Gracie Byrd Jones Photography
Gracie Byrd Jones of Gracie Byrd Jones Photography, an Austin-based fine art wedding photographer, joins Kevin Cochran on the Texas Wedding Podcast for one of the more personal conversations the show has had, covering adoption, a career rebuilt around film photography, and a wedding disaster that still stings years later.
Gracie shot her first wedding in 2011 during college, stepped away from weddings for two years, then came back "with a vengeance" in 2018 after discovering film and hearing Jose Villa describe it in a way that changed everything for her. She and Kevin also talk about becoming a mom through open adoption, the highs and lows of that journey, and why she believes fewer weddings on her calendar means stronger work for every couple she books.
Follow Gracie Byrd Jones Photography on Instagram, and hear more from the people shaping the Texas wedding market on the Texas Wedding Podcast.
Cathleen Holloway gave Gracie a shout out by name in her own episode, so pair this one with Cathleen Holloway's episode to hear it.
The Texas Wedding Podcast is hosted by Kevin Cochran of 718 Creative, a Texas wedding videographer.
Full Transcript (condensed)
Meet Gracie Byrd Jones
Gracie Byrd Jones: I'm Gracie, I am a wedding photographer, I'm based in Austin. Kevin and I have worked some great weddings together. I shoot in Houston and Dallas and then travel occasionally too. Gosh, it's been over a decade now. I shot my first wedding my junior year of college, back in 2011.
From College Photography to Film "With a Vengeance"
Gracie Byrd Jones: I was studying photography in school, and after I graduated from art school I did non-wedding photography for about two years. Then in 2018 I dove back in, all in this time, putting all my money and effort into it. I was working another job that felt soul-sucking, project management for a nonprofit, no creative element to it at all. That's when I remembered how much I loved weddings. I'd only ever shot weddings digitally before that, and film changed everything for me. I'd shot medium and large format film for school projects and loved it, but I was scared to bring it into weddings because I knew I wouldn't love shooting them digitally forever.
I was doing research on fine art wedding photography that year and I kept coming back to Jose Villa. The way he described shooting film, I knew that was what I needed to do. I bought a six thousand dollar medium format camera on my credit card. My husband Drew understood when I told him I believed I could eventually make this a real income, but that I had to buy the camera first. In 2019 I quit that other job for good, because things were finally moving, I was booking weddings.
Learning From John Dolan
Gracie Byrd Jones: John Dolan is actually a big part of my story. I interned for him in college and had no idea at the time that he was basically the father of wedding photography. I loved his lifestyle work and his photos of his family in Ireland, but there was no social media then, so I just didn't know. Later, once I was in weddings myself, I realized who I'd actually interned for. I've listened to a lot of his podcasts since. He once compared a wedding day to a circus, all these different parts and performances happening at once, and I love thinking about it that way, it keeps you curious instead of robotic behind the camera.
A Story of Adoption: Becoming Augie's Parents
Gracie Byrd Jones: That's a huge part of our life that I don't really talk about on my wedding platforms. We went through a hard season of infertility after several years of trying to grow our family, and adoption felt like plan B at the time. Through a series of events, we realized adoption was what we wanted. Almost two years into having our son, I know now it was always plan A.
The highest of highs was witnessing his birth. His birth mom is so courageous and kind, she let us be right there in the room, she let me hold him first, and my husband cut his umbilical cord. It's the most sacred moment of my life. We have an open adoption, so we're in relationship with his birth mom, and we're committed to letting him know where he comes from.
The lowest of lows was a failed adoption before Augie came into our lives. We were in the hospital for two days with a different baby, we'd already named him, slept with him both nights, bathed him, fed him, all of it. Then it fell through. We grieved that loss, and three months later we got the call for Augie.
If anyone listening has questions about adoption, about open adoption, or just wants to connect, Gracie would love to hear from you, through a DM, her website contact form, or email.
The Burglary
Gracie Byrd Jones: I have one story I still think about. I was a senior at Savannah College of Art and Design, shooting a sweet couple's wedding as a friend-of-a-friend favor, barely charging anything. About three weeks later, my house was burglarized while I was mid-edit. They took my hard drive, my computer, my cameras, everything, and I hadn't backed anything up yet, this was maybe my third or fourth wedding ever. I called the couple and told them what happened. They were so gracious. They came up with the idea themselves, asking friends and family to send in any phone photos they'd taken, and I put together a sweet little album out of those. It was still devastating, but they were incredibly kind about it. After that I got a fireproof safe and started backing up everywhere, a second hard drive, then the cloud once that existed.
Why Fewer Weddings Means Better Work
Gracie Byrd Jones: When I have fewer weddings on my calendar in a year, I feel so much more confident in what I deliver, because I can really curate every gallery the way I want my clients to experience it. I want every image to matter, for the whole gallery to feel like a story they can sit down and revisit. I think the standard of what I give is just higher when there's less on my plate. We're all human, we have limitations, and my ability to give my best is stronger with less volume. I'm 35 now too, my energy isn't what it was in my twenties, so I'm still learning where my own max really is.
Building the Right Team
Gracie Byrd Jones: I usually shoot with one other shooter, but I'm moving toward having more people on my team, even just an assistant or a film loader, so I can slow down and actually see the moments I know are there instead of juggling everything myself. That said, too many bodies in a room can take away from the moment too. I've had to tell a third shooter they can step out of a room if it's too much, or that my second shooter doesn't need to chase reactions during an intimate first dance. You read the room and give direction as you go. I've even asked a second shooter to back off on flash when it felt like too much for the moment.
What She Loves Most: Rehearsal Dinners and the Unknown
Gracie Byrd Jones: I always say my own rehearsal dinner was the second best day of my life, my wedding being the first. Rehearsal dinners are underrated, when people get up and actually share stories instead of a formal toast, it gets me every time. I love the adrenaline of a wedding day and not knowing exactly what's going to happen emotionally, even with the timeline memorized. I shoot fast on purpose, I don't want to keep a couple in front of my camera any longer than they need to be, I want them back in their own wedding.
Connect with Gracie Gracie Byrd Jones Photography: https://graciebyrdjones.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/graciebyrdjones
Connect with Kevin // 718 Creative https://718creative.com | https://www.instagram.com/718.creative
Connect with the Podcast https://www.texasweddingpodcast.com | https://www.instagram.com/texasweddingpodcast
