but the

list has been set up in my mind.

So worst case scenario, if all else fails

and I have a ceremony that is two

minutes long, I know what I need in

the two minutes.

I need a full aisle shot.

I need a half aisle shot.

I need hair looking at him, him looking

at her.

I need a closeup of their hands.

I need them exchanging rings.

I need the first kiss.

I need the walk down.

I need an overview shot.

Like worst case scenario, knowing that anchors, anchors

your soul.

Like that stress that you feel like everything's

going on everything.

No, no, no.

We know that we need a handful of

photos and everything else is just bonus.

So no, I don't want to overwhelm my

clients, but from this gallery, it's very similar

to what other gallery might have.

If they had a sand ceremony, I'd add

that if they did communion or if they

stepped in the glass, or if they were

under the hut, but like the prayer shawls,

those add things.

But if it's just a straightforward ceremony, the

way that it was like, they're not very,

very, very, very close to what you would

see.

Cool.

We're going to pass the mic.

Oh, we have one here.

How do you, this question is with personal.

How do you manage the relationship with the

clients, the bride that is your clients, but

maybe sometime you became friends and before the

wedding, you feel like, no, wait, I can

become a friend because he's a client.

So maybe you, she say to you, oh,

we can go outside to have a wine

or go outside to eat a pizza.

And you said, no, she's a client.

So maybe you say something wrong or I

don't know.

I understand the question clearly.

Now, if I don't answer you in a

way that makes sense, you let me know.

Okay.

Okay.

So I try to keep all of my

relationships very professional.

It's very rare that I will meet with

a bride for lunch or for drinks before

her wedding, usually after the engagement session.

Um, okay.

So this is an example.

In an earlier lesson, you guys saw me

have a consultation with Catherine and Corey.

They came to my studio and they were

talking about a restaurant and it was the

restaurant they went on their first date.

Now, when I was watching, I am watching

these classes.

I've never watched a creative life class ever,

but in this course I find myself having

to because I need to know what's going

on so that we can address it because

every week we're coming back and readdressing these

things.

And so I, when I was rewatching, I

said, oh, they went to, I think it's

called Marco on Melrose in Hollywood.

And as I was watching it, an idea

came to me.

I said, you know, as a thank you

for them, allowing me to like film that

I sent them a gift certificate to Marco.

Okay.

I think, and I checked out the restaurant.

It looks great.

But again, I'm creating a relationship.

I'm creating an experience.

She emailed me.

It was like, thank you so much.

Why don't you join us there?

Okay.

This is where we are, right?

So there's always creative ways of getting out

of it.

And I feel like I don't say no,

I'm just very creative.

And I'm like, I, uh, so her weddings,

her, her weddings in August.

Okay.

So that gives me a few months.

I can't stiff arm her for a few

months.

Like, how about this?

You and Corey go and enjoy a date

night on, on us, on me and JD,

you guys enjoy it.

And after the wedding, when things calm down

and it's not so much planning, we'll go

there again.

I don't mind hanging out with my clients.

Once the transaction has been complete and in

future lessons, you're going to see what workflow

looks like with my album, how we close

it and how we end it.

I have, I often will hang out with

clients once or twice after the wedding because

I dig my clients, but I try to

keep it very professional when we're things are

professional.

That was a great question.

If I didn't answer it, you, okay, good,

good.

You're just too nice for your own good.

I feel it.

I'm going to get into one question from

the group and then we're going to get

back to the mic back there.

Okay.

Let's get into this question from Darren, Kevin,

George for the groom and the groomsmen and

the bride and the bridal party shot.

Did you plan those locations ahead of time

or figure them out on the fly?

This is great.

So let's see.

I was slated to start shooting on my

timeline at 8 30 in the morning.

I decided because just, it's how I roll

that I wanted to start shooting at 8

30 because I knew that things were going

to come my way that I could not

anticipate.

So I wanted to get a jumpstart.

Um, so we arrived at seven 45.

I arrived at seven 45 and we did

a walkthrough and I said, depending on light,

because it was ever changing when you arrive

at seven o'clock and then the light

at noon told totally different scenarios.

So JD and I walked through and what

we do is we say, I like this

location for before 10.

I like this location, but before noon, I

like this.

So we created a photo map so that

whatever the day threw at us, he would

know my second shooter would know where we

were at any given point in time.

So yes, we sculpted locations, but we had

locations picked out according to timeline.

