Since I've photographed over a thousand weddings over my 45 year career, I thought it wise to tip off former clients about my book I had written, "Tales of a Super Hero Pro Wedding Photographer" by Bill Collins, as they might be prime candidates to purchase it on Amazon.com.
I went to my defunct website via archive.org's "Way Back Machine" and pulled up the pages that listed who married who, when and where from 1999 through 2005 and used Facebook to find 80% of them with ease. (I still have from 2005 on in my database.)
I started sending out friend requests on Facebook, as I locate each one and the responses have been pouring back in ever since!
Everyone seems so glad that I had contacted them again after all these years. It was as if we had last spoken to each other only yesterday.
It was like Christmas in June, having so many of them express their very warmest feelings they still have for me and the great job I did for them on their wedding day!
Gee, I'm finding that I still have a very powerful fan club out there, almost an admiration society. It is very humbling experience to hear those feeling expressed, as they come from the people's heart and are so sincere.
I also am relearned some info that I didn't know to include in the book. I was reminded, when I saw the names again, that one of the weddings I described because they took place in a Cincinnati cemetery, involved the extremely beautiful young blonde Russian bride that the groom had brought over from that country to marry.
The bride and groom who got married in the huge and lavish Hindu wedding in Columbus, Ohio, that had the week long festivities leading up to the wedding, is now living in Washington state. I had devoted the better part of a page just to describing that lavish and interesting wedding ceremony.
Visiting former client's Facebook pages let me see how their families have been growing, as most displayed photos of their children there. I find that really interesting to see how their lives are evolving.
Amazingly, I have yet to find any divorces among those who have contacted me back. Maybe the old Super Hero brought them good luck in that department?
I've only gotten a start on my client list. I really look forward to contacting even more former clients to learn how their lives have unfolded since I spent the day with them photographing their weddings.
What a happy time this is turning out to be! Life is great!
Bill
I went to my defunct website via archive.org's "Way Back Machine" and pulled up the pages that listed who married who, when and where from 1999 through 2005 and used Facebook to find 80% of them with ease. (I still have from 2005 on in my database.)
I started sending out friend requests on Facebook, as I locate each one and the responses have been pouring back in ever since!
Everyone seems so glad that I had contacted them again after all these years. It was as if we had last spoken to each other only yesterday.
It was like Christmas in June, having so many of them express their very warmest feelings they still have for me and the great job I did for them on their wedding day!
Gee, I'm finding that I still have a very powerful fan club out there, almost an admiration society. It is very humbling experience to hear those feeling expressed, as they come from the people's heart and are so sincere.
I also am relearned some info that I didn't know to include in the book. I was reminded, when I saw the names again, that one of the weddings I described because they took place in a Cincinnati cemetery, involved the extremely beautiful young blonde Russian bride that the groom had brought over from that country to marry.
The bride and groom who got married in the huge and lavish Hindu wedding in Columbus, Ohio, that had the week long festivities leading up to the wedding, is now living in Washington state. I had devoted the better part of a page just to describing that lavish and interesting wedding ceremony.
Visiting former client's Facebook pages let me see how their families have been growing, as most displayed photos of their children there. I find that really interesting to see how their lives are evolving.
Amazingly, I have yet to find any divorces among those who have contacted me back. Maybe the old Super Hero brought them good luck in that department?
I've only gotten a start on my client list. I really look forward to contacting even more former clients to learn how their lives have unfolded since I spent the day with them photographing their weddings.
What a happy time this is turning out to be! Life is great!
Bill