Husband-Wife Duo Photographing Weddings Hope To Bond With Couples

PLAINFIELD, IL — Bryan and Rue Pattison, a couple married for almost 10 years, lived in their first apartment in downtown Plainfield, a place they told Patch they feel connected to. They've since moved, but return frequently to shoot weddings with their Eight Hands Photography business.

It's been about two and a half years since Eight Hands has been an official business, and about two years since the Mokena-based couple shot their first wedding together.

But before Bryan and Rue combined their talents, Rue had been doing family photography as a hobby. It was a client of hers who approached her and asked if she'd ever shot weddings before. During that time, Bryan often hung out with Rue while she worked, and he said passively learned her style of photography and how she operated.

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"We're married; we know each other so well," Rue said. "We know how we work, so to have a partner who you communicate so well with already and enjoy life with, what a great opportunity to just shoot with that person. [It] just makes it awesome."

"We realized how much fun we had at weddings, shooting them together," Bryan said of the realization they had after photographing their first wedding as a team.

They entered the wedding photography realm together just months before the world turned upside down at the hands of COVID-19. Business was slow during 2020, and Rue continued to work, but new work and scheduling were at a stand-still. As weariness began to ever-so-slowly subside at the end of last year and into early 2021, the couple saw an influx of bookings.

"It seems more upbeat. It just seems people are just relieved and happy and excited to just do it [after postponing]," Bryan said.

Capturing moments in an artistic and romantic way, the photographers focus on candid, in-between moments.

"What the guests are seeing and the emotions they're feeling, those are what we want to show the bride and groom because those are the things they can't necessarily see or feel during the day," Bryan said, adding that this most-important aspect also causes a "good stress."

Starting a business wasn't always the plan, though. Rue has a master's degree in social work, while Bryan has a bachelor's in occupational safety and health, both a stretch from photography. But finding themselves working as full-time photographers "was just an amazing turn of events," Rue said.

What's more amazing, they said, is finding venues that share their values and commitments to the couples getting married. Two they love are The Farmhouse and Warehouse: 109, both in Plainfield.

"Almost every venue is beautiful and gorgeous in its own way," Bryan said of the Plainfield locales. "But what really does it for me is that customer service. [It's] the most important, that's what's going to put a smile on somebody's face. ... They go to crazy lengths just to ensure everything is perfect and to make the couples happy."

"Right now, those two places are so popular because they're incredible," he added, before Rue said both are not "typical by any means."

Named after the Pattison family, Eight Hands Photography pays homage to the couple and their two children, a 6-year-old daughter and a 4-year-old son.

"I felt like it wasn't my venture even though I was the one initially photographing, doing family work," Rue said. "It was everybody, it was my whole family. ... All of our hands were in it."

Married for almost 10 years, Bryan and Rue use the opportunity to interact with couples on their wedding day and pass on some of their gained wisdom.

"In most cases, we're the only vendors that are with you the entire day," Bryan said. "We feel that a relationship is at the top of the list. That's something that's a priority."

To keep in touch with couples, Bryan and Rue use group texts, and those don't expire once the clock strikes midnight on the wedding night. Oftentimes, the communication continues, whether in the form of sharing memes or keeping in touch for future opportunities.

"We love working with the couples. [We want to do it] ideally as long as we can," Bryan said. "That's the other side of it is having that time to be together. Not only are we providing this to other people, but it helps us build our own relationship too, constantly challenging each other and working with each other."

Editor's note: A previous version of this article misspelled the Pattisons' last name in the photo captions. The article has been updated, and Patch apologizes for the error.

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