Let's get into that.

Yes.

So throughout the day I saw after you

got your shots, you would kind of say,

Oh, videographers come in and get yours.

Is that something at the beginning of the

wedding that you kind of have a power

with them about?

Or how do you, that's a great question.

How do you plan that as it goes

to work?

I'm going to be honest.

I'll be honest.

I'll be really honest.

I work really well with people who give

me a lot of space.

So you saw that and that sounds sheisty,

right?

It's very selfish, but it's just true.

So I'm just going to be honest.

I work well with people giving me space

and because the videographers were giving me space,

I had to make sure and say, I

see you.

Thank you for working with me.

You get your shots.

Now, if I had a videographer who's tripping

now, I can do this and can I

do this and can I do this?

I don't give you space because you're already

up in my space.

So that's the honest answer.

I can now say most of the videographers

I work with are very similar to Matt

and Anise.

We give each other the time that we

need.

I don't like to be shooting details with

somebody next to me.

I feel like it's a creative space.

So I said, so it's crazy.

I shot the knot wedding and I had

never heard of the videographers prior to shooting

them.

Well, as luck would have it, the weekend

before I was shooting a wedding in Newport

beach at Pelican Hill and they shot it.

I was like, wow, this is great that

we get to meet literally like less than

a week before.

And so I had arrived a little bit

early to set up my prep shots.

Now what I could have done was set

my prep shots, take them down and put

them back and say, Hey guys, you set

them up.

But when they got there, I said, it's

so nice to meet you.

I said, Hey, if you would like, I

left a lot of the details already set

up and stylized for you.

So feel free.

I've already shot them when you're done, please

put them back.

And he was like, thanks.

Thanks so much.

So by me taking control and creating a

good relationship, I think it just set us

up to a really great start.

That was a good question.

Thank you.

Um, let's go to another, um, Mike.

Hi.

Um, as to the question of all the

many, many photographers, um, I I'm in all

these groups on Facebook, obviously we all battle

these questions around and, um, somebody faced an

issue where the week before the wedding, uh,

she found out that another, the bride had

hired another photographer at the same time.

And, uh, there was disagreement over like, what

would you do?

You know, if you found this out, um,

so how would you, how would you handle

that?

Which you wouldn't, but something a little similar

had happened, but let me make sure that

I understand everything correctly, correctly.

But before I do, um, can I get

a cough drop?

That's possible.

I see you.

Oh my God, your eyes are crying.

You're so emotional about this wedding talk.

No, I saw you coughing.

I feel you and you were being so

polite.

She's like, I know I saw you.

We're going to get, we're going to get

that taken care of.

And I know that just weddings just make

you so emotional.

I know.

Okay.

So now that I've thoroughly embarrassed her, um,

okay.

Okay.

But there's hope coming.

This cough drop is coming.

I felt so bad for you.

So let's get back to the question just

to make sure that I understand somebody else

was shooting a wedding or did this happen

to you?

No, it didn't happen to me.

So it happened to a friend.

No, I was helping give advice.

Got it.

I've been in a situation where another photographer

showed up and I was, you know, like,

you don't want that.

You know, you're stepping on each other and

he's flashing everybody.

Yeah, absolutely.

So, um, I haven't really heard of, um,

situations happening to where that the lead photographer

knows in advance that another photographer will be

there.

They usually happen to where, Oh, there's another

photographer here.

So if I was in the situation where

I knew another photographer was going to be

there and if, and it was about five

days in advance and neither, they didn't know

the bride basically.

Oh, not the bride.

Okay.

The bride had lied and said that, uh,

she didn't hire them, but she did.

Oh, in that situation.

I mean, uh, JD and I, this was

a few years ago, we shot a wedding

and there was another photographer and he was

standing in the center of the aisle with

his back to the groom.

So he was standing in the center and

I'm shooting.

And you guys thought during the not wedding,

how I shot behind the altar, that's usually

kind of like in that area.

So if somebody is standing or squatting center

aisle, like, Oh, what do you, what do

you want me to do here?

Like you're going to, your back and your

bum is going to be in all the

photos.

And I was like, who is this guy?

And during the ceremony, he was going up

to the bride and groom, like three feet

from them and having a flash and he's

shooting them.

And I'm thinking, who is this guy?

Like, why is he in all my photos?

And I'm like, I didn't train JD.

