Still Processing This: Winning Best Couple Portrait at Way Up North

Last week, while standing in Vienna, Austria surrounded by photographers from all over the world, I heard my name called for Best Couple Portrait at the Way Up North Conference... Even typing that still feels surreal.

If you know me personally, you probably know if you put me in front of 700 wedding guests with a camera, I’m completely comfortable. Put me in front of a room full of creatives I admire and suddenly I forget how to exist like a normal human.

So to have one of my images recognized internationally honestly hit me harder emotionally than I expected. The funny thing is, the image itself wasn’t about perfection. It wasn’t about a styled setup or a perfectly controlled environment. It was a real moment. One of those photographs that makes you feel something before you even fully understand why.

What makes this even more special to me is that the image was created almost entirely in-camera. The light streaks, movement, atmosphere, and texture weren’t added afterward digitally. They were created intentionally in the moment while photographing real people in real light.

2025 Best Couples Portrait at Way Up North~ European Conference

It’s the kind of image that could have easily failed if I played it safe. But sometimes the photographs that resonate most are the ones where instinct takes over and you allow yourself to experiment creatively instead of chasing perfection.

That’s always been what I care about most.
Not trends. Not creating copies of what everyone else is making. Not chasing what performs best online.

I care about photographs that feel alive.

Over the last several years, I’ve definitely questioned my place creatively at times. The photography industry can feel loud and strangely homogenized all at once.

Winning this award felt like a reminder to trust my instincts again.

If you’re a creative feeling burnt out or like your work doesn’t fit neatly into trends right now, keep making the work anyway.

The world does not need more copies. It needs more honesty.

Still processing all of this. Still incredibly thankful. Still very much in disbelief.