tonyhart
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 p.7 #19 · VANITHA + RAJAN // THE DAY BEFORE | |
Ok. So this is a fiery discussion.
I bill myself as a wedding photographer, and I visit FM every single day, but I don't post in this forum a great deal and I wouldn't consider myself a great photographer just yet, nor a vastly experienced one. I feel obliged to respond in this thread however.
It seems to me that the argument has become less about whether these images are to your taste or not and more about whether people are willing to accept varying approaches to the same discipline.
The prolific posters in this forum, who need no introduction, generally bring a more "modern" and "stylistic" approach to wedding photography than I aim to shoot. I say that using those terms in a purely subjective manner based on my opinion of the photography and a large dollop of generalisation. Not everyone is "modern" and not all of the regulars meet this loose description. In short, a lot of it is quite distinct from the 'style' that I personally am trying to achieve. With that said, how do I view their work?
In general, I consider it to be bloody awesome. It's miles away from what I do and there are often 'stylistic' decisions made where I personally would take different options, but in my view, rarely can you question the success of the end result. It is only my opinion, but I consider the general calibre of work on these wedding forums to be of the utmost highest standard. Without wishing to knock the UK market, in my view, the consistently high quality of work displayed here (from what is largely a N.American congregation) blows away most of the stuff I see generated here in the UK. I'd suggest that some people's expectations have become so rarified as to simply miss the abundance of purely brilliant stuff there is knocking around on FM.
Talking about the UK market, that's not to say that really great photographers don't exist over here too. I don't wish to be misinterpreted on this. On these boards, Tobiah, Alex Beckett and BK have really stood out for me as UK wedding photographers. Once again, they are not all identifits of my style, but that doesn't mean I can't appreciate what is usually very good work. There is however, a lot of truly crap wedding photographers here in the UK. I'm sure they probably exist in the US too, but perhaps they are less obvious to me given that FM is my main stomping ground for N.American talent.
The point I'm making, quite poorly, is that the 'regulars' on here are bloody good photographers. You'd be amazed how many people out there claim to be photographers and then can't shoot well exposed, well timed images. Not only are those things an absolute given on these boards, but there is a complete overflow of creativity. At times I disagree with the approach, at times I disagree with the post production, but I appreciate diversity and I certainly don't fear it. Some photographers seem to forget that with wedding pictures, what matters is whether the clients are happy. Based on what I've heard here and Sergio's diary for 2010, I'd say he's ticking the right boxes.
Personally I prefer the work of Jeff Ascough and Kieran Doherty (I'll admit now that he's a mate!), but the stuff I see here is undoubtedly well executed, and it's a real joy to see so many genuinely talent people.
I am not a fan of flare. I am not a fan of t/s effects. I'd not work in that way. But frankly, all that is besides the point. Some people do choose to shoot that way. If they do it well, it looks good. Sergio's stuff looks good. He's captured the joy and mood of the wedding and done so using a style of his own choosing. Choose to disagree, choose to shoot differently, but lets not be scared of difference.
No one can accuse me of being part of any sort of FM clique so hopefully what I say will appear as it ought - an 'outsider' giving an unbiased judgement. There are certainly some recognisable posters around this forum, but I wouldn't call them back slappers. They happen to dig 'similar' styles and as such are drawn to the work of others whose pictures appeal to them. In the same way, I visit Jeff Ascough's site a couple of times a month and if he had a forum I'd be on it talking about his pictures. It's not because I want to big him up, it's because the work speaks to me. Here, I personally love the work of Evan Baines, and admire the work of Sam Hassas. Baines is more my style, Hassas just does what he does so well.
I'm a 25yo and struggling to do as well as I'd like to do. Sergio it seems is 19 and doing tremendously. On a personal note, he has all my kudos and respect. That isn't achieved without hard work, single mindedness and in this field a distinct sense of self, both as a person and as a photographer.
It comes down to this. Disagree, but don't knock it. This is not poor photography by any yardstick and it's a shame to see it treated as if it was. The suggestion somewhere before that a wedding was 'ruined' is hyperbolic tosh. If you don't like it, fine, but that comment is simply erroneous.
For my part I really like the set. It's being called 'modern' but the feel of these images reminds me of the 70's and makes me want to go watch Almost Famous. :
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