IN THE STREET, by PORTUGAL THE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

Photographs of the couple, after their wedding day, in Lisbon’s riverside streets

• Pode ler este artigo em Português. 

The pleasure of a walk and the camera

Street photography seems to flourish more and more each day. With the advent of digital photography, many people combine the pleasure of walking with the use of a camera. As for me, I never had that habit or taste. On the one hand, if I’m photographing, I don’t enjoy it, and if I enjoy it, I can’t photograph. That conflict has always followed me since I’ve known myself as a photographer. No one is perfect.

The beautiful craft of photographing

However, wedding photography now and then takes me right into the street, and Lisbon is often chosen for its special character, as a provider of landscapes that look good in photos. So, I too can be—not a street photographer—but a photographer in the street. Hmm!…

Truthfully, I’ve used this area of Lisbon countless times for photoshoots, either engagement sessions or after the wedding, as was the case here. And it’s always different. That’s why they say the wedding photographer is complete. They end up doing all the variations of the beautiful craft of photography.

Point by point:

• Ever since I’ve known myself as a photographer, I’ve never been able to reconcile:
  • Enjoying the walk while taking photos
  • Enjoying the photos on the walk
• In truth, I either go for one thing or the other.
• But when I started photographing weddings, it happened that:
  • I would walk with the couple to take pictures
  • The walk itself became the subject of the photos, with them in it
• After becoming a wedding photographer, I found a way to reconcile the two things: the walk and the photography, and with great pleasure.

You need to know:

• I discovered the joy of photography on a trip I took to France at the beginning of my adult life, newly married. The idea was to enjoy some time before starting a professional life and combine two things: the trip and earning a little money picking fruit in the French Alps region. Both turned out to be excellent experiences.

• The Alps are a beautiful region, with very high mountains offering breathtaking views for someone used to the flat plains of the Alentejo. By chance, I had bought a small camera, and with it, I started recording my moments of amazement from the mountaintops, where winding roads offered a completely new landscape with every curve.

• It was the first and only time I traveled and photographed at the same time. When I say photographed, I mean a focused and intentional dedication solely to photography. That’s where my love for photography was born. It took many forms, became my profession, and eventually led me to become a wedding photographer. It became so intense that it made it impossible to travel or walk, while also dedicating myself to taking photographs.

• It’s easy to explain why: for me, walking or traveling means enjoying the novelty of spaces, landscapes, streets, or even people. It’s the scent of mountain flowers, the thrill of sliding down roads with surprises at every turn, the desire to fly from the top of a mountain—in other words, traveling is about feeling and storing it in memory.

• Photographing, even in the same places, is a completely different experience. My brain is entirely focused on details, on choosing framing, breaking down what’s in front of me into parts for the photos, and constantly searching for the next image. Instead of enjoying the space, I live in the euphoria of constantly searching for new photographs.

• So, unless it’s a wedding day, I always have to decide whether I’m going to travel, walk, or photograph. Since I don’t travel alone, I have to take that into account. It’s not easy to be a travel companion to a photographer with an itch to shoot, always with the camera to their eye.

• In conclusion, becoming a wedding photographer was good for me because, given the intensity of the day, I can exhaust my urge to photograph—and then be a good travel companion, doing what trips are for: simply enjoying.

So know this: I will devote myself wholeheartedly to your wedding day. There, I know I’ll be there for that purpose alone. Book a meeting so we can talk about the way I work and see the many photos I have, along with wedding albums. I’m waiting for you.

• You can see a full wedding story: