Sometimes a referral does pan out! After couple M and J were given photographer Jonas Seaman‘s name by past Rf 30 Rising Star Hugh Whitaker, Jonas and his wife Mary found themselves documenting a gorgeous backyard wedding reception in Montauk, New York. “I got the immediate impression that they were spontaneous adventurers rather than diligent planners,” Jonas says of the couple. “They had eloped in Hawaii a few weeks prior, completely skipping the whole engagement part; they just wanted to be married. When I got involved, they were planning an intimate wedding reception with family and friends and asked if my wife Mary and I could fly out from Seattle to the bride’s family home in Montauk to capture the day. When I checked the event date… it was only a month away!”

All Photos © Jonas Seaman Photography

Jonas says that last minute bookings always feel a bit strange for him and Mary because, “Most of our wedding commissions are booked nearly a year in advance. I’ll usually Skype with clients once or twice before their day, and we’ll follow each other on Facebook and Instagram. I find that having this ‘get to know you’ time helps couples become more comfortable with you before you suddenly arrive with a camera in hand.” With this couple, though, he didn’t have much time to make a connection. “We scheduled a Skype and I learned that the groom is a professional skydiver and stuntman; the bride is a yoga teacher and studies meditation and Ayurveda. I figured I could explore some of their interests in the few weeks before their reception in order to get to know them a little better. I wasn’t about to jump out of a plane, so I decided to take on meditating. I made a point to meditate for 10 minutes every morning leading up to their shoot. I can’t say I was a very good meditator. I was a very good fidgeter. I’ve kept up meditating since and have become only slightly better at it. Anyway, by the time we got to Montauk I was excited to start a conversation.”

During the location scout, Jonas explained to the couple about his attempts at meditation. M, in turn, shared more about her specific practice with Ayurveda. “It dawned on me that my need to get to know a couple before I photograph them may have as much to do with making me feel at ease with others as it does for them to be more comfortable with me. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve walked into shoots hardly knowing anyone and have come out feeling great about the work, but it always feels better for me to have a sense of connection. M shared with us that there are five elements which form the foundation of Ayurvedic practice: Ether, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. I usually love taking pictures of the environment, so I set an intention to try to get images in their collection representing each of these elements. As it turns out, getting pictures of Air, Fire, Water, and Earth is actually not very challenging since those elements are all around us. Ether, on the other hand, took a little more creativity.

Jonas continues: “M explained that Ether refers to ‘space.’ It is emptiness, or rather, the space that the other elements fill. For instance, in Ayurvedic thought the first element, Air, evolves out of Ether. I started thinking about negative space in compositions, but still nothing I composed was resonating. At one point during the scout a bird swooped over my head and I quickly snapped a shot, missing focus. When I saw it during culling I decided it was my Ether shot. Because it was blurry, it felt like a picture of something not yet fully formed, like an element evolving from emptiness. It didn’t bother me that it was out of focus and accidental. Or, that in the end I didn’t actually intend the image. I love pictures like these that come out of nowhere.”

For Jonas, setting certain intentions for shoots like this stimulates his creativity. “Even if I can’t follow through on a specific one, just the act of looking for something to incorporate into an image starts getting me inspired. Whether I’m photographing a Christian couple, a Buddhist couple, or a couple that aren’t religious or spiritual at all—they may be obsessed with old movies or vintage clothing—whatever it may be, these are just ways for me to have a jumping off point, to stay creative and have fun with every shoot. Plus, I find having certain intentions while shooting adds another layer to the experience, and hopefully, in the end, it adds something special to the images themselves.”

Overall, Jonas sums up, the day played out beautifully. “M and J were truly a pleasure to photograph. It’s always such an honor to be invited into the lives of two people in love, to spend time with their family and friends, and to capture this special moment in time. I truly love this kind of work.”

GEAR FOR THE DAY:

Cameras: Canon 5D Mark III and 5D Mark IV

Lenses: Canon 24mm f/1.4L, 35mm f/1.4L and 45mm tilt-shift (Jonas); 50mm f/1.2L (Mary)

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