Hello, My Name is Rachel

Good morning! In case the title wasn’t clear enough, my name is Rachel and I am Ashley’s studio manager and associate photographer. Occasionally, I’ll be breaking in on the blog to share with you some of my thoughts on life, love, weddings and any fun developments in our little world here at AGP. This is going to be a fairly longish post, so stick with me. I promise there will be cute baby pictures at the end!

First, I’d like to just take a few minutes to introduce myself and my little family and also give a brief history of of the genesis of my passion for wedding photography. Some of this will be a recap of my “about me” that you can find here (along with an old and very flattering picture of me), and the rest will be my personal thoughts on why I love doing what I do.

I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and currently live less than two miles from my childhood home. I was a crazy tomboy – always climbing trees, playing hockey and acting out books with friends instead of tea parties, dress up and Barbies. For all the hell I raised, I never broke any bones, although I did get plenty of stitches. I still enjoy climbing trees now (just ask Ashley).

I was homeschooled from third grade through twelfth, and graduated 007 (when you graduate in 2007 you have to reference James Bond). The only college I applied to, lost my application, but instead of viewing this as a set back, my mom viewed it as an opportunity for me to explore other options, including my growing interest in photography. An interest that had started a few years earlier with a little 35mm point and shoot film camera my aunt gave me for my birthday. Upon returning from a trip to Niagara Falls, I proudly showed my elderly neighbor – the sweetest woman you could ever hope to meet – my photos from the falls, she told me that they were beautiful postcards. I corrected her, stating that they were my actual photographs and she told me that I had a real eye for photography and to keep shooting. I don’t know if I can ever thank her enough.

Back to my dilemma though of not getting into college right away. My mom knew of someone whose brother was a photographer in New York City, who just happened to be moving nearby in the next few weeks. We arranged to meet David Sacks at the Country Squire Diner and he offered me an internship with him upon his move. I accepted and the rest, as they say, is history. I learned so much, not just technical proficiency but also how to provide clients with the best possible experience they can have. It’s not just about providing great photographs, but a great experience altogether. I carry his lessons with me to every wedding I take part in. Upon his way too early death in 2013, I promised to always strive to make him proud of me in my work. I hope I’m succeeding.

So that’s how I got into photography. There’s more to me than that though. I met my wonderful husband Peter through a mutual friend and we quickly fell in love and after some ups and downs, got married in August of 2010. It’s been an incredible five years of being married to my best friend and doing life together. He’s a chef at Vintage Wine Bar in Philadelphia and, as a result, I regularly get spoiled with amazing food. He and I enjoy watching football all day on Sundays, snowboarding in the winter, and playing with our crazy 5 month old daughter, Ayden. She is our first child, born back in April and she is every bit as tenacious as her mom, if I do say so myself. She is way ahead of the curve on her physical and cognitive development and has the sweetest and happiest disposition ever. She wakes up every morning laughing instead of crying, gives us kisses (especially after I get home from a wedding), and has an amazing zest for life. She brings us immeasurable joy and is ruining the curve for future siblings by being the most awesome child we could ever imagine.

We had our couples portraits done at Valley Forge after our wedding was over – we got married at 10:30 in the morning so our reception was over at 4. Photo Credit: David Sacks

We had this taken after we bought our first house two years ago. As you can see, I’m a very expressive laugher. Photo Credit: Sunny Miller

We’re on a boat! And my husband refuses to take nice pictures with me. Also, this is obviously shot with my iPhone.

Ayden Mae at one month old.

My adventurous little seafarer – she embraces all new experiences with a smile and tenacity. Again, obviously shot with my iPhone.

Ayden at 3 months. This is one of my favorite pictures of her ever.

So there you have it, a little bit about me. Or a lot a bit about me. I hope you were able to stick this post out. I told you there would be some cute baby pictures at the end. From time to time, I’ll be back, giving updates and different perspectives on things. Until we meet again!

xo, Rachel.