Wedding Photography - Candid Or Traditional?

Times have certainly changed in the field of wedding photography. If you look at old pictures from the 1920s, you will see the newlyweds in stiff unsmiling poses.

You may wonder why they do not look happier in their bridal portraits; the reason has nothing to do with the marriage - it is because they had to hold the pose for the duration of a very long exposure time. (If you’ve ever waited while your dad fiddles with the camera for a group shot, you know how hard it is to hold a smile for long.) As technology has changed, so has wedding photography.

The evolution from the early stiff portraits certainly included more shots of the happy couple, but most images were still posed. To some extent, this is still the case - think of all those group portraits taken by wedding photographers (”Okay, Aunt Matilda, shift a little to your left…”). Today there is a strong trend away from traditional wedding portraits in favor of more candid shots.

The type of photography you will have at your wedding depends on a combination of your preference and the photographer’s forte. Carefully review his sample albums to be sure that your ideas are similar.

If page after page shows traditional staged shots, then don’t assume that the photographer will give you great candids just because you request them - it may be that he is not great at capturing moments on the fly. On the other hand, if it is important to you to have a lot of pictures of specific people, then you might want a photographer who is more adept at classic wedding portraiture.

In addition to viewing samples, ask your photographer about her background and equipment. One of the most talented wedding photographers I ever met also did sports photography for the U.S. Ski Team - you better believe that she was great at getting that split second shot. And she was also skilled at taking pictures from unusual angles, so her wedding albums definitely had a distinctive offbeat style.

Digital photography has had a huge impact on wedding photography. It does make candid shots much easier, because the photographer can snap away without worrying about wasting film. Also, they will know instantly if an image does not look good, so they can re-take it right away. The other advantage to digital photography is that the photographer can very easily switch between color and black and white pictures (back in the days of film, this required two cameras - imagine!).

Whether you opt for more classic wedding photographs or a more candid style, make sure to give your photographer a comprehensive list of the images that you want. Do not assume that they will know which groupings or moments are most important to you. It is also nice to capture some of the unique details of your wedding for posterity.

Before my wedding, I thought it would be great to have a picture me sitting on the floor with my gown spread out around me. Because I did not request this pose in advance, it never happened (naturally, I forgot all about it on the day of the wedding). If you ordered very special custom bridal jewelry, you might want some close up images of it for your album. But don’t expect your photographer to ask you if you will want him to photograph your custom bridal jewelry, the embroidery on your veil, or the like. It is up to the bride and groom to make it happen.

As you try to balance out the number of pre-planned photographs with the number of candid shots, keep in mind that you will end up with about a zillion pictures from other sources. Between your table cameras and the pictures taken by your friends and relatives, you are going to end up with a lot of fun candid pictures (of course, they may not be the same quality as the professional photos).

Whether you end up wanting more traditional or more spontaneous photos in your wedding album is entirely up to you, but be sure to clearly convey your wishes to your photographer. After all, you do not get a second chance at your wedding pictures.

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