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Interesting Slate article on Wedding Photography
- Thread starter Chuck Gardner
- Start date
George Law
Senior Member
George Law
http://www.images123.com
http://www.images123.com
Hades
Forum Enthusiast
Good article but I feel the market will dictate whats popular and what is not.
Hmmm, perhaps its circular. High end magazine photogs bring back traditional styles, people buy the magazines and want whats in them. Thats now popular.
In the end, who cares as long as your capable of providing what sells.
Cheers
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Nikon D Fifty
Nikon Fifty mm F1.4
Sigma 24-70 F2.8
Nikon Seventy - Three Hundred VR
Nikon SB- Six Hundred
Hmmm, perhaps its circular. High end magazine photogs bring back traditional styles, people buy the magazines and want whats in them. Thats now popular.
In the end, who cares as long as your capable of providing what sells.
Cheers
--
Nikon D Fifty
Nikon Fifty mm F1.4
Sigma 24-70 F2.8
Nikon Seventy - Three Hundred VR
Nikon SB- Six Hundred
Phileas Fogg
Senior Member
Could not have said it any better myself.
--
visit my photo gallery of images from my 10D
http://phileas.fotopic.net/c258181.html
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visit my photo gallery of images from my 10D
http://phileas.fotopic.net/c258181.html
str8shooter
Well-known member
i agree with most of what the article said and I consider myself a photojournalistic style photographer but not strictly...i sometimes take matters into my own hands, especially for group photos but I'm far from being as anal as your typical 'traditional' photographer in my work.
Rob Kircher
Senior Member
As a non wedding photographer does it have to be so black and white? Traditional vs. Photojournalism? Why not a mix of both. This is how my wedding was shot sooooooooooooo many years ago. I still love to go though my proof album, (not even sure where the final album is) why? Because all the fun pictures are in the proof album most of which are candid PJ style.
And as to the part about the most cherished photos of your mothers wedding album? The most popular photo in my mothers album is one of my cousin Mike (he must have been around 4) sleeping across 3 folding chairs still all dressed in his tux at the reception. He was the ring barer.
And before you start in about my mothers or my photographer not being good, they were just as good as anything I've seen posted here.
Fact is people like the fun pictures. They also like the traditionally posed pictures.
So I guess the point is if I where to be a wedding photographer today, I’d learn and merge the art of both traditional and PJ style photography. Uncle Henry would never be able to compete with everything else held equal.
My wife and I successfully do this with other event photography (she poses, I shoot PJ), why can't it be done for weddings?
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Rob Kircher
My Stuff: http://www.pbase.com/rkircher
And as to the part about the most cherished photos of your mothers wedding album? The most popular photo in my mothers album is one of my cousin Mike (he must have been around 4) sleeping across 3 folding chairs still all dressed in his tux at the reception. He was the ring barer.
And before you start in about my mothers or my photographer not being good, they were just as good as anything I've seen posted here.
Fact is people like the fun pictures. They also like the traditionally posed pictures.
So I guess the point is if I where to be a wedding photographer today, I’d learn and merge the art of both traditional and PJ style photography. Uncle Henry would never be able to compete with everything else held equal.
My wife and I successfully do this with other event photography (she poses, I shoot PJ), why can't it be done for weddings?
--
Rob Kircher
My Stuff: http://www.pbase.com/rkircher
Todd Enlund
Well-known member
This is what a good photographer should do. The point that I got from the article is that "Photojournalism" is often a cover for poor photography, and I agree completely. All those really great "candid" shots are actually carefully planned... not "PJ". Caveat emptor...
NYellenzaslaw
Forum Enthusiast
Isn't it odd, though, that an article that is critical of the trend toward PJ style is illustrated with PJ-style photos and not traditional ones? I hardly think a candid in which a bouquet has been placed somewhat purposefully or a piece of litter has been removed is a 'traditional' photo. I have no problem with posed group photos or portraits--I think formally posed pictures serve their own purposes--but I'm puzzled that well-composed, well-lit photos of people in action, capturing passion or poignancy or hilarity or tenderness or frailty or jubilation or whatever, are seen by many as mere snapshots. They aren't. They can be the greatest art. Think about the range of human subjects depicted by great painters. Some stand ramrod-straight and gaze at the painter, some appear just to go about their business. Proficient sports or dance shooters or photojournalists or wildlife photographers aren't snapshooters in the Uncle Henry sense, are they? Then why are proficient wedding shooters? I don't believe they are and I don't believe the author of the Slate article thinks so either.
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Ellen Z
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Ellen Z
Phileas Fogg
Senior Member
I learned from a very successful pro-photographer friend and mentor that I should look at wedding photography I do as choreographed design. Blending elements of traditional portraiture, along with artistic and modern concepts in portraiture and tying it all together with moments of the day and the event. The choreography is both blending my photographic style and desire to make each wedding unique and special and to choreograph the subjects when need be throughout the day. Candid photography that add or tell a story are filling to the meat of the day, capturing through both traditional portraiture and artistic personal portraiture the day. This makes my photography MINE and not just like another who jumps on a bandwagon fad or new trend etc. Or IMO worse to ride the coat tails of some seller and marketer of in the can type photography. It also separates my work more from the simplistic traditional style that was popular a generation or more ago.
