This weekend I got to see a bunch of great photographers talk about their work at Mystic 4. There was one talk by a photog friend, Ben Chrisman, that brought up a point. It’s something that I have told many brides when searching for a photographer. There’s a difference between what you see and what you get. I’m pretty sure all photographers, including myself, show you the tip of the iceberg. We look at the photos from a wedding, choose our top 10 or 20 images, and those go in our portfolios. But what about the bottom of the iceberg? The other 600-1000 images?

I know when I put images on my blog they are my favorite few from the wedding. I choose these images based on how artistic they are, the best composition, color, clarity, etc. These are the images that, well, create my image. But what about the rest? What about those must have shots that are on every list of must have shots in every magazine? It’s not that we don’t take them or that they aren’t good enough. It’s just that they are normal. The fear of every photographer is that they fall into the category of being “normal,” being a “wedding photographer.” When people ask me what I do for a living I say “I’m a photographer.” They usually follow up with “so you do, like, weddings?” I think so many of us (you know who you are) don’t want to be classified as the typical old fashioned wedding photographer. We want to be more than that so we show our best images, that aren’t typical, to make us stand out from the other photographers out there.

So here it is… one wedding viewed two different ways.  In this first set, theses are some of my favorite images from this wedding. The photographers choice…

   

I’ve asked my photographer friends what kind of images their clients order, and I wasn’t surprised by their answer. There’s always been this joke among photographers: If you want to know what your worst images are from a wedding, watch what people order. But they aren’t our worst images, they may even be some great ones! They may be your clients favorite images from the wedding! To us, they are just typical. As much as we as photographers want to set ourselves aside from the rest, we need to be typical. We need to take those specific images that the bride and groom, their family, and their friends expect us to take. That’s doing a good job. That’s even helping your online photo sales.

Here’s what my clients expect. I make sure to get these images at every wedding, the clients choice…

There are plenty more to show: the photo of the cake, the bride with her bridesmaids, the 20 other group shots, and the list goes on.

If I only showed the second set of images, I’m sure to lose my target clientele. You have to show the images for the type of clients you want to attract. And you need to be true to yourself, and your art. Could I book more weddings showing my clients my favorite images because that is what most brides want? Maybe. Would I be happy about it? No. I’m a passionate photographer. I love to make art. But I have to know that I am not my only critic. I am employed by my clients. They expect a level of artistry in their images because that is what they see on my websites. That is what I show them. They find it even nicer to know that I make sure to get that shot on their list of must have shots too. 

So whether you’re an artist, a traditional photographer, a photojournalist, or a hobbyist, remember to not only be true to yourself, but know who your client is and who you want to attract. Be an… Artradournalist?

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