A few months have passed since I posted about our intention to step back from the world of wedding photography, and wind down that side of our business. Those few months have been a time of transition. I’ve produced and delivered the last of our clients’ albums. I’ve spent time overseas. I’ve continued to separate out and wrap up that side of the business. I’ve returned to the career I held for the 10 years before my foray into the world of wedding photography. But most importantly, I’ve been able to step back and reflect on the last few years and consider where I want to go from here.
The last few years have been amazing. Not amazing in an “everything is perfect and comes complete with rainbows and unicorns” kind of way. But amazing in the crazy mix of ups, downs, and completely unexpected opportunities they involved. I learnt that my expectations of what was involved in running a business were way off. Way, way off. It was so much more intense than I had expected. It was hard and enormously stressful in ways I could never have grasped without doing it. But at the same time it was inspiring, rewarding, and fulfilling in a way that I don’t think working for someone else can ever be.
I also learnt that being a really happy, stable couple that has successfully made interstate and international moves, bought homes, and made massive life decisions together doesn’t mean the two of you are compatible as business partners or even as workmates.
And I learnt that surprising things can happen if you ask the right questions. A beautiful girl might overcome her terror of frogs and wade waist-deep into a dam.
You might get to stand on a beach in Thailand as a groom arrives at his wedding ceremony on an elephant.
A friend might wrangle a giant red balloon on a very windy, and very busy beach.
All for the sake of a photograph or two.
I’m so happy that we took the risks involved in trying it out, seeing if it was something that would become the job that we both stuck with into the future. I’m also happy that we both have the self-awareness to have realised that it wasn’t, and the sense to step away from it, putting the reality of “us” above the dream of working for ourselves.
But the big question is where to from here. And the answer is, that honestly, at this point, I’m not entirely sure. And that’s ok.
What I do know is that the last two years have cemented photography as a part of my life. So Shy Fox Photography will continue to be my creative outlet. It will sit alongside the life that happens between 9 and 5, Monday to Friday, occasionally intersecting as I walk past something that just calls out to be photographed, or as I take time out in a coffee shop to write a blog post or plot out a project idea. Co-existing, as I use my evenings, weekends and days off to plan and do shoots, and to share my work. I’m not quite sure yet how that will play out, but I’m looking forward to finding out. And I’d love you to stick around and enjoy the adventure with me.
Pav
They say that all good things must come to an end, and so it is with our venture into the wedding photography business. We’ve had a blast but have decided it’s time to move on to other things.
If you liked following along on our adventures you might want to check out some of the other places we hang out online.
Geoff’s blog, The Brisbane Photo, is where he shares images of the people and places of the city we call home.
Pav can be found on Instagram both as herself and documenting the tiny adventures of a small dinosaur. You can also find Pav on Twitter, where she’ll still be sharing some of the interesting finds that made up Quick Picks.
Our lives are filled with twists and turns, and we’re always moving on to the next adventure. So for now at least, it’s a case of so long, and thanks for all the fish.
~ Pav & Geoff
We’re really pleased to have three pictures featured in the current issue of Queensland Brides.
In their words “With their impeccable timing and keen eye for detail, our wedding photographers have a knack of capturing unforgettable moments. We love what happens when they get really creative, letting their imagination run free and turning moments into works of art – some quirky and fun, some sweet and romantic. These are definitely some of our all-time favourites…”
~ Pav
We’ve spoken before about how much we enjoy doing wedding inspiration shoots, and we’re really excited that our Bush Bride inspiration shoot is featured over on Polka Dot Bride today.
I’ve seen a lot of beautiful floral crowns this year, mostly featuring traditional European flowers, and I couldn’t help thinking that an Australian native floral crown would be just as lovely. Lilyvale Flowers brought my dream to life, and from there it was just a short step to the idea of a quiet Australian country elopement.
Our bush wedding is a beautifully simple day with minimal fuss, and lots of smiles. Almost everything in it is second-hand or DIY’d, with the exception of the beautiful floral creations. There’s dancing, and laughter, and even a dip in a lilypad-filled dam.
Flowers by Lilyvale Flowers | Bride’s dress from Adore Vintage | Bride’s shoes model’s own | Bride’s makeup by Naomi Rigby | Bride’s Hair by Caitlyn Chapman | Groom’s outfit photographer’s own
~ Pav
As many of you who follow your favourite blogs via RSS will already know, Google Reader closed its doors on 1 July 2013.
The most popular choices to replace Reader seem to be Feedly and Bloglovin’. We’ve heard good things about both, but were ultimately drawn in by Feedly.
But we’re all about equal opportunity, so if you want to follow us via RSS feel free to follow us with Feedly or follow us with Bloglovin’.
~ Pav
Over the next week or so you’ll see us move from Photographs by Pavlina Matt to Shy Fox Photography in the various places we occupy on the web. There will be no changes in what we do or how we do it, we’ll just have far prettier branding.
Hopefully the change goes smoothly, but with computers being what they are, we hope you’ll bear with us if there are any hiccups in the move.
As you know it’s not just me that takes the pictures, so we wanted to move away from a name that suggests that. Photographs by Pavlina Matt and Geoff Matt isn’t exactly catchy, so we decided to go for something brand new. As for why we’ve chosen Shy Fox Photography, that’s a little trickier to explain. Basically we just like the way it sounds and the images it evokes for us, and that’s a good enough reason for us to do most things, so we figured the same applied here.
This is also probably a good time to acknowledge our graphic designer Amanda at By Daughters for her brilliant work in turning some of Geoff’s rough sketches into our gorgeous new logo. I love it so much I can’t wait to stamp it everywhere!
~ Pav
The start of a new year is a great time to review what’s gone before, to make changes and to plot a course for the year ahead. This year, as part of that process my website got a shiny makeover, which included a new look for this blog. The new look has prompted me to review the content as well and consider what I’d like to do with it over the next year.
I started this blog in October 2011 as part of the challenge I set myself to take and post a photo each day of the little things that caught my eye. After 7 months of daily posting, I wound it back to a few posts a week on no particular schedule. That process resulted in 273 random snippets from my daily life.
This year I plan to shift the focus to my work and personal photography projects. As the blog is nested within my business site I’m going to align them more closely. So I’ll be posting photos from shoots I’m doing and telling you a little about the pictures, the projects they form part of, or the behind the scenes fun. I’ll also be posting links to things related to the business – wedding tips, the work of photographers and artists that inspire me, and whatever else seems relevant. I’ll generally be posting twice a week, once with photos and once with links.
I’ll obviously continue to take random pictures of my life, which you’ll be able to find on Instagram, Flickr, and Pinterest.
Exciting news! I’m a featured supplier in The Knot Australia’s weekly news update.
The Knot are a great resource if you’re planning your wedding. They have information on pretty much everything to do with weddings – dresses, planning tools, ideas, inspiration, photos, and of course wedding vendors. Although obviously you’ve already got your photographer sorted… They also have a fairly active forum community where you can seek and share advice.
shy fox photography 