It seems that candid, unposed wedding photographs are all the rage. The thing is that a good wedding photographer will offer both, and you will not be able to tell the difference.
Most bridal and portrait couples are nervous in front of a camera and afraid that they will not know how to pose or stand without looking totally self-conscious. I think most people are like this. I prefer being behind the camera myself. The secret is the photographer, especially someone with loads of experience who would guide the couple and make them feel completely at ease, so that they can relax and enjoy the moment. Having photographs taken when you are no longer self-conscious is loads of fun.
I recall there once being a photographer who was asked to only take candid photographs with no posing whatsoever. In the end the couple was disappointed that they had missed all those special photographs and when asking the photographer why he had not captured those moments, his obvious response was that those special photographic moments are created by the photographer.
We like to encourage our couples to have a certain number of posed or styled photographs. We choose the poses along with our couples ahead of time and find the quickest way to get through them, so that they look ‘fresh’ in the photos, and, afterwards, can celebrate with friends and family soonest. These photographs are created as opposed to candid and form a large part of the final Wedding Album.
Having said all of this, candid moments are very important and captured throughout the day. Your photographer wants you to enjoy being photographed, but also understands the importance of providing you with photographs that will stand the test of time and still be relevant decades later.
Here are some examples of both candid and posed images. Can you tell which ones are posed?
