Find Light

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Suzy

Photography is light. Plain and simple.

When photographing a wedding, things move quickly. We must develop the ability to find the good light quickly, instinctively, so that we can quickly take advantage of it, get the shot, and move on to the next thing. In my book, Weddings: From Snapshots to Great Shots, I talk about this a great deal, and offer tips – and even homewok assignments – to help train the eye to notice subtle differences in light.

While editing a recent wedding, I noticed this series of images that really illustrates this point. I often ask my couples to wander along a path during their portrait session; they feel less self-conscious when they are in motion, and I can study the subtle changes in light as they meander from spot to spot. When they hit the sweet spot, I’m ready to capture it.

Here they are at the start of this path. I was happy with the great late-afternoon light brushing the top of her veil and running along her side.

They took a step, and I could see the light began illuminating the whole veil – even better!

One more step, and… ahhhh… magic. The light is now wrapping around her face, and edging his, and bouncing off him back onto her, to create this amazing fill on her face, giving her a beautiful, golden glow. Looking over the images, can you see the progression, and the difference in the quality and mood of the third image as opposed to the first?

We’d hit the sweet spot for light, so this is where I asked them to stop, pause, and share a kiss.

Train your eye to notice these types of subtle changes. Practice shooting a lot, really paying attention to the light, and think about these questions: Where is it coming from? What quality does it have (harsh, soft, golden, bright white?) How does changing your position change the way the light looks in the image? Pay attention to the light even when you’re not shooting. Just notice.

The more you do, the more innate your sense of the light will become – which means that you’ll be able to react more instinctively, more quickly, and more effectively when you are in the heat of a wedding shoot!

To See or Not to See

Posted on March 7, 2012 by Suzy

A question that always comes up when preparing to photograph a wedding is whether the couple plans to see one another before the ceremony. There is no question that doing so makes the wedding day flow more smoothly in many, many ways.

First and foremost, the couple is invariably SO much more relaxed once they see one another, and it makes the pre-ceremony time much more enjoyable for them. I always make clear that we will still make “the moment” a very special one, planning it out and finding a beautiful spot that will make for great photos.

They’ll still get to experience the fun and anticipation of getting ready separately…

I love taking the opportunity for a portrait of the groom as he waits for his lady…

A sweet shot as she makes her entrance…

And then, finally, “the reveal”…

In my book, I describe my method of shooting this moment as a kind of choreographed dance. It’s definitely one of the more “directed” moments of the day, which allows me to capture all the many varied aspects of the moment.

Logistically, of course, it makes the photo schedule much more manageable when the couple sees one another ahead of time because we can ask the family and wedding party to arrive early and then get most, if not all, of the obligatory (and often dreaded) “group shots” out of the way. This makes the “formal” session much more pleasant for everyone involved (not just the photographer!) for a couple of reasons. First, people are more inclined to pay attention and follow instructions during the calmer, pre-ceremony time period, so we can blow through the list much more quickly. Second, there is no cocktail hour to lure them away, or cause them the pain of watching other guests enjoy the party while they are stuck waiting for their turn to be photographed. And of course, the beauty for everyone involved is that once the ceremony is over, they CAN actually go enjoy that cocktail hour.

If the ceremony is later in the day and close to sunset, there is even more reason for the couple to see one another so that we can take advantage of the natural light for some beautiful outdoor photography before it gets dark. It’s just silly to painstakingly select a drop-dead gorgeous setting for one’s wedding, and not take advantage of using it while it’s still daylight!

If my clients are truly dead-set against seeing one another before the ceremony, I abide by their wishes. But I’m glad to see that more and more couples are deciding to see one another ahead of time, as it really does make the day more enjoyable for everyone involved.

Figure Study

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Suzy

When I began with photography, I shot a lot of figure studies. I love to bring that sensibility to my wedding work. These are always shot with available light, metering for the shadows to allow the light to wrap around the subject and create a subtle, beautiful glow.

These images were all captured very organically, by being attentive and noticing the beautiful moments as they unfold.

Experience Matters

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Suzy

I recently photographed my last wedding for the season. As I was finishing up my “good-byes” with the groom, he grasped my hands, looked into my eyes, and said, “Suzy, thank you so much. Everything was wonderful, and we are so glad that we hired the right person to photograph our wedding. We love everything you did, and we appreciate it so much.”

So great, right? I was grinning from ear to ear, ecstatic that my clients were so very happy with my work… without having seen a single image. This groom responded so strongly to my manner – how I interacted with him, his fiancee, their families and guests. How I kindly-yet-firmly took charge of day at key moments (family portraits!) and allowed things to simply flow organically the rest of the time. How I created a sense of intimacy during the portrait session with the couple, which allowed them to overcome their inherent being-photographed-anxiety and actually enjoy that time together.

