Weddingbee Blog

My pal Julie does a lot of documentary-style photography in and around SF. I hit her up for some much-needed engagement and wedding photography tips. It’s tough for folks who don’t model professionally to act natural in front of a camera, but these pointers could help ease worries (mine included) on that front.

• This is always true: the less posed the subjects are, the better. If the photos are a natural extension of the events of the day, instead of a stiff portrait of you in clothes you hate, then everyone will be better off.
• Acclimate. Get used to being all close (to each other, to your photog, and to his or her camera). Most folks need time to warm up and feel comfortable in front of a camera, so that warming-up time is a good time to take more posed, formal shots. After that, you can really get going on fun ones. As Julie says, it’s a lot easier to capture feelings and emotions that are ephemeral, not formulaic.
• A photo is timeless (something we all want) when it’s honest. The photographer’s challenge is to capture the essence of an event or a person. If they’ve done that, they’ve done their job. A good question to keep in mind for photographers: can you recreate the feeling and sentiment of that instant? People relate best to people and emotions, ones that even future generations will intuitively understand.
• There’s a perfect photographer out there for every kind of couple. Julie wanders all over town and does a lot of street photography, and her style speaks to people who share that aesthetic.
• Go through your chosen photog’s portfolio (not anyone else’s, per a tip from my photog Ashley), and point out everything you loved, and why. That way, everyone is on the same page about the end results. Julie says that, whether it’s processing, lighting, or just a general mood, it helps greatly to know what drew clients to her in the first place.

Credit: Julie Michelle

My personal list of things to keep in mind is:

• Don’t pick your lips. I have a terrible habit of picking at loose skin on my lips and fingers. I’m sure you can all imagine how lovely that would look in photos.
• Straighten those rounded shoulders, soldier. Slouchy Sloucherson is not invited to the wedding.

Any other tips out there in the Hive? If you have tips on helping me and others achieve the bullet points above, please throw them in the comments!