Think back with me.

In the last 10 years, how often have you looked back through your camera roll? How often have you dug through your hard drives just to go down memory lane?

I know for me that the answer isn’t often.

It’s gotten me thinking, what’s more important. Would you rather have thousands and thousands of images that show everything but are hard to find…OR a small, carefully curated set of images that tells your story well and you stumble upon often?

Obviously it’s a simple answer, and yet in our digital age I feel a pull to have everything possible. Hold on to every image, every note, every text, every email.

What are we gaining by this?

But you know what I have looked back on? The physical things.

The handwritten cards. The journals. The notebooks. The images I’ve printed.

The photographs on our walls and in our albums are what I treasure most. Those won’t be forgotten. They are tangible and powerful reminders of what mattered most in the time they were taken.

We often sift through to find what matters most to us. This is true in movies, music, friendships, food preferences, literature, travel destinations, and in my work — wedding photography.

It not about having everything. Everything is far too much.

When cameras promise to not let you miss anything, curation becomes a superpower. Each image becomes more powerful when I eliminate the distractions around it.

Decisions, slowness, carefully carving away. This curation brings life into focus. What’s left is your story.

Don’t be afraid to throw things away. Don’t be afraid to commit to the images and stories that will remind you of why it all matters.