“Your work looks like a photo book rather than the standard cliched wedding style”.
Aoife & Rory
When Aoife and Rory’s message dropped into our inbox we were humbled to read these words, but they got us thinking: what is it about our (primarily wedding-oriented) images that would provoke such a response? Our visual ideals were certainly, in our formative years, influenced more by our photographic heroes (Webb, Gruyaert, Parr to name but a few) than any wedding photographer of the time, but we’re sure this is equally true of many who have found themselves ultimately drawn to the societal microcosm that is a wedding. So what is it about the images themselves that differentiate them from the “standard cliched wedding style” if, indeed, there is such a thing?
Perhaps the most obvious, arguably differentiating, characteristic of our work is the rarity with which we use shallow depth of field. Gentle dappled “bokeh” has certainly been a fairly prominent technique in the field of wedding photography over the years, thanks to the beautiful soft, flattering look that it creates – a good match for a day where everyone wants to look their best. But to us there is equal, or even greater beauty in the relationships between people, or even between people and their environment. Where shallow apertures purposefully isolate the subject, our starting point is instead to always retain and celebrate the complexity of the scene – shooting quite wide and keeping everything in sharp focus; challenging ourselves compositionally to ensure that every element of the frame, from corner to corner, contributes to the story of the photograph.
Achieving these wide, deep-focus images in open, spacious environments where you can move freely to find your composition is, whilst always challenging, on a technical level relatively straightforward. Take away the working space, however, and the challenge increases exponentially. So why, even in a crowded space, do we continue to shoot with such high depth of field in the majority of our images?
With every photograph we take we want to tell some sort of story, and stories, in most cases, require context. We want to create images that you didn’t have to be there to enjoy, and so providing additional information to the viewer is often the most effective technique. Focus on a singular aspect and the story becomes solely about that element. Photograph a scene and we gain the power of detail and connection. A humorous moment could be an interesting story in its own right, but often it is the reactions to that story or the body language of those around it that tell the true story, that reveal the in-joke. Because often it is the people we surround ourselves with that reveal the most about ourselves.
But sometimes it is not about the singular scene, sometimes it is a tapestry of action and sub-plots that reveal the magic of a particular moment in time. By keeping that focus sharp we can begin to layer stories on top of one another – building a whole greater than the sum of its parts. By finding connections between apparently unrelated events or objects we can build stories with humour, community and life.
So no matter the conditions we simply aim to tell the most effective story, occasionally utilising a soft-focussed, singular element, but more often by embracing the full width and depth of the scene in front of us. Whether we’re in an open field or the cool, industrious worn brick confines of the stylish Clapton Country Club, our approach doesn’t change, even as the challenge increases.
And whilst we don’t claim, like Aoife and Rory, that our images look like they belong in a photo book, perhaps ultimately it is the clarity of purpose and consistency of technique where certain parallels could be drawn.
Or perhaps, like Aoife and Rory and their family and friends, it’s simply the incredible people we find in front of us that make the photographs sing.