Knowing the different styles of wedding photography is very important if you are organizing your wedding.
This way you can help your wedding photographer choose how to represent your ceremony and produce your photo album. In fact, every wedding is different. Some get married in church, some in town. Some prefer an evening wedding, some prefer a daytime wedding. There are couples who love tradition and others who prefer to take risks. The same goes for the wedding album. Each couple must receive the one that best represents them.
In this article, I want to share my experience as a wedding photographer in Milan to explain what the most used wedding photography styles are, so you can decide which one is right for you.
The styles of wedding photography: how do you want to print your wedding album?
Traditional wedding photography
Speaking of wedding photography styles, we cannot help but start with the most classic and established. The traditional style consists of taking photographs in a more structured way, based on organized moments, poses and rhythms.
I want to immediately clarify a very common misunderstanding about this style of wedding photography. Traditional doesn't necessarily mean carriages, huge wedding favor dresses and zero fun. It is simply a different degree of involvement of the wedding photographer, who in this case has an almost choreographer's role.
It is part of his job to immortalize all the most important steps of the ceremony and cut out a series of time-outs to photograph the bride and groom and guests in studied poses. This approach ensures the photographer and the bride and groom have a wide choice of shots in which the subjects are facing directly towards the lens.
Furthermore, it makes it possible to choose the poses to photograph based on the album you want to "build". From a kiss on a staircase to a toast in front of the sunset, at the end of the shoot you certainly don't run the risk of missing a particular shot.
Be careful though, the traditional style has a limit. Small or large as the case may be. Having a plan is not always compatible with newlyweds. On an already stressful and time-pressured day, it can be difficult to also have to follow the instructions of your wedding photographer.
Photojournalistic or reportage style
Among the styles of wedding photography, the reportage or photojournalistic style is the one that ideally contrasts most with the traditional. The reason is very simple. In this case the wedding photographer doesn't pose before taking pictures, but shoots what happens as and when it happens. Just like a reporter.
In other words, it does its job more discreetly, without ever having to pause the event.
The difference is evident in the result. Your photo album will be made of genuine and natural photographs, never constructed. The set is the real context, with the subjects appearing and interacting as they wish. Without being aware of the presence of the lens. This obviously does not compromise the quality of the photographs in any way. Even behind a reportage style there must always be professional equipment and attention to unmissable shots.
The strength of the photojournalistic style is also its limitation. Naturalness and freedom involve a component of the unexpected which, however limited, can create anxiety. With the risk that when the photographs are delivered, some shots are missing that the customer would have wanted (perhaps without knowing it beforehand). Again, everything depends on the character of the spouses.
Fine art wedding photography
The fine art wedding photography style concerns both the post-production of the photograph and the choice of shot. The basic concept is to take photographs with a marked artistic imprint and a strong emotional impact.
The use of light, the pose, the background, the subject: everything becomes functional in creating that unique and particular image. It can be a constructed composition (posed), or a stolen shot. In any case, the fine art style requires advanced techniques on the part of the wedding photographer and extensive post-production work.
Through artistic framing, extreme and creative lighting, and unique details, your wedding album will be a true work of art. All this happens in the mind (and on the computer) of the photographer. Therefore, at the moment of taking the photo, the spouses only have a vague idea of what the photo will look like. The final result is obtained through filters, masks, textures and graphic interventions that accentuate certain aspects of the composition. Such as the colors.
Fashion wedding photography
Fashion style certainly cannot be missing from the portfolio of a Milan wedding photographer. And in fact it is the most loved one today in weddings set in large metropolises.
This photographic genre focuses precisely on the "fashionable" details of the ceremony. The dress, the shoes, the decorations, the accessories, the food: the photo shoot follows the footsteps of a high fashion advertising campaign. The focus of this approach is precisely the details, which become the protagonists, giving very evocative shots.
Black and white wedding photography
Vintage lovers cannot give up some black and white photographs, but there are those who even go further, choosing black and white as the main style of their shoot. Among the wedding photography styles, this is the most romantic and delicate. A relaxing sequence of shots to which a pinch of nostalgia and drama typical of photography of the past is added. In short, the style of our grandparents' wedding photographs that we looked at as children.
Undecided about wedding photography styles? We'll help you
The wedding photography studio in Milan helps you choose which of the wedding photography styles best suits you. We have many years of experience in the field and can help you understand the approach that best reflects your character and needs, both from a practical and stylistic point of view.
In general we like to adopt a mix between the reportage style and the classic or calm one. This way the bride and groom will be able to have an album full of natural photos, without giving up those poses that we know are always appreciated. Now that you know the wedding photography styles your decision will definitely be easier.