At the Altar.

I absolutely love the ceremony at weddings.  It’s probably my favorite thing to shoot, as long as I have access to it.  Nothing worse than having to stand 200 feet behind and one story up from the story I am trying to tell.  Hint for future brides, talk to your venue/church/officiant.  Find out what their opinions are about photographers and having them move around or getting close during the ceremony.  Many churches/officiants don’t allow it, many don’t care, but the last thing you want is to be surprised on your wedding day.  This can be a touchy subject for some.  It should be.  The ceremony is the entire point of why we are “gathering here today”.  If you’re hiring me to shoot your wedding, you want me close during the ceremony, there’s just no way around it.  I have been told by some church coordinators that I am not allowed to move during the ceremony because it’s a “worship service”.  Well, worship means and encompasses many things, and that is exactly what I am doing when I am shooting a ceremony.  Anyway, I do try and be unobtrusive, and I have gotten very good at finding ways to get around without being noticed, but I will not hesitate to get close if the story calls for it.

This series is from one of my favorite ceremonies, good friends of mine Jesse and Rachel, and one in which I was not allowed to move.  I did anyway, and I’m glad I did.  I did get a verbal lashing though.  Worth it.