Before weddings, were you a news photographer?

If yes, where, and how did you get started with weddings?

Do you still dabble in editorial? Miss it? Or are you thrilled at being your own boss and not bowing to the "bad news is good news" beast?

I was never a news photographer, but I have worked alot in the outdoor industry where there is a high value placed on capturing real moments and events. So I've always come from that angle, of trying to capture moments as opposed to creating them.

Although I have found in my outdoor and wedding work that a subtle blend of the 2 seems to work best. Capturing moments for most of the time, but in the right circumstances having the sensitivity to know when a little direction might really help a photo.

For weddings this is limited to the actual formal photos where people may even be looking for a little direction. For my outdoor work, having the right models who are willing to work with me can be awesome to.

BTW, I'm flying into Portland next week for a wedding at Boothbay Harbor. Its my first time to Maine, and I'm sooooo psyched!!! I've always wanted to make it to Maine, and the couple I'm shooting is amazing, so its gonna be so fun! Can't wait to see your beautiful state.


SR

i shot for the Terre Haute Journal of Business... does that count? I'm a TRUE photojournalist! Corporate events THRILL me!

Alright.... back on to the serious posters... sorry to be annoying

Coool... I get to post after Bobbi!

I got my first pro-photojournaistic newspaper job 20 years ago. I was eventually full time for three small town daily newspapers (smallest was about 10,000 daily circulation). I even covered school board meetings as a reporter (YUCK!) -- which made me get a real photo job at a newspaper that was stuck in the 1950s. (actual time was in the 1990s)

PS: Add your degrees if you got em!

Mine is BS in Bsing from BSU!
(Bachelor degree in Journalism from Ball State University)!

HELLOOOOOOOO TROY!

BS in Journalism from Indiana State University... the way college is supposed to be!

Oooooo... you got the degree in "stinky" BSing from "Stinky" Terre Haute?

Sorry... couldn't resist. What do they make in that town that makes that smell?

There's a paper mill and a sewage treatment facility... BOTH on the west side of the city... BLEH! I used to wait tables in that city and let's just say... we were lucky when we got guests with more than two teeth After college I actually worked for a marketing firm producing television commercials and print ads... however, my big claim to fame was being the voice of all Terre Haute Pepsi commercials. I was a TRUE townie!

Terre Haute & Pepsi...

Bobbi: Stinky, but with good taste!

Just trying to help you out with a new slogan since you did such an awesome job with my new logo!

Events, editorial, advertorial, promotional, live music. You bring it all to the table and throw in some still life (product photography) and finally, a little human sensitivity.

You're not leaving the good news, bad news beast when you become a wedding photographer. Weddings often come with their own developing stories, waves of drama, challenges to overcome, accidents, rescues, beginning-middle-end and overviews.

It's still news, right? You're telling a story. An extraordinary "day in the life" piece. And you still have a boss.

Now isn't that the truth?!!

I got my start in pro shooting back in the early 80's with a Pittsburgh paper shooting rock concerts, festivals, and other musical events. I actually miss the excitement and energy, though I'm not so sure my ears could take it anymore!!

Dude, you haven't really hit the heights of Photojournalism, until you've spent 80+ hours during the week photographing the 4-H county fair...

The fair week usually stated like this (only one photog and a hand full of reporters covering it...)

Photograph the 4-H parade, Fair grand opening ribbon cutting, first animal shows, queen pagaent, midway opening, and find a few features, run back, soup the film leave to dry, Wake up before sunrise for the hot-air balloon launch -- go back to office and print contact sheets, meet with editors, print a slew of pics, pass them off to reporters with hastily scrawled notes so someone else can write the captions, head back out to the fair, and begin by following the fair queen and princesses around for an hour, eat an elephant ear for breakfast, catch the dairy goat and rabbit meat pen winners, grab a feature of some carneys dozing under their rides (hope they're not wanted in other states, and will actually give you their names for the photo captions) Head over to the horse arena for the latest slew of winners, grab a late lunch of sausage sandwitch (which animal is sausage made from), catch the kiddie tractor pull, get a feature or two of kids washing their steers or hogs.... etc.

Repeat daily until fair ends or you die of exhaustion.

I miss those days...

NOT!

But a wedding is kinda like a day covering the fair. Lots of excitment and action, no rest for the photographer... and I'm glad I only do one or two a weekend!

Excellent post Eddie. I try to tell this to my old newspaper friends... you're not reeeeally selling out. Maybe a little. But this is a great job! I wouldn't trade it for anything. And I will never go back to papers. There, I'm so undervalued!

You mean I coulda' been doing that instead of rock-n-roll?

I'm so unfulfilled.


Many weddings are a lot like a circus ... all the clowns and jesters and sideshows!

I was the photographer for my school newspaper in high school. That counts, right?

