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March 2000

It's All About Style by Alvin Gee Cr. CPP Master Photographer
Bucking The Trends Keeps This Couple On The Cutting Edge

t's amazing to see such expression in today's wedding photography. Just a few years back, I can recall an industry that had a reputation not unlike that of used car salesmen. Things have definitely changed.

Back in the early nineties, Susan came to grips with the fact that she was going to be a photographer. After graduating college, she took on a few wedding gigs around Boston and actually enjoyed them. "I was strictly drawn to black and white, back then it wasn't as predominant as it is today-I believe it's helped me to see things differently."

Taking that "box" and turning it into a photographer's dream studio was a challenge well worth the investment. The result is my new 4700-square-foot state-of-the-art studio, complete with elaborate piano, fireplace, staircase, boardroom, and large group photography sets. I have decorated my entire studio with fine antiques that create elegant settings for portraits. The remaining 3300 square feet is used for storage and lease space.

Rangefinder, March, 1999. We had just been profiled showing our fine art expressionism wedding work. By the time the article came to print we had already begun working on a new angle. This time we vowed to shoot from the heart. No more exploring trends and keeping one step ahead of the rest, we were going to do it for us...Warning! If you are a successful wedding photographer, please don't try this at home. Bucking the trends has always kept us on the cutting edge of photography. However, it has also severed the ties we have created through our progression. Let's face it, people are resistant to change. Few individuals are eager to embrace a new idea or artist's work. There is a flip side to this theory and that is that once the right person embraces your work, there is no telling where you could go. It's for this theory that we continue.

Photo du jour, Lifestyle essays. Ten years in the business, over 15,000 hours in the darkroom, hundreds of weddings, fashion shoots, fine art, photojournalism, portraits, broke, success, broke again. Where has all this left us? Though the journey has been long, it's been a great ride. I believe we have found our way back.

Today we shoot strictly black-and-white lifestyle essays in our wedding work. What is a lifestyle essay? In theory it's just a catchy new phrase; in fact, it's a deep hard look into a day in the life of the wedding participants. Slightly less harsh then photojournalism but immensely more detailed and emotional. The essay itself embraces realty and at the same time challenges imagination. No form of lighting other than natural is ever used. This means the light controls your film selection and not vice versa. Printing your own work is also key in this style, although not totally essential.
In order to document successfully, we believe two photographers are necessary. You just cannot be everywhere at one time; being husband and wife has also been quite a benefit. It's as if we have learned to read each other's every move. Your lens selection is crucial-short lenses, 15-35mm are a must. We chose Canon to be our sole essay cameras. Just preference, we do not receive sponsorship. The great thing about our style is the fact that we can go virtually anywhere on any assignment with nothing more than a leather sack for our film and an over-the-shoulder camera bag for our work.

The most difficult hurdle to overcome with this type of style is developing the client's trust-selling them on the fact that the whole event will be documented in black and white. It's a difficult sell. Not only are all their friends' weddings done in color, but also the parents argue that theirs was shot it black-and-white and why would you want yours shot that way. I'm not going to fool you, we still have a difficult time with this.

A few hints on the selling process: first you must create a portfolio of a recent wedding done this way (the whole thing) just as your client receives it. Don't just let potential clients flip through it. Explain each shot including why, where, when and how you shot it. We'll matte each one separately and on the back, right down our comments. People find this interesting, and extremely informative. If you have a photograph that has been manipulated somehow let them know why. An example; "this photograph was sepia toned to bring out the warm texture from the sun's glare through the trees." Not only are you getting the client to look more closely at the photograph, but also you are educating them along the way. This has worked extremely well for us. Again I must reiterate that this is why printing your own work is so important. Our presentation changes with each client. Although we chose ArtZ Products as a great starting point, we incorporate them in many different ways that were not originally intended. We ask clients to get creative with the whole design process. Never will you see our work in a wedding album. You will see playing cards, framed art pieces, homemade miniature contact sheet books, photo coffee tables, T-shirts and any other hip ideas clients can imagine. The bottom line is that we chose to market to a niche clientele and with it comes out of this world one of a kind conceptual ideas.

We search the country for extremely imaginative people who are getting married. It's the clients who fuel our imagination.

For the record books, photojournalism is not about technicalities or expensive truck loads of equipment. Photojournalism is about a deeper understanding of humanity. It's about compiling information on film to be brought to life in the darkroom. Today's journalists are coming into the wedding world with great enthusiasm and extraordinary talent.

Today we photograph between 5-10 weddings per year. We let go in order to let in. Weddings are fun again. They do not dictate our lives and our clients are on the same page as we are. We have recently been over come by personal expression. We carry our cameras everywhere again.

Jeff and Susan Moore operate Newlook Photography in Florida. Their work can be found at newlookphotography.com.