I admit to being a bit consumed by this idea of wedding photography style and how it’s segmenting an industry that used to be strictly one style; formal/traditional. The business of wedding photography has been splintered, and much like painters during the renaissance, there are schools of thought cropping up everywhere. Some of them just wanting to coexist, others hoping to revolutionize the entire industry. There are the manipulators, the photo-journalists, the neo-traditionalists, the off-camera strobe shooters and the natural light purists, all of them doing things that are reinventing what wedding photography is and will be. The fact is that the revolution has already happened and people like myself and others saw it happening and realized that there was now not only room for a more flowing style of wedding photography but there was a growing demand for it by today’s modern brides. There is a place for traditional wedding photography. Actually I probably incorporate much more “tradition†into my work than I admit to myself but it’s that ability to bend the rules and explore a more artistic side that really has set the wedding photography industry on fire. If you look at any top 10 list, or who’s who list pertaining to wedding photographers and you will find people pushing the envelope, doing work that 10-15 years ago would never in a million years have been considered acceptable in this genre.
The last thing to realize is that wedding photography has become much more organic. Many photographer’s style is largely a work in progress for the simple reason that it can be now. Gone are the days of having to be locked into one particular “look†to your images. While it’s still important to create a way of working and an a overarching vision so clients know what in general to expect from you, I think it’s now possible to tinker with style and not lose that which makes you unique. I know this is true for my work, and I suspect it is for others as well. So at the end of the day, while I LOVE that brides are choosing the type of art they want to represent their wedding, it’s really equally as important that the ARTIST be a comfortable, positive influence on a wedding. Versatility and the ability to listen to a particular client’s desires is also paramount to delivering the kinds of fantastic images they hope to see from their wedding. That way this newfound artistic freedom can be used ultimately to the greatest benefit of the client.
These are indeed great times to be a wedding photographer… and great times to be a bride getting to get a much more personal and artistic look to their wedding photography than ever before.