Christine Chang Photography

Whan that Aprille with his shoures swote
The droghte of Marche hath perced to the rote….

(Translation:  When April with his sweet showers has struck to the roots the dryness of March…)

Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1340-1400)

This week I was reminded of Chaucer’s Canterbury tales.  I was required to memorize it in high school, and reading the intro was a nice blast from the past, though from first recall I could only remember up to the third line (and bathed every vein in switch liqueur…)

So when did plain ol’ writing, or direct communication, come to an end?  Was Chaucer’s era the last of personal communication?  Or maybe it ended with my era. Does anyone still write letters on paper?  Email letters are good too, but how often do we take the time to write to someone from the heart?  I remember as a kid I had two shoe boxes stuffed with letters.  I loved writing letters and now I still send off a postcard to my out-of-state friends from time to time.  What’s to blame?  Is it the Internet, or, mores specifically, Facebook?  Is it Twitter, with its short-term phraseology feature glorified into a semi-art level?  Or is it our fault as human beings for not prioritizing personal communication?  

I’m not so sure, but what I do know is that personal communication, such as notes from my brides, are very valuable to me– especially now that our society seems to be moving towards an impersonal nature.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m quite the lover of technology (and electrics!  Such as my dishwasher…) but sometimes slow and thoughtful are nice things too.

To finish off a post that is already getting long, here are some kind words from my brides and grooms:

(from an email)

Christine!  These pictures are great!  Thanks for making us famous on the web, as Maria says.  We’re really impressed with the half-dozen pictures you put up already.  Maria especially likes the third picture you posted of the under-skirt  adjustment.  You were always there to take the shot but you were never in the way.  You have real talent and skill and I will be watching your website to see what you are doing next.  We’re so lucky to have found you and been able to arrange for your skills and talents in documenting our wedding.

Talk to you later,

Andrew & Maria 

(from a recommendation that was forwarded to me)

“Christine is very natural and captured the ambience of the event.  She’s very chill and relaxed.  She will do whatever you want, from more planned, to more natural.  She is extremely organized and prompt.  Your photos will be online, and the album will be sent to you shortly after the wedding.  I had an untraditional wedding, but she got all parts of the ceremony, the cake cutting, dancing, toasts, bridesmaids, family shots, groomsmen, etc.  She got both my husband and me getting ready with friends and family.  She was with us from the rehearsal dinner the night before and all day of the wedding until midnight when it ended.  She took pictures nonstop.

Good luck, I love Christine because I find her to be very natural and she blends in well with your setting.  I wanted a photographer to be non-obtrusive so my husband and I and our guests would have as much fun as possible.  She captured all of the fun, and my friends have not stopped talking about how beautiful the photos turned out.  I feel that they are unique, and not as cookie-cutter or cheesy as most wedding pictures.”

-Erin

(from an online review)

“Christine did a great job taking pictures for our wedding. In addition to the shots we requested, she also took ones that I wouldn’t have thought to ask for, such before the wedding, and it was fun to look at them and recall the fun going on. Also, it was so nice to receive the pictures in digital form so that we could send them to family electronically!   Thanks, Christine!”

-pinar & eric