Photo of the Day


Wedding Photos and Portraits of the Week

September 8, 2020

By Jacqueline Tobin

Have you seen our most recent Photos of the Day on social media? Each day on FacebookInstagram and Twitter, we feature a wedding photo or portrait that strikes us as one of the most interesting images in wedding and portrait photography, and we ask the creatives behind the photos to detail the image’s backstory and their technical approach. Here’s what caught our attention this week.

Monday: Cultural Reflections

When approaching senior session shoots, it is really important to photographers Ike and Tash that their subjects find themselves reflected back in the shoot that they are doing. 

“We have a stylist work with them on clothing, locations and concepts, then we take a mood board and bring it to life the day of session,” they say. “Our subject, Naja, wanted to reflect her culture so you can see that in her outfit choices.”

When asked how they light subjects with darker skin, they responded: “We lit for Naja’s skin the way we would like for any other client’s skin tone—there is no secret to lighting deeper skin except getting what you see with your eyes to match up with the camera and not stopping or adjusting lighting or white balance until it is perfect. If you aren’t familiar with shooting deeper skin tones, it might take a bit longer to get, but taking the time to get it right is what photography is about, and it’s worth it to give our clients the best experience and results.  

Tuesday: Archway Architecture

Jacqui Paterson of Chic Photo in Falkirk, Scotland, wanted to frame newlyweds Debbie and Troy in the middle of both archways of the architectural gem Mount Stuart House on Isle of Bute.

“I love how I managed to capture the architecture of the house, ” says Paterson. “It’s so big, so I wasn’t sure if I could balance the couple in this huge hall. It was also difficult to get the skin tones right and correct the color balance between the backlit natural light and the ambient light inside.”

Another challenge was trying to line up the couple to the exact spot but, she says, “they went back and forth a few times as I wanted to get a more natural walk.”

Wednesday: Watching and Waiting

Carly Sullens fondness for old, rustic spaces shines through in her photography. “I love old barns with natural light streaming through windows speckled with dirt and cobwebs,” says the St. Louis, Missouri-based fine-art photographer. “It really helps tell a story.”

For this narrative, she enlisted some help. “My friend’s daughter enjoy’s modeling for fun and really gets into a character during my photo sessions. Here, I had her sit near the window and began to tell her a story of how she worked all day on the farm. ‘The sun is beginning to set and you are waiting for your Pa to get home for supper,’ I told her. That’s when she moved her head slightly to peer out the window and I waited and then captured that natural moment of yearning. I find storytelling is a wonderful, natural way to pose both children and adults.”

Thursday: Love and Symmetry

The wedding of Natalia and Jody took place at Villa Rufolo in Ravello, Italy, and was photographed by Giuseppe Greco.

“I like Ravello for its architecture, villas and nature,” says Greco, who studied architecture and landscape photography before becoming a wedding photographer. “Here I photographed in Villa Rufolo and my eye was attracted to the gorgeous symmetry of this ancient building.”

Friday: A Favorite Spot

Like so many couples who had weddings scheduled this year, says photographer Stephanie Keegan, Megan and Alec’s original plans have been greatly affected by the pandemic. “They were supposed to have an intimate wedding in Whistler, BC, with their closest family and friends but they were no longer able to do that due to the Canadian border restrictions.”
 
As a result, the couple planned for a very small ceremony with their friends and family at the groom’s house but still wanted to have an adventure out in the mountains in their wedding attire. “We decided to do the ceremony on one day, then have a day-after session in their favorite spot at Mount Rainier National Park,” says Keegan. “I did both couple shots as well as some stunning ones of Megan alone.”

Dig into the Photo of the Day archives for more compelling imagery.