After a weekend of back to back photo sessions in Philadelphia and NJ, both with some great people, I would have to say that meeting and interacting with new clients is one of the great pleasures of this profession. Saturday’s engagement session was fun – as they usually are. I love engagement sessions because we really get to meet some fun couples who are excited about their future and who obviously enjoy being together. A big part of my job is to capture that and to have those couples feel that they can really be themselves. The session really becomes a fun time. As a engaged couple, this is not something that you do every day.
As a photographer it is my job to put my clients at ease. Understandably, the average person doesn’t like having his or her picture taken especially for an hour or more. I approach every session, knowing this and knowing my job is to have my clients forget about the camera and just relax. Truthfully some find it easier to do so than others, and that’s fine. I am a naturally curious and inquisitive person and this works to my advantage. Conversation comes easy to me and so by simply talking to people and getting people to talk about themselves a little, I am able to break through the barrier that much more. So many photographers become fixated on equipment or lighting techniques or the latest photoshop “trick”. These things are tools and methodogies that have their place for sure – but ultimately if you can’t have your client relax in front of your camera and be comfortable, those tools are not going to help you make a better picture. I want my clients to actually have a good time. I want them to remember my session as something they found entertaining or at least interesting.
I would love to hear from brides, groom, couples or anyone who has had their picture taken by a wedding photographer (including me). I would love to know how that photographer made you feel, positive or negative, and what impact you felt it had on the session. Please feel free to comment.
