In our last article we looked at the traditional wedding photography style and saw that this classic form is methodical and it is a way for the photo-artist to control elements of an image in order to convey a logical flow of the wedding day. Its purpose is so that the interaction between the photos and people after the fact, will keep intact the actual emotional interaction of the wedding day itself.
Documentary photography differs from the classical style in that the documentary form is a close up view of the wedding over a timeline. It is a picture by picture, frame by frame, way of documenting the wedding day story. You capture what has taken place from one point in time to another including events within "documenting the event."
The importance of the documentaries style of wedding photography is the objectiveness of the photos. In other words the photographer's intent on your wedding day is to candidly capture the true and actual events of the day as they occur. The one obvious problem with this type of photography is that the actual events of the day are captured and retold from the perspective of the photo-artist. Since perspectives change from one person to another the interpretation of the photos will not be the same for everyone. But that is OK if what you desire from your wedding photos is a view of the day, one candid moment by candid moment without specificity to the whole wedding day story. Each interaction with one of the photos will impress a unique feeling upon the viewer one photo shot at a time. The photo shots as a collective whole will allow for a blend of each feeling and a unique interpretation of your wedding from person to person.
Documentary wedding photography is the historical capturing of your wedding. It is a style that can be quite compelling and a unique perspective of your wedding day.