We attend between thirty and forty weddings each year. We have been to many venues, encountered a range of styles, and worked with many different couples with a distinctive vision for their wedding day. We have reached a place where our behavior at a wedding is second nature. It's pretty simple, really. Wear what the guests wear to better blend in. Be polite and respectful of family and friends. Be as quiet as possible. Don't attract attention. We always remember that it's your day, not ours, and we are there to document it as unobtrusively as possible.
So sometimes it still catches me off guard when one of our clients calls or emails with a usually hilarious but sad account of a wedding they attended where the "professional" photographer was less than... charming? subtle? polite? professional? LOL all of these things?
Photographers waving their arms, jumping up on the altar during a ceremony, insulting guests, crawling around on the floor, shooting flash so bright that half the guests are stumbling around completely blind with their retinas burned to a crisp, and interrupting intimate moments to ask you to say cheese. Photographers who think that wearing black makes them invisible. Hey, dude. Hey. You're not a ninja.
Frankly it's pretty embarrassing for the rest of us. It makes us all look like villains, even those of us who know how to mind our manners. It's kind of like being an attorney. Everyone makes fun of you, but they still need you when the time comes.
Like everyone else, we love good stories. Got one? Post it in comments. But please don't mention anyone by name. We really don't want to have to quit making fun of our attorney long enough to give him a call...
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My story isn't from a wedding-but from a last minute photography session at the mall for my husband and my engagement shots. The photographer asked my (now) husband to get down on one knee with my ring and act as if he was proposing, while I stood there with a suprised grin on my face. I knew this was going to look rediculous, seeing as he didn't even do that when he actually did propose. I quickly decided against it and jumped on my husband's back for a piggy back ride-which eventually was the shot we decided to enlarge and send out to our family. Just goes to show you should follow your instincts and not listen to any rediculous poses from the "supposed" pros. =)
ReplyDelete-Marie Monday
I was at a friend's wedding a few weeks ago and as mentioned above, the photographer thought she must have been invisible in her black slacks & blouse. She followed the couple down the aisle, keeping a safe distance, but when she got about 4 rows back she squatted down on her knees for a different angle her bright red panties poked above the low rise of her slacks. Lessons learned: Wear a belt and don't wear flashy undies under a somber outfit.
ReplyDeleteROFL Jesse - that's hilarious! If you kept a straight face I'm impressed!
ReplyDeleteAt a recent wedding that I attended the photographer only took one shot of each formal pose (he's perfect evidently) and then when the couple was at the alter, he stood 2 pews back in the middle of the aisle so no one else could see what was going on... so obnoxious!
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