Inscape: Our New Studio

There is a new building for artists in Seattle. It’s the old INS building, now in the process of a deep reimagining, and going by the handle,

INSCAPE

We are thrilled to be taking a studio there, moving from our credibly grotty space in outer Georgetown.
Inscape held an open house the weekend of the 16th and 17th, and we went and took some pictures. Here are a few. Bonus points for guessing in which space we’re relocating our studio!

There was a lot of art there, curated by the brilliant Christian French, in an all-building installation/performance called “Passages.” A lot of it relates to the ideas of home and confinement, and responds to the extant artifacts of the building’s history as not just a portal for immigrants, but as a detention and deportation center.

Have a look at more of the pictures you like, in this Flickr slideshow.

We expect to be moving in sometime in December. Careful or we’ll ask you to help.

 

Randy and Joselyn @ The Georgetown Ballroom

You kind of had to be at this one to believe it.

I will break it down simple:

talented, genuine as all get out, huge-hearted, beautiful IN LOVE couple

20 piece marching band (pretty sure it was that big)

sake during the ceremony

delicious vegan noodles from a chef with his own documentary crew

aerialistas — the best I have ever seen

belly dancer— amazing

green tea creme brulee

an intimate ceremony of over 300 that didn’t leave a dry eye in the house accompanied by raucous cheering

So fun.

So fun to photograph too!

Oh, did I mention hot dogs with the works at midnight?

Hit the spot for many.

Roberto and Annie: Commitment Ceremony

Individually, Roberto and Annie  are remarkably creative,  passionate people. Together, they are a powerhouse of  joyous energy and art. When they matched up, I am sure there was some sort of an earth tremor.

Recently, they decided to have their own commitment ceremony, just the two of them— well, and us, the lucky photographers two-timing as witnesses.  It was a self-directed ritual with words, gifts, intentions and love. It was so spontaneous, so thoughtful and from the heart. Needless to say, there were tears all around.

Helen & Barry: Worth the Wait

When we met with Helen and Barry, two things were immediately clear. Number one: They were madly in love. Number two: They were going to have a HUGE party to celebrate.  Barry, a widow, showed us a book of photos he had put together for Helen documenting their first year together. The pictures were amazing and we were flattered they picked us to photograph their big day.  Helen, at 59,  had always been a bridesamaid, but never a bride.  She was going to do it up right!

Both Helen and Barry  have a lot of friends and family— 118 years worth between the two of them. Everyone was invited! It was a fantastic party.

Helen getting ready with her friends from forever.

Helen had over 20 bridesmaids, 2 junior bridesmaids and a flower girl. So cute.

Down the aisle at Jack Block Park

The ceremony

So happy. They were so happy!

NonFiction Weddings is back and ready to book your wedding!

This past year we took a sweet sabbatical to be with our baby boy, Hale, as well as to work on a documentary project for the microfinance nonprofit, Unitus.

Now we are back and booking weddings for 2010 and 2011.

We interrupt this broadcast…

…to bring you an important announcement: 

Our son, Hale True, was born last week. He was a couple months early, but both mom and boy are in great shape. 

Why not go and have a look at the little blog we set up to share pictures?

 

Amy and I are utterly thrilled to be parents.

Candids, Portraits, & Candid Portraits

One of the most common questions brides and grooms ask us is if we do portraits. Our main approach to photography is photojournalism. The vast majority of our pictures are not posed or staged in any way. However, the portrait session is an important part of the NonFiction Wedding day. Scott and I even think of it as part of the celebration. There is ritual to it—the families gathering together, generations arranging themselves, standing up tall and everyone is reeling from excitement, nerves and/or their first sips of champagne.

Kimberly and John squeeze their friend and officiant.

 At the same time, the day is NOT about making pictures, the object of the day is to celebrate. This is why we make our portrait-taking part of the day as easy-going and well-paced as possible. The way we make portraits is pretty organic. We ask the brides and grooms beforehand what group pictures are important to them.  We let people arrange themselves— the way they feel most comfortable. We don’t pose, or move anyone’s chin here or there. We just make sure that each person is comfortable and ready — then we go ‘click’. It really works well. 

Portraits before or after the ceremony? Both times can work equally well with a little planning.

 

Peter with his siblings. They say this is the best picture they have ever had of the four of them together.

We don't very often tell brides and grooms to kiss. They just tend to do it and we go 'click'.

Scott took this one while Amanda and Ryan walked from the ceremony to the party.

