Hello Everyone, it’s lovely to be here on the Lilguys blog and many thanks to Mrs Lilguys for inviting me to say a few words. Hopefully I can offer brides and grooms to be a few words of advice and comfort when it comes to your wedding photography.
I was thinking about boring with you with all the reasons why having a professional photographer at your wedding has huge advantages over Uncle Bob and his clever camera, but to be honest, you can read that in a hundred different places, including my own blog at whitegoldimages.co.uk/photoblog. You don’t need me to explain about the advantages of experience and knowledge, you are probably more than well aware of that from your own career. So instead I thought I might tackle another matter, one that almost everyone has mentioned at some point or other in their lives and one that even I, as a photographer, find tumbling out of my mouth before I can stop it, often unbidden and usually to a response of rolling eyes and tuts: “I hate having my picture taken”
Rest assured, many people do, even the most photogenic people say it to me, they aren’t sure how to look, what to do with their hands or how to stand or sit. Add on to those worrys the usual fears about being overweight, having a double chin, big bum, skinny bum [yes, really, I got that from one chap], and a million other real or imagined imperfections and our natural ability to be self conscious can be almost crippling for some people when a camera is pointed at them. Best advice I can offer – talk to your photographer, tell them about your fears, worries or minor irritations. My job is to help you overcome them and whilst some problems are more obvious than others and I would naturally work to minimise them for you, there are some that I promise, only you can see. However, if you can see it, I want to know so that I know I am producing the best pictures possible for you on your wedding day. This is where having a good relationship with your chosen wedding photographer makes all the difference. If you are not comfortable with someone, then you are unlikely to want to tell them your personal likes, never mind dislikes. A pre-wedding shoot can help build this relationship and help you feel more confident about your wedding photographer and about being the centre of attention.
‘Posing’ – wedding photography comes in many guises, reportage [no posing at all], formal, informal, fashion and so on and unless you chose purely reportage, you will have to do some posing of some description, though personally I prefer to use the word ‘direction’ as posing always reminds me of those shop dummies you see arranged in little groups around M&S, it’s all a bit ‘fixed’. The idea of direction is to show you how to be much more relaxed in front of camera and the end results will be pictures that show the real you rather than anything too rigid and fake. Do allow your photographer to guide you and if you are unsure of what is being suggested, ask, and above all, as hard as it may be, try and relax. Have FUN! Remember it’s your day, you have spent a lot of time and money preparing for it so when it arrives, enjoy every minute of it – your photos will be worth it. You might hate having your picture taken, but the aim is do everything to ensure you love the end results. I won’t womble on much more, other than to say I am always around if you want ask any questions photography related or check availability for WhiteGold Images wedding photography. I am based in North London but I do travel so don’t feel that I am too far away to help you in anyway.
Thank you Yvonne for some very sound advice! I would just like to add don't forget that it's also your photographer's reputation on the line, so it's in their best interests to make you feel comfortable and natural in front of the lens so that you have a very special collection of images to look back on. I have seen a fair few photographers at wedding fairs in the last couple of years and it really does show if care has been taken. I think the montage above of some of Yvonne's work speaks for itself! Go and visit the White Gold Images website to view more spectacular examples of Yvonne's work!
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