I learned this idealism shared to me by my mentor to find my own way, tell my own story through photography of what I see and feel the client may want and should have captured forever in photography. I don't shoot gimmicky type shots. I don't shoot 1000+ images. I don't shoot candid snaps that are all too often disguised as photo journalistic. I shoot to tell a story of the client that I have come to know over consultations, their ideas and my thoughts as seen through my vision and style, all tied together as a story.
--
visit my photo gallery of images from my 10D
http://phileas.fotopic.net/c258181.html
I learned this idealism shared to me by my mentor to find my own way, tell my own story through photography of what I see and feel the client may want and should have captured forever in photography. I don't shoot gimmicky type shots. I don't shoot 1000+ images. I don't shoot candid snaps that are all too often disguised as photo journalistic. I shoot to tell a story of the client that I have come to know over consultations, their ideas and my thoughts as seen through my vision and style, all tied together as a story.
--
visit my photo gallery of images from my 10D
http://phileas.fotopic.net/c258181.html
caterpillar
Veteran Member
There really shouldn't be any problems either way. It isn't an either-or proposition. This isn't a battle of which is better. There are things to consider:
1. not all customers are the same. Some want more PJ, some want traditional. In my own case, most want the PJ approach. In our country more and more want the PJ approach.
2. There are subjects who are difficult to pose or who don't really look well in posed shots. A good photographer can make the transition easy, but there are times there is very llittle time to work some clients.
3. not all photographers have a knack for PJ style. I worked with a photographer last Friday and he was very good with posed shots, but not very good with PJ style.
4. Not all photographers are comfortable and are good with posed shots. Even that photographer I worked with is weak at posing the subject. If it were not for my posing, he would be at a loss what to do. He is good at getting the shot once it is posed, but his own poses are static and tend to look "too posed" and he does not have the knack to make the client comfortable or at ease so that the posed shots, doesn't look "posed."
The best solution is to have both styles at one's disposal. The question is what ratio of posed vs PJ do you use? In our case it's a 70-30% ratio with 30% is for posing or set shots. Sometimes it is less at 20%. it's never the same. It depends on a lot of things, and some of them are beyond our control.
Both styles have their advantages and disadvantages. Both can be useful and have their place. A good photographer, a Master wedding photographer should be able to move from both styles at ease and minimum fuss. There is no need to defend or prop one style over the other.
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1. not all customers are the same. Some want more PJ, some want traditional. In my own case, most want the PJ approach. In our country more and more want the PJ approach.
2. There are subjects who are difficult to pose or who don't really look well in posed shots. A good photographer can make the transition easy, but there are times there is very llittle time to work some clients.
3. not all photographers have a knack for PJ style. I worked with a photographer last Friday and he was very good with posed shots, but not very good with PJ style.
4. Not all photographers are comfortable and are good with posed shots. Even that photographer I worked with is weak at posing the subject. If it were not for my posing, he would be at a loss what to do. He is good at getting the shot once it is posed, but his own poses are static and tend to look "too posed" and he does not have the knack to make the client comfortable or at ease so that the posed shots, doesn't look "posed."
The best solution is to have both styles at one's disposal. The question is what ratio of posed vs PJ do you use? In our case it's a 70-30% ratio with 30% is for posing or set shots. Sometimes it is less at 20%. it's never the same. It depends on a lot of things, and some of them are beyond our control.
Both styles have their advantages and disadvantages. Both can be useful and have their place. A good photographer, a Master wedding photographer should be able to move from both styles at ease and minimum fuss. There is no need to defend or prop one style over the other.
--
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- Caterpillar
cartervj
Forum Enthusiast
I agree a thousand percent with that observation. Location of the wedding itself often ditacts what can and can't be done.
I had a girl come by and hand be a magazine. She says this is what I want for my wedding pictures. I look and it's a gorgeous wedding in Scottland with rolling hills and a castle. I ask, how much for plane tickets. She stutters and says, no I want that look and those poses. So I ask where their wedding will be? She names a church and the reception will be in the basement. I did not book, I'm not gonna disappoint the girl, I'll let some one else do that.
The average brides dressing room around here is the pre-k class room at the church, lots of big bird, cookiemonster and stuff!
PJ has created a monster that is hard for the average joe to understand. Photographers that cannot pose use this word. Brides to be hear that this is what they want so they really don't even know what they are asking for.
Really well done pj style is a song and dance between the photographer and bride and groom and location plays a large role as well!
My daughter sent me that URL this morning - I was going to list it here too. It seemed to make some good points, although there were a couple of images I questioned as well. And I've been using both styles simultaneously for years.
Right now I'm on a search for what I've been told are my images in Modern Bride, although I didn't know they had appeared there and have no idea which issue. I suspect a friend I helped out when one of his photogs got sick may have used my stuff under his name, which I may not like, under the circumstances. I don't want to jump to any conclusions, but...I didn't submit them...
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jrbehm
http://www.studiob-productions.com
Right now I'm on a search for what I've been told are my images in Modern Bride, although I didn't know they had appeared there and have no idea which issue. I suspect a friend I helped out when one of his photogs got sick may have used my stuff under his name, which I may not like, under the circumstances. I don't want to jump to any conclusions, but...I didn't submit them...
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jrbehm
http://www.studiob-productions.com
RJSPhotography
Senior Member
noted
Of course not, it's just that you're too lazy to add a page to your bookmarks; so you flout the posting rules by bumping a thread "with no new content" (from the forum rules).
C'mon aussie guy be civil about it; it's a waste of bandwidth (there are too many lazy people doing it already....besides that other threads get buried quickly)
kanini
Active member
true true .TRUE..
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