MY COLLEAGUES, AGAIN by THE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER IN SINTRA
Because of some photos from a wedding at the Penha Longa Resort in the beautiful Sintra mountains
• Pode ler este artigo em Português.
Reinforcing Memory Through Wedding Photographs
If this were the beginning of a story, it might start like this: a long, long time ago, when someone wanted to better remember their wedding day, they turned to photos taken by a photographer hired for that purpose. At the wedding, there was a photographer who was in charge—more or less committed, more or less skilled—of leaving a mark of the essential moments.
Time, by never ceasing to be time, eventually brings with it new ways of seeing or recording things—including weddings. So now, it’s no longer just the wedding photographer who is responsible for carrying into the future those memories that slipped by or those the memory itself didn’t bother to keep very well.
Hunting Moments by the Photographer at a Wedding
The new ones are the provokers of photographs. They are photographers of a different breed, eager to appear in the photo too, with those they want to carry along inside their modern machines—phones… things!…
Then there are the others who flee the moment the wedding photographer points a lens he thinks is appropriate. Despite a great deal of respect for those who don’t want to be made eternal, sometimes I just can’t resist, and… there it goes. I could also get jealous and think the wedding photographer is being robbed of his role. But that’s not true. It’s just one more reason for one of the things that most entertains him—hunting for moments. As you can see, they’re not in short supply.
Point by point:
- As in that tale, “A long, long time ago, it was the wedding photographer alone who took with him the photographs made there.”
- But as times change, nowadays many photographers are present—plus the wedding photographer, of course.
- Instead of feeling jealous or thinking my role is being invaded, I take advantage:
- I photograph them when they’re photographing others
- When they’re photographing themselves in a selfie
- When they’re looking at and showing the photos they’ve taken
- When they’re taking a picture—I even photograph their photo
- For the true wedding photographer, those other photographers—the ones with phones—add layers to the stories he will tell.
You need to know:
- It was the subject of much debate in wedding photographer forums some time ago when wedding guests began showing up with phones and tablets. They photographed everything and interfered with the work of those officially covering the wedding. I quickly realized it was better to join them than to fight them—and so I did. I take full advantage of what they do on the wedding day, and my stories are all the richer for it.
No matter how many friends and guests you have at your wedding taking phone pictures, nothing compares to the work of a professional who’s used to telling the story of a wedding day. Come see mine. Let’s set up a meeting so you can see why I’m right.