When it comes to my watch, I tend to procrastinate. If the battery dies, it sits on the shelf for a couple of months until I actually think about going to get it changed. This time, a number had fallen off the face, but luckily the guys at Saati Fine Jewelry were able to solve my problems.
It seemed like a jail walking in through the double-buzz doors the first time, but the minute I walked in the store, that completely changed. I was greeted very kindly and professionally by Andrew, a third generation Jeweller. I could hear his father Albert working away in the back as I explained my dilemma to him. Expecting to pay a mountain for the repairs, he quickly assessed the damage and told me it would only be $10. Wohoo!
A couple of days later, I walked back in the store just to check in, and coincidentally, he had just left the message on my machine to tell me it was ready. We got to chatting, and he showed me some of the designs that he had created on the computer (which I do have to say were quite impressive - particularly the one he had designed for his sister). He started learning the trade from his father, and then went on to get an education in it. Now they both run the store and have a whole section of jewelry originally designed by them.
I told Andrew that I was a photographer working on this project, and he asked if his father could be in the photo as well. In my last post, I had made a decision to break from an aspect of the project that I had clung to since the beginning, and I find myself doing that again with the two of them in the portrait. I see this not as giving up, but growth. Much like the creative process is, changes get made along the way as a catalyst for something better. In this case, having the two of them together with smiles of pride meant much more in the photo than having two individual pictures of them.
Originally they had been standing behind the counter, where the pot lights above cut a harsh light across their faces, so I moved them to the centre of their store to have more even lighting on them coming from the large front window.
Thanks to the two of you for giving me the time, and doing a great job on the repairs!