Understanding The Different Wedding Photography Styles
Before you can even begin to try and choose a wedding photographer, you will first need to determine what type of wedding photography you prefer. This is because most photographers specialize in just one type of wedding photography. While a photographer may provide you with beautiful wedding photos, you will likely be unhappy with the final outcome if you fail to choose the right type of photography to match your personal style. Taking the time to learn more about each type of photography, you can help to prevent this from happening and ensure that you are left with a beautiful wedding album that you can happily look back on through the years.
Traditional Wedding Photography
Traditional, also known as classic, wedding photography is the most formal option you will have available to you. While your photographer may choose to take a few candid shots throughout the ceremony and reception, the majority of the photographs you receive will be posed and very formal in nature.
Due to the use of posed photographs, it is often easier to avoid taking "bad" pictures when using this type of wedding photography. However, while your photographer may have the benefit of ensuring the lighting is always perfect and that everyone is looking forward before snapping a photo, they will not have the benefit of capturing unedited emotion. Consequently, formal wedding photos may fail to capture the mood of the day.
Contemporary Wedding Photography
Contemporary, also known as modern, wedding photography provides essentially the opposite of what you could expect when choosing traditional photography. While a contemporary wedding photographer may snap one or two posed pictures, their goal will be to primarily capture candid images which convey the emotion of the day.
In order to capture the types of images associated with this type of photography, a contemporary photographer will do their best to blend in with the background so that they can take photos without anyone even realizing they are there. If your photographer seems to be constantly in the way, they are not doing a good job of capturing contemporary images.
Cinematic Wedding Photography
Cinematic, also known as artistic, wedding photography is the most unpredictable of all the options you will have to choose from. This is because the final results will depend greatly upon the vision of your photographer, or artist.
Like contemporary photography, cinematic wedding photography is typically not posed. Instead, cinematic photographers look for exciting ways to capture the emotion of the day. Consequently, these photographers will often attempt shots that others will not. For instance, rather than simply taking a traditional photo of the bride and groom standing at the altar, a cinematic photographer may use special equipment to capture an overhead photograph of the ceremony itself.