This stuck with me over the next several days, and it really illustrates one of the main points I make in my book: that the experience created for the couple on the actual wedding day is important – just as important as the resulting images. As a wedding photographer, I am committed to applying my skills, preparation, and knowledge toward the creation of this type of experience for my clients. I think of it as giving them a gift – one they may not even fully realize they need, but will certainly appreciate once they’ve received it.

Find Beauty

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Suzy

I was speaking recently with one of my 2012 grooms about his decision to hire me. He said that he was drawn to my work because it didn’t seem contrived or self-consciously “arty”. To him, it simply captured the fullness of the experience of the day. He likened the effect to that of Connie’s wedding scene in the movie “The Godfather”… the way the seemingly casual movement of the camera pulls in the entire scene, encompassing everyone in its gaze and in the process capturing all sorts of moments, large and small, that simply speak about life.

Well, this conversation put a big smile on my face because, of course, that is precisely what I aim to do when I photograph a wedding. I’ve been thinking about this sort of thing endlessly lately, ever since writing my book, Weddings: From Snapshots to Greatshots (see link to the left for more information on that).

The process of writing about my process made me realize just how much this idea of capturing the real joy and fullness of the experience in an organic way informs every single decision I make about how to handle the day. The gear I use, the manner in which I use it, the input that I have regarding timing, the way that I interact with clients and guests, the way I direct my assistant to second-shoot… all of these things are small pieces of this larger strategy to find the beauty and capture it, without actually disrupting said beauty in the process. And I’m realizing that THAT is the single thing I love the absolute most about photographing weddings, and the reason that I’ve never been interested in shooting Gap ads and the like. It’s the pursuit of truth and beauty that lights my fire.

Simple and Good

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Suzy

My book, Weddings: From Snapshots to Great Shots contains a chapter with my thoughts about the most useful photography equipment for covering weddings. As an off-shoot to the book, I recently wrote an article for Peachpit Press (out in November) about what lens features are most important for wedding photography, and how to determine one’s next lens purchase. This got me thinking about the equipment that I’ve used over the years… especially when I was just starting out. The first few weddings I shot were unpaid portfolio-building gigs — friends, or friends-of-friends… basically, anyone I could find that was getting married, and didn’t mind me showing up with my camera.

My gear? An old, completely mechanical Olympus body and three lenses (a 35mm, a 50mm, and a 135mm), a hand-held light meter and some 35mm film (mostly black & white). Oh, and a fully loaded, fully taped-up Holga with 12 frames. That’s it.

And here’s the thing. The images are lovely.

My gear was old, but it was sturdy, and most importantly, the glass was beautiful and sharp. I couldn’t zoom into a scene, so I moved around a lot more to get a good variety of shots. I only had one camera body, so I was more limited in what I could do at any given moment – but that made me very thoughtful about my choices.

Before long, of course – and before I began charging for wedding jobs – I upgraded my gear. For many years, I’ve had amazing, expensive zoom lenses with a much wider range of focal lengths and incredibly smart camera bodies with all sorts of capabilities. They are phenomenal tools, and I’m grateful to have them at my disposal.

But it’s really nice to go back to these very first wedding images and realize that, provided a few key quality criteria are met, then truly – the work has much more to do with the person making the images than with the tools used to make it.

Don’t be seduced into thinking that you need to buy that $2,000 lens or that $8,000 camera body to make wonderful images. Are they nice to have? Absolutely! But are they completely necessary? No way!

Research and choose your tools wisely; get to know them intimately so they become an extension of you; and invest the time and effort to hone your craft and develop your creative vision, and you’ll find that you have all you need to create the images of your dreams.

I See Wed People

Posted on May 3, 2010 by Suzy

I see brides and grooms. A lot. Whenever I’m in a beautiful or interesting place… at a pretty park or beach with my family, on vacation, or even just driving by… I can’t help picturing wedding couples dotting the landscape. I think about how I’d shoot them, where I’d get the best light and what I’d ask them to do… hold hands, walk up a path, stand in that sweet pool of light, under that tree, perfectly backlit. I find myself wondering if weddings are ever held in that location, and if so, how would they be set up… ceremony here, cocktails over there, dinner and maybe a dance floor. But mostly, I just envision the brides and grooms, cropping up in all the most beautiful spots.

Sometimes I wish I could leave the wedding couples behind… but usually I wish they were with me for real, so I could actually make the images that are floating about in my head.