And then JD was like, Oh my gosh,

because at this point, what are you going

to do?

It's a ceremony.

You're not going to be like, tap him

on the shoulder and be like, excuse me

while they're saying their eternal vows.

So at the end, and I'm just livid

by the time this ends.

And I just, and I went up to

the bride and I said, you know, so

they, I had to take a sit back.

It's not my day.

So they have their walked on the aisle.

Like, Oh, I love you.

I do.

And then they celebrate with their friends.

And then there's like that moment to decompress

as guests leave.

I said, you know, I'm sorry.

There's another photographer.

She's like, I'm so sorry.

His mom hired another photographer.

And I was like, okay.

She's like, I just found out, but she's

like, I did.

She's like, he was only supposed to do

family shots during cocktail hour.

I was just like, okay.

I just want you to know he's going

to be in your photos.

Like during the first dance, I'm just going

to have a conversation.

Is that okay?

If I have a conversation with him and

she's like, yeah, I'm so sorry.

So I went up to him and just

laid, laid the ground, the ground rules.

You will always be next to my second

shooter behind his shoulder.

So wherever he goes, you have to go

with him.

Do I think that's the answer to your

question?

I don't know.

But in that situation, like, what do you

do?

Like, what do you do?

Like the bride obviously knew what she did.

So why what's the beef she's, she's paid

you.

She decided to pay extra money to hire

somebody else.

Your job is just to work around it.

And that's like a terrible answer, but it's

life.

Like, you know, you're not going to be

like, I'm an artist.

You can't get in my space.

It's no, it's about the bride.

It's totally about the bride.

Let's get into a question from the group.

Uh, Stephanie Davis.

I'm noticing that the formals are in spotty

light.

I'm thinking this was done because of the

time of day.

Jasmine, would you normally look for grassy areas

that are not spotty for bridal party photos?

I had literally, I had a foot and

a half by a foot.

I had enough room for five people to

stand and a small child.

That was the only shade in probably 50

square, I mean, 500 miles.

Like this was the shade I was working

with.

Yes.

I know it was spotty light.

I mean that, that light was probably the

worst light.

I've taken family photos in over five years

and it was broadcast for the entire wedding

industry.

I'm thinking about these things.

I know these things.

I have to make the decision just to

like let it go.

And you know what?

If I had a photo of my dad

and it was in spotty light, a photo

in spotty light is better than no photo

at all.

I have to just remind myself and bring

it tethered.

In future lessons, you will see how I

shoot in crazy light.

You will see when I shoot in reflected

light.

You will see how I shoot different shapes

and group sizing.

Okay.

But given with what I was given, I

chose that location and I have to, because

that's one thing that ate at me.

I was like, dang it, that light, that

light, that light.

It ate at me, but I stand by

it.

I do.

I did the best I could given the

lighting that I had.

I think there's another mic.

Um, we'll go here and then we'll go

here.

Hi.

Um, I think honestly that you did an

amazing job and I, you know, it, it

just sucks that you have to apologize for

it to everyone.

But, um, at the end of the day,

I'm my, what I struggle with my husband

when we shoot together is, and it's just

us and maybe a couple videographers.

I feel like we try our best to

not make the day feel like a photo

shoot as much as possible.

Obviously this was a complete photo shoot.

Do you two feel at the end of

the day that they had their dream wedding?

Did you notice that they did have moments

where they got to experience an actual wedding

and time for each other or, you know,

by four o'clock where you're like, man,

that was just one big photo shoot for

this couple.

Okay.

So there's like three things that I want

to say.

Okay.

Uh, let's see.

First is, uh, if you hear me apologizing,

I'm sorry.

Uh, no, I'm in all actuality.

Um, I'm a natural apologizer.

So one time I was in a bathroom

and a lady walked into the stall on

me and I said, Oh, I'm sorry.

And she's like, and she shuts the door.

I'm like, why am I apologizing?

So I apologize.

Uh, I think that I do feel like,

um, the apologies now feel a little bit

more like, it's uncomfortable as a professional, as

like a leader.

Here I am producing family pictures that are

spotty.

Like I want to say, I'm sorry.

I know it's not the best.

So let me back it up and say,

I'm proud.

I'm proud of the photos.

Are they the best photos I've ever taken?

No, but I'm still darn proud of what

we produced of my team.

It moves me at the core.

