After couples have spent ages selecting and deciding on dresses, shoes, jewellery and all manner of details that will make their day personal, it’s not surprising that photographers are asked to record them.
There’s not much wedding photojournalism going on, but they can be an element of documentary wedding photography. I don’t mean sweet counters or doilies; I mean the details that matter.
My favourite detail image is one that isn’t cliché, or is perhaps an element passed over, or unseen by the couple.
One of the important elements of a wedding reception is the food. The menu has been meticulously selected and the food carefully prepared, but who brought it all together? The Chef.
The couple have almost certainly not seen the Chef, or the kitchen where the food is prepared. Some might think this is unworthy of a wedding photograph, but I disagree. It might not make an album selection, but I want the couple to see all the elements and people involved in creating their day, even those ‘back stage’.
Here’s an image from a series recent wedding at the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Everything single element has to be brought in, including water, and set up in the Convocation House; built in the 17th century as the meeting room for the University’s supreme legislative body.
A judge from times past looks down on the Chef, hard at work preparing the wedding breakfast. I resist making a pun about judges and Masterchef.
This is my type of detail shot.
This post first appear on the blog of Bob Owen Photography
