Loyalty has been the topic of the week this week. I’ve heard the word each and every day, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence. I’ve always been big on loyalty.

A while back, I was talking to one of my past grooms whose family owns lots of car lots in Arkansas. He was at his hairstylist who shared that she just purchased a car. When he asked where she got it, (though she knew his car family ties) she mentioned she got it at a competitor’s lot. He didn’t even wait for her to finish his hair before he got up and walked out to find his new hairstylist.

Was he wrong to do this? I gotta say, I don’t blame him. While it was a bit dramatic, I see his point.

After I spend so much time getting to know a couple or falling in love with their little family, I’m touched by their loyalty.

The family I posted about yesterday has hired me to shoot their wedding, newborns for both kiddos, and at least ten photo sessions in as many years. If you think about it, I’m the unofficial documentarian for their family. It is my honor to be so.

I have a dear college friend, Regan, who hires me to photograph her family every time she comes to the U.S. I love watching her family grow, and am honored that she trusts me with such important photographs.

I have a lot of stories like these, but I just wanted to say that I pay attention to my couples who are loyal. Because of you, I get to be a photographer as my career. Because of you, I get to have a job that I love and has never felt like work. Thank you.

This week I reached Executive Platinum on American Airlines, and I’m Titanium Elite (soon to be Ambassador Elite) for Marriot. I’m loyal to them because they give me points and things for free. That’s not REALLY loyalty. You can’t buy loyalty with points or suite upgrades. I don’t give my couples points to accrue. I just give them my attention and love. For most, that is enough.

Talk to you soon,
Dale