Wedding Photographs – A Question of Style
Your wedding photographs are your permanent reminder of your special day and so it is important to research the various styles of photography that are on offer. From traditional, formal styles to fly-on-the-wall, deciding which one is right for you is a personal decision which should be taken by both of you, in conjunction with your photographer.
Here is our quick guide to the different styles of wedding photography you can choose from:
Reportage
This is a fly-on-the-wall style which aims to capture moments throughout the day as and when they happen and without any direction from the photographer.
Reportage suits couples who prefer not to have posed shots and want their photographs to have an informal and spontaneous appearance. However, you will need to consider the fact that some of your guests may not feature in any of the photographs due to the nature of the style. If your Auntie Mabel will be more than a bit miffed that she isn’t in any of the wedding photographs, then you may have to think again about choosing this style.
You will also need to research your choice of photographer very carefully. Reportage takes skill and experience to be able to get the right shots at the moments and finding someone with this skill and experience may be beyond most couple’s budget.
Traditional
These are the type of posed shots that you would normally associate with weddings. There is often a strong emphasis on posed portraits of you both and your families. They will also include key moments throughout the day such as signing the register and cutting the cake.
This is a good choice for large weddings and in particular if you want to make sure everyone appears in a shot. However, this may not be a good choice if you are on a tight schedule as these types of posed shots are not quick and easy to arrange.
Contemporary
This style will give you the best of both worlds as it combines both reportage and traditional. With this style you will have a mix of posed shots and spontaneous ‘as they happen’ photographs.
You will need to find a photographer who is skilled at both styles, as most are skilled at either one or the other. A good tip is to find a photographer who is experienced at reportage as this is the harder of the two styles and ask them about taking some posed shots as well. Make sure you discuss these at length with your photographer as having too many posed shots will not leave much room for your reportage shots.
Which ever style of photography you choose for your wedding, make sure you ask to see the photographer’s portfolio before making your decision. Remember you won’t know how good your photographs will be until you see them after the wedding and by then it could be too late to change your mind!
Wedding Photographs
