This post is less about shoes and more about the rare people that wear them. I took this picture for a personal project I’m working on called “The Six-Percenters.”
My love for photographing weddings and engagements has grown exponentially these past three years. I still find my heart leaping at the first kiss and my eyes tearing at the first dance. I’m guess I’m really just a hopeless romantic. It’s an unbelievable honor to be able to photograph these marriages in the springtime of their love. So much so, that I’ve recently begun thinking to myself that it would be just as much an honor and so beautiful to photograph marriages in their winter as well.
My grandparents were married for 50 years before my grandfather passed away in 2002. Their story, their history, and their marriage have always been a curiosity to me. It’s an accomplishment, being married that long, but it’s not merely the longevity that I admire so much. I think it’s the love and caring that I still saw in their eyes. It’s not the devouring, fevered love that you see in a newlywed couple, but a peaceful pairing that makes it unimaginable to picture them apart. My husband, Andy and I are still relatively new at this marriage business by comparison. This Thursday, we proudly celebrate 15 years together and truly look forward to our years to come. And maybe that’s why this is so personal.
Recently, I read that only six percent of marriages make it past 50 years. They are the true six percenters. After reading that, I wanted to know who they were and what they looked like. Are they still in love like my grandparents? Are they weary? Are they endlessly challenged by each other? Or do they have it all figured out…
That’s why I’ve begun this journey. I want to tell their stories, show their faces, and to honor their marriages.
To see the first couple, Gil and Carolyn, click here.
This photograph is part of a blog circle of very talented women. To see their work, please start by visiting Carrie Terrones from Las Vegas, NV to view her “Shoes” picture for this week!
Her shoes are adorable. This is a super cool shot.
oh my gawd! i love your project…made me cry when i clicked over to Gil & Carolyn’s story.
Love this shot Jen! Such a sweet and unexpected shot of this couple.