Pretty Fun Things

Running with the Press (and Pres)

Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:54:00 -0400

This Friday gets two posts since I’m a bit behind. The first is the delayed awesomeness of getting to photograph the President of Turkey, Abdullah Gül. I was honored to get to run with the (all male) press (backwards, with elbows) while the President visited Twitter HQ last Friday. Just as fun as President Medvedev’s visit in 2010, how could I not love working at Twitter?

Your Wedding is (not) in the details

Wed, 30 May 2012 00:28:00 -0400

There are a lot of things. Fun, happy posts are coming soon, both from wonderful words, beautiful weddings, and some random crazy events that filled the gaps of my last few weeks. But before I get there, I have to pause and get out a little something that’s been brewing and causing some distraction. I usually avoid taking public stances on wedding world politics because it’s not useful and it’s likely to offend someone. Views vary and so do contexts, and I’m aware that my past, present and future clients all fall somewhere on a spectrum. I love diversity. What I don’t love is missing the point.

When I got married in 2006, “details” weren’t really a thing- at least not to a grad student in Western Australia. I knew I wanted dahlias in the coffee jars my father in law collected, and I insisted my chairs were covered in black cloth. We hand made cds for favors and I abused the printers at work to hack together my invitations. It was fun. We were relatively broke and as much as I love attention, we didn’t want to make it a huge thing. We invited ten people to the beach and then had a fancy dinner with 60 friends. I’d probably do it differently now, but I also wouldn’t take any of it back.

(our first dance)

I’ve photographed 19 weddings in the last 12 months. I’ve seen some amazing things, been around the most inspiring people, and worked with a variety of vendors. Almost 100% of the time, these have been enriching experiences. However, I recently photographed a wedding that changed this for me, and made me gasp, rant, and pace my home in anger. I was played by some planners who forgot that the wedding isn’t just about the details (fed I’m sure by the wedding-blog* industry’s obsesssssssion with details details details), that it’s actually about People and well, marriage.

Happy to receive a super detailed timeline, my (awesome, talented, I’m lucky to have had her) second shooter and I had no problem figuring out where we had to be and when. We should have figured it out sooner, but half way through the ceremony I was stopped by Planner who wanted to tell me what magazines she was published in and let me know about the shots my assistant was able to get of her setup. During the ceremony.

Little bits started to make sense, but eventually at the reception where my second shooter had been shooting “details” for over an hour before guests arrived, Planner asked me when she’d be receiving her cd of the images. ? She was a little horrified when I told her that I would not be sending her a cd. After five minutes of astonishing, you must be kidding me lady conversation where she insisted that she needed access to the photos and soon, I realized that we had been used by them as their advertising photographers, taking away from some pretty special moments when I could have had my Second where she really needed to be.

The couple were amazing and despite some things happening imperfectly, kept their heads and had the greatest time. I switched between being impressed by their ability to keep it cool, wanting to shield them from the craziness of Planner (whose only job IMO was really to make sure they were shielded from craziness), and the wrath I felt for Planner and her audacity.

I tell couples all the time that things go wrong at weddings, no matter how perfectly planned. Our ipod playlist semi-failed, I missed my hair appointment and the salon was less than sympathetic when learning that I lied about the ‘dance’ I was going to to avoid paying wedding prices. A fight the week of the wedding meant I never spoke to two bridesmaids again. But when I look back to the details of our wedding, I don’t think about those things, or about my chair covers (do they even have those anymore?) as serious as they seemed. I think about how fortunate I was to have spent time with Lindsay who traveled from the US and died suddenly five years later. I think about dancing my heart out and the color of my feet at the end of the night. I think about the wind in our faces and our friend playing guitar, of signing our license on our other friend’s back. My clients will remember the gorgeous speeches and the loving embraces. Not the extra extra something Planner added to the tables. It’s about the people, people. Celebrations are sometimes productions, but what’s an opera without the singers?

Sing. Enjoy the music. Hire people who have your best interests at heart and do what they do because they love it- not because they’re looking to use you as a prop in their production. And if you find yourself with production planners, at least suggest that they pay you to model for them.

(oh, and PS planners and venues: When a photographer says they’d like to eat at the same time as guests, it’s not because they’re being pushy. It’s because photos of eating aren’t attractive and missing the fun after dinner isn’t ideal for anyone. Also, cold, sparse leftover platters don’t make for happy photographers. Our clients would be appaled if they knew what “vendor meals” sometimes consist of, and that you wanted us to miss sunset because that’s when guests were done being served.)

*obvious exception being A Practical Wedding, who provide the context to pull you out of such wedding insanity.

