The Truth About
Candid, Documentary Wedding Photography
Many couples say they want a candid / documentary style wedding day, but what does that mean and what does that look like?
What Is Candid Wedding Photography?
Candid photography is simply this: zero direction of any kind from your photographer. When you book a fully candid, documentary style wedding day it means your photographer is essentially shooting your full day as “a fly on the wall”. Every single image in your gallery will consist of natural interactions; unposed and unprompted.
What Does Candid/Documentary Wedding Photography Look Like?
Bridal Portraits – completely directed by the couple, no interference from the photographer.
Family Portraits – zero formal portraits, only pictures of the bride and groom naturally interacting with their family members.
Bridal Party – completely candid moments / natural interactions with your party.
Limited Eye Contact – most your photos will be full of movement, and few photos will include full on eye contact with the camera.
Tears, Laughter + Raw Emotion – when you and your guests forget the camera is even there, the most raw and intimate emotions flow freely.
What Most Couples Are Actually Communicating
When a couple requests a candid, documentary experience – what they usually mean is...
-They do not want to spend their day posing and gazing into each others’ eyes - fair enough, that sounds painful!
-They mean they don’t want to be away from their guests for hours on end
-They don't want to be poked and prodded (aka a full team of assistants to be fussing over fluffing their dress, re-doing their hair, reapplying makeup or pushing their bouquet into their hands 200 times in 200 positions).
-They don’t want a highly curated backdrop for every image and they don’t want to waste precious wedding day moments trying to nail the perfect dip kiss shot.
-They mean they don't want to feel like their wedding day is a 8-12 hour photo shoot.
What most couples really mean when they say they want a candid, documentary style day is...
They want beautiful images of them laughing, embracing their loved ones, holding hands, stealing sweet glances at each other and fully embracing the joy their day represents. They mean they want to be present on the day. Many couples who request candid wedding imagery feel super awkward and uncomfortable in front of the camera and don’t want to feel added performance anxiety when thinking about wedding portraits. In actuality, couples who have photo anxiety end up hating candid portraits - they don't know how to act or what to do to create the photos they think that they want (so do we uh, run through this field or something?). Ironically, the couples who are very outgoing, goofy, playful and love the camera fair much better with a candid approach- by just laughing together, hugging and kissing or chasing each other around. If anything, the more awkward you feel as a couple, the more direction and guidance is needed to produce the images you are actually envisioning.
During our initial discovery call, I dig into these details to truly understand how my couples feel about being photographed all day. I offer complimentary engagement sessions because I believe it is so essential to know my clients before their wedding day and know exactly what sort of images (particularly couples portraits) they are excited about and comfortable with. Engagement sessions are the perfect time to get to know each other and experiment together to understand what sort of prompted, posed or candid images they want to see in their wedding gallery.
A fully documentary style wedding is beautiful, and I love photographing in a documentary style – however, 9 times out of 10 when I explain what true documentary photography means, most couples actually want a blend of candid, posed and prompted images from their day.
The Hybrid “Storytelling” Model
I typically shoot weddings using a hybrid model of shooting which includes 70% candid, documentary style images, 20% lightly prompted images and less than 10% posed images. I love delivering a well rounded gallery, that tells the full story of your day by incorporating both the candid and the prompted, with a sprinkling of editorial inspired posed images. These are not firm numbers by any means, as I always shoot weddings according to the specific requests of my couple. Some clients who initially request a fully candid day typically opt for 80% candid and 20% prompted coverage if they want zero posing.
I use a hybrid approach to shooting weddings because I do believe that having a few jaw-dropping couples’ portraits on your wedding day is a must have – these are the pictures that end up being framed and hung over your fireplace and will most likely be your favourite “profile worthy” pictures. Dress hangs and flat lays? Yes please. I feel these images set the scene and start the story of your wedding day beautifully. Highlighting and emphasizing the effort that goes into your wedding day, including your wardrobe and styling, is something that I think is worth taking the time for. Formal family portraits will also find a home on your wall and be cherished by your family members for decades to come, so including a few of your favourite and closest family members into your wedding photography timeline is always special in my opinion.
So, What Can We Expect?
Candid
-70% of your album will be natural interactions, details, atmospheric and feature raw emotions
-I stand back and let these moments unfold, capturing the scheduled events, the small and big details and the sweet in-between moments
Prompted
-20% of your album will feature lightly prompted images
-I’ll use prompts throughout the day (during our scheduled photo moments) to reduce photo performance anxiety and draw you into natural and interactive poses with each other and your wedding party
I may use prompts like:
-hey, hold hands and walk towards me but keep your eyes on each other
or
-hey, slowly whisper 4 items you need to pick up at the grocery store on the way home into her ear
or
-walk up behind him and give him a hug around the waist, keeping your eyes on me
or
-hey, lets practice your first dance twirl
or
-okay team, the bride and groom and going for a run through the tunnel of love
(and i'll organize your bridal parties to line up on either side of you) etc.
These prompts produce low stress, beautiful and natural looking images that highlight your connection and produce natural emotion - they look and feel like candid's
Posed
-Less than 10% of your total gallery will be posed
-Posed images mean I will literally put you into a beautiful and flattering position, and correct everything from your posture to your hand positioning
-I use dramatic composition and lighting for these shots, wherever possible (think magazine spread)
JUST A NOTE
99% of everything you see on Pinterest is prompted or posed - the goal is to create images that look like candid's during your formal couple and bridal party photos. These pictures don't just happen and I'm here to guide you through them in the least invasive way possible.
My goal as your wedding photographer is to deliver a wedding album that tells the story of your wedding day - full of real emotion, heartfelt moments and beautifully composed images worth remembering for generations to come. I can't wait to tell your story.
xo
Allie
Lethbridge Wedding Photographer
Cover Image featuring Jaycie Cressman
Bridal Hair: Beaumont Beauty
Bridal Makeup: Beauty By Jaycie