Let's make something special

I'm going to let you in on what you can expect from your wedding photographer on the day.

This is a kind of 'How I work' post but there's also a bit of 'Why', which is so important.

Before the day comes around we have had multiple discussions about things like your timings, your plan, and a kind of who's who of who you want to be photographed, what your styling looks like, and any other details that you've included in your day. I'm trying to build up a picture of what is important to you and leaning on years of experience to make sure that I'm capturing your wedding in the right way, which is to say the way that you want to see your wedding. Some people are really vibey, and it's all about the party, and some people are maybe a little cameras shy and a bit quieter. And there's everything in between, so the more we talk before the day, the more specific my approach can be.

This is perhaps a typical day, and I'm basing what follows on a recent wedding, which was a bride and a groom, so not a same sex wedding. It's all changeable, and your wedding might well be different, but we'll get to that when we talk.

1. I arrive early. Usually something like 2 hours before your ceremony. I'll want to spend some time with the girls getting ready, but don't worry - it's not a 'before and after' kind of thing. It's more about the anticipation of what's coming, and it also gets some of your core wedding party used to me being there in the background. I'm focussed on photographing every detail, from the shoes, to the dress, to the flowers arriving. A little later on I'll be found photographing the florals and the room styling, as well as just about anything else that you've designed into your wedding.
2. Some documentary style photography of your preparations and hair and makeup, and when the time is right I'll capture the dress going on. I'll also break off and give you a bit of space while I go and find the boys. Now, the boys take about 5 minutes to get ready, and I'll see a bit of that, but we're really interested in getting some pre-wedding nerves photos of him and his best man or best men as the case may be. By the time I've done all of this and caught the dress being tweaked by the bridesmaids or mum, then I'm in the right place to get some pics of you and dad, linking arms, just before you walk in.
3. I've already made myself known to the venue staff by this point. This is really important, if only because the venue will usually have a definitive timeline of the day, and working together means that everything will run smoothly. Likewise, I'll introduce myself to the registrars or vicar so they know that I'm nothing to worry about, and they can give me the 'house rules' with regards to how I do or don't move around during the ceremony. (Spoiler: I have been known to stealthily break these rules in a church if the vicar is particularly strict, but that's rare, and perhaps a story for another day! I'm there to get your pictures of an unrepeatable moment - I'd rather get a slap on the wrists than miss the shot).
4. That said, I'm not the kind of photographer to run around the ceremony space, doing cartwheels, and generally acting like an idiot. I'll capture everything throughout the ceremony, but from a sensible distance that ensures you get your privacy. I work quietly, and efficiently here and try not to get in the way of the big moment. The readings, that first kiss, the rings - all of the stuff gets photographed. When we first talk, a lot of people kind of say that they don't really need the signing of the register photographed. Maybe it's a bit old fashioned or awkward or something, but I feel that it's an important punctuation and something that you will miss if we don't get it. So we get it.

Phew! We Did It

Indeed. You have done the 'Getting married' bit. In front of your friends and family, you have said "We will" and it's already been an incredible buzz. Amazing. It's all happening very quickly.

Let's get you on your way...

1. Straight after the ceremony is a great time to walk out under a shower of confetti. It's a kind of release, and I photograph your glorious walk of fame. Grab yourself a glass of bubbly, and we can get in to one of a few different ways of approaching the next part of the day. You might want to get straight into your guests, or you might want to 'elope' away and have some pictures taken of just the two of you. Your Couple Portraits, if you will. Let's go with that option.
2. Because we've already talked, and because you've just got married, we can get into this stuff and get you back into the party pretty quickly. It's a great time to catch your breath and just hang out with each other for 20 minutes while we work the venue backgrounds and have a bit of a laugh getting into some kind of photo session. Now, these don't have to be too formal - in fact they feel better if they're not - just enjoy your partner's company and be nice to each other. I'll move around you and work fast to keep these intimate interactions fresh and spontaneous. It's a lot less awkward than you might think. Easy.

How Refreshing...