L & R - Sweet Teary Love at City Hall SF

Fri, 18 May 2012 08:14:00 -0400

It always amazes me that no matter how many times I walk into City Hall with new clients, it always looks and feels entirely different. Each couple seems to make it their own, and around each corner I find new shadows and angles and beauty. Walking in next to L & R, I couldn’t imagine them getting married anywhere else. The impact their effortless elegance had on me was matched only by the tears that welled up in everyone’s eyes throughout the ceremony. What a perfect, exciting but calm afternoon; what happy, beautiful love.

A Sorta Fairytale (the 30th Birthday Kind)

Thu, 17 May 2012 12:44:00 -0400

I’ve always taken celebrations seriously. And required hats of some kind. I often require dressing up. I can be a ham, and I have friends who are usually comfortable with me asking them to do crazy things, often involving being my moving models. So when Jenna, Kristen and I had a last minute decision to get out of town for my birthday, I wanted nothing more than to get dressed up and have a birthday picnic in Russian River with a few friends who would be up for the fun. It worked. Because this isn’t just what it looked like. As silly as we were, this is what it felt like (with a little help from some cocktails). The nights went on, involving glitter guns and bars and blurriness while out in our fairytale drag. I didn’t think anything could top Capes and Crowns, but I think I proved myself wrong.

(credit to Nick for taking the photos of me!)

Erika & Tristan are on APW Today!

Wed, 16 May 2012 21:12:00 -0400

An ultra busy day means that I’m a bit late to the story, but the amazing Erika and Tristan are today’s Wordless Wedding on my favorite wedding website ever, A Practical Wedding!

Not only were we another APW match made in heaven, but Erika & Tristan are the poster children for everything APW stands for. I’m so happy to see them there.

Thanks APW and thank you E & T for being so much gorgeous fun!!

http://apracticalwedding.com/2012/05/san-francisco-city-hall-weekday-brunch-wedding

I've run out of film- can we stop having fun now? (Plus DC with Annie)

Wed, 16 May 2012 14:27:00 -0400

I found myself saying (and meaning) this over the weekend, and as sad as it is true, I had to laugh. I’m so happy that I see such beautiful things around me all the time and extra happy when I can take them with me. Here are a few moments that wound up in the mix. Imagine: waking up early to read outside while feeling the sun on your face and drinking iced coffee; meeting friends for macarons and drinks on beautiful days; falling onto the couch after a long day and looking up to art and taxidermy and realizing how much you love home.

Also, a Saturday in DC with my Annie.

K & E's Wedding Adventure - City Hall and the Ferry Building, SF

Tue, 08 May 2012 15:05:00 -0400

It’s been quiet on the waterfront, but for fun and exciting reasons. I’ve been busier than ever, meeting great couples, working hard, baking, doing bits of travel, and taking lots of photos along the way. Here starts some catching up on what’s been happening.

I started my favorite month of the year with K & E, high school sweethearts who decided to get away from the Pacific Northwest and enjoy their elopement with their super relaxed and lovely parents in San Francisco. Seeing the calm in their approach, I wished that every couple could take a lesson from K & E on how to pick what’s important and avoid the stress that often goes hand in hand with weddings. It was such a happy and exciting day, and I was so happy to be a part of it. Thank you for letting me in on the fun, K & E, and congratulations!

A & D Engagement - Under the Freeway with Cocktails & Trees

Fri, 04 May 2012 07:31:00 -0400

My first meeting with A & D wasn’t over a coffee like usual, and it wasn’t about my gear or my style or like an interview to decide whether we were a fit. Instead, they suggested I come by their loft to have fancy cocktails courtesy of D’s artful mixology and we chatted like old friends catching up on life. I was late to wherever I was going that night because I simply didn’t want to leave their company. So when I arrived at their loft again a few months later for their engagement shoot, I was both elated and not entirely shocked when they suggested making some cocktails under the freeway (three glasses). Umm, Yes?

If this is what I get from A & D and their playful, romantic, stunning love in just a short shoot, I’m dying in anticipation for their wedding. Perhaps when I say “wait, walk slow, the colors here are beautiful” they’ll break out some slo-mo-karate dance moves again.

My Soul Belongs to Agnes Martin

Wed, 02 May 2012 14:35:00 -0400

New York. Spring. Leaves. Warmth. Quentin and Stephen and Tim. Trains along the Hudson. The Dia Beacon. No photos allowed inside (pain). The breathlessness of walking inside the Dia Beacon. Agnes Martin. The overwhelming emotion of being in a room surrounded by Agnes Martin’s lines. Lines. Robert Smithson’s Map of Broken Glass (Atlantis) on the cold floor. Natural light from above. The feeling of the sun on my face while laying on the grass outside. How did I grow up in a place so close but never know Beacon or the Hudson like this?

