Having had to travel up to Sydney, and due to the distance between the groom and bride’s houses, I couldn’t apply my usual working formula. Another photographer was contracted by the couple to cover the bride’s preparations. So to keep a balance in the collection of photos presented in this post, I’ll start off at the church.

We made it fairly early to the ceremony, and I took that opportunity to snap away a couple of shots of the groom. The bride wasn’t too far away, so I rushed the boys in. When she arrived, we still had a few moments up our sleeve, and I snapped away a few shots of her just before walking in.
Lighting was the biggest challenge at the ceremony as no flash photography was allowed. But luckily the alter is lit up fairly well, and the resulting images looked great. Following the ceremony, I couldn’t resist doing a big group shot on the front steps of the church. I got a headache from having to yell at the top of my voice so everyone can hear me. But it was worth it! Around the church there was an endless supply of backdrops to use. I chose more of the classic posses so to match with the dress, suit and background.
Big bridal parties can sometimes be a handful to deal with, but not in this instance. Everyone was very helpful and the group shots really reflect how much fun they were all having.

My personal favorite shot from the day is of Donald and Ronita with the water as a background, and that little bit of green grass in the foreground.

Now with winter creeping upon us, and the sun setting earlier, we couldn’t say no to an opportunity of a night shoot to tryout some lighting techniques we had been studying lately. Plus, we’ve been having some great weather at night, and it was a chance for Sandy and myself to get to the city. We love Melbourne at night. So she came along to assist with the lighting.

We got into the city about an hour before our scheduled meeting, and we sat down for some dinner at the Nando’s across the road from Federation Square. There, I noticed the “acmi” sign, and the first thought was that it would make a great light source. After our dinner and before catching up with Chris and Shame, I did a few test shots of Sandy in front of the sign and they worked out well. So our first stop with Chris and Shame was at the sign. Then we took a stroll around Southbank looking for the brightest lights.

What made the PreShoot extra fun was a very cooperative couple. They had fun, we had fun, and the resulting images were pretty cool. Night shoots are very challenging; there are technical difficulties to overcome, and there is also the need to present the right mood to fit the backdrops. The deep blacks and the colourful lights need to be matched with the right expressions from those in the images. Chris and Shame were great at interpreting the scenes and working with us to achieve the right moods for the different images.

For Nahla & Younes’ wedding we started our location shoot at Overnewton Castle. A really nice place, right in the middle of Keilor. Yes, that is correct, a castle in the middle of Keilor! Once our allocated time was up, we headed to South Wharf so to contrast the classic look of the castle. There we were able to create images with more of a modern twist.

A side note; the shots of Younes getting ready are not done with digital effects. We just got him to stand behind a glass door that had that colour and texture.

Why should this be a concern for the bride and groom. Well, it’s about guaranteed results.

Fine art and “true” photojournalistic photographers take the time to get to know the couple, understand their objectives, then work towards telling the story through images. Most of the time they are hands on to create the images required. This is not limited to just setting up the shots, but also dealing with potential distractions. A simple example would be dealing with a delay at the ceremony. The last thing a bride would want is images of her all stressed out as she is walking down the isle. It is the job of the photographer to deal with such issues that may arise. We have our methods to make everyone happy. And in ten years time when the memories have faded and the only thing that you have to remind you of your day is your photographs, you’ll remember it as perfect as you had always wished it to be.

We are not saying that candid and unobtrusive photographers don’t offer a professional service. The key here is to understand that the vibe presented to you in the display albums and images has come from the couples and the dynamics of their weddings. The photographer was their to capture and record the events of the day without any input. So you need to ask yourself if your wedding day will present the photographer with the right opportunities to capture images you wish for.

As for posed shots, we think there is a problem in the definition here.
Let’s look at the following image; is it a posed shot?

If you are to say no, then it means that we have done our job well. If you are to say yes, then you are very observant and correct.

When we say posed, we don’t mean having the groom sitting on a grand chair, legs crossed, the bride standing to his left, with her right hand on his left shoulder, and both looking square at the camera. Great wedding photography is about blurring the line between posed and natural images.

The best advice we can offer is to fully understand what you are getting when booking a photographer, and the biggest DON’T is to book a fine art photographer, and expect them to shoot photojournalistic style (or vice versa). When you get to your short list of photographers, ask them about their working style (not to be confused with shooting style), and from there make the judgment if they would be the best to capture your most precious memories.

You need to imagine an image as a jigsaw puzzle, with many pieces that need to fit together. Here is what was taken into consideration and done when this image was shot;

The very first thing was the direction of the light. I mostly relay on natural light, and I love working with it, so I needed to figure out where it was coming from. Once I determined that, I looked at the background and what pose would work best. Now deciding on the pose can be a bit tricky, as you need to put together something that not only looks good, but it needs to look natural for the couple. We are all individuals, so if a pose works in one instance, it doesn’t mean that it will work in another.

Once I had these things figured out, I quickly planned out how to go about posing the couple, and proceeded to do so. At this point, a very complicated thought process takes place; it is one thing to have an image in one’s head, making it is another. Working out the physics and logistics of a pose, and then working out how to communicate that information is not a straight forward task. Plus, while this was happening, I was still keeping an eye on the direction of the natural light and where it was falling.

Once all these things were figured out, and the couple was posed the way I wanted them, I set the controls on the camera. Then just before taking the shot, I made the final touches to the positioning, and threw in a little comment to invoke the smile. Two hundredth of a second later this image was on the back of the camera.

The post processing on this image was done in a subtle manner so not to take away from an already great image that we are sure will become a priceless possession of the couple.

I tried to get straight to the point with the explanations of the steps taken, so if you have any questions, or you would like me to elaborate on something, please don’t hesitate to use the comments section, or send us an email.