New York City Wedding Photographer

In New York City, wedding photographers, like elsewhere, are getting some heat. Mostly from brides dealing with wedding photographers who haven’t yet realized that photographing weddings isn’t about the photographer mimicking something they saw in other photographers’ blogs or styling a wedding photo according to a current popular TV show, and as a result making the photos more about their portfolio, or about the props rather than the bride and groom.

I don’t mean to sound cynical, but are we really trading the significance and personal meaning of these milestones in our lives for faked moments ripped from cable TV and Hollywood? Thank goodness they didn’t do this 40 years ago – our parents’ engagement and wedding photos would be photos of them not as they were, but styled as Sandy and Danny or something out of an episode of Joanie loves Chachi with some guy dressed as the Fonz as their best man.

Oh I know there are many couples who’d have no part of that, ever. Photos are glimpses into people’s lives, their moments and feelings. You won’t see anyone dressed as if they’re on the set of “The Notebook” here. Or pretending to be in the style of “Mad Men.” Those are great pieces of entertainment no doubt about it – but when it comes to my life, I am me. Not them. When I get to my old age, when I look back through the photos meant to document my time here, I want to see my life, not whatever box office hit put out by Miramax or Disney was popular when I was young. They had their moments – I demand mine.

And when I’m gone, I want my children, their children and other generations to know who I was, not so much about a costume I dressed up as. As if my wedding were some overgrown kid’s masquerade party. Not me.

That’s the way my brides and grooms feel about their lives too.

Life’s too precious and its moments too fleeting to have its memories turned into faux anything.