I often get asked why we describe ourselves as ‘reportage wedding photographers’ by Brides and what that means for them and their wedding day, so I thought I’d put some information up here to help.

What is reportage photography?

As reportage wedding photographers our aim is to capture the story of your wedding day, we don’t create the key moments of the day, instead we capture what happens naturally.

Surely nowadays all wedding photographers snap away constantly, what makes your style different?

Most wedding photographers do indeed take lots of photo’s since the advent of digital.  True reportage photographers mingle with the guests and capture moments which sum up the essence of the day, the unnoticed details which build up to tell a story.  Many wedding photographers wander round taking photographs of people reacting to the presence of the camera. A wedding photojournalist has a finely tuned eye for storytelling, an almost natural ability to be in the right place at the right time.

Does this mean there won’t be any posed photographs?

We will still take some posed group photographs following your ceremony, however we plan to not shoot too many groups, because whilst you’re spending lots of time posing for endless group photos you’re not simply enjoying your day and the company of your family and friends.  We prefer you to be mingling with your guests where we can capture the genuine interactions that occur, it’s more fun for you too.

What if we want lots of family photographs?

Whilst planning your day you should be aware that most photographers calculate up to 5 minutes per group, so for 30 group photos you could be spending a couple of hours stood having your picture taken. We like to limit the number of group shots so that we can get more natural photographs of you with your family and friends.  Of course you are the boss, it’s your wedding day and we’re happy to photograph whatever you ask us to.

Will we get ‘quirky’ pictures?

We like to provide interesting and modern group photographs. We like to explore individual locations and the personalities of our Brides and Grooms, but we don’t set up scenes where the bride is pushing a ‘broken down’ wedding car or the ushers are dragging the groom towards the church. Instead we’ll capture the Brides favourite aunt admiring the wedding ring or the best man going over his speech out of view of the wedding party.

How will we get to remember the story of our day if we don’t buy an album?

Whilst we provide a comprehensive range of albums, for all of our customers we provide a DVD with fully licenced music which we believe is an excellent way to view and share the memories of your wedding day. Our customers have found that this is a fantastic way in which to relive their wedding day with their family and friends. We offer this option for customers who don’t want an album, or who might want to buy an album later when they’ve had a chance to pay for their wedding and get back on track with their finances.

I want to look my best on my wedding photographs, isn’t it better if I am posed?

There will be time during your wedding day when we will take some posed bridal portraits and some beautiful couple photographs too. But we will also capture natural moments where you look your best; checking your hair and makeup during your preparations, that romantic glance to your groom during the ceremony and all the other unplanned moments throughout the day.

Most wedding photographers offer shorter coverage of the wedding day, why don’t you?

Because our aim is to give you the full story of your wedding day, we chose not to offer packages limited by the time that we spend with you. This might mean that our starting price is lower than some other photographers, however we believe that your wedding photography shouldn’t be chosen by price alone. When the cake has gone and the dress has been packed away, when the party is over and your friends have gone home, all that will be left to remember your day will be your photographs.

We do offer shorter coverage for midweek weddings which are often smaller affairs with fewer guests and no large formal party, to reflect these different requirements we offer coverage until after the speeches.

 

Photographers deal in things which are continually vanishing and when they have vanished there is no contrivance on earth which can make them come back again. - Henri Cartier-Bresson