No discussion about our wedding would be complete without at least a brief mention of our photographer, who was to wedding photography what Barney Fife was to law enforcement … or Florence Foster Jenkins to opera singing: confident, well-meaning, but ultimately a Hot Mess, as they say. I should say that our first choice for a wedding photographer was a fine young man named John Maccanelli. (The Racine Theater Guild’s Volunteer Of The Year Award is named for him.) We had heard only great things about him, and by the end of our meeting we knew he was a perfect choice for us. Just as we got up to leave, he told us that he had recently suffered a serious bout of cancer but was feeling better and had everything reason to think that he would still be feeling up to doing our wedding in four and a half months. But if this was cause for concern for us, he wanted us to know that he would understand if we felt like we needed to go with someone else for the sake of certainty. But if anything, his courage and grace – to say nothing of the courtesy he demonstrated in telling us about this – just gave us further certainty that he was the photographer we wanted to have …. No question about it.
Tragically, his cancer returned in early August – forcing him into premature retirement (he died a few months later) . We were heartbroken for him and for his wife – and also sad that this man we liked so much would not be able to be part of our big day. And with approximately one month’s notice, we also had to find a new photographer. By that point in time, there were very few options for us – but we were guardedly optimistic about a young man who had just relocated to the area and seemed mighty gung-ho, and we hired him with fingers crossed that he would do a good job for us. Well, I suppose he earned an ‘E’ for Effort but the final results were a big ‘D’ for Disappointment.
Part of the problem was that he had a fixation for the architecture of our church, so he ended up spending what seemed like most of the time with his camera pointed up at the ceiling or at other visual points of interest and not on us and on our guests. He tended to frame most of his shots to take in as much of the background as possible, even if that meant that the people who should have been the focal point were treated as an afterthought. The shot below was shot in the stairwell leading up to the back balcony, just because he liked what it looked like. I think you can maybe tell from the expression on Kathy’s face that she was thinking to herself “why are we doing this?” Next to it is just one of a plethora of shots he took in which the lovely woodwork seems to be the point of the photograph rather than the bride and groom
On the other hand, there were at least a couple of instances when he managed to capture the majesty of our sanctuary without diminishing the people in the shot – as in the shots he took of our wedding party as they walked down the aisle in the processional. These he nailed perfectly!
Mostly, though, when we got our first batch of photos to look through, we were thoroughly underwhelmed. We ordered some reprints of the best ones and waited to see the rest ….. and waited …. and waited …. and waited …. for almost two years before he finally had the rest of our photos for us to examine! These weren’t fancy, finished photos, mind you- just the most basic kind of prints from which we were to have selected certain shots for reprints. But at that point, we were beyond frustrated and wanted nothing further to do with the guy.
Fast forward 25 years – and I now realize that Kathy and I expended way too much time kvetching about this photographer. True, he made all kinds of questionable choices about what shots to take. True, he seemed to take an awful lot of pictures as though he were working for Architectural Digest. True, he wore a Hawaiian shirt to the wedding. But now, I think we both realize that wedding photos don’t need to capture every moment of the wedding day with pristine perfection. In the end, isn’t it just about having pictures to which we can turn years later and be taken back in time? For all of his bumbling, that’s what this guy managed to do- and pretty darn well. And I’m not sure I can even adequately express how thankful I am for these photos- even the ones which at the time left me shaking my head in bewilderment.
I am especially grateful that these photos can help us remember all of the dear ones who were there to cheer us on – but who are no longer with us. One of my favorite shots in this regard is actually one that I’m pretty sure was intended to capture the senior choir singing in the balcony, but doesn’t. (It appears that he just mis-aimed his camera.) But what it does show is a pew full of my colleagues from the radio station, including my dear friend Bill Guy. He is the guy towards the right of the frame, in a dark gray jacket with red tie. Bill died almost 20 years ago, and I thought I only had one photo of him. But here’s another one that I didn’t even realize I had! (And sitting right next to him is Mark Czerniec, one of our afternoon newscasters during All Things Considered- who is now a consultant for websites – and helped me remount my website.) And behind them a couple of rows, in a lighter gray suit, is Kathy’s beloved Uncle Dick (her dad’s oldest brother) – who has also been gone many years. So now I am so grateful for this photo which at the time seemed like a mis-fire …. and now feels like something very precious indeed.
And there are other shots that are precious in a little different way. I love a shot that was taken at some point during the day which captures several of the children who helped out at our reception as gift runners, relaxing in the church lounge. To the far left is Lindsay Smith, now a mom, whose youngest baby boy was just baptized at Holy Communion about a month ago. To the far right is her older brother Justin, now a dad, who now plays violin for pit orchestras on Broadway. And seated at the piano and playing it is Nick Barootian (I would recognize his perfect posture anywhere) who would go on to study voice with me for eight years (during both high school and college) and is now a fine church musician in his own right and artistic director of the Belle Ensemble …. and Mari Drummer, who is now a highly regarded school teacher at Racine’s renowned Prairie School. All fine, upstanding adults now- but at the time this photo was taken they were wonderful children who brought so much joy to our lives. This photo will win no awards, but I am thrilled to have it!
It’s also a picture like this that really drives home just how much time 25 years represents. Another way to think about it is that 25 years ago, neither Kathy or I had purchased our first personal computer ….. nor sent so much as a single email. (I’m not sure at that point we even knew what email was.) Our only phones were attached to the wall with a cord. There was no Facebook. No iTunes. No Youtube. It was a different world. A bit simpler. A bit quieter in some ways. And every so often, it feels good to step back into the world, if only for a few moments, thanks to the power of these precious – if imperfect – photos.
(Pictured at the top- This is essentially all of the Gall family members who attended our wedding.)