Recently Ashley & Frances took some time out to sit down with the big hearted Jessica Crandlemire of Jessica Crandlemire Photography to discuss life, work and what excites her about wedding photography.

F: How did you get started in photography?

I sort of started it as a hobby more than anything. I got my first camera when I was 9. My mom gave me her old olympus. I still remember that first roll of film I shot actually. We lived on a farm at the time, there was like ice crystals on my swing set and I was so pumped because it was like sunrise and I was shooting the ice crystals and it was glittering. I wanted an SLR so badly and I would ask for it every year for my birthday and my dad would give me point and shoot cameras over and over and over again. It was actually heart breaking but good for me, and he knew that, because I learned all of the things I needed to learn before I was ready to play with the other elements.

I literally didn’t get an SLR until I was like 22 or 23 I think. This is a story of me being so not good at hiding my emotions. I was married and we were going to live in St. Lucia for a year to do mission work. So they had this big going away party for us because we were moving and I thought, this is it, this is when I’m going to get my camera for sure. I knew they had a present for me, I knew it was going to be a camera and I was so pumped because I really wanted one to take with me. And they had bought me a discman. I actually had to fight the tears so bad, like there was no hiding how disappointed I was, like none. So my dad actually sent me one because he knew. So he went out and bought a pentax and some lenses, used, and sent them to me.

F: Oh my gosh, that’s sweet, but what possessed them to get the discman first?

I don’t know! Honestly I have no idea.

Photography: Jessica Crandlemire Photography

A: Where did you go to school?

I grew up in Stayner, so I went to school here and then I went to Guelph.

A: And you majored in English?

Started in fine arts and immediately found out that when you grow up in Stayner and you’re the best artist in your school that doesn’t mean anything. I was very disillusioned and was like I don’t know what I’m doing, all of these people are so much better than me and I dropped out. Which was maybe a little pre-emptive, like I could’ve maybe stuck it out a little bit. Actually one of my teachers was super disappointed but yeah, I switched to English after the first year.

A: Did you miss it though? Did you continue with any art?

Yeah, my dad’s an artist so there’s paint and everything everywhere in my house, so I have access to it and I’ve picked it up over the years. I haven’t touched a paint brush in a few years now. Actually, the thing I loved the most was sculpture.

F: Do you sculpt anymore?

No, but I would love to!

A: Is there a specific medium you prefer?

I don’t know, it was wax that we worked with at school and I loved the stripping away. There was something about that process where it was a way to create something that was really exciting for me because there was no other way that I’d done that before.

A: You’re usually adding. Especially with painting and drawing and others like that you’re adding to paper or whatever surface.

Yeah, it was the carving away that I found exciting.

F: I get that, it’s also very meditative.

Totally. Well, now that my house is all my own I can eventually create some space for that.

F: That would be great!

I’m actually going with my dad to Italy the first week of October, he teaches a painting course twice a year. He does one in Provence and then one in Italy so usually my mom goes but I’m going to go and do promotional shooting for him. That will be fun because I haven’t really been in that part of the world in some time. Maybe I’ll pick up a brush while I’m there.

F: I think you should. That sounds amazing!

A: Have you travelled a lot before?

No, not so much when I was younger. But the last few years have been different. I took my kids to Iceland and Ireland last fall. I got sent to Mexico to shoot a wedding, which was great. I got sent to New Zealand to shoot a wedding which was amazing so yeah, I‘ve had a few pretty great trips the last few years so I feel pretty spoiled.

A: Is there somewhere that you would really love to go? If you could just drop things and go on a trip right now, where would you go?

I’ve always wanted to go to Chile. That would be a some day trip for sure.

A: Definitely, South America is beautiful.

Yeah and I’ve never been, I would love to see it. Portugal also appeals but I think since the early days of Isabel Allende books I’ve always thought that someday I would go there.

A: I’m not familiar with that author, what are her books like?

She’s a historical fiction writer and there is just this little element of spiritual fantasy that comes into all of her writing. They’re just really good stories, she’s a good writer. I think house of spirits was her biggest one.

F: I’ll have to check that out next. I say next but I’ve got a list of like 20 books going.

I know that’s me too. Somebody offered me a book recently and I said I’d so like to take this but I think you should give it to somebody else because it’s going to go on a stack that I have.

Photography by Jessica Crandlemire Photography

A: You seem to have a number of different things going on in addition to your photography, between your kids, working at the Tremont Cafe, how do you make it all work?

It feels a bit like a circus all the time. I said that once years ago and that I might be the ringmaster, or I might be the monkey, it really depends on the day.

A: So if you were to get some time to yourself, which I know for many of us is unheard of, what do you do?

I really do actually love to read and I would need to be outside. That is actually a physical need. I start to get super depressed if I haven’t done anything outdoors.

F: Well, you live in the right area.

I know!

A: Do you have a favourite spot to explore?

