What a documentary style actually means...

Documentary photography is becoming a buzz word in the wedding industry and just within social media in general. But what does it actually mean? How does it affect you? And what changes about your wedding day or session when you hire this type of photographer? 

When you hear someone's style described this way you think, “what could be bad about that?” But I think it is worth doing some serious thinking on what you are looking for. What matter most to you? Is it that you have documentation of moments in between moments? Like a loving look from your partner across the room or a hug from your grandfather? Or is it important to you that you have a gallery full of perfectly posed and curated photos? Because if I’m being honest, sometimes they cannot coexist. 

So what is needed from you to make this sort of photo style possible? The biggest thing is space in your timeline for raw moments to take place. If every minute in your schedule is packed full or you are expecting a large amount of posed photos in a short time, the rush will naturally cut out some of those slow in-between moments. Build in little times of rest or enjoyable activities with your loved ones, and let the reigns go a little bit on your schedule day of!

The other demand is complete trust and letting go. You have to trust your photographer and let go of every hair strand sitting perfectly, feeling cool taking photos, or everything being EXACTLY how you pictured it- otherwise that is NOT documentary, it is merely an orchestration of your most important day. Hiring a documentary style photographer will likely be the best choice you could make and produce the most treasured photos- but preparing for what that looks like is an important step!