Wow.  What a difference a year makes!  So much in my life has changed within the past year, and Hillary Maybery is the woman who has changed it, both professional and personally.  12 months ago, the only thing I shot was motocross.  Lots and lots of motocross.  It was my passion, and I was finally starting to get published in major magazines.

Then, a friend approached me about shooting a wedding for her friend.  I told her I had never shot one before but she said the couple was desperate and they liked the photos I had taken at various Christmas parties.  So on June 21st, 2008, I shot my first wedding.  I had hired my friend Allison to help me, or rather, to help keep me calm, and we did a pretty good job.

Come July I was looking to find a second job to add to my income, as Sun Valley is quite the expensive place to live!  I was just about to plaster the local elementary school with babysitting fliers, then came up with a BRILLIANT idea!  I would offer my photography services for the local wedding photographers!  I could do what I love (shooting photos) and contribute to one of the most memorable days of people’s lives while making money at the same time!  I called 4 local wedding photographers, and the first one who called me back was the best of them all, Hillary Maybery.  She called me back almost instaneously…I had told her that I was a motorsports photographer, but that I had shot one wedding.  I told her I would print out and show her some of the photos I took, and she said, “If you can run around and shoot fast moving objects, like motorcycles, I don’t need to see your work, I know you can hang.”  We met on Wednesday the 30th at Wrap City, then two days later I shot a wedding with her.  It was such an incredible experience, I’ll never forget it.  We ran our butts off, shot our index fingers off, and laughed and smiled the whole time.  It was the perfect combination.  She went on to book me for 4 more weddings that year, and now, this year, she has booked me for 13!  I also have 5 solo weddings booked for myself as well.  That’s a total of 18 weddings this year!

I can not express how grateful I am to have met and spent time with Hillary.  She has boosted my confidence, made me a better photographer (even my motorsports shots are 100% better), and has made me a better person as well.  She is not only a coworker, but a great friend as well.  I love her family like they were my own!  I look forward to many many more weddings with Hillary.  Oh, and if you are wondering about CHEAT-BERY…we were shooting a wedding a few months ago and she and I were just clicking soo great together and she said to me “we need like a phrase or something to describe the two of us” and I belted out “CHEAT-BERY!” Hil laughed sooo hard, and I don’t know if it was the fact that I used part of my name first, or what, but every now and then, when we’re in the middle of a shoot I like to give shout outs to CHEAT-BERY to see her giant smile and hear her laugh!  Below are a few photos of us, as well as 1 photo I have captured from each of the weddings we have shot so far that are most memorable to me…

Here they are!  CHEAT-BERY!

Oftentimes Hillary and I will sneak a couple shots of each other while we’re shooting weddings…

Now for my favorites…

Hillary, you’re the best!  Love you dearly!  XOXO, KK.