Posts Tagged: banner elk weddings
Our Foundation – Wedding Portraits
We’ve been doing little mini-blog series lately and it felt like time to focus on our foundations as photographers: weddings. Photographing a wedding is not something that you shake out of your sleeve, but we’ve been doing it for a long time now and still enjoy the occasion, the logistics, getting to know our couples and their families and capturing the day as it unfolds.
I just thought I would share some of our favorite wedding shots today as a reminder of what we do best and what put Pixels on the map.
We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddings, brides, and special events and portraits of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2018 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Lighting, Weddings and Musts to Know
We thought – with so many in the depths of planning weddings – that we would share some of our expert advice about timing. This is not timing as in “did he propose in the middle of your grandfather’s funeral?” (Guys: don’t do that, mkay?)
We’re talking about timing so that your photographer can get the shots you really want on the day of your wedding. Brides and grooms have gone to the trouble of thinking through what moments and people they would like captured, where they are having their weddings and choosing the season. But one of the things that needs to be considered most during planning is timing. It’s important in comedy and it’s important on your wedding day.
- What time does sunset occur?
- What time should your ceremony start and how long will the ceremony portion last?
- Do you want lots of shots taken outdoors?
- Where will your reception be and do we need to allow for drive time while the sun shines?
Much of our pricing depends on the amount of photo coverage hours needed, so planning ahead is key.
Ryan and I begin photographing approximately two hours before the ceremony for those couples who do not plan to see each other beforehand, which is customary. I work with the bride, bridesmaids and the bride’s family for an hour and can capture shots of her getting ready and transforming herself and spending quality time with specific people. This allows us to get all the fun of the preparation while still giving the bride time to freshen her make-up and ready herself for walking down the aisle. If a bride wants photos of her hair and makeup being done, we’ll need even more time, but we can help you get that sorted out when we speak.
Ryan photographs the groom, groomsmen and groom’s family during the second hour. This allows us to complete all photos that do not include the bride and groom together before the ceremony gets underway. You’re up, you’re fresh and ready and excited and it just makes sense. It makes the process more efficient following the ceremony and allows the couple to get to their reception sooner.
Following the ceremony we need 30-45 minutes (depending on wedding party and family size) to photograph the bride and groom together with their families and wedding party. We prefer to begin with family first, then the wedding party, and then with just the bride and groom for the most amount of time. We know that you want to join the party that is YOUR celebration, so having a plan and knowing where the sun will be if you want outdoor photos is something we can anticipate and create for you.
If you’re interested in seeing more of our weddings, visit that page of our blog where you can see the anticipatory beginnings, tender middles and lovely ends to ceremonies across seasons. Here is also a blog of ours for those interested in seeing how lighting can affect the details of a wedding and make them truly shine.
During the reception, we photograph candid moments of all kinds and do not interrupt the bride and groom for posed photos. We want you to mingle and celebrate, dance, eat and enjoy your day. Those moments make amazing photos anyway. The only exception we make is if the couple requests sunset photos at which point we will watch for the perfect moment before stealing the couple away from the reception for a minimal amount of time.
Most receptions last 3-4 hours, so if a couple plans a formal exit complete with sparklers, bubbles, and a getaway car, they will likely want us to photograph that exit and stay until the end. However, if a couple does not plan a formal exit and anticipates staying until the last guest leaves, then they can plan on less photography coverage hours and we will slip out (after hugs, a last check-in and goodbyes) and let you keep partying.
For us, lighting your day is important and we know how to handle it. You have other things to think about, so once you’ve chosen place, season, type of wedding and time of day, we’ll know how to counsel you and make things work.
While your wedding is photographed to memorialize it and is a big production, it is also one of the biggest milestones in a person’s life. We want you to feel the joy of the day and not just like you’re modeling or being posed. So consider the season, the time of day, time changes for daylight savings if those apply, how much of the behind the scenes you want captured, as well as the outdoor and natural light and we’ll do our best. To help, here is a favorite website we use to determine sunset time.
After all the planning, it’s an adventure! Let the magic happen!
We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddings, brides, and special events and portraits of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2018 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.
Wedding Season is closer than you think – think photography!
We know that we get excited and prepared for wedding season earlier than most – unless you’re a wedding planner. It’s our job to be ready to listen to your requests, learn about the location – if we don’t already know it intimately (we’ve been around a while, ya’ll) – get to know you and your story and be a part of your dream team. It takes a lot of coordination and we want to be in the background, capturing moments, but still part of your support army on your big day.
Outdoor weddings, especially in our part of the country, are perhaps more popular than church weddings, but we love doing both. We also love learning your history, about the various choices you made and most especially what details, faces, dance routines, micro-moments, comedic surprises and acts of love we need to get on film so that you have memories and heirlooms for life.
We love family portraits whether they are set in the studio, the great outdoors, a specific location like the mountains or high country, or on our property in our outdoor portrait garden. Pixels on Paper photographs, engagements and weddings, brides, and special events and portraits of all kinds in our Wilkesboro, NC studio. We would be honored to meet with you, learn about you and your family and be a part of taking special portraits that will become, we hope, family heirlooms.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 United States License
All photos are ©2017 Pixels On Paper. Do not copy, crop, or remove watermark.