subject: What makes a picture a great photograph [print this page] What makes a picture a great photograph? What makes a picture a great photograph?
This could be a very tough question to answer, answers will vary from photographer to photographer and ultimately will also be subjective.
Ok, so what makes a great wedding photograph then?
Answer to this will also tend to vary from person to person, While some will say the picture where the bride smiles the most, some will say the picture which truely reflects the couple's love for each other.
A professional wedding photographer might even go as far as saying a great wedding picture is that picture with the very best exposure, that picture which is composed the best, that picture with the very best lighting.
Don't get me wrong, all the above points work.
They just aren't what I consider to be great wedding pictures, good maybe butdefinitelynot great.
I have been shooting Nigerian weddings for quite some time now and I have learnt alot in the time.
What I've learnt over the years as a wedding photographer has helped me to define what i consider to be a great wedding picture.
To me, a great wedding picture goes beyound technical perfection of an image, it's about emotions, it's about the couple.
A great picture is that which stares emotions in the couple when they go through their wedding album, its that picture that makes them smile, its that picture that makes them laugh, its that picture that makes them cry.
It's about that picture which gets the couple to send you as a photographer a "thank you note" or call you to thank you in person for doing such a marvelous job.
As wedding photographers, the technical aspects of our photography should be second nature, we shouldn't go to weddings thinking about what aperture to use, what shutter speed to shoot at, what iso will work best and the likes. We should be more concerned about capturing the moment.
The technical aspects needs to be second nature to us.
I remember reading somewhere that Joe Buissink, one of the greatest wedding photographers living today actually said he has a backup camera in full automatic mode, ready for just that moment, when the lighting on a shoot begins to act "funny".
Please note that this are entirely my views.
So what makes a great wedding photo to you ?
Please drop a comment on my blog and let me know what you think.
