Capturing a Moment: This Year I've Photographed 28 Weddings, But I'm Not A Wedding Photographer.

Let Me Explain...

The spring wedding season of 2023 in Chicago started off with a bang with me. And I didn't see it coming. The bookings began filling up my calendar and as soon as the snow started thawing in the spring, I was shooting two weddings most weekends with some weekends finding myself photographing three. This steady flow of weddings continued through early August leading up until the time when I moved down here to Boca. My time capturing weddings the last ten years has had me cover all kinds of ceremonies. From the elaborate and elegant affairs to the more intimate and smaller exchanging of the vows. I've shot weddings and receptions on the upper floors of the highrises all over the Chicago skyline to the backyards and smaller venues in Wisconsin and Indiana. But at every wedding I photograph, every one of them have the same thing in common...the candid moments. And those are the images I get the most excited to capture.

Of course, every wedding needs the staple images. Standing at the alter, exchanging of the vows, walking down the aisle, the first kiss, the cutting of the cake, the first dances, the speaches...you get the point. Documenting a couple's wedding day is one of the most important set of images they will have and look back on. But the couple's wedding day is not just a day to document the milestones, but it is also filled with the pricessless moments and interactions between the couple and with their guests. It's those images that truly tell the story of the day. And it's those images that I get excited to seek out and capture.

What's the story happening with and around the couple that day? What are the fun moments or inside jokes happening between them and their guests? Mostly, as a photographer, when you aim a camera at someone at a wedding or event, they immediatlely and instinctually give you their best pose. But I'm moment-hunting. I'm looking to capture them engaged in their inside jokes and interactions when they happen naturally. Those are the moments a Bride and Groom will look back on and cherish when they review their wedding images every year. For almost 15 years, I worked in TV and film production and during that time I have produced local and national live news events for every major network. I have learned how to get my shot by getting to or in a vantage point while keeping myself out of the forefront of what's happening. And I've taken that skill into my wedding photography. During most of the reception, I try to stay as invisible as possible and just watch. I watch everything around me, who's talking to who, where are the quiet places people are going to have more intimate conversations, while always keeping an eye on the Bride and Groom and what they are up to. The Bride and Groom will have so much going on that day around them. They have so much to focus on and keep track of that they will barely remember even saying their vows. But when they look back at the images I captured of their big day, I want them to also look back and see and experience the moments that they never knew happened or completely missed. That's why I don't consider mysef a Wedding Photographer, I'm a Wedding Documentarian.