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Rangefinder
Magazine
December 2002
WPJ Now by Bill Hurter
A Look at the Changing Face of Wedding Photojournalism
THE QUESTION USED TO BE, “Exactly what is wedding
photojournalism?” Now the question seems to be “What isn’t
wedding photojournalism?” The pioneering style of Denis Reggie and
other wedding photojournalists of “capturing the emotion and working
unobserved” is so pervasive in today’s wedding coverage that
it has influenced virtually every category of wedding photography.
This fact was overwhelmingly apparent in WPPI’s recent second half
of 2002 8x10 IWPA competition, for WPPI members only. Wedding photojournalism
doesn’t only show up in the Photojournalism category of the competition
any more, it is prevalent in virtually every category—from groups
to formal portraits.
Like all artistic trends, wedding photojournalism seems
to be evolving to include more editorial-type imagery. The British photographers,
for example, like to “pose” groups charging up a hill or marching
across a field or jumping up in the air. The spontaneity of the groups’
reactions, while not derived in the traditional PJ way, is nonetheless
the point of such fun-loving and popular wedding images.
Because of the overwhelming popularity of this style of wedding photography
among brides, wedding photographers seem to be breaking the traditional
rules of posing and composition all over the place. Wide-angles are used
in formal portraits so that the background can be included as part of
the composition and overall design of the image. Tack-sharp images are
not necessarily the order of the day. As long as an image conveys emotion
and has visual impact, the standard rules of judging the quality and acceptability
of the image simply don’t apply.
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Caption 3 |
Caption 4 |
Caption 5 |
The styles of the editorial photojournalist seem to be evident in today’s
wedding images as photographers strive not only for single shots with
impact, but also work to create groups of images that will work well together
and enhance a two-page spread in the digitally derived wedding album.
More and more emphasis is being placed on the final album and its design
than ever before and you are seeing the photographer as designer and layout
artist becoming the working strengths of today’s wedding photographers.
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Caption 6 |
Caption 7 |
Caption 8 |
The overwhelming tools of choice for this type of wedding photography
seem to be the digital SLR and fast (f/2.8) zoom lens. Many images are
made by available light and still a good number use flash.
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Caption 9 |
Caption 10 |
Caption 11 |
The images that appear on these pages are not necessarily from the Photojournalism
category but from literally every Wedding category. As competitions go,
the IWPA 8x10 competition is a good indicator of what the 16x20 Awards
of Excellence competition (held at WPPI’s annual Convention and
Trade Show) will be like. For a real educational treat, plan to attend
the print judging at WPPI 2003, which will be held on Saturday Feb. 1,
at BALLY’S Las Vegas. The print competition will go on all day in
three different rooms and is open to registered attendees. See the WPPI
show supplement elsewhere in this issue.
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Caption 12 |
Caption 13 |
Caption 14 |
Captions:
1. Meredith M. Walters, Greensboro, NC; “The Girls”, Fuji
Finepix S1, Tamron 28–105mm lens; exposed for 1/1000 at f/2.8 by
available light.
2. Eric Benjamin, Emporia, KS; “Love is Patient,
Love is Kind”, Kodak DCS 760,Nikon 80–200mm lens. This is
an album page assembled in Photoshop.
3. Dennis Orchard, Maidenhead, Berkshire, England; “My
Boys!” Canon D60, Canon EOS 28–70mm lens.
4. Stephen Pugh, Sevenoaks, Kent, England; “Stampede”,
Canon EOS 1N, Canon EOS 28–70mm lens, Kodak T400GN film.
5. David Roberts, Old Saybrook, CT; “Glad to Get
that Tux Off”, Canon EOS 1N, Canon EOS 20mm lens, Fujicolor 400.
6. Anne Ledbetter, Smyrna, GA “Last Moments Before
the Ceremony”, Nikon D1X, Nikon 20–70mm lens; exposed by natural
window light.
7. Allegra Helms, Lynchburg, VA; “Twirling Dervishes”,
Canon EOS A2, 28–105mm Canon lens; Kodak TCN film exposed at slow
shutter speed.
8. Dennis Orchard, Maidenhead, Berkshire, England; “Fields
of Blue”, Canon D60, Canon EOS 17–35mm lens.
9. Meredith M. Walters, Greensboro, NC; “A Flower
Girl’s Big Day”, Fuji Finepix S1, Tamron 28–105mm lens.
10. Karen Sipp, Henderson, NV; “Young Bridezilla”,
Canon EOS-1, normal lens, Canon 550 EZ strobe, Kodak Portra 400 NC film.
11. Dennis Orchard, Maidenhead, Berkshire, England; “I
Don’t Believe It!”, Canon D30, Canon EOS 70–200mm lens
12. Nick Adams, St. George, UT; “Exiting the Temple”,
Nikon D1X, Nikkor 17–35mm AFS lens.
13. David Roberts, Old Saybrook, CT; “Have Your
Agent Call My Agent”, Canon EOS 1N, Canon EOS 28–70mm lens,
Fujicolor 200 film.
14. Anne Ledbetter, Smyrna, GA “Photography Lesson”,
Nikon D1X, Nikon 20–70mm lens.
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