What Inspires us… a look into our lives.

Being in a creative industry it can be very difficult to always be inspired.  Since we are a husband and wife team and run our business together, often there will be things that will inspire both of us.  But, we are still unique individuals and we have interests (as do most married couples) that our spouse just cannot get into.  These are just a few of our interests we use to inspire us.

Emma

Music – Ever since I was young I was surrounded by music.  From my dad strumming his guitar, to the sound of the Beatles playing “They Say It’s Your Birthday” (my dad would play this on our birthdays to wake us up) music is international.  I think 2 people from different countries, who don’t know each other and can’t communicate, can listen to the same song and feel the same thing.  That is the magic of music.  Music can even spark memories, there isn’t an emotion it cannot evoke.

 

My kids – Being a better mother and being there for them is a huge part of why I wanted to run a business.  I wanted to be home after school and in the morning.  As a business owner, we can spend holidays together and not have to worry about one of us working.  My kids’ smiles and happiness is what inspires me to work harder, so we can do more.  Not just monetarily, but shaping them, being there for them, and having quality family time.

 

Sunshine – You don’t realize how motivating sunshine can be until you move to Seattle for 6 LONG years and rarely see it.  You take it for granted and then it’s gone… and when it does come out, you are like THE HEAVENS ARE SMILING as triumphant music plays!  LOL
When the sun is shining, people are HAPPY and happiness spreads and I love that.  Sunshine brings about BBQ’s and walking on the beach.  Sunshine brings dinners or breakfasts on the patio and playing with the Slip n’ Slide in the yard.  Sunshine inspires me to get OUTSIDE and do more.

Food/A Good Meal/SWEETS – There is something to be said about enjoying dinner with a glass of wine and actually enjoying it.  So often we rush through dinner and barely taste it.  While I admit I do NOT like trying new things… I love the ones I do enjoy (a good salmon, steak or even crab legs at a Vegas buffet).  Eating brings people together and even though I am an introvert… once I know you it’s good times.  I hope I don’t have to explain SWEETS.  I joke to my couples that having a slice of cake is in our contract… and I have even gone cake tasting with our newly engaged couples.  Cake is vital to my existence as a wedding photographer (ok, not really…maybe?).

My husband – I know this is totally cheesy and cliche’ but I am inspired by LOVE.  His love for me through the good and the BAD, which sadly we have had family losses.  If it wasn’t for him, I don’t know if I could have made it through.  I still struggle… but he is always there for me, doing the little things like cleaning the house (ok… it’s a big thing) and making me dinner at the end of a busy day.  I am LUCKY and I know this.  I want to be better, he makes me want to be a better version of myself and that is inspiring!

 

**Photo by Carrie Swails 

 

Josh

Stories – At a wedding, it always makes me smile to hear the toasts and speeches from the various family and friends.  Getting to hear the stories that our clients often times don’t share with us, is always a highlight.  Also, I love to hear about other people overcoming their personal struggles.  I am a total sucker for those human interest pieces every Sunday on SportsCenter and during the Olympics.

Sports – I love EVERYTHING competitive.  I will watch anything from F1 Racing (my total favorite) to baseball to rugby and all events in between.  Even if I don’t know the rules or quite understand the game, I will watch just to try to learn what is going on and what drives these athletes.  Being able to enjoy sporting events with friends is just an added bonus!

Social Gatherings – I am a total extrovert and I love getting together with people.  The more the merrier in my world.  Getting to hear everyone’s stories and share things you might have in common, which can lead to much deeper conversations makes me feel overjoyed.  Some of my favorite moments are when we are just hanging out between taking photos talking to our amazing couples about their interests and learning more about what makes them tick.

Travel – I have always wanted to see new places and do new things.  Whenever I can, I do, but it can be challenging to balance a family with travel and it can get quite expensive to have the entire family travel together.

 

 

My Wife – Having a partner in life if truly amazing.  I get to share successes and fight through struggles alongside my best friend.  Watching her work and seeing the end product inspires me to be better.  My goal is to be able to give her everything she desires and to grow old alongside her.

 

**Photo by Carrie Swails

**Photo by Amelia Benjamin

 

Emma + Josh

TV – We are extremely thankful for the invention of the DVR.  We get to watch all our favorite shows, regardless of how busy we are!  Dramas, comedies, network, cable… we are TV addicts and love ALL different types of shows, just depends on the mood.  While we watch a lot of shows together, Emma has a tendency to enjoy some guilty pleasure like The Vampire Diaries and Josh enjoys typical “guy” shows like Top Gear (and on that bombshell…)

Clients – Connecting with people is vital to our business.  We do not see couples as wedding dates on a calander.  We invest into our couples and their relationship.  We want to see people in love CELEBRATE that love and for us to be able to be part of that, inspires US as both photographers and as husband/wife.  We don’t just deliver photos, we deliver an experience that has our couples laughing with us long AFTER the wedding is over.

 

Family – Our family drives us.  Seeing our kids happy makes us happy.  Of course, there are always challenges, but that just means we are real people and for that we are thankful.  One of our core beliefs is to maintain a positive work/life balance.  This is one of the reasons we limit the number of weddings we shoot in a month and overall in a year.

 **Photo by DisneyWorld Photographer

Whenever we get the chance to combine these things, it is an amazing feeling.  I hope you have found a few things that maybe you didn’t realize inspire you.

Share with us what your interests are by commenting below.

Connect with us on Facebook to stay in the know.

If you want to be a part of our inspiration, then contact us.  We would love to meet you!