Documentary wedding photography: three words that you will find on virtually every photographer’s website but should every wedding photographer truly be considered documentary? What is it that sets a true documentary wedding photographer apart from any other? Is documentary a particular style of image or is it the mentality behind the taking of the photograph that differentiates the documentary shooter from the portrait photographer who happens to shoot a few images in a reportage style? For us documentary isn’t just a necessity enforced by natural restrictions on what images can be posed, it’s the way we find truth in our imagery, the way to uncover real personality and the way we love to shoot. Documentary images are not just the small stuff, nor just the expected moments, they can and should be as big, as considered and as powerful as any posed portrait or artificially controlled and perfected moment. It’s not just a stereotype, it’s an entire photographic philosophy.
So what makes a wedding photographer truly documentary? You can read a few more of our thoughts and our interpretation and spin on the documentary wedding photography genre here.
