Let’s all stop and think for a moment. What does a wedding photography “trend” entail? A bunch of stock images pinned to a Pinterest Board? The current “Best of 2014” awardees on Junebug? Something that made the cover of this month’s print issue of The Knot?
At it’s best, a wedding photography trend is something some photographer staged or captured, that a bunch other photographers or couples decided they wanted to reproduce for themselves.
And that, my friends, is the true heart of a wedding photography trend – imitation.
And why, my friends, would you want to replicate someone else’s moments on a day you have strived to make so uniquely your own?
A confession: I do not follow other wedding photographers’ blogs or sites. I don’t check out the featured weddings on The Knot or Offbeat Bride. I use Pinterest to tag recipes that look delish or pretties I want to reorganize my apartment with, but I don’t have a “wedding photo inspiration” board. (Addendum: I do Pin my own work to Pinterest, because , well, free marketing, why not?)
And why should I follow other wedding photographer’s work? I don’t want to deliver to you a handful of moments cherry picked from other people’s weddings. I want to – and I relish in, actually – being wholly present at your wedding day; capturing it as it unfolds naturally, creepily people watching and listening and being in the middle of all the going-ons, so that you get the most genuine portrayal of YOUR wedding day.
I try to keep my staging and directing to a bare minimum at weddings (past formal portraits, where I am a megaphone of commanding in a chaotic hour). For the most part, I just watch. And wait. You’re just as likely to get a photo of your bridesmaids doing a smell check before dressing, as you are to get a regular photo of your cake cutting.
As much as I wish that I was better at blogging consistently, I don’t blog as frequently as I wish (most of my shoots never hit the blogosphere), and I have yet to submit an image to any contests. So, while I do curate a portfolio of work throughout the season to continue to show, I really am not capturing your wedding moments for me – I’m capturing them for you. And – IMHO – aren’t the moments in photos that you’ve created candidly, lived through, committed to memory (or not, depending on how much tequila is involved), so much more meaningful than those you just remember as staged for the sake of the shot?
So, tell me again, why are you following those wedding photography trends?