Meet Abbey Moore | Wedding Photographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Abbey Moore and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Abbey, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
The best part about my business is that it really just happened incredibly organic and naturally. I had gone to school to pursue a job in photo journalism, but after interning at a newspaper and working a job as a graphic designer I found myself photographing my friends and family every chance that I got outside of work. When a friend’s wedding photographer fell through last minute I offered to step in and shoot the wedding the best that I could. That was in 2012, and since then I’ve photographed over 300 weddings.

Photographing weddings and other parts of life felt like the perfect balance of storytelling, artistic freedom and giving people something that I truly believed in – tangible memories. I’ve always been the most nostalgic person in the room, bringing a camera with me everywhere in school and journaling daily. I grew up in the era of Livejournal and Myspace and although social media has changed immensely – I always found joy in going back and reading old posts and looking at old photographs. I think that I find the past a lot more comforting than the future and preserving it in photographs will always be important to me. Giving my clients the gift of staying present on their wedding day because they know someone is photographing it feels like the best job in the world.

The fact that this skill or habit turned into a business is something that I will always be astounded by. I never did work well on group projects (oops) – so creating a work environment where I am the boss and the employee has always brought me immense satisfaction. Flexibility, creativity and the gravity of the job are what keep me coming back every year.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I think one of the things I am most proud of after twelve years in this industry is not just the photos that my clients receive, but the experience on the wedding day. Although I am not a planner or a coordinator, I do feel strongly like an advocate of my couples. I am with them even more than they are with each other, and being able to read the energy in the room and respond to it is such a skill. I really do feel that I have an ability to make someone feel comfortable, safe and encouraged on their wedding day. Without that safety – I wouldn’t be able to get the images that I can capture. It’s so important that the guests and couple around me feel that they can be themselves, react as though a camera isn’t in the room let me into their lives. And that takes practice and I think, a true interest in getting to know other people and care for them.

It has kind of become a wedding cliche, and a catch phrase, but I really do want my couples and their families to remember how it felt. Real emotions, big feelings, the colors, the mood … I do my best to convey it as true as possible. I’m less interested in the creation of a perfect image and find it way more satisfying to observe and capture all of the real moments. Walking into a wedding with a clean slate and zero expectations allows me to be open to everything that happens in front of me and find all of the nuances that make that wedding unique. I never want two weddings to look the same.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
The west side of Michigan is truly magical. I am partial, but the first thing I would encourage anyone to do is to make your way down to my hometown of Grand Haven and visit the Lake. If you’re picturing Lake Michigan as some tiny thing, think again. It is more like an ocean and our beach sunsets are truly healing. We would bike down to the boardwalk and get a burrito at Butch’s Beach Burrito and an ice cream at Dairy Treat. After a short hike at Rosy Mound Trails where you can see the sand dunes we would make our way back to Grand Rapids.

I love taking people to shops like Book & Mortar (the cutest progressive book store), Rebel GR (an incredible shop full of gifts, candles, art, plants, literally everything) and Woosah Outfitters (nature inspired woodcut prints & apparel). I would highly recommend a tea latte and some macarons at Le Bon Macaron and then lunch at The Winchester (get the naan club!). For dinner you cannot go wrong with a trip to Cafe Mamo and a post dinner dessert and wine at Grove. My neighbor, Katy Waltz, is the most incredible pastry chef. Your desserts at Grove will change your life, I mean it!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are so many people that have helped me become who I am today. First and foremost – my Mom (nicknamed my Momager) gave me my first loan to buy my first camera. I remember thinking it would be years before I ever paid her off. She always encouraged me to find a job that I loved, even if it was a little unconventional. She is my biggest cheerleader. I was also always inspired by an Uncle of mine who was also an entrepreneur. He hired me in my first internship and first design job out of college. Although I didn’t stay long at his company – I knew entrepreneurship was possible because of him.

I also stand on the back of so many wedding photographers who came before me. Especially where I live in Grand Rapids, MI. Photographers like Jill DeVries and Amy Carroll. These women were changing the perception of wedding photography locally years before I came into the picture. Their websites and blogs (throw back!) were the first things I saw that made me realize wedding photography didn’t have to be cliche or inauthentic. Some of the were even kind enough to respond to my fan-girl e-mails asking what cameras and lenses they used. I will ALWAYS be grateful for their inclusivity and lack of gatekeeping.

Wedding photographers don’t have coworkers typically – so there’s no way I would survive without the community and friendship of the other people in my field both locally and throughout the US. Text groups that remind each of us on Saturday’s that we aren’t the only ones working have especially made me feel less alone this wedding season. My close local friends are not photographers so their summers look much different than mine. These “colleagues” are a constant source of encouragement and friendship.

Website: www.abbeymoore.net

Instagram: @abbeylmoore

Image Credits
photo of me: photo by Kenzie Kate Photography