Man! I seem to be missing blogging due dates left an right these past few weeks. But that’s because I’ve been busy working away on some post processing of Kathy and Bill's wedding, playing with Wyatt, and melting in the Arizona Heat! But enough excuses : )
For this late Wedding Wednesday post, I want to tell you about the latest step in my artistic journey. A few weeks back, I posted about the struggle I was having trying to decide which type of wedding photographer I wanted to be. What genre do I fit under? Is my work light, airy, nostaligic, romantic and dreamy? I struggled with that question because while I really admire and love a lot of work that fits into that category (Rachel Solomon, Steph Wahlig,) I don’t think that’s my voice.
I’ve been chatting a lot lately about film photography with other photographers. Many wonderful wedding photographers that I consider “guru’s” have switched to film. Or are switching to a combination of film and digital. When I ask them why they are choosing this medium, I usually hear that the whites are truer to life, that color is truer, and that there seems to be greater detail in the images. I can see that argument. I also hear that it minimizes the post processing workload. For me, that’s a huge part of the art. I love post processing. I love using the new tools that Photoshop has to offer to really create some drama in my work.
And that’s when I realized…yup, I love drama. I love using light to create an image that really makes people stop and say “would you look at that!?” So I think that means that my photography is starting to lean more towards the fine art and dramatic genre. I’m starting to become a little obsessed with side lighting, dramatic shadows, certain tasteful post processing techniques.
My new guru crush is Jerry Ghionis and I think it’s going to stick. His images are super powerful, artistic, and beautiful, but they also have a photojournalistic quality to them that I try to weave into every single one of my shoots. If you haven’t checked out his teaching website, the ICE Society, you should. Not only is he a really amazing artist and accomplished business man, he’s a really sweet guy!
He doesn’t just say he wants to coach and inspire, he does. He holds workshops all over the world (which are pretty pricey) but he also has 2 hours long open online chat sessions. He holds challenges for his premium members who can win a free membership year if they are voted to be the best image. And he has a whole lot of chapter recordings that let you follow him on wedding shoot after wedding shoot. He tells you what he’s doing, why he’s doing it, and shows you too. It’s kind of priceless.
So with this new clarity of vision in mind, I am beyond excited for my weddings to come. Here’s an image I already shared on my social media sites, but if you missed it, it’s the one that made me say “yeah…this is what I want to create. This is the type of photographer I want to be!” Hope you fall in love with it too!
-Rachel