We filmed this {us} story with Aleah and Steve in Ocean City New Jersey. On that particular day there were a crazy amount of birds and gnats flying around everywhere. The way that the birds and gnats seemed to be everywhere, landing, flying, biting… Well, it was like some crazy scene out of Hitchcock film. Even though the distractions were everywhere around us, Aleah and Steve kept in good spirits and laughed it off about a million gnat bites later and what impressed me most was their ability to take these annoying conditions and focus on each other and the tasks at hand. Both Aleah and Steve powered through the photo session, interview and cinema portion of the session with the kind of love, patience and tolerance that would have sent many people running for the hills. I’ve seen this happen on many occasions. It’s too hot, it’s too cold, it’s too dark, it’s too bright, I’m too hungry, I’m too tired, there’s too many bugs, you get the picture. We are respectful of these choices but that doesn’t mean that I don’t wish that we could have taken advantage of the moments in front of us with compliance, resilience and focus. It is after all not our memories but yours and if nothing else, one thing I am painfully aware of is that you can’t go back in time to do the things you should have, could have, wanted to.
I imagine that if Aleah and Steve can stave off thousands of biting gnats and crazy flying birds for several hours so that we could get through filming then they have the type of beautiful attitudes that will in turn take them very far in life and love =) I imagine that there is that kind of fortitude within each and every one of us that when needed allows us to push a little harder for the things that are most meaningful to us. Aleah and Steve reminded me of something very important on the day of their shoot. They reminded me to seize the moment, to go with my gut and to always pursue the things that are most important within that moment.
Sadly a few short weeks after this session was filmed much of this location was irreparably damaged due to Hurricane Sandy. The space where we filmed their interview is completely destroyed, leveled as if it never existed. The Dunes where the sunset and sky time lapses were filmed are no longer there… just a distant memory of a place that once was. Things, places & moments with the people we love can be so fragile in this world we live in and sometimes I feel that mother nature has a way of warning us and of reminding us to cherish and never take for granted what is right in front of our eyes.
Seriously though, I’m always excited when my message shines through to the types of people that want Real and Cool. I have split personality when it comes to shooting and I do want to make emotionally authentic work that inspires me, I also want to make beautiful and cool images too. Ying and Yang, all day long!
