WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY - Intimate Moments with Parents

PHOTOGRAPHING INTIMATE MOMENTS WITH PARENTS AT THE WEDDING

In the 1950 classic film Father of the Bride, George, played by Spencer Tracy, watches his daughter Annie, played by Elizabeth Taylor, take her wedding vows and says to himself, “I realized at that moment that I was never going to come home again and see Annie at the top of the stairs. Never going to see her again at our breakfast table in her nightgown and socks... Annie was all grown up and leaving us, and something inside began to hurt.”

The scene may be fiction, but the emotion behind it is real. Throughout the wedding day, parents and their children walk a delicate line between past and future. Letting go is never easy, but it can make for dramatic photographs full of heart. Through experience and instinct, wedding photographers capture tender moments many bridal couples typically don’t see, giving them windows into the hearts of the people they love.

IN THE MOMENT Photographing a wedding is like meditating for a long time. You have to be constantly in the moment, which feels good. We always have to remember it’s the bride and groom’s time and we feel privileged to be in their space. We’ve had to walk in really close to people at very sensitive times. When we to do that, we try to be quick, respectful and totally in the moment. Empathy during a wedding is a critical component of taking intimate photographs. Every wedding we photograph, we wonder what it will be like. We wonder what it’s like for the mom to see her daughter get married, for the dad to see his son become a a husband and maybe a father like him.

BECOMING INVISIBLE

Capturing intimate family photographs is most effective when everyone becomes comfortable around the photographer; when they forget he or she is there, that takes patience, time and trust. To become somewhat invisible you have to be patient, get to know the people, and let them know you are professional, which makes them feel comfortable. Then they forget about you. Our favorite pictures are those in which the people obviously didn’t notice someone was taking their picture.

Photographers also have to know when to put the camera down. Moments are there and then they are gone, However they only need one or two shots and no more. If you keep on shooting people become self-conscious and that ruins their moment—which is the opposite of good wedding photography.

Throughout a wedding day, a close connection between wedding photographer, bridal couples and wedding parties makes beautiful, intimate photographs possible. You don’t need a Hollywood-perfect couple and a £2 million wedding to have beautiful photographs. What makes for wonderful photos is “the relationship we build with the couple, and the couple’s emotions and passion for each other. Their love is transferred to the parents and friends. The whole day is intense in a good way. There is so much beauty and love everywhere you go that it makes photographing that wedding so much easier

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