'Maternal Instinct' on Netflix is a Wedding Photography Nightmare

“I was scared to hire a photographer for my wedding,” says the sister of Reagan Simmons Hancock in the harrowing Netflix documentary Maternal Instinct. It’s not surprising. Her sister was murdered by her wedding photographer.

As a photographer who used to book weddings, watching the events of Reagan Simmons Hancock’s murder and the abduction of her unborn child, it’s truly a shame that Taylor Parker ever picked up a camera.

Parker met Hancock when the latter booked her for a wedding and subsequently became firm friends. I think the best way to describe Parker as a photographer is a weekend warrior. When the photos she took at Hancock’s wedding were flashed on the screen, I gasped at how terrible they were; poorly composed and awful lighting. Nevertheless, Hancock’s family appears grateful the photos exist and says they still look at them even today — despite the fact they were taken by Hancock’s murderer.

That’s the funny thing about wedding photography, it’s an unregulated industry where literally anyone can decide they could do it. Some, presumably like Parker, see it as a side hustle. Of course, mastering the art of wedding photography takes years of training and requires a certain kind of character.

In recent years, stories of wedding photographers not turning up to shoots or running off with the money have abounded. In one case, a state attorney stepped in after a wedding photography business allegedly collected over $750,000 from couples without providing a service.

But that’s small fry compared to the crime that Parker would go on to commit. A crime for which she now faces the death penalty.

Any right-thinking person can see that this is an extremely rare case; there have been just 15 fetal abductions by maternal eviscerations between 1987 and 2011 in the U.S., according to The Guardian. Nevertheless, I can’t begrudge Hancock’s sister for being hesitant when hiring a wedding photographer, although she presumably did end up booking one.

But sadly, such shocking and tragic events do have real-world consequences: just this week, PetaPixel spoke to a North Carolina wedding photographer who just happens to have the same name as Parker. The unfortunate coincidence has led to online harassment and a flurry of one-star reviews.

“It is affecting my business and my livelihood, and I’m very stressed out about it,” says Ashley Parker from Asheville, North Carolina. “My name is Taylor Parker. This girl’s name was Taylor Parker… I’m not the same person as the person in this Netflix documentary.”

Just like Ashley Parker from North Carolina, the vast majority of wedding photographers are decent, hard-working folk who are striving to capture people’s big days in the best and most professional way. Never let a few bad apples spoil the bunch.