Bride and Groom portraits at the wedding

As a photojournalist most of the photos I take are when it happens actions shots. For stories often a few posed shots will be taken to show what a person looks like (i.e. a close up detail head and shoulders shot know as a mug shot), but the majority will not be posed. As a wedding photojournalist, the majority of my shots are also candid moments.

This page from Chauntel and Gerardo's wedding album shows many candid moments of them together (the one on top is her and her dad), in a book with a few formals (posed shots) chosen, but with them and other people, not just them alone.

Some couples want a few posed images of them for the album, and the question arises of when to do it. These were taken of Molly and Jeremy at cocktail hour, after a few formals of their wedding party, I took the two of them alone for a few moments and captured these.

I had a great question recently from a bride whose wedding I will be shooting in September. She wanted to know how the formals they wanted could be shot in such a manner that they would miss as little of the cocktail hour as possible.

I told her that I can do groups fast, and also offered her an option if she wanted to see her groom before the ceremony. Many people do not want to see their fiancee before the wedding and that is fine. For those that would consider it though, they could have the moment of first seeing each other captured in pictures away from the eyes of the crowd (blindfolding the groom and bringing the bride to him, really makes this an emotional moment when he finally sees her).

A few great emotion pics are taken, some brief time alone for them, and then when they are ready, some portraits of them with each other and if desired their bridal party can be a great use of time allowing them to miss little, if even any cocktail hour with their friends.