I'm involved in your wedding. I'm part of the movement and flow of the day, and I'm constantly building up a narrative to help tell the story. I balance between driving things forward without controlling the structure of the day, and engaging with you and your guests in a friendly, integrated way. It's easy for me because I want to be there, and all the time I'm 'in there' I'm thinking about the photography, the narrative, the timeline and the story. Where should I be? What am I seeing? I observe and adjust, and I weave, without being annoying to your guests. Sometimes I'm required to step in and snap a couple of candid shots, and sometimes I'm just following the action. People, people, and more people watching. All the time.

1. Let's get you back into your guests. you've had some pictures with me - now it's time to mingle. This is where I stand back, and most of my work from now is more candid - more 'reportage'. I talk to your guests, and I photograph while I'm moving around. People are relaxed around me, and we get better pictures. Sometimes I might ask people to say cheers to the couple and snap that. It's 'candid' but it's not without intention. At this point I'm photographing the atmosphere, and the vibe of the afternoon. A cocktail hour (or two) of easing into the evening, relaxed, and refreshed. Again, this is when the anticipation starts to build as people get ready for the wedding breakfast, and the speeches, and of course, that dance floor isn't going to dance itself. Lots of fun to be had and the photos are reflective of that and often the pictures that people keep coming back to years down the line.
2. Just before you sit down to eat is a great time to get those family pictures done. Everyone is half way relaxed, so a couple of quick pictures of family together is easy. We start with the bridemaids and groomsmen, so I now have people to run off and get family members when we're ready. I think people fear that these photos are going to bring everything to a grinding halt, or be too formal, or stuffy. They really don't have to be, and again, these can be some of the most important photographs from the day for any of us. I have one picture of my Grandad from my wedding, but none of him with me, or with my close family, and the truth is that I can't have that picture now he's no longer with us.
3. I work quickly. I keep people moving, and I keep them in the moment.
4. You enter the room, everybody cheers, and - you've guessed it - I'm there to see you make your entrance and take your seats.

When the lights go down

Sometimes the speeches will happen before the wedding breakfast starts, and sometimes they will be in between courses, and sometimes they will be after desert. To some the speeches are dreaded, but turn out great, and to some the speeches are a chance to really celebrate the relationships that have brought us all to a moment in time. They are, more often than not, an emotional rollercoaster, and I'm there for it.

1. I use the speeches to really capture you and your guests letting go. All of the laughter, and sometimes all of those tears we try to choke back. It gives me an opportunity to zoom in on the room. I love these pictures - they might not be the most aesthetically, technically brilliant photographs, but they can be some of the most meaningful and personal moments from the day. They are that important. A real treasure trove of the people in our lives that make us who we are.
2. I don't generally photograph people eating - I personally don't think it's fair or necessary - but I like to get an overview of the atmosphere in the room as we start merging into the evening.
3. At some point I like to have something to eat! I use this time to literally re-charge and change over some equipment to be ready for the evening stuff.
4. If the room is getting turned around this is when people hit the bar - now I'm using a unique flash system to snap the evening shenanigans. It's a great look, and can be almost off-the-cuff glamour. This is when the heels come off and ties are loosened. Again, these are some of my favourite pictures, and it's all about energy, showing off, and being up for a party.
5. Same thing with the Cake cutting, and into the first dance. Nothing is over posed - most of the time we're not going for elegance so much as grown up party time.
6. The first dance pictures are lovely - just you two on the dance floor, lit up and locked into that moment, no matter how brief, but just enough for me to see the bride and groom dance into the night, and then everyone joins in and chaos ensues. I'm in there, grabbing the pictures of your Auntie breakdancing, and your groomsmen dancing with each other because they didn't pull one of the bridesmaids, but it's all good anyway. Lots of colour and movement and wonky pictures that just make sense.

It all comes together rather beautifully. My job is to slow some of it down by distilling those little stories and narratives down into some kind of document of your wedding. Pictures that will be a macro of when the day seemed to be going by very fast, timeless when you look back over just the best day. Caught in the moment.