The Rule of Thumb

If you are a soon-to-wed bride or aspiring bride or whatever you wanna call it and have not yet immersed yourself in wedding photography this brief explanation should clarify and guide you through your journey as you choose your wedding photographer.




Remember: After your wedding day, you will have several tangible treasures forever and one of them is your wedding album. That is why in choosing your wedding photographer, you are investing not just money, but also your own time (and your family's and friend's) on your wedding day. That is why you should not settle on the most economical photographer, but seek out a skilled artisan whose style and taste matches your vision of your wedding day, one who has an eye for superb images (one who has a skill or ability to capture and record the moment and emotion just the way you want it or event beyond your imagination.)






As you go along this article you will find some actual wedding images that we captured while expecting the unexpected.



If you understand how professional wedding photographers approaches now adays it will be easier for you to choose who you think will fit your style and taste.


To help you see your way clearly as you scout photographer, keep in mind four approaches to wedding photography: traditional, wedding photojournalism, illustrative and creative.

Traditional photography includes portraits of bridal party and family - close-up and full length - and candid photographs that tell the story of the day. This is the style that suits most weddings or they usually call it the old style approached.

Wedding photojournalism means no posed photographs - all pictures would be taken without any instruction from or awareness of the photographer, imagine looking at your morning newspapers headline, most photographed were taken in a photojournalistic way means no choreography nor directing, it was captured as it happens.

Illustrative photography has drama, grand poses and majestic scenery. Every detail in the image is carefully arranged to produce a photograph with impact.

The Creative or impressionistic photographer creates images with the unusual angle or juxtaposition. The photographer is creating his or her artistic impression of your wedding day.


Most modern photographers today actually present a mix of all four of these styles. Here are some tips and hints just incase you will encounter some technical terms in dealing with your wedding photographers.


The formals photographs should be lit with good light (soft or dramatic, to suit the pose and expression!). Good lighting gives depth and roundness to the subject. Using a flash on the camera usually gives the opposite result, so that is one thing to avoid. The posing should be flattering, not stereotypical. Generally you want the subject to fill the frame (unless the picture is in the illustrative style) but not feel crowded by the borders of the photograph.


Since the photographer is showing you what he or she thinks are his or her best work, best wedding album sample, best slideshow presentation of their best photo collections should be perfect on just about every photograph. Make sure it will fit your style and taste in terms of approach and quality, but take note based from my experienced first impression will be the right one.

In addition, do make sure that the person you interviewed or dealing with, whether at a studio-front desk, bridal fair or referral one - is indeed the photographer, not a sales representative.


As a rule of thumb, you should see the images and meet the artisan behind the images before you decide for your wedding photographer.

Godspeed....

by rommelguerra (11.03.07)