Laughter, Egg Tosses, Sack Races and Some Pimm’s, by Motiejus [RF Wedding of the Week]

All Photos © Motiejus

Why wedding photography? “I love telling stories of weddings as a coming together of people, with all the quirks, all the joy, human and beautifully unexpected moments,” explains London-based shooter Motiejus Salkauskus of his beloved genre. His documentary-style approach covers the gamut, from laughter to tears and everything in between.
“Sarah and Ben are a young and extremely lovely couple,” the photographer says of his clients. “Both have been together since school and photographing them was simply a pleasure. On top of that, I felt very welcomed by their friends and family. When shooting weddings and people in particular, I always stay close, as I believe it’s the best way to show emotions of the day; naturally being allowed to be so close to people is extremely important. As for the day itself, it was packed with action, from games to barn dances and a live band, which guaranteed endless action.”

While Sarah and Benjamin found Motiejus through his website, as does the majority of his clients, he says because they were living quite far away from him at the time and were not able to meet in person, they had a Skype chat instead. “I’m a strong believer of meeting all my couples prior to the wedding either in person or online,” he says. “It allows us to get to know each other, understand their needs and expectations, and it’s a guarantee that there won’t be any awkwardness during the day.”

Says bride Sarah of the day: “It was a grand start to the day with the ceremony taking place at St Mary’s Church (Ben’s childhood church) and photos by the houses built into the abbey ruins (our dream house!). We then headed out to a relaxed and informal country reception in Hartest [a small village in the Babergh district of the English county of Suffolk], the spot where Ben and I had cycled numerous times during our early years of dating. Afternoon tea had a rustic feel, surrounded by handmade decorations and followed by games on the green—sack races, egg and spoon races and giant space hoppers! The barn dance then commenced with much laughter and the three-piece acoustic local band followed, leading the day to its final conclusion with a sparkler send off!”

Motiejus says that while sparklers shot at night is “always a great way to finish the story of the wedding day, the challenges due to the lack of light and a very short time frame to shoot in makes it very easy to miss the shot. In this instance it all worked out!”

“This was one very active and fun day,” Motiejus sums up. “I started quite early and stayed till the very end. One of most important things that made shooting this wedding a pure joy was a complete trust and freedom that I received from the bride and groom. Although I always try to keep my impact as minimal as possible and go with the flow of the day, every idea and suggestion I’ve proposed wasn’t questioned one bit. It is incredible how much more fun that is for the photographer and creative process in general.”

GEAR FOR THE DAY
Camera: Canon 5D Mark III (x2)
Lenses: Sigma Art 24mm f/1.4, Canon 35mm f/1.4, 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.8
Lighting: Canon flashes, prisms and magnifying glasses

 Check out more Weddings of the Week, and email Libby Peterson or Jacqueline Tobin with submissions.