Let's Fly a Kite - A Chicago Sunday with N

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 13:48:00 -0400

A little less than a year later, I was lucky enough to spend an afternoon with my lovely little N, flying a kite and feeling the joy of spring in Chicago. I forgot that little boys grow so fast and was shocked to see him running around, melting my heart as usual. I also learned the fun challenge of shooting 100 speed film with the hardest camera to focus while little feet pattered past me. I long for these days, for laying in the grass in the presence of good friends in a happy, windy city.

K & R Engagement - The Mission and Beyond

Tue, 24 Apr 2012 08:05:00 -0400

Having friends get married means mixed feelings of “omg, I so want to shoot their wedding and I hope they ask” and then when they do, “omg, I so don’t want to disappoint them and want to give them the best”. Fortunately, K & R & I started the shoot at a bar to take the edge off and it happened to be the most awesome bar I’ve ever walked in to. Any anxiety soon forgotten, I never wanted to leave the colors and confetti or stop framing them within it.

The rest of the day was a welcome and tasty piece of cake with light and love and home and playful happiness in the sand and wind. Needless to say, I’m extremely excited for their wedding and the gorgeousness they grace my cameras with. Thanks K & R for such a super fun afternoon and for including me in the journey. (insert heart here)

S & J's Wedding - Springtime Love at Madrona Manor

Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:50:00 -0400

Whether it was the brilliance of a perfect spring day or having grown to think of them as old friends, S & J’s Madrona Manor wedding had me wiping away happy tears throughout the day. Watching them dance and laugh and embrace each other with excitement, I realized how much I admire them, how happy I am to have the fortune of documenting their union. Practically impossible to shortlist, this is what springtime love in the grassy hills of Healdsburg looks like.

Extra thanks to Allison Andres who was the best second shooter a photographer could ask for. I can’t wait to shoot more with her throughout the year.

Into the Woods

Fri, 13 Apr 2012 14:25:00 -0400

My Maudlin March (on Film)

Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:04:00 -0400

maud·lin/ˈmôdlin/

Adjective: Self-pityingly or tearfully sentimental, often through drunkenness.

March began for me with a spontaneous trip to Florida for two gloriously sunny beach days jumping waves and talking and being in the arms of my grandmother. How easily I could have stayed and soaked in the ease of life in warm weather and sand beneath my toes left me longing for college days in southern California.

Shortly after my return to the cold downpour season in San Francisco, I felt bombarded with bad news and the falling apart that comes with blows to a solid routine. Whether it was ending a sulky lunch by slipping in a restaurant full of people or realizing during a friend’s funeral that my dress was torn and I had been mooning the catholic church, breaking fillings or squinting to see art clearly because my tears poured too heavily, March was relentless in testing my strength to find a sense of humor in it all.

But I did, with long days in cafes with friends who I love and the constant reminder that things really could be tremendously worse, that I’m as fortunate as I’ve ever been. As I’ve now entered my last month of my 20s I feel that I’ve never acknowledged how much there is to learn about life and its secrets, feelings yet to be felt, life left to hopefully be lived.

Don’t worry, April gets better. More film tomorrow to pick it all back up, and then soon a wedding that revived my tears back to happy tears.

As It Seems - Opening Night

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:18:00 -0400

Once upon a time in late 2011 I stopped into a cute little store called Merch, where I bought Christmas presents and a piece of art for my new apartment. The art reminded me of my art and the walls seemed to beckon me.

With an impulsive afterthought on my way out of the store, I turned back and mentioned to the shop owner that I thought my art belonged here and scribbled my website on a business card.

Shortly after, I heard from Yong, who agreed that my art would indeed belong, and we started preparing what would be the opening of Never As It Seems.

Jenna came to set up with me on Wednesday, supporting my artist-chaos method of covering the floor with art, throwing it into spectrum order, and than randomly puncturing 85 holes in a wall, hoping it would fit. After it was all up and I was giddy with exhausted excitement, Jenna asked me what my goal was for the show. Without a pause, I knew that all I wanted was for people to come to opening night to celebrate.

My wildest expectations couldn’t have prepared me for a store that was packed all night with friends and strangers alike, so many telling me about their favorite pieces and their favorite stories, having fun and sharing in what was my favorite opening and unquestionably my favorite showing.

Endless thank you’s to everyone who came and made the night seem perfect.

Little Bat on Ruffled Blog

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:36:00 -0400

If you mosey on over to the ever pretty Ruffled blog today, you’ll find a bit about Little Bat.

