HOVERING by THE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER IN SINTRA

Photos of the bride and groom socializing with guests, after the wedding ceremony at the Penha Longa Resort in Sintra

• Pode ler este artigo em Português. 

Harvesting Conversations at the Wedding

I’ve already written here about how much I enjoy finding certain rituals at weddings that come from different places. I have to say that this one—the challenge of cutting a heart into a white sheet—is no longer new, but it remains a magnet for any wedding photographer. I’ve come across it several times before. Still, I think it’s an excellent start to a life together, based on a challenge. The last one to cut their part has to carry the other through the heart-shaped hole. As you can imagine, the bride always wins.

On the other hand, wandering around is something that drives me to photograph. During those relaxed moments of socializing—usually before the meal or even after, depending on how inviting the space is to that kind of vibe—I always find, in my role as a wedding photographer, plenty of reasons to harvest conversations here, pay attention to some attention over there, witness a long-postponed encounter somewhere else, or simply capture the groom or bride thanking their guests for coming.

Completing their memories of the day with my photographs

I embrace my nosy side. But it’s also true that I was hired for this. That’s why wedding photographers are welcome presences among the group gathered to celebrate the couple’s big day. It would be foolish not to take advantage of that and to know that, in the end, the ones who benefit are the couple themselves, when they complete their memories of the day with my photographs, already their own.

Point by point:

• The wedding photographer has encountered different customs during ceremonies:
  • Some small rituals
  • Filling bottles with sands of different colors
• At the wedding party:
  • After the ceremony, cutting a heart into a large cloth
  • Seeing who cuts their half faster
  • Then passing through the hole in the fabric
• Or:
  • Breaking a special loaf of bread
  • The couple is each eating their slice
• Then begins the mingling between the couple and the guests, and these are good moments for:
  • The wedding photographer walks among them
  • Capturing conversations in photos
  • Observing how people connect
  • Turning all of it into personalized photographs
• Since no one pays much attention to the wedding photographer, it’s a great opportunity for them to capture authentic photos, and in the end, the couple ends up with a rich story of their wedding day.

You must know:

• One of the things I truly enjoy in my work—and at the same time a great responsibility—is being able to move freely throughout the wedding day without having to report to anyone, except for the occasional guest who asks for a photo.

• Since everyone is doing their part—the couple, the guests, and the photographer—the result in the photos can only be a genuine story, with no interference from me, thus completing what may be missing from the bride and groom’s memory. That’s my main goal.

Of course, I’m always available for anyone who asks for a photo—that’s part of my job. Other than that, it’s photojournalism in its purest form. I invite you to a meeting where we can talk about your wedding, look at many other photos, and see the wedding albums.

• You can see a full wedding story:

• At Penha Longa Resort in Sintra, Portugal.