What cities do you work in?
I am based in the Johannesburg region, but travel quite a bit, especially in Africa. This year we are shooting weddings in Morroco, Botswana, Malawi, Namibia, Mauritius, Durban and many other cool spots. We have also previously photographed in Europe and the US.
Your Photography Style
My photography style is based around two major ideas: One of them is: in 20 years time you're going to want to look back at your wedding photos and remember what you were feeling at the time. You will want that moment to come back to you, not just the photographer telling you to say cheese. In fact, I don't think that in 20 years time you should remember the photographer at all.
The second one: your wedding photos should have a cinematic feel to them; you should look like a movie star, or a rock star! The first goal is achieved by taking a photojournalistic approach that captures real moments as they happen, the second goal is achieved by shooting epic images and using post-production techniques to make the photos look like stills from a movie. I was misquoted in a recent article as saying that all brides should be shot like rock stars, preferably backstage. I like that, but I also like my images to look elegant and timeless, something which can only be done by staying away from the latest fads and developing a unique style.
Your choice of camera/ lens
I shoot Nikons. I've been a Nikon shooter for over 20 years now, so with the
investment in lenses it doesn't make sense to change. I just want to add
that I don't believe that any camera makes better or worse photos and some
of the antique cameras that I collect make sharper images than my new
digitals. Having said that, I shoot with a pair of D200's and very fast
lenses which range from f1.4 to f2.8, allowing me to not use flash except in
the darkest circumstances.
Black & white Vs. Color photography - your thoughts
Black and white will always be timeless. I sometimes look at my parents' wedding album and all of their images are in beautiful classic black and white. Indian weddings have a lot of colour in them and I think that one can稚 dismiss colour, one just has to be careful in terms of the palette that is being used. There is a trend at the moment towards super saturated colors, last year it was more de-saturated colours and I知 seeing a new trend towards a brownish, muted colour palette at the moment. One can look at photos from the 70痴 and immediately you know it is from the 70's. So I think color is more susceptible to fads.
Indian wedding photos suffer from excessive use of flash - what's your
take?
I'm not a very big fan of flash, except when used outdoors to boost the colors a bit. I think flash tends to destroy the atmosphere quite a bit and the photographer needs to be fairly skilled in its use in order for it to not look like flash and to retain the atmosphere that you created.
Post processing and Album design
Post processing is a pretty important element in my work. Each wedding receives its own unique post-processing. It always boggles my mind when I see a photographer using the same post processing style week after week like you can take the bride from one wedding and place her in another album without seeing a difference. The wedding photos should be collaboration between the venue and decor that you have chosen which reflects your style and the photographer's experience of the day. By doing the same post processing on each wedding, the photographer is essentially ignoring your style choices and just imposing his style. I think it痴 important that your album is unique and reflects your personality in the same way that the wedding you planned is unique and reflects your style.
Your favourite wedding photos
After each wedding I always have a new handful of favourites. These tend to go up on my blog on the Monday after the wedding. They are usually ones where the combination of light, expression and colors come together perfectly and the photo encapsulates about the day. We shoot about 3000 images on the day, but when I get home and scan through them there are always a couple of photos that stand out. We have photographed weddings from many cultures, ethnic groups and traditions, in places as diverse as in the middle of a kraal next to lake with two hippos to glamorous Japanese styled temples. I love the uniqueness and special moments that each ceremony combines to essentially tell the same story; boy meets girl, girl marries boy, they are bound together forever. My favourite wedding photos tell that story.
Advice for to-be-wed couples
I only really have one bit of advice; take your time do your research and find a photographer you are comfortable with. Then trust them and let them do what they do. For us this means, after we take the safe shots, we take a few chances. Experiment, try something different. We値l use the sky as a background if it痴 cloudy and we値l use massive amounts of flare if its midday and the sun is up. We値l use camera flash and on camera lighting, we値l use silhouettes and we値l be as unobtrusive as possible. You値l have images that reflect your day and your event rather than 300 poses that a different bride was put through the previous day.
Dror
Eyal, the photographer