So, um, the apologies are more of like

embarrassment just to kind of like, I know

what I, I know that they're not perfect.

Um, I have to be very careful about,

um, projecting my thoughts on how a client

experienced his or her day.

I know that the relationship that I have

with my clients is intact because they knew

that I was on their team.

I can't control anybody else.

I can only control my brand.

And I think that I effectively did that.

Thank you.

That was a good question.

It's always like a little, a little hard

to talk about.

I want to go here.

Excuse me.

So for me, the day was stressful.

The timing was stressful.

The, the light was stressful.

It was live.

You had the not live and you had

creative live.

Um, like it was a recipe for craziness.

And then you added your thoughts.

What were you thinking when you held the

camera?

What's the F stuff?

What's this?

What's that?

How?

Cause for me, I feel like that would

have gone out the window because I would

have been so stressed.

How did you deal with that?

It was helpful to us and we appreciate

it, but I can't imagine that you did

it.

Thank you.

Um, okay.

Uh, I'll be honest.

I don't even know how to answer that

question.

Um, I don't think that we as humans

know how great we can be until we're

pressed.

I believe that if you would have told

me two days, the day before we went

to Sonoma, that that was how the day

was going to end and how the, I

say, I feel like I'm getting credit when

I shouldn't be.

It's like, it was the team from creative

live.

It was my husband and it was Tammy.

Everybody was behind me, pushing me.

And I feel like it's a really emotional

thing to talk about a little bit because

I was like, I wasn't enough.

But in that moment they made me that

way.

So, um, it was really important for me

to keep in the back of the mind

that the, for me, it wasn't the wedding.

And for me, it wasn't, um, about my

business.

It was about two things, Samantha and Taylor

and the greater good of the photographic industry.

I believe in it.

And to watch somebody or shoot an entire

wedding without any articulation and narrative would be

very difficult to watch.

So the big picture was give until you

can't give any more.

And I felt like when we left at

the end of the day, I gave it

all.

And sure, some people might not think it's

enough, but it was all I had.

And when I look back at the footage,

um, of course I, my biggest, uh, criticizer,

I like criticizer.

Okay.

Um, I'm my biggest critic.

I'm a biggest critic, but do I think

people learned?

Yes.

And I'm, I'm okay with that.

I am absolutely okay with it.

So no, I didn't, it wasn't cognizant.

Um, I didn't, I went to bed that

night just being like, okay, we, we did

another wedding.

Um, woke up the next morning, was finishing

the edits for the knot.

Uh, I took a very, very, very hot

bath and I was like, okay, we have

to get on a flight.

And then I read, uh, comments on Facebook

and then I just started in the best

way, in the best way, just started bowling.

Cause it was there in this moment that

people on the internet, complete strangers were just

like, oh my God, we saw what you

did.

That light, that crew, those cameras.

And I was like, it was hard.

And JD wakes up and he's like, what's

wrong?

I was like, we just did something really

hard.

I mean, 24 hours later, he's like, who

am I married to?

We didn't bring you water.

We understood you.

Oh, thank you.

Right there.

Yes, that is right.

That is right.

You didn't bring me water.

I too know what it is like to

thirst.

Um, is there a Mike?

Hi love.

I was just curious for, um, in regards

to the timeline and family photos, in regards

to the family photos and timeline when you're

pressed for time and you know, it's eating

away from bride and groom photos and more

family members want extra photos.

At what point do you professionally, you know,

stop that session for the family?

Okay.

So the question is how do I stop

family photos to save time for bride and

groom photos?

Yes.

If it's just all the time, all day,

every day, this is a constant battle on

wedding days.

So, um, in order to prep my clients,

um, we have to manage our expectation in

advance.

So I talked to them during the client

consultation about what family pictures look like.

If that becomes an issue for them.

Um, I had said also, as we prepare

clients for the wedding day, I send them

a list of things.

I ask for familial considerations.

I ask for a lot of stuff in

advance.

I then, I will say we keep family

pictures to about 25 minutes with the following

combinations.

And then I list what those combinations are.

Okay.

So now she knows what my expectations are.

Now we have everything outlined.

If we get to the wedding day and

there's like a whole entourage of, you know,

aunties who are coming in from the Philippines

and then their cousins and her godparents and

all this other stuff.

I was like, okay, we're getting off the

timeline.

How about we just do a big group

family photo.

