okay, so I am not a world renown Photographer (YET!) but holy crap! My time is valuable.
6 months ago a "Person of some Import" at my Son's School goes on and on about wanting a portrait. fine. she goes on and on about having it done at her FARM. fine. she contacts me 2 months ago and says she wants it by such and such date for Fathers Day. fine. First Appointment, I book Krys to assist me, she cancels because she is driving to the dealership to pick up her boss that has dropped off her car for repairs. okay. I GUESS. but hardly an all day thing. I kindly reschedule.
the next scheduled appointment, I book Krys to assist me, she calls the day before, and says that they have not 'baled the hay' in the field that she wants the photos of her horses shot (okay, you have got to be kidding me!) fine, I am getting a little more irritated that she would assume that my time is nothing, this is a business for me but I do not think that she gets that. I half heartedly reschedule for the following Wednesday. Explain that I do have another appointment scheduled that morning, and it might conflict with her wishes. she reassures me that I won't need 'all day' for this session. I explain that there is no way I can get a 16x20 wall print done in time for fathers day unless we proof the same day, I can bring a portable computer and drop ship the print to her. she says that she is going out of town and I will need to get her a proof book THE NEXT DAY before they leave on the plane. okay, now I am pretty happy to oblige my good clients that have been loyal to me for years but the presumptuousness of this person is starting to really amaze me.
I heave a big sigh, I acquiesce. She is a person of some import I keep reminding myself. she offers to have my boys go horse back riding on her horses, I agree that would be fun for them.
the day of the shoot, I get up, and load up, we drive ALL THE WAY there... 76 miles ONE WAY. We leave at noon, this is through back country roads with tractors and farm equipment on the road ways, we leave Klein Texas, cut through Tomball, over to Prairie View, down to Pine Island, over to Bellville, through Cat Spring and finally nearly into New Ulm. now granted it is a nice country drive. beautiful weather. we stopped for lunch in Bellville and talked a local hottie to get directions, which was not unpleasant. but GOOD LORD! 2 hours later, we arrived at the cut off that takes us off the paved road and down a dirt path with my little Honda Hybrid.
we drive and drive and drive. we come to a fork in the road, I call the client who said to call when I got to the gate and the grounds keeper would come out and let me in. No answer so I leave voice mail on her cell and at her work.
We fortuitously meet up with Chester, (I kid you not) that is on a tractor moving big round hay bails. I have a sneaking suspicion that he is cleaning the yard for the shoot. FINE. we figure out which drive is her's and proceed to drive through basically a cow pasture with THE HONDA CIVIC. not the FORD F150 or the DODGE TRUCK! but a Honda Civic. we get to the barn. I unload my camera. Krys unloads the kids. Erik is 7, Magnus is 5, and Jordan is almost 4 months. and we set out to locate the best shots.
I find the cows, I get some nice shots of the new calves. I find the lake, I get a nice shot of that and the house. I find the windmill, I get a great shot of that. find the other other other barn (there are three or four, not sure, lost count) and get a nice shot of that. meet and greet three of the 7 horses. grab some individuals of them.
walk back up to the house, we are dry, tired, hot, exhausted, did I mention HOT. and sit on the porch waiting for the client to show up. maybe she is running late. It is 4 pm, and I tell the boys to walk down to the lake/pond and get wet to cool off. we have already used up all our bottled water, I am holding the baby on the porch where we are out of the sun. now I grant you, if ever you are STUCK waiting, this is not a bad way to wait. sitting on the porch of a million dollar farm is definitely the way to go. but without a hostess, I feel uncomfortable. I call again to find out if I am even at the right house. she answers completely lost.
what appointment?
HELLO??? the one that she insisted on because she is leaving the next day to go out of the state. THAT ONE? the one that I squeezed in even though I had a 10 am that I pushed back to 9 am in order to accommodate her. THAT ONE! the one that I drove for two hours to get too, waited for three hours and now have two hour drive back home, completely blowing my whole day. She does not remember confirming that we would actually going to do it. as if I was making it all up. FINE. I can just shoot the other horses and clone them all in, "where are the horses". "oh, they are in the bottoms, too far and too dangerous to shoot alone." "FINE". I swear in my head.
Krys hears the exchange, knows my 'voice' and starts loading the kids before I can get off the phone. we head out, and make our way back home. Obviously I was not in a good mood, I ended up making the return trip in less than an hour. Poor Honda Hybrid!
Lesson Learned: NO MORE UNSECURED APPOINTMENTS.