But wait, there is more. There is something in between candid pictures and formal portraits — candid portraits. Scott is great at these. Candid portraits are when the photographer/camera and the subject have a brief interaction. There is not necessarily any conversation about it. The picture just happens. Not planned, no “One, Two, Three”, but still the result can be called a portrait. I love these. 

She wanted to dance so badly and finally did.

 

Mahnaz, the bride, watches the sunset.

Ellie waits for the limo driver under the viaduct.

Amanda had hot dogs arrive at midnight. Perfect timing for a perfect snack at a perfect wedding. Yum!

We didn't tell them to do this. They were just that adorable and the sky was that blue.

The more the merrier!

In just the past three years, the number of wedding guests taking pictures with their own point and shoot (and sometimes bigger, semi-pro) cameras has become larger. People love  having their own record of the day whether it be the sister of the groom or an office-mate of the bride.

Scott and I both feel The More, The Merrier when it comes to folks getting their own shots. It is on a rare occasion that a guest-photographer interferes with what we are doing. Most people are very aware and super respectful of our job.

Also, the photos taken by friends and family are important in themselves. They tell different sides to the same story. The sister of the groom and the office-mate are going to have a different vantage points.We all have a different eye. Who knows what moments they might catch. We love to work others’ acts of documentation into our own. 

 

My Favorite Part: Getting Ready

I love taking photos of the bride getting ready. This tends to be when a big portion of the day’s emotion, excitement, nervousness and hilarity happens. Photographing the bride surrounded by her friends from all parts of her life along with her mother, soon-to-be-mother-in-law, sisters, brothers, aunts and such is such an honor. This is often a time for reminiscing, for sweet words, for joking and for all the hard work put into the day to come together. This is ritual! It is a bounty to photograph. And to boot, there is almost always beautiful light during the preparation time, streaming in from somewhere.

Documenting the preparations before the actual ceremony is a fairly new phenomenon in wedding photography. However, I predict these are going to be the images that are gone through the most by the next generations. The formal portraits may become the familiar photos, the pictures that are framed, hung on the wall to do the job of establishing ‘this is my great-grandmother and great-grandfather on their wedding day’.

I believe the shots of the bride or groom surrounded by their dearest friends in the moments building up to their nuptials—these will be the photos that answer the questions about WHO they were, HOW they felt, and WHAT happened on their wedding day. 

 

It is really happening!

 

 

I love the backstage pass!

 

Amanda has known her bridesmaids since she was a wee one. They have shared this ritual each time one of them has gotten married.

 

 

 

Mahnaz's bridesmaids were amazing problem solvers. They got the job done.

 

It doesn't matter if they happen in a crowded bathroom or in fancy hotel room with a view, the getting ready pictures are always fun for me.

I call this one 'anticipation'.

 

Shellie doesn't have her dress on yet, but she is ready.

 

James, Shellie's groom, is ready too.

 

 

 

 

Scott usually photographs the groom and the groomsmen, but sometimes we switch it up. The ritual is rich and sweet and real with them as well.

So, What IS Documentary Wedding Photography, Anyway?

There are a number of different approaches to photographing a wedding. Here in documentary world, we feel our mandate is to tell the event’s story, as it really is. Our goal is to find the thread of the story and set it gracefully within its context. Our job is not to direct that thread, or to manufacture the context. 

What that means on the ground is that we observe. Our goal is to disappear. There is a flow; we go with it. When a couple sees their photos, we want them to say, “Oh my gosh, you got that? You were there? We didn’t even see you!”

Kate changes in the copy room

Take the picture above: A bride getting her dress on in a cluttered copy room. Faced with this situation, a traditional wedding photographer is going to think, ‘how can I get her into a nicer setting for this?’ And that’s a great way to get nice pictures. But if you’re doing that, you’re not doing documentary.

Here, I’m thinking, ‘Statuesque bride, gorgeous, distinctive dress–elegance walking, really–and in this kind of  jumbled, fluorescent-lit copy room. What a lovely, interesting juxtaposition!’

I am proud of this picture. I’d like to think that this image–both the photograph and the memory of that moment–is better for our not having asked Kate to move somewhere ‘more beautiful’ to shuck her civilian duds.

The simplest way  to put the distinction between “documentary wedding photography” and “traditional wedding photography” is thus: No bossing around. Apart from providing a little guidance during the portraits, we don’t do any directing at all.

We’re not trying to make a wedding look the way we want it to look; we are instead striving to capture beautiful, authentic pictures of the way it actually is. 

And we humbly submit that that’s going to make the experience–and the pictures–both more pleasant and more beautiful.