And then instead of doing individual photographs, let's

break it up into all of your aunties

and uncles, then just your grandparents, then your

parents.

And so I'm trying to accommodate what this

is.

And I said, if we do individual photographs,

we're going to lose time for bride and

groom.

So how about this?

I will stay by auntie Mary the whole

night.

JD will stand by her.

And then as long as you gather all

your cousins, as long as you gather your

godparents, as long as you gather these people,

JD will shoot photographs of them all night

at the reception.

We'll find a pretty space for us to

do it.

And I said, but we need this time.

And so it's not really an option.

I say, this is what we're going to

do.

Does that help?

I'm a little hard-nosed with it though.

Okay.

Okay.

Well, about family photos that we're speaking about.

I have a wedding next Friday and it's

500 guests.

This is one of my biggest weddings this

year.

But the thing is that above all, I'm

pretty worried about the family photos because I

met with the mom and the bride and

they're going to give me a checklist about

all the groups that they want to shot

with.

The thing is, usually in my country, weddings

are at night first.

The second thing is that the family photos

are going to be shot in a ballroom.

So there's no pretty background for that.

And at the end, they're putting one hour

for family photos.

But can you imagine?

It's 500 guests and she wants to do

a bunch of family groups like, okay, now

this kind of group, now we're going to

reorganize and have these same persons in this

group.

So I don't think they're going to take

time for them to take bride and groom

pictures because they're going to be so tired

after one hour of taking pictures with half

of the guests, I think.

So I'm totally worried about that.

And another part is like, I get really

bored.

I get totally bored of taking those pictures

because it's like the same, like the classic

portraits, everybody looking at the camera.

And I don't want to be posting every

single group because it's going to take so

much time.

Okay, so you're a week from the wedding,

more or less.

So I request for the list, but they

haven't sent it to me.

Like a month ago, I keep reminding them.

Let's see.

There's a lot in there.

Okay, so you requested the list and they

did not send you the list.

So what you need to do is you

need to, at the lunch break today, you

need to email them and say, we're a

week from it.

I cannot be legally responsible because in my

contract, I outlined that a family shot list

is due a month before.

So technically, legally, I am not bound to

it.

So you say, because we only have this

amount of time, if you do send me

the shot list, I need you to prioritize

the photos in the order you want them

taken, because we will end family photos at

this time.

If we do not end the family photos

at this time, you will lose bride and

groom photos.

And I can't, I don't want you to

do that.

So we will shoot just for an hour.

If there are groups that we do not

get in that hour, we will shoot them

during the reception at a later point in

time.

So to me, manage expectations, set the outlines

and say, you have to say, I'm done

with family photos.

And you need to also follow up with

the mom, because I feel like the mom

is having her hand in this.

So that conversation needs to happen with both

of them in advance.

And you are young, and you're petite, and

you're very docile.

But it's time for you to kind of

just say, this is the time that it

will end because of bride and groom photos.

If we shoot family photos, we will not

get bride and groom photos.

If you are making that decision, I will

abide by it.

But you need to be cognizant decision on

your end.

Sorry, that's like a little.

Okay, let's get into one more question from

the group.

We have just like a few more minutes

in this lesson.

So Stephanie Ponce, one of the photos you

posted this morning from the knot wedding with

Samantha surrounded by her bridesmaids, with some of

them adjusting her dress.

Do you set up shots like this?

My shots of the bride and her maids

getting ready always look horrible because they sit

around and look so unhappy or bored.

How do you curate shots like that so

they seem so natural and happy?

Okay, so let's go back to lesson number

one or two.

From this bootcamp, that was defining your photographic

style.

I don't know how many times I have

to come back to this whole thing and

loop it back around.

I'm a lifestyle photographer, which means by definition,

I will find the best light.

I will heavily curate photos.

I will set things up.

And in the beginning, I used to be

afraid or embarrassed of this notion because I

wasn't photojournalistic and I wasn't artistic.

I threw that out the window a good

five years ago because I understood my strengths

and the kind of photos that I wanted.

Because I could not make those photos happen

naturally, what I had to do was create

them artificially in a natural way.

So what we see in a curated gallery

of photos are all the bridesmaids fully dressed,

makeup on, lotioned up, jewelry, touching her dress.

Now you saw this in the video footage.

I asked them, ladies, 10 minutes before she

got in her dress, go get dressed, go

get dressed.

I would not get the bride dressed until

the bridesmaids were dressed.

