Viewing entries in
Advice for Couples

Yes, I'm Still Here...

You may notice that the last blog entry was way back in Nov 2014. Fear not, I'm still busy making photographs for happy clients, I've just decided to put the blog on a bit of a hiatus.

Why?

Well, here's the thing. There's already hundreds of photographs on this site - more than enough for you to be able to make a decision about whether I'm the right photographer for you. So why add even more?

The vast majority of photographers' blog posts (yes, including mine) are written with one aim - to get Google to index the pages and help improve the chance of getting the site to appear high up in the search results. So photographers post lots of pictures from every wedding they can to keep the content fresh and make the keywords available for Google to read. The posts are not really there for your benefit, but for a machine. The problem is that the machine keeps changing the rules about what it likes. And I've got better things to do than spend my time trying to figure out what this week's rules are.

Since I've never really been anywhere near the top of the search results in Google's big index I'm not really losing out by refusing to play their game. Most of my clients come via personal recommendation from previous happy couples or from other photographers. So I've stopped uploading stuff for the moment.

I'm still busy fielding enquiries, attending weddings up and down the country and delivering great photographs to my clients. Let me know if you'd like me to photograph yours - there's plenty of pictures already on here to help you make up your mind...

Sometimes It Rains At Weddings

Wedding Photography at Huntsham Court, Devon

I'm a photographer living in the UK. That means I get to shoot pictures in the rain. A lot.

Its just one of those things you have to accept that you have no control over. It doesn't matter which month you plan your wedding for, there's always the chance that it won't be the perfect hot, sunny day you dreamt about.

But it doesn't have to spoil your wedding pictures.

If you book a photographer who is reliant on shooting lots of posed, beautifully lit, carefully arranged pictures, using the designated "photo opportunities" of the venue, then that photographer has a problem when the weather is bad. If you want that kind of photography then you need to make sure your chosen photographer can do it inside as well as outside.

Because I don't work like that, the weather doesn't really have any effect on the way | photograph a wedding. If it rains, then the pictures will show that. And everyone will spend most of the day indoors anyway, where I can shoot in my standard documentary style with no problem at all.

When people are outside, like in these pictures from Huntsham Court in Devon, the rain can sometimes add to the photography. Here the colourful umbrellas contrast nicely with the deep greens of the surrounding gardens.

There's no point trying to pretend that the weather was nice by avoiding showing it in the pictures. The whole point of the photography is to record the day as it was, and help you remember it for years to come.

So, if you're going to get stressed out about something, don't make it the weather - there's nothing you can do to change it!

Wedding photography at Huntsham Court, Devon

Things I WILL NOT DO As Your Wedding Photographer

I obviously meet a lot of newly engaged couples to chat about their wedding and they often have horror stories about weddings they've been to as guests, or other photographers they've been to meet. Some of things I've heard are frankly astonishing!

So, here's a list of things that I WILL NOT DO as your wedding photographer. And yes, I've heard of all of this happening for real.

  1. I won't complain that you're running late with your preparations, causing you to burst into tears with stress.
  2. I won't insist that your guests can't take pictures.
  3. I won't tell you to alter your timetable for the day so that things are more convenient for me.
  4. I won't promise you your pictures in 2 weeks and then finally deliver them 2 months later.
  5. I won't post all your wedding photos on Facebook for the whole world to see before you've even had your DVD.
  6. I won't drink alcohol.
  7. I won't help myself to your guests' food.
  8. I won't expect to sit and eat with your guests at the wedding breakfast.
  9. I won't send out your wedding photos to all the other suppliers for them to use in their advertising.
  10. I won't send your wedding photos into the local newspaper for a bit of free publicity.
  11. I won't try to sell your wedding photos to a picture agency behind your back because you're well-known.
  12. I won't live-tweet or post instagram pictures from your wedding.
  13. I won't bring someone along to your wedding for work experience without asking you if its OK.
  14. I won't spend the day giving out my business cards to your guests and trying to book future weddings. 

I find it amazing that a professional photographer would consider any one of these things acceptable, but they've all happened at someone's wedding.

Anyone else got any horror stories about photographers with an "unusual" approach to wedding photography?

16 Things You Should Know Before You Start Looking For A Wedding Photographer

Yes, its one of those annoying "list" blogposts, so apologies for that, but I think these are things that you should be aware of before you start your search for a photographer for your wedding. Obviously not all these points apply to all photographers - they are general points that, as a newly engaged couple, probably searching for a professional photographer for the first time, you may find useful to know. So, in no particular order, here goes...

Does It Matter If You Pose Wedding Pictures As Long As They Look Natural?

My approach to wedding photography relies almost completely on capturing natural, unposed moments. Sometimes though, a picture works so well that the result actually looks like it might have been posed. Here's some examples to show what I mean.

Wedding Photojournalism at Cardiff City Hall

As far as I'm concerned, this picture is just about perfect. Everything about it is right - the light, the surroundings, the expressions, the composition, even the way Claire's foot is showing from under her dress. If I'd tried to pose this picture it would not have been this good.

Again, this moment is great. Its a chance capture - I had no idea it was going to happen. It looks like I could have set it up by telling them that I was going outside and then giving them a signal when I was ready for them to kiss.

Rudding Park wedding photography

Coed-y-Mwstwr, Bridgend - Documentary Wedding Photography

Here again, there's was nothing to stop me asking Eluned to spin around a couple of times when I was ready and in position.

But the important point I want to make is this : The people in the pictures know whether I posed them or not. They know that these are natural, unposed moments, captured as they happened, with no intervention from me. When the bride and groom look at their album, they know what they're looking at.

I don't shoot wedding pictures with the intention of writing magazine articles about them, or sending them in to wedding blogs, or entering them in competitions. I don't care whether other people think that I posed them or not. My photographs are for the bride and groom. All that matters is what they feel when they see their pictures and they wouldn't feel the same way if they had posed for them.

So, to answer the title of this post, yes, it matters.