“You will throw a fabulous wedding!”
“Who’s going to be your wedding photographer?”
I have received so many beautiful notes over the last week congratulating me on my engagement and I am so overwhelmed with love, thank you, thank you, thank you! Now I can finally reveal that a big reason behind why I’d been so adamant about taking a hiatus from full-time photography – it was so that I can build a beautiful life with him. Photographing other people’s weddings was proving to be an obstacle to my own love story, since we were a long distance couple and could only see each other during the weekends. In America all too often the culture is work first, family second. I wanted my life to be family first, work second. I have been profoundly impacted by this article of the regrets of the dying and many others, and decided I would live life to the fullest.
A wise blogger told me, never blog something you wouldn’t want your mother to read. When I began dating my fiance, he taught me the value of keeping the most precious things in your life private. Now, the photographer behind Shang Chen Photography that you all see, it’s not a fake persona. It’s a part of me, but it’s not all of me. I know thousands of people read my blog, as I still every now and then meet someone randomly who’s been a fan for a long time.
I couldn’t bring myself to blog about my proposal. Why? It’s too beautiful. It’s the best engagement proposal I could have wished for, and I only want the people who truly understand us to know what happened. In addition, when I shared my decision to not have a diamond-focused ring, the reaction was mainly supportive, but I could tell that some people took issue to it. When I have thousands of people following me, I need to separate what I think as a wedding professional from what I personally think as a bride-to-be. I’m not saying that people actually listen to what I say, but I do want to be responsible for my professional presence.
My wedding is about me and him. It is personal. The choices I’ve made in planning were choices made by a couple who want their wedding to be meaningful and special to everyone in attendance, not professional choices made by a wedding photographer. Of course, I will be hiring some pretty awesome photographers I am also lucky enough to call my friends, so don’t you worry about that one ;)
For those who wanted to learn about wedding planning, I really only have two points to make:
1) Don’t get into debt throwing a wedding. This is your first big financial decision together, it will set the tone for how you two approach money in the future
2) Your wedding isn’t a show for others. It’s not something you plan so you can get it into a magazine. Your wedding is about you and your future spouse, so make it personal, because that’s how it is beautiful
I don’t want the world looking to my wedding for some sort of trend or statement. Hence, I won’t be blogging actively about it. Nevertheless, thank you all so much for being so supportive of me, I really appreciate it! In addition, much appreciation and thanks goes out to all my clients who were willing to let their love stories be featured on my blog.
This blog post also serves as an official announcement that there will be an end to my hiatus, with some modifications. I will be strictly observing a religious sabbath on Saturdays. Unfortunately this kills off a bulk of wedding celebrations, but I have the faith that in making God and my family first priority, everything else will work itself out. So, if you’re getting married on a Sunday in 2014… please get in touch =)
Shang is a wedding photographer for dynamic couples who are in love and see a world bursting with color and possibility. She now adds “engaged” to her relationship status
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by Shang
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