So I was behind them like a Puerto

Rican taskmaster.

Let's go.

How are we doing?

Where is Samantha?

Can somebody go get Samantha?

Perfect.

And as we're doing this, we're clearing out

that room because you saw how filthy it

was.

Not because of the bride, not because of

bridesmaids.

There was just literally 100 people in a

small little room.

So do I heavily curate those photos?

Absolutely.

Do I say, can you go down?

Can you adjust her dress?

Do I put her in good light?

Yes.

Now here's the thing that I wanted to

point out.

The room that we were in was rectangular.

You might think that it would be best

to shoot it from one angle to the

other, except for the fact that we had

a makeup station, that Revlon crew, we had

the knot, then we had flowers, and then

we had a bar, and we had so

much junk.

And my thought in the back of my

mind is, what am I going to do?

What am I going to do?

What am I going to do?

What am I going to do?

So then I was like, flip the script,

open the door, put her in front of

the fireplace.

It's a really small space.

We moved out the table, we moved out

chairs, and we moved out a sofa.

I essentially created my own little workspace so

that when people saw it on the blog,

people who did not see the live broadcast

for the wedding from the knot, did not

see any creative live footage, they're thinking, how

lovely and sweet and clean is that room?

When we all know, oh my god, it

was nothing like that.

So in the future, if you guys happen

to stumble across my blog and there's an

absolutely immaculate room, chances are it's artificial.

So you go on and you own that

artificialness and then make it look natural if

that is your photographic style.

We're going to end with one photo.

I think you have a mic?

Who has a mic?

Okay, we'll go one and two.

Great.

I just wanted to say, you know, watching

this, you know better than anybody that the

internet can be mean or very critical.

No.

I haven't experienced any of that.

Never.

But I just wanted to tell you like,

just from my observation in Facebook groups, like

mad props to Jasmine.

Like Wayne's World, like we're not worthy.

Like seriously, because you know, anyone who has

any sort of wedding experience knows things go

wrong.

Things get thrown at you.

You know, you have people needing things.

Those types of things happen, you know, on

a, every week.

Yes.

In a different way, not in a not

dream wedding type of way.

So I just wanted to tell you like,

I just like felt I needed to tell

you like mad props.

Like we, we know, we feel you, you

know what I mean?

Thank you.

You too know what it's like to thirst.

And that's the beauty.

That has been, this is the unforeseen beauty

of this bootcamp.

Was the fact that whatever, I don't, I

didn't, I didn't even know it existed.

Whatever smoke and mirrors existed around my brand,

that I walked into things and they were

great and that I had all this time

and luxury were disseminated.

People saw me take the little I had

and then make it work.

And I hope that it's not about me.

I hope it's not about the Wayne's World.

We're not worthy.

I hope it says we are worthy.

We are changing it based on our trajectory

and our goals.

But thank you so much for saying it

means the world to me.

Cause you know, you feel alone.

You're like, Oh my God, that's so embarrassing.

Everybody's watching me do this.

This is humiliating.

Um, but at the end of the day,

thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

We'll take one more question.

Uh, so how do you handle, um, requests

from the bride or members of the bridal

party that want to do a photo that's

totally outside of your style?

Oh my God.

Did you see that happen?

I did.

I did.

We're going to bring that right up to

speed, especially when you're running out of time.

Yes.

Yes.

Okay.

So, uh, there is no such thing as

a bad photo request.

Obviously if it's being made, it's, uh, measurably

special.

Um, I had made a mention of this

before.

Sometimes people, if the bride is putting on

deodorant, people will say, Oh, get a photo

of that.

Then I know I've, I talked to you

through how I get out of that.

Right.

But, um, in this particular situation, there was,

um, a couple of bridesmaids who have a

thing with the bride.

So it's like this pose.

And when I was going through the edit

now, there was a couple of things that

were cut out just due to how long

this wedding was.

I was shooting the bridesmaids.

I was very late shooting the bridesmaids due

to unforeseen circumstances.

I had about five minutes to do it.

Then I realized that guests were being seated

at the ceremony.

What I did not shoot was the bride

and her bridesmaids individually, but I know that

that's important.

So I turned to JD, I was like,

got it.

Or I said, get it.

And I ran.

Like I literally, the creative life crew was

jumping behind me as I'm like darting out

to the ceremony.

