“
One bride got drunk and stood
on a bar and starting taking off
her dress. Another time I had to
call police to break up a brawl in
the parking lot at a reception. I
just learned to laugh it off – and
hope that stuff doesn’t happen at
my wedding someday.”
Photographers take different
approaches in their work. Some
stay in the background; other go
for a more accessible presence.
Either can lead to uncomfortable
moments.
“
Sometimes someone in the
bridal party sees a guy with an
eyebrow ring shooting photos
and thinks, ‘Hey, he’d like to do
some shots or weed,’ so that’s
awkward,” Cote says, laughing.
“
But at least they see me as being
part of the group.”
Wagner recalls one wedding
where his low-key style was
punished.
“
It can be frustrating,” he
says. “One over-the-top bride
was trying to micromanage
every little detail and for some
reason didn’t see me during the
actual ceremony, and somehow
she concluded I’d just gone to
lunch or something. In a while I
realized she was stewing and her
husband was obviously ticked
off and the family sort of treated
me weird, and I wondered
what was going on. A couple of
days later, she called the studio
and screamed and threatened
to sue because I wasn’t at the
ceremony – but I had the photos!
I’d been there all along. They
picked up their album and didn’t
even apologize.” Still, there are
rewards, both add.
“
Wedding photography was
a terrific way to be creative and
make a living,” Wagner says,
“
and it’s great for a single guy.
That’s how I met my wife, Kim.”
Cote says he tries to keep it all
in perspective.
“
Any time the bride and the
groom are satisfied and you get
a hug or whatever, that feels
good,” Cote says.
The Present
43
thePeorian.com
Christopher Cote
Don Wagner
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