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Times and styles change, but this genre is here to stay.
Inside Street Photography |
The official newsletter of Street Photography Magazine |
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| Friday, 28 Jun 2024 | Reading time: 8 mins | Read online
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Call me old-fashioned, but even though June has fallen to third place behind September and October as the most popular month for weddings, I’m sticking with June for his column.
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When I was trying to find my way as a young photographer in the 1970’s, I shot a few weddings as a way to make money. Because I did not have an on-camera flash, I photographed using only available light, almost always with black and white film.
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I could not compete with the established, traditional wedding studios in Brooklyn.
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My few clients were friends, family members, and anyone with a limited budget. I worked simply like the photographers I’ve met waiting outside Brooklyn and Queens Borough Halls where civil marriages take place. They spot couples on their way into the building and present their portfolios in hopes of securing a post-ceremony photo session.
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 | Abu, Brooklyn Borough Hall |
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I had been a groomsman and a best man in two wedding parties so I had a clear idea of how a traditional wedding is photographed. This process begins with a “following photographer” from the chosen studio coming to the bride’s home to take “candids” as she prepares for the wedding with her family and bridesmaids. Next, the photographer captures the bride’s arrival at her parish church (Remember, I’m writing about my experiences in 1970’s Italian-American South Brooklyn.), the walk down the aisle, the ceremony at the altar, the couple’s triumphant exit from the church, and getaway via limousine.
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 | Joe and Lorraine's Wedding Album, 1971 |
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One of my favorite, and at one time required, wedding shots was the throwing of rice at the newlyweds just as they left the church. As a boy, I threw as much rice as I could get from my parents as fast and hard as I could. As a photographer, I was annoyed by that kid. This tradition dated back to ancient Rome where throwing rice at the newlyweds was thought to bring them fertility, health and good luck. The practice fell out of favor in the mid-1980s when Connecticut banned it.
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 | The photographer at Tom and Gina’s wedding trying to get his shot before the deluge. |
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After leaving the church, the wedding party and photographer drive to a site chosen by the couple for romantic/personal reasons as a photo background for a series of photographs with the members of the wedding party. The lake at Prospect Park and the open field near the Verrazano Bridge were popular sites in the past. Coney Island’s rides and boardwalk are more recent favorites.
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After these location photos, the party hops back into their limo and drives to the photo studio and joins the queue of limousines with newlyweds waiting their turn for a formal portrait session with the studio’s master photographer, usually the owner. The photographer sets up and lights a series of poses and tableaus with the bride, groom and members of the wedding party. These photographs are made with a large format camera using 4x5 or 8x10 inch film.
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 | My parents’ hand-oiled wedding portrait was made in 1946 at Gabriel Studio in South Brooklyn. |
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 | I met Mr. Gabriel in 1980 and photographed him and the Century camera he used for my parents’ photo shortly before he closed his studio. |
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In addition to a few large portraits for framing, the sale of photo albums is a photo studio’s major source of income. The newlyweds choose from small prints or “proofs” of all their wedding day activities to create albums, usually a large one for themselves and smaller ones for their parents and bridal party members. According to Abby Murphy Photo, photo proofs are lightly edited images uploaded to a gallery at a low-resolution size. They are not the final creative product, and therefore are often overlaid with watermarks. Photo proofs simply provide clients a good sense of what the images look like before final retouching. Proofs are typically uploaded and delivered to the client shortly after a shoot. Once a client chooses their favorite images from the proofs, the photographer retouches and artistically edits the final images. Retouching is where the true magic happens!
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However, I remember seeing an older version of proofs. They were 5 x 7 inch black and white prints of my aunt Angelina’s 1953 wedding that had faded almost to black. The idea was to give the bride and groom a set prints for choosing enlargements, and at the same time ensure that they could not save money by simply keeping the 5 x 7’s. These prints were properly developed, but taken out of the chemical fixer too soon. As a result, the image, fine at first, grew darker and darker, and eventually useless.
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 | Joe and Lorraine's Wedding Album, 1971 |
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The by-now exhausted couple return to their limo and drive to a catering hall where their guests have been enjoying a “cocktail hour” while awaiting their arrival. Their photographer is there too, ready to photograph their first dance, toasts and ritual cutting of the cake. In the past, the bride and groom posed for a photo with the guests at each table. That occurs less often now, as the photographer’s focus has shifted to capturing as much dancing and merriment as possible throughout the reception. One innovation I’ve seen is the setting up of a self-service, Polaroid photo booth at the reception venue.
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 | Polaroid Booth Set-up with Assistant |
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Times and styles change, but wedding photographers are still in demand. Now they are paired with videographers to make a full record of this special day.
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 | Larry’s portrait by Anna Delaney |
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When I returned to South Brooklyn in 1970 after two years in California as a VISTA Volunteer, I was 22 years old with no plans and a $30 camera I barely knew how to use. I took a course at the School of Visual Arts, a job with the telephone company and began to photograph my family and friends. Things worked out better than I could have expected. I’ve been making photographs for over 50 years, and have some things I’d like to share. |
Readers can respond directly to me – larryracioppo@gmail.com. |
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