Documentary weddings & lighting; some thoughts
As a documentary wedding photographer, I travel light. My gear at wedding is two cameras, two lenses and one flash which I only use in rare instances. As I always tell my couples, in the photos I want the room to look like the room we were in, which is why I don’t use external lights or (usually) flash. Because of that, I’ll deal with whatever the lighting happens to be, and I’ll always make it work. In this post I’m going to talk about my preferences and why they exist, but as I always say to my couples; have the wedding you want, and that includes the lighting. If you haven’t thought about that aspect of things, this will give you, perhaps, some insight from my point of view as the person capturing the day for you in images you’ll hopefully love forever.
So - my preference. To put it succinctly, it’s lighting that looks effortlessly great in photos. Outdoor weddings during the day are exempt from this conversation. Natural light is always beautiful, but not all weddings can happen out of doors in the middle of the day, so for the purposes of this post we’re only discussing weddings held indoors, where artificial light is a necessity.
The photo at the top of the page, as well as the next two, below are from a wedding at the NY Botanical Gardens which was beautifully lit. This is a venue that knows from lighting! The soft white lights, carefully positioned to highlight the bride and groom at their table, their cake and the dance floor, while the tables were primarily lit with large candles made this a dream to shoot. It was elegant and showed everyone to advantage. There were no harsh/strange shadows from awkwardly positioned spots or uplights, and the whole room just seemed to glow.
I mention uplighting, which has become increasingly popular in the last few years, primarily uplighting that is purple or blue (although I’ve seen green, magenta, yellow and orange, too). And don’t get me wrong, this can make a room look great, but it can also have its challenges. Generally speaking, people don’t look their best when their skin is awash in purple or blue light, so such lighting must be placed strategically. And uplights can cause strange shadows, again depending on the placing. (Think holding a flashlight under your chin to make a spooky face. Obviously that’s an extreme example, but you get the idea.) My other feeling about the current trend of colorful uplighting is that it’s going to date the photos. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing! It’s just something to be aware of. In ten years you might go, “Yep, definitely a wedding from the 20’s - look at those lights!”
As I mentioned above, couples should absolutely have the wedding they want, not the wedding anyone else wants for them (including the photographer), so if you love colorful uplighting and that is part of your vision for your day, go for it! Again, this post is more for those couples who haven’t thought about this aspect of their wedding, and who might not actually want the look that comes with this current trend.
If you’re interested in a more classic feel to your color images, and if you want the images to seem timeless, my advice is to go with soft white lighting. In that case, you can highlight colors in flowers and decor.
The photos below were taken at another wedding I shot in Saugatuck, and as you can see the room was mostly lit by dozens and dozens of candles, aided only by the white wall sconces. And it was gorgeous. Everyone had a soft, candlelit glow and the room had a very fairytale quality to it.
This brings us to my love of black and white images. Many of my clients specifically request their galleries have a mix of both color and black and white images, and I fully support this decision. A spot of color that distracts the eye from the subject is unobtrusive in a black and white image. Black and white images are classic, and always a great choice in a wedding gallery.
The photos below are from weddings that had colorful lights and also weddings that used soft white lights or candles.
Weddings large or small contain lots of moving parts, and dozens of choices. The food, the flowers, the venue - it all goes away after the wedding is done. The photographs remain, and at least in my documentary style, will reflect exactly what the rooms looked like. It’s worth thinking about what that means for the photos you’ll look at over and over, and to let that help influence your decision. And of course, I’m always happy to talk to anyone about their vision for the day and how I can make sure that vision is captured in gorgeous images!