I was asked to answer a question to be featured as their wedding photographer export in the latest issue of Your Merseyside Wedding Magazine. The only downside is the editor used a pic from my personal Facebook page to get the layout but forgot to change it before it went to print… lol… Oh well, here’s the feature, question and my answer:
Q: Many wedding photographers claim they have a contemporary style and we’re really keen to avoid traditional set-up shots. What key qualities should we look for in a photographer if we’re after a modern-looking album
A: Matt says: The key qualities to look for in a photographer when wanting a modern-looking album:
I believe it’s important not to completely avoid having wedding photographs that are ‘set-up’ but to find a photographer that can embrace it in a unique style making them look natural and creative. You’d be surprised how many shots don’t look like they’ve been ‘set-up’ but in fact are, then with a little finesse don’t look traditional but artistic
and creative.
Having the ability to direct certain photographs of the day and then evoking emotion is a great quality for this type of photographer to have. Capturing natural and exciting moments at the right time is what makes the photograph look real – which it is, the reaction is real, however, in some cases this need to be created. Then by adding artistic composition, by framing, reflections, shooting through objects or by using lighting techniques, a contemporary style is created.
A photographer should be able to think outside the box to move away from the ‘traditional’ wedding image. I believe your photographer should shoot with the album in mind should you want it to be modern.
There needs to be some sort of structure of the day for the wedding story to be told in an album. Without this, parts of the day may be missing. It’s integral to tell the full story and sometimes this needs to be created, or ‘set-up’. So having the ability to still shoot traditional but creatively, is a key quality to have.
Traditional wedding photographs need not be boring with the perfect blend of emotion, creativity and great use of lighting.
If you would like to see how I implement these principles within my wedding photography see our latest wedding galleries
