THE PHOTOS FROM OTHERS by THE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER IN LISBON

Of the others photographing the wedding day at the Vila Galé Collection Palácio dos Arcos in Oeiras

• Pode ler este artigo em Português. 

A festive day full of good feelings, the wedding day

As I’ve written a few times before, I’m not the only photographer on a wedding day. There have always been others who, more or less equipped, compete—or rather complement—the official photographer who believes they have the right to all the priority, but who is sometimes displaced by the enthusiasm of an amateur in love, who mercilessly takes over the best angle already chosen by a corner of the eye.

Not being someone who seeks revenge, which is far too powerful a feeling for such a festive day full of good feelings, I sometimes take advantage, and like a benevolent parasite, I end up stealing a few moments that others are enjoying. Today’s phones, to me, are like cakes to the sweet-toothed. Whenever I notice them, there I go.

A wedding photographer who loves… photographs

This is almost a concept worth expanding on in a specialist magazine. Photographing the act of photographing, already with the photograph photographed. Spectacular. All I’m missing is the article and the magazine. Never mind me, it’s just the thoughts of a wedding photographer who loves… photographs.

Point by point:

• For some years now, the wedding photographer encounters others on the wedding day:
  • Those who have good cameras and lenses
  • Who photographs everything in sight
  • But who is not the official wedding photographer
• Recently, a new breed of photographers has flooded weddings:
  • They have mobile phones that photograph everything
  • They interfere with the photographer’s work
  • They are everywhere
• However, instead of avoiding them or even disliking them, I prefer to:
  • Include them in the photographs
  • Capture the moments they create
  • Take advantage of their photos to take mine
• From early on, once they started showing up and there was nothing to be done, I decided to include them in the wedding photographs that these photographers allow me to capture.

You must know:

• There have always been photographers, aside from the official wedding photographer at weddings. They’re not new, nor have they ever been unfair competition to the one officially in charge of documenting the wedding day. Usually, they even end up becoming friends who like to chat with me about photography whenever there’s a quiet moment.

• With the rise of digital photography, more and more of another kind of photographer started appearing, until it became a flood, with mobile phones, or smartphones as they’re more commonly called. These photographers don’t have a defined age, size, or gender. They are evenly spread across all the spaces the wedding moves through, and some are quite diligent, not to mention something else—in the hunt for photos.

• Sometimes, the wedding photographer loses their angle because one of them claims it as their own, blocking what could’ve been an award-winning shot and, without a word of apology, moves on to the next best spot. The wedding photographer, who should have preference for the best viewpoints on the big day, isn’t thrilled by the boldness, but there’s nothing to be done.

• So, over time, I started getting my own back. I began photographing the scenes they created as they photographed each other and themselves. I realized they could offer me interesting images—especially when, proudly, they showed them to others. And in the right context, I even took advantage of their photos if they happened to stand in front of my lens.

• A wedding day is one of happiness, joy, and good vibes. It should stay that way, and not even the wedding photographer should interfere with that because of a few photographers who think the stage belongs to them. So I embraced the old saying: if you can’t beat them, join them, and get on with what matters—taking great wedding photographs.

• In short, it won’t be my fellow photographers, so abundant at weddings, who will stop me from doing my work the way it needs to be done. They are part of the wedding day too—and therefore, subjects for the wedding photographer’s lens.

They’ll be present at your wedding too, but don’t worry—I know how to handle them. I invite you to come chat with me in a meeting, where I can show you more of my work.

• You can see a full wedding story:

• In Vila Galé Collection Palácio dos Arcos Paço de Arcos, Oeiras, Portugal