Hello, We Are The Tanks! Part 2
Last week, we introduced you to our photographer friends, Tank Goodness Photo. This week, we give you the rest of their awesome interview!
What are your favorite photographers?
Nina: Travis loves looking at other photographers and their work, but I don’t. Travis finds it inspiring, but I just end up being self conscious about my work. I would rather learn from shooting and seeing my own photography and then push myself to be better.
Travis: Ben Sasso is one of my favorite photographers. His work is killer. I also love Forever Photography here in Austin. I really love going to websites that contain work from a variety of photographers and finding inspiration that way. I also love Casey Neistat, who is a successful vlogger and an inspiration for me in creating vlogs for Tank Goodness. I love his authenticity and the way he shoots stories.
What’s your favorite part of working in the wedding industry?
Nina: It’s the happiest day of everyone’s lives. You get to work hard and then party all in the same day. Honestly, it’s like a date night for us. We get to have dinner, dance, and shoot photos.
Travis: I love being my own boss. Also, when you’re at a wedding, people are looking to you. People are always looking to the photographer for direction. I get to have complete creative control.
Do you have a favorite wedding you’ve done or favorite place you’ve shot?
Nina: Barr Mansion is probably our favorite venue, but venues can change so much depending on the wedding. For example, we did a wedding recently at a beautiful venue, the couple was gorgeous, the lighting could have been gorgeous, but they gave us no time. The next day, we shot a wedding at this typical venue that we’d shot at a hundred times. The couple wasn’t picture perfect and not a lot of money had been spent on the wedding. But we got killer shots because the couple wanted to shoot at the right time and we had lots of time to shoot. So I guess I really can’t say that I have a favorite wedding because they are all so different and we never know what to expect.
Travis: I agree. The look of the venue or the couple doesn’t determine how well the photos will turn out. Sometimes couples overthink photos or try to look a certain way. Ultimately, the images will turn out best when the couple is relaxed and having fun with each other. Sometimes the shoots we expect to be just okay are the ones that turn out to be phenomenal. Every time we shoot, we have to go in with a clean slate and be ready for whatever the day throws at us. You can go in with all these amazing ideas, but then you get there and the schedule has changed.
Nina: We don’t have any expectations. Before each wedding, we say a prayer for us and for the couple, and just hope for the best. That’s all we can do.
Have you ever done destination weddings?
Travis: The thing about destination weddings is you get this idea that they are going to be amazing and you’re going to go and have a beautiful time. Then you realize you’re going to have to take an entire weekend off to shoot one wedding, when normally you could shoot several. Generally, you’re shooting longer days because they are at a destination and they take longer. Since you’re already there, you’re going to end up being the couple all day. Also, you have less control over the shoot because you are in an unfamiliar place. It’s a lot different than shooting at a venue here in Austin where we know exactly how things are set up and where the sun sets and how we want to shoot. Everyone wants to do destination weddings, but once you factor in the travel, accommodations, and time commitment, they aren’t as appealing as you’d think.
Nina: We did one destination wedding where they paid for our travel and accommodations, but we didn’t ask for a per diem. So we ended up spending like $150 a day just on snacks and taxis because the prices were so high. Even though we got paid our normal rate, I think we ended up breaking even on that trip because of the extra money we had to spend.
When you’re not doing weddings, what do you like to do?
Nina: Our kids! They take up about 90% of our life. We’ve got a five year old daughter and three year old son. But we’re also pretty independent.
Travis: I like to play video games and go see movies. Obviously, we like to do a lot of family stuff. But aside from that, we enjoy doing our own separate things. Some days I go do what I like to do, and other days she’ll go do what she likes to do.
A huge thanks to Travis and Nina for letting us interview them! You guys are awesome! Speaking of awesome, here are some of our favorite photos they've done!