Wedding Photography

Your wedding album will be one of the most precious memories of this big day that you will have.

But have you ever noticed how so many of those "professional" pictures are all the same from wedding album to wedding album?

In fact, one thing that jumps out about the wedding photographer is that for a little while on the wedding day, everything halts and it's all about him.

You know the drill. The ceremony is exciting and fun and full of joy, some tears and plenty of meaning as the bride and groom kiss and become one family. Then it's all over and everybody files out to go to the reception to dance, have cake and celebrate this union.

But wait, the whole proceeding has to grind to a halt while the photographer stages the wedding party for as long as an hour or more to "recreate" the ceremony and make those perfect wedding photos.

Meanwhile the reception may be getting underway and many of the guests that the bride or the groom or others in the family want to hug and share the joy with may have to go because they just can't wait out a fussy photographer.

Somehow this complete disruption to the day has become accepted as just part of what the wedding day is all about. And the worst part about it is that the photographs, while nice and well staged, look like a bunch of mannequins being arranged for a store window.

The joy and fun of the ceremony is over. For decades to come everybody will say they are beautiful and meaningful but if you look closely the wedding party looks nervous, uncomfortable, bored and like they wish they were somewhere else.

Well maybe its time to throw that tradition out and put some creativity into how the wedding photos and the wedding photographer works in your wedding.

By finding a photographer who will put together some wedding pictures that have some style, some creativity and some sense of inventiveness, you will have that wedding album that really is full of memories worth remembering.

To get that kind of photographer, you are going to have to start early. You have to find that maverick photographer that "gets it" that the wedding is about the people, not the gowns and the hall and that his photographs must shout out "this was a wonderful day and we celebrated this union."

You may have to look outside of the conventional "wedding photographers" listing in the phone book. An artistic photographer may be more appropriate. But be patient and find one that is just as professional as any photographer in that yellow pages but can bring some creativity and investment of getting to know this wedding party to the job of taking your important wedding pictures.

That wedding photographer should become as much a part of the wedding party as the groomsmen. After all, if he is going to capture the personality of this couple, he will have to get to know you.

Spend some informal time with him and share those fun memories of when you met, those special times while you dated and certainly those very special places where important moments in your relationship took place.

Armed with that kind of creative individual in charge of your wedding photographs, you will look forward with great anticipation to what he comes up with. Many of the best shots will be created before the wedding, at some of those special places and he can Photoshop them to blend them with wedding day moments.

Above all that wedding photographer will understand that he is there to serve this wedding and capture those special moments as they occur. Sure, you may "pose" for a picture from time to time but this whole business of bringing the wedding day to a grinding halt to take stilted pictures of bored wedding party members will go out with the trash.

The outcome will be wedding pictures with style, with life and a lot of love in them to reflect the love that was exchanged in those vows and the love of family and friends as they enjoyed this magical day with you.