Hey Shawn,

I have a wedding in Boothbay Harbor, too... what venue will you be at?

Safe travels,
emilie

I worked for two papers and have a degree in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill...go heels!

I started doing weddings when friends asked me to do them. I found that I enjoyed being welcome to a situation, which was not usually the case working for the paper. I do miss shooting sports, specifically pro football, but I do shoot the local hs football games to get it out of my system.

I do not miss covering fires, chasing after features, and meeting murderers!

I worked for the college paper as the one and only photographer (that's where I met my hubby, he was the editor) and while working there a man came in and said their wedding photographer had broken his leg the day before the wedding and they were desperate for a photographer so I did the wedding for $50 bucks (that's so funny to me now) and decided that I had a blast doing and so I never stopped. But obviously since my hubby is a journalist I still do a lot of the freelance stuff for the paper he works for. Which is nice in months like this in Arizona were it's do hot to do pictures, keeps a nice steady back-up income coming in. As far as bad news is good news beast, my hubby works for a business journal so most of the stuff they have me shoot is pretty happy and pretty boring, (I can't tell you the number of business lunches they've had me shoot, I mean come on, there are only so many ways to photograph a person standing behind a podium talking) but hey it puts food on the table. But I'd rather just be doing my wedding stuff hands down, hopefully that day will come soon

You know, I'm not exactly sure where the venue is. I should find out. I'm flying in wed night, and the Bride and Groom are picking me up and have a place for me to stay all lined up, and I'll be there for 4 days, and then flying out on monday the 23rd. They have all the details, and I'll talk to them this weekend to get all the details.

Is your wedding on saturday the 21st? What venue are you going to be at? Do you live in Maine? I'd love to meet up with a fellow OSPer if it can happen.

Drop me a PM if you think you might be able to get together.

Right On!

Shawn

I used to be a photographer at my college newspaper The Justice, and mainly did sports, with some campus events mixed in. Looking back, I knew squat compared to what I know now, but I wish I knew then what I know now, cuz I'd be like super photographer and be a lot more creative. But it was a fun time being in the dark room, editing, and such. I wanted to be a photo editor, but things got weird when the editor in chief was someone I had unsuccessfully dated lol

I sold out four years ago (according to some). I agree with Eddie, weddings are filled with different and unique stories. This is storytelling at it's best. What I really like about shooting weddings is that they actually want me there! Unlike when I had to cover funerals or protest.

Yes, I was a staff photojournalist for the Shreveport Times, Raleigh News & Observer and the Houston Chronicle. Before that I freelanced for the Associate Press and a couple of other places.

Here is a link to my past life:
www.christobalperez.com

We started our business in Texas and later moved it to North Carolina. Why weddings? Basically, kids happen and priorities change. I joined WPJA, had a phone consultation, then flew up from Texas to Pinehust N.C. to shoot my first contracted wedding.

Do I miss newspapers? Of course but I love being a wedding photographer. Now, instead of going to Astros games, I'm helping coach my son's t-ball team. Instead of working with picture editors, I'm working with my amazing wife. Instead of documenting a protest, I watch my boys protest the consumption of broccoli. It's great being a father!

This business challenges us everyday and sometimes it's not easy but I'd rather be here than "feature hunting" or looking for "wild art."

-Christobal

Hey Christobal
Great post...I totally agree with your observation that priorities change. I'll bet you know Chuck Liddy....he and I go way back....I shot his wedding.lol. We worked together a couple of times in the eighties. I love your work.....keep posting.

I know that dude. We caused a ruckus together during my time there. I really miss the comradery newspapers tend to generate. That is part of the reason Kathleen and I stated Photography Night. You should come out to the next meeting.

-Christobal

Oh, man. You guys are making me seriously reconsider my degree choice!

I'm going back to school this fall to finish my degree which was in English but I just switched to Mass Comm b/c it's quicker to complete (and probably less reading)....

For what it's worth, I was a freelance writer for the Times Record News out of Wichita Falls, TX for a bit. It was fun b/c I only covered local special interest stories instead of doom & gloom. No photojournalism for me, though (unless you count the 4 photos they printed for a couple of stories when they couldn't send the *real* photographer down--lol!).

Okay, gotta go bite my nails & consider my options....

Wired magazine has a great piece on what is happening to newspapers and they're profiling Gannet, and some of their papers -- as to how they are adapting to shrinking readership, shrinking ad revenues, and cutting staff.

Warning to anyone wanting to make a career out of news photography: Learn to use video. More and more papers are using video as well as still on their web presentations. And learn to write news as well as photograph it. In 5 years I expect the # of photo jobs to have been cut in half if not worse thanks to the large influx of part time stringers, and the flood of full time news photogs jumping out into the wedding&portrait field, then stringing for some extra cash.