Yay!

http://ruffledblog.com/little-bat-photography/

Never As It Seems - Art Again!

Fri, 23 Mar 2012 14:25:00 -0400

Aside from general life craziness, I’ve been quiet on the photo front because my brain has been giving a little TLC to art in preparation for Never As It Seems, my (sixth!) upcoming art exhibition.

On April 5th, the gorgeous little store called Merch on Haight Street in San Francisco will be hosting an opening of my work, and if you’re around, we’d love to have you there.

With over 80 (yes, eighty) pieces of art, most with dark little stories, Never as it Seems is a collection of both Paper Doll and Fragment collages that play with the imagination and ideas of relative reality. The opening will include some snack treats and drinks and hopefully good company, as well as the pretty merch of Merch.

Hope to see you there!

(See posts about previous exhibitions and creations here: http://jillianwest.com/tagged/art)

A & C Engagement Shoot - Bernal SF

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 07:44:00 -0500

Things, A & C Engagement Shoot Edition:

* A dog named Weezer

* A opening the door to their lovely home and me thinking how gorgeous she was, how stunning her red and blue and white were, seeing C around the corner and being maximum excited for this shoot

* Walking up hills and stairs and climbing towards perfect, peaceful places

* Me saying no to C’s idea of a “cute” photo, somehow ending in silly prom poses

* The “when” not “if” of A’s pants getting muddy actually happening when the slide had too much force and we both ended up on the ground together, laughing and picking up pieces of the wreckage

* Deciding to walk home for an hour with my gear because it was such a lovely night

* Spending the next day smiling over and over and over looking at how wonderful A & C’s love is, how much fun they have with each other, how much fun I had with them…

*…how excited I am for their wedding!

Lovely Lady #15 - My Interview on Mother Lovely

Sat, 03 Mar 2012 22:40:00 -0500

A little over a month ago, I received an email from Shannon at Mother Lovely, who had stumbled on my blog and wanted to know how I felt about being interviewed in my capacity as a “creative professional”.

If there’s anything nicer than being considered a “creative professional”, it’s holding the title of “Lovely Lady #15” by such a pretty blog.

Here’s a link to the full post: http://motherlovely.com/2012/03/03/lovely-lady-no-15/

Thanks Shannon and the Mother Lovely crew!

Kristen's Paris

Fri, 02 Mar 2012 13:01:00 -0500

Once upon a time, Kristen started bringing me boxes of Laduree macarons from her trips to Paris and then presented me with the cookbook that launched my obsession with perfecting them. Her returns from frequent trips would bring stories to keep me daydreaming, and by evening we’d talk about the one-day when we would share a Parisian flat that would be all ours.

Though Kristen had chosen not to go back to Paris with us this time, I wasn’t the least bit surprised when we found out in Amsterdam that she had made a last minute decision to meet us. So while Jenna ventured to London and April and I spent a day seeking pretty cafes and a bit of calm, Kristen journeyed over to show us her Paris.

We gave her all of maybe, ten minutes off her plane to put her things in our AirBNB apartment and get moving. The compass in her head lead us all around the city by foot, seeing lovers and color and all of the pretty things that make Paris…Paris.

We had overpriced but extremely tasty smoked salmon and cocktails at Cafe de Flore (has its own Wikipedia entry!?) and then shopped a bit around town before heading to a magical dinner at a Argentinian butcher shop-turned restaurant straight out of the 70s named Unico, gorgeous lovely waiter who became our best friend included.

(a serious Me by April, which according to my husband is an avant-garde version of me who doesn’t look like me)

Sam told us that orange was apparently the color of 2012- So I took this photo for him.

And Then….

Kristen and I brunched and wandered down beautiful little streets of the Marais until stumbling upon the shop that won our hearts (and our afternoon). Stylist Natalie had ultimate patience while we tried on every piece of hand-stiched, locally designed and made clothing, impossible to walk out without buying the whole store.

Me by Kristen doing what I did the whole trip- obsess over The Fountainhead, which I couldn’t put down (unless trying on clothes).

And then Jenna arrived and there were four. Four who understood the value of doing nothing in a little apartment, catching up on news, unwinding before our frenchy chic dinner to celebrate our last night in Paris…

My sadness at finishing my last roll of film for the trip…

And so ends the journey of a photo tour through New York, Moscow, Amsterdam and Paris. My waderlust no closer to appeasement, my camera still yearning to take more film and feel foreign in places both familiar and unknown, my heart still beating for that which makes me whole. Irreplaceable friendship in irresistible places, alive, photographed.