Lahinch, Co. Clare, Ireland

Inspiration often bubbles quietly, then it shoots up, ideas and possibilities all suddenly clamoring to be realized.  This was how our Ireland shoot came about.  While many couples have activities that they like to do together, like biking or going for walks after dinner, Amanda and I are fans of tossing shoots together and working together.  It’s difficult now to remember who had the idea first, but we knew we wanted to create while we were in such a beautiful landscape while staying on the western coast of Ireland.  

Because we didn’t plan on this happening, we had to work a little bit to gather all the necessary details.  We had the location and a picture in our minds of how the shoot should look–adventurous, but relaxed, dreamy, romantic.  We wanted the thrill of being in Ireland to mix with the peace we experienced while we were there.  The question was how we were going to be able to create that vibe on a limited budget and with limited sunlight…

Cue a trip to Penney’s for a dress and a combination of stunted and surging creativity (and a quick moment for Amanda to buy some rain boots).  Being on the same page can be difficult, but I’m proud of how Amanda and I have been able to develop our communication with each other since we started dating (and now, of course, are married).  We debated over two dresses for some time and ended up settling on a ten Euro gem for what we needed…almost.  When we got back to our cabin, I had Amanda try on the dress again to help continue our brainstorming to get the watercolor romantic look.  I wanted the dress to have flow so badly, so we made the sacrifice of cutting a slit in the dress in the name of creativity.  Too bad the cabin didn’t have scissors that we knew of.  We used a kitchen knife.

We finally had all we needed: a dress, a location, a vibe, an air of adventure breathed back into us when we got out of the car and caught the crisp, cool air.  We descended a hill to the water, sand whipping into our eyes/faces/everywhere as we tried to reach our destination.

I spent a lot of time shielding my lens from the blowing sand and trying to ensure our belongings weren’t going to be swept away in the tide.  Amanda spent a lot of time brushing the hair out of her face and spinning.  We shot for about half an hour, attempting to maximize the time we had.  Amanda kept asking me if I wanted her to go in the water, but I had a vision of her on the tall grass nearby.  When we approached the water, there were small circles floating around in it.  It didn’t take long for us to figure out that there were TONS of jellyfish in the water and it was a blessing that Amanda didn’t go in.  We put her on the grass instead.  She reported ginormous black slugs moping around on the rocks in the grass.  It was true; they were about the size of my index finger and were also quite numerous.

Creating in an unfamiliar space lends itself to discovery.  We always love creating; the things we discover are the ultimate bonus. 

Create, no matter where you are.