If you’ve had a look at our website you’ll already have an idea of what our approach to wedding photography is, and what you can expect from our photographs.
First of all let us introduce ourselves: we are Giuseppe and Alessandro. We are friends and business partners. We decided to take pictures together because our different personalities and tastes, in our opinion, combine very well to get results that go beyond the best that we could do alone. Unity is strength and we, therefore, have decided to always work together: at every wedding the two of us will always be photographing, together – don’t take it as a threat :-).
LET US ELABORATE: WHAT DOES “DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY” MEAN?
The term doesn’t convey its meaning very well. You may instinctively think of a documentary about lions in the savannah or about the difficulty of procreation in African mammoths. In photography, however, it means something more: it is a genre of photography based on photojournalism, that aims to reproduce reality and society through the lens of everyday life. The photographer focuses on what is happening in order to give back “real” and not staged images, without interfering in the scene taking place. This is the part that we all know, but it is not everything, in fact it is only the beginning.
It must be said that many wedding photographers practice (or think they do) documentary photography, at least in part. A wedding is an event in which there are certainly moments where the photographer cannot direct the scene. Let’s think, for example, of the ceremony. Here, the photographer – hopefully – doesn’t ask the bride and groom to pose and therefore his photographs will certainly be spontaneous. But it is not enough to call this documentary photography. In this example, in fact, the photographer shoots that way out of necessity.
Documentary photography is a very complex form in which the images are not just the result of “unfiltered” capture of moments that are happening. They are composed and considered with the same care as a handcrafted portrait. The composition (meaning the elements that are included in the photo and their organization), the timing in capturing the decisive moment, the use of narrative elements, of stories that intersect between multiple layers, the foreground and the background, are all pieces of a puzzle that are the basis of documentary photography. We can summarize, very handily, that it’s the balanced result of narrative, story, spontaneity and surprise.
Now you’re still thinking about the lion and the African mammoth? 🙂 🙂
HOW DO WE MARRY DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY WITH A WEDDING CEREMONY?
According to us, there is no better way to photograph an event, such as a wedding, in order to tell the story of the event, the people, the stories. There are many styles practiced in wedding photography. For us, the best approach is the one that allows us to produce photographs that tell the story, that talk about what happened almost from the point of view of a child who does not filter the atmosphere and sees it for what it is.
Do you ever remember events that you experienced in your childhood? Beautiful moments, memorable vacations, perfect birthdays, your old house, your grandparents, or even a weekend you will never forget. Sometimes we even recall, both in mind and heart, those less than perfect moments. These simple moments seem ordinary but over time have taken on a very special value, perhaps because they are linked to particular people or important stages in our lives.
Imagine having photos that captured those moments, those people, those events, with full candor; photos that give space to your memories to remember details or emotions that you had relegated to a hidden corner of your heart. This is the main reason why documentary photography is the best choice to celebrate the uniqueness of little gestures and moments, the beauty of our everyday life.
And at weddings? There is even more! If you have not yet got married then you might not know that your wedding day will be like a tornado! A whirlwind of emotions and pleasant situations that will come at you from every direction. The excitement of the ceremony, the feeling of a new life about to start, all the loved ones who want to celebrate with you, the party, the dancing, the laughter, the hugs. It’s true what they say: that day will pass quickly, but it will imprint in you emotions and memories that, slowly, settle and you will carry them with you all for your entire life.
What about us? We will help you with our photographs. Not only to remind you of those moments but to discover new ones! Yes, you read that right: you’ll discover things you hadn’t noticed and that, in the whirlwind of the day, you’ve missed. That’s how documentary photography can not only remind you, but also help you to discover new things.
WHY CHOOSE GIUSEPPE AND ALESSANDRO AS YOUR WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHERS. OUR STYLE
This is the most difficult part. We don’t like to talk about ourselves, but it is important to bare our souls and be as sincere as we want our photographs to be. Below you will find 4 important points about our knowledge of documentary photography and our approach. Basically, we want you to know a few things about us, that we care about, and would like you to know.
We like people. One of the main reasons we shoot weddings is because we like to photograph people. Documentary wedding photography is all about people. We like humanity, we like the interactions, the connections, the emotions. We love observing and taking pictures of people and moments that seem most interesting to us. For us, where we photograph is almost irrelevant. Sure we will collect photographs of places and details as part of the day’s narrative, but we focus mostly on people and their interactions.
We try to create photographs that could exist in any space. Sometimes places and decorations can become additional characters, but as part of our approach, our goal is to use them as context, or a reflection of what the couple and guests do, but not as the focus of the wedding.
We love natural light. This is a “must” for documentary photographers and we also love working with natural or ambient light. Our goal is to tell a story and using ambient light is the best way to not decontextualize the subject. Of course, in some situations we will use a flash to take photographs. In family portraits where there is no light, for example, we will be forced to use it. However, we will try to limit the use of additional lights as much as possible.
We love the big moments, but especially love the smaller ones. There are important and solemn moments in a wedding. The exchange of rings, the bride’s entrance to the ceremony, the cutting of the cake, the first dance, are all important and solemn moments that we, as well as any other wedding photographer, will capture. Although they are important moments, they are only the basis of what we are looking to capture.
We want to go deeper, get to the beating heart of your event. We love capturing those moments, which might typically be considered second nature, but actually tell the story of the uniqueness of that day; seemingly normal interactions and connections that hide everyone’s unique personalities. Children playing creates interesting compositions, an uncle dozing in the shade, a loving caress, the hearty laughter of a group of friends. In short, all those moments that can safely be called life.
We love authenticity. Our goal is to capture real moments. Real smiles, real laughter, real love, true emotions. There may also be moments of tension, embarrassment, crying. It’s part of life and a wedding is not excluded from this: it’s your life. Things aren’t always perfect, and when you look at the pictures we want you to see how things were that day. If you can feel the emotions, and get goosebumps on your skin, then it means that we have done our job well.
In the end, the most important thing for us, and for our way of telling the story of the wedding, is that the couple can fully enjoy every moment of the day without thoughts or worries, enjoy their friends and family, enjoy the party and the fun, without interruptions from us. Only in this way can we create a wealth of visual memories that will celebrate them and provide a record, for the rest of their lives, not only how they looked on their wedding day but, most importantly, how they felt and what their emotions were.
DOCUMENTARY STYLE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
If you want to know more about our vision of documentary style wedding photography, and discover in detail what our wedding photography service consists of, you will find much more information on this page.