Depends on my mood but there are lots of options. Keyhole pass is a favourite of mine, towards Glen Huron, and it goes cutting into the caves where you actually feel the temperature drop, it’s really fun. And you can snowshoe in the winter and hike in the summer and it’s like magical green and mossy in the summer.

A: If you weren’t doing the photography thing, what would you do?

I love to write, I love words, I love love words.

F: Do you keep a journal?

I used to, I haven’t in a long time. I have in mind that at some point I will write a biography of the last 12 years of my life. I’m not sure I could ever publish it but I think it would be cathartic for me.

A: What do you love most about photography?

Everything really. I feel very very lucky that I get to do it. People keep asking me and they get really excited when I give them work, like that’s the best feeling ever. You bring other people joy and that’s such a gift to be able to do that and earn a living from it.

F: How are you building your relationships with your clients and that close connection? I know that that’s a really big important part of what you do.

A lot of people come to me by word of mouth which starts a conversation. Especially with wedding clients, I like to meet with them early on and I like to do engagement shoots specifically because it lets us hang out and spend time together and then I can be involved in their story because I find it really affects the way I shoot and that’s important to me.

A: How do you prepare for a shoot, wedding or other kind?

It depends on the kind of shoot but a lot of the preparing is practical, especially the day before, like where are all my batteries and other things. Making sure I’m sleeping and doing all the healthy things so that my brain is working well.

F: You describe your work as being responsive, what do you mean by that?

I think it’s just how I am. I prefer to react to what’s going on around me. I prefer to look at where the light is coming from and make a decision based on how that’s happening. I like watching people’s faces and watching others watching things and then I respond to that. I feel more than I think which feels more honest. What I’m trying to do is give you the emotion, more than anything I want my work to make people feel something and have an emotional reaction.

F: When you’re shooting non-commissioned work, what are you most excited to shoot?

I really loved the work I did for the art crawl a few years ago. I never thought I would be super comfortable shooting nudes and then I sort of threw myself into it, almost by accident. The premise of the project was that I wanted to elicit an emotional response from people without using a face. So I wanted to use different body parts to bring that emotion out in another way because the eyes are almost like a cheat, you know? But I thought I was going to do very small pieces and then that process very organically became something else entirely because the women that I was shooting responded to it, got super excited about it, I got super excited about their bodies and the actual relationship to the ground and I started to move back further than I thought I was going to and they felt empowered and excited. It was a huge thing for me and I loved every part of that.

A: You listed a few people that inspire you, Margaret Atwood being one, tell us a little more about why.

I basically want to be Margaret Atwood when I grow up. I love her so much, I could listen to her talk all day. I’ve read most of what she’s written, I love her character explorations. I loved Blind Assassin, I loved Alias Grace, I’m so drawn to thinkers that are a little bit deviant. I think she’s a strong woman and is unapologetic about it and I love that.

My grandfather is also a really big inspiration for me. He’s one of my favourite people and what has continuously amazed me about him is his capacity to love everybody. He sits down every morning and calls everyone that he knows is having a hard time. He’ll spend a couple of hours on the phone just touching base with people, he’s short and sweet but he just does that, thinks of people. He also has so much respect for craft. He bought this old guitar and did all this research and he took it all apart because it was kind of broken and he put each piece back together. Just so much respect for things we consider disposable. That’s something I really admire.

F: The written word is clearly a major source of inspiration for you and something that you love so much. How are you incorporating that into your photography work?

Not enough. I think that you can feel it in at least my instagram feed. I try with my social media to at least convey some part of me there. I used to be better at that and more prone to writing more essay type posts than I do right now. You never know how they’re going to be perceived and I’ve had people say I shouldn’t be so personal and say so much stuff that people don’t want to read it. So I think that set me back a little bit and have had a little bit more of a struggle with that part.

F: I would disagree with that, what photographers do is so personal and you ask people to open up to you so if you can’t open up to them then why should they trust you?

100%. I agree.

F: Is there a moment or a style of wedding that you would love to capture?

I would really like to shoot an elopement. One of my favourite weddings I ever shot was at the bride’s family cottage in Simcoe a few years ago, the bride is a good friend of mine, we grew up together. A bunch of family came from Australia so they rented the cottage next to them and for the three days leading up there were tents everywhere. Everybody came together, they made decorations, cut flowers from a local farm. They had dinners every night out by the beach. It was so beautiful and intimate and simple and completely free of any pretense and being a part of it was absolutely amazing. I love that they could take time out, it makes such a difference. It’s why I love destination weddings too because you’re forced to take an actual chunk of time instead of the day and just be together. Even calling it a destination and being local and going camping for a few days for a wedding is just so cool.

Thanks to Jess for taking the time to chat with us! Follow her on instagram, @lightandshadowphoto, or check out her website, www.withlightandshadow.com. If you’d like to get in touch with Jess to inquire about her services, you can contact her here.

Vendor Spotlight: Jessica Crandlemire Photography

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