How to take wedding photos that tell a story

Storytelling is a huge part of being a wedding photographer. Whether your photography style is a bit more fine art or full on photojournalism, storytelling is an innate part of a wedding day.

Capturing photos that tell a story in a captivating way can set you apart as a wedding photographer. Here are some tips to help you create those stand out images.

Get to know your couple.
Each couple has a different comfort level on how buddy-buddy they want to be with their wedding photographer and that’s okay. Without forcing a relationship, you can still get to know them, what’s important to them, and get a little background on what led them to this day. This way you can capture moments that are specifically meaningful to them.

Capture in-between moments.
Most people tend to be a little awkward in front of the camera. Some of the best images are photos taken just after the posed shot. Keep your camera up and ready throughout the wedding day to get those unexpected, unscripted moments.

Use different lenses.
If you are the photographer who shoots an entire wedding day on a 35mm lens, you are doing yourself a disservice. Photos from a wide range of lenses gives a gallery depth, changes the perspective, can highlight different emotions, and dramatically transform your galleries.

Focus on details.
There are so many decisions that couples make when they are planning their wedding day. The venue, the color of the flowers, the jewelry, the font on the invitations, the car that takes them to the ceremony, the time of year, and the list goes on and on. Capturing all these little details is what makes a good storyteller.

Deliver a well-organized gallery.
When you are sharing the final gallery with your clients, it’s so important to organize them in a way that tells a cohesive story. You don’t necessarily need to deliver images in perfect chronological order. Keep the bride getting ready photos all together and the groom getting ready photos all together even if you photographed them back and forth at the same time.
Consider using sub-categories in your online galleries.