So what I see as I go through

the edit and go through the coal are

Samantha and her bridesmaids.

And then there's, um, a couple of bridesmaids

that are doing these really weird things.

And I'm like, Judy, what was this?

Like, as I go through this images, I

need to say, is this important?

Or were these just outtakes?

And he's like, no, it's a thing that

they do.

And I was like, Oh, okay.

So then I had to take a measured

approach.

Do I keep them in the edit or

do I not?

So I kept it to just to say

that that was what we captured, but no,

I'm not going to give you all of

it.

It also happened with the groomsmen.

They're like, we want to hide behind a

bush.

All of us hiding.

Like you guys, I can't make this up.

I can't make this up.

So I'm looking through JD's photos and my

poor sweet JD, I give him that.

I give him the weird photos.

The guy's hiding.

I give him table shots.

Like, so I go through his images and

I'm like, Oh, bless his heart.

You know?

So I'm like, Judy, what happened?

Like, why were these all guys?

Like they're all like lined up against a

hedge and like this, like, I was like,

what happened?

Like, what is this?

And he's like, they wanted to hide behind

a bush.

And I was just like, were they drunk?

Are these really important?

And he's just like, he's like, I don't

think they need to be in the edit.

And I was like, they asked you for

them.

He's like, yeah, they asked me.

And I was like, okay.

They got one.

They got one.

Cause you guys, you know what I'm thinking

back my mind?

Oh my God.

Photographers are going to see this.

They're going to think that we make men

hide behind bushes.

We don't do that, but we should understand.

That is the point.

Because you know what I wanted to do?

I wanted to have a separate, a separate

gallery.

I'm not going to lie.

I'm not going to lie.

I had these thoughts.

Oh, I'm not going to show this.

Oh, this was awkward.

And then I was like, you know what?

I'm not being true to myself.

I'm not being true to people because what

I'm going to give the impression is I

never shoot those photos.

I do.

Now what we saw in the footage as

I shot the bridal party were, um, the

girls, there was, I don't know if this

made, uh, actually this didn't make the cut.

There's two bridesmaids.

They're like, we always do this thing.

And it's just making really weird and silly

faces.

And I was like, okay.

So I shot it.

It made the edit because that was a

thing that they do.

Okay.

That's what they're all friends.

They've all gone to each other's weddings.

So there's a chance that they probably want

to put all those photos together.

Okay.

I'll do it.

Now they had said, and I do not

ever suggest the bride and the groomsmen and

then the groom and the bridesmaids.

I hate that photo.

I don't know.

I don't have a good reason why I

hate it.

I just do.

I don't think I'm creative.

I think it's so lame.

Okay.

Is it, is it too early to be

this truthful?

Okay.

I, I don't know.

It's probably whatever it is, what it is.

So they had said the girls like, we

want to take a picture with Taylor.

And I said, okay, so we don't have

very much time, but let's hurry and let

let let's, let's take this photo.

And, um, I just put the girls around

Taylor.

Like if there's going to be a photo,

don't carry him.

I don't want to do a jumping shot.

I don't want everybody to like, pretend like

they're kissing him.

Like we've all seen that.

It's so cheesy.

And I'm just like, oh, so it's like,

ladies, just get around Taylor, just get around

Taylor.

And then there was one bridesmaid who got

his tie.

And she's like, and I'm like, why are

you doing that?

It looks like you're choking him.

And JD at a later point in time,

we were walking away.

He's like, why didn't you tell her to

put down the tie?

And I was like, it wasn't worth it.

She's been the one all day to be

requesting these silly photos.

If I had told her that I'm going

to be like squashing her, squashing her, squashing

her.

It's not my job, you know?

So, uh, now the bride and the groomsman

photos, the bride with the groomsman, I just

put her out kind of like at the

apex, the guys kind of staggered behind her

one shot.

They all came around her to shot.

Dodd.

I feel okay with that.

It is what it is.

They're happy.

I'm happy.

So, um, as far as that now, if

we were running out of time and they're

asking for that, I was like, I love

this idea.

You know, running out of time for the

bride and groom photos before we do the

grand entrance, I'll meet you guys at the

line and I'll take it.

I'll take the photo then.

Yeah.

Okay.

I want to say thank you guys.

This Q and A was effective.

You guys are literally creating a password quilt

of behind the scenes and then behind, behind

the scenes.

Thank you guys for your time.

I appreciate it very much.