This is Art: 50 Examples Of The Artistry Of Reportage Wedding Photography
Such an artistic and ethereal capture above by US-based photographer Philip Thomas (and you can read how he got this capture by the man himself over here.)
Reportage wedding photography is great for many reasons – ten of which I went into far more depth about over here. The area that I really want to talk about and highlight today, though, is the pure art involved with this craft.
Not only is documentary wedding photography art, but it is art created on the fly – the photographer is not setting anything up, or posing people, but is instead creating pieces of art in an instant, hundreds and hundreds of times per wedding. This is an incredible skill; exhausting, and sometimes mentally draining, but incredibly worthwhile, as each bride and groom come away with unique pieces of art.
It may sound pretentious, but I always liken hiring a photographer to comissioning an artist; it really is the opposite of buying a product off the shelf; you’re comissioning an artist to create something totally unique. And as art is subjective, so too is wedding photography, and that’s a real beauty about what we do – we all see and capture things in our own unique ways, as you can see from the 50 examples from our This is Reportage members below.
Image above by Portugal-based photographer Pedro Vilela – the way he caught such a moment within such an interesting composition is a great example of the way documentary wedding photographers create art on the fly.
Pure art by Jonny MP, here – the creative use of mirrors, the look and connection between the bride and dad, the black and white treatment…gorgeous. Find out more about how Jonny got this image over here.
Andrew Billington with a fantastic example of creative, artistic image-making here – the silhouetted speech-giver producing such a unique frame.
All the feels for this one! Devon based photographer Mike Riley with a great example of capturing moments artistically.
So beautiful, this – a reflection in a painting of a horse (as the bride loves them); artistic and meaningful by Canada (and UK)-based photographer Steve Gerrard
I love the composition used here by Anna Pool of Luna Weddings, and such beautiful light captured – the contrast between the light and dark of the image drawing your eye all around. Beautiful.
The technique required here to pull of such a sense of movement is just brilliant; the wedding car so artistically captured by Ireland-based photographer Mark Capilitan.
Such an artistic dancing capture by Guernsey-based photographer Etienne Laine; the composition, bride’s expression, reach, and black and white treatment all producing such a serene image.
The framing, composition and layering here – and all done on the fly; a fab example by Dominique Shaw of York Place Studios.
Love this silhouette capture of guests mingling by Berlin-based photographer Alexander Ziegler
Elliot Patching‘s use of negative space here, combined with the semi-silhouette and framing within the doorway, all combine to make a truly artistic capture of an everyday occurrence.
Storytelling within a single image is such an art, and Graham Warrellow shows us how its done here; love the composition drawing your eye around the entire frame, too.
Not your typical wedding breakfast capture here! Mark Wallis capturing the sense of movement and bustle by the waiting staff here with this fab image.
The way Mark Seymour uses the leading lines of the spiral staircase to draw your eye around the frame and down to the moment happening below; just brilliant.
This totally natural portrait by Yana Audas wouldn’t look out of place in an art gallery; beautiful.
Love this! Such a great example of negative space, movement and emotion – what an artistic dancing capture by Eve Dunlop.
I just love this composition by Catherine Pound, here – drawing your eye around the image to the flower girls. The way they are almost mirroring each other, too…just such an artistic image.
So much is in the light, and this is a great example of light beautifully captured by Joshua Wyborn.
The framing here, by Barney Walters, is just superb; drawing the eye from the faces, to the rings, and back to their faces again – all within such a strong moment, too. Pure art.
The tones, the dark exposure, the composition, the moment…just beautiful by Damian Brandon.
People laugh everyday, but to capture it so artistically like this, is a real feat. Captured by the fab John Hope.
A great use of negative space by Sara Kirkham of Pixies in the Cellar; a great example of how every moment – no matter how small – can be captured so creatively and artistically.
Humour can be art, too! To capture such a fleeting moment so creatively is a real talent – a fantastic example by Chris Seddon.
Helen Lisk beautifully captures a sensual moment here – a moment of quietness surrounded by all the partying. The way she isolates it in the frame…just gorgeous.
Yes, even a wedding Conga can be captured artistically! You can read more about how Eneka Stewart captured this fab image over here.
Pure joy; pure art, by the fab Chris Barber
The way Lynne Kennedy captures this groom seeing his bride, almost from the bride’s point of view…so artistic, and just fabulous.
The way Adam Johnson has composed this image; framing the reader/guest within the bride and groom – so creative, and a great example of artistic storytelling.
By not always focusing on the thing that’s most obvious, we can create unique pieces of art, as Aga Tomaszek shows us here.
The art that documentary wedding photographers create can be profound, as in this ‘stages of life’ example by Liam Shaw of York Place Studios.
Abstract and mysterious, a fantastic example of artistic documentary wedding photography by Kristian Leven.
Such a strikingly artistic image by David Scholes, here – the composition drawing your eye all around the frame, and the purposeful inclusion of the clock giving a real storytelling dynamic.
It’s a cake cutting, but not as you know it…! I love the way David Weightman turns a staple of wedding photography on its head here, by shooting through the couple and capturing all those great reactions; ace.
A striking. emotional capture by Hannah and Michael Jackson of Jackson & co Photography here. You don’t need to see the bride’s full face to feel the impact of that moment. Beautiful.
Such an unusual and striking composition by Toni Darcy; love it!
Louise Gilbert-Young of Sam & Louise Photography employing fantastic use of negative space here to not only draw the viewer’s eye around the frame, but to isolate the moment. Brilliant.
Artistic storytelling at its best here, by Amy Barton; just brilliant.
Can an image of someone eating crisps be artistic? Lucy Judson shows us it most definitely can!
I love the way Louisa Parsons has captured these people singing their hearts out; her use of flash and composition bringing real artistry to the moment.
Such a striking and different composition here – so abstract, and visually interesting. Gavin Power making prep images art.
The tones, the rain, the abstract framing; just beautiful, by Claudia Rose Carter.
No posing, just pure art created on the fly by Harry Michael, here. A timeless piece of art.
Sam Gibson demonstrating brilliantly how sometimes an image can be even more powerful when we don’t clearly see faces; beautiful.
So striking, this; the way the bride and the hair spray truly pop from the background; the movement, the reflection, and dress in the background – great, artistic storytelling by Lyndsey Goddard. (You can read all about how Lyndsey captured this image here)
What a sense of movement and energy Canada-based photographer Shlomi Amiga has captured here; just beautiful.
Marianne Chua’s observation, composition and patience skills all come into effect here to create this artistic bridal prep image. You can read more about how she got this shot over here.
What a unique viewpoint and composition for this dancing image by Steven Rooney; amazing.
Dan Morris‘ combination of moment, leading lines, framing within a frame, and symmetry, all combine to make this such an artistic image. And all done on the fly; there is so much skill in documentary wedding photography!
Ha, this one really *is* art! To be able to see things like this, and frame them within a moment…just brilliant by Alex Miller.
If you’re a bride or groom looking for your day to be captured artistically like the examples above, check out any of those photographers’ profiles by clicking their names under the images, or head over to our directory to find our full list of reportage wedding photographers in your area.
If you’re a wedding photographer who loves to capture the majority of the day naturally – yet creatively – then we’d love to have you on This is Reportage. Members receive their own profile, unlimited images/galleries, and free entries to our Reportage Awards (for great individual moments), and Reportage Story Awards (for a series of images from a single wedding). See the full list of benefits, cost, and apply to become a member over here.
This article was written by the owner of This is Reportage (that’d be me, Alan Law), and all views/opinions within are entirely my own.
