Seattle Wedding Photographers Blog Moved to A Beautiful Day Photography Blog
Just a reminder that this is the final post to this blog. It is consolidating and moving to a new location on the website of the same name. The new blog will continue to feature the same great wedding photography as the old but by hosting it on our own server, it will give us a lot more options with the design of the blog and add functionality, like some new style slide shows.
Please change your RSS or bookmark to the new address: Click on blog at Wedding Photographer. It is called “Capturing The Moment”.
Hope to hear from you there soon. Visit my newest website eyeshotphotos.com to see samples of all my work as a Seattle Photographer.
Seattle Photographer Daniel Sheehan specializes in photojournalism and portrait photography for publications and corporations and is a Seattle photographer who creates award winning wedding photography and wedding photojournalism and is ranked among the best the best wedding photographers in Seattle.
Seattle Wedding Photography at MOHAI
The bouquet.
Kerri Higgins and Graham Sheldon got married on August 15ht at McCurdy Park and the Museum of History and Industry MOHAI. It was a beautiful summer day with great sunlight and warm tempertures. The complete wedding has been edited and will be uploaded to the client section of the A Beautiful Day Photography website shortly as soon as the slideshow is done, but I wanted to get thwese few pictures up here first to tease to what will be coming. There are so many really great photos from the day it is hard to select.
Graham getting ready at MOHAI.
Kerri with the rings before the ceremony at MOHAI.
Their first look under the clock out front of MOHAI.
The weddiing couple portrait in McCurdy Park before the ceremony.
And another one from McCurdy Park over by the shore of Lake Washington.
Some kayakers paddle under a bridge as we take some pre ceremony photos in McCurdy Park.
The groomsmens in MOHAI with the old landmark sign from the Rainier Brewery.
Graham and his groomsmen put on an action pose in McCurdy Park
Kerri and her dad in McCurdy Park just before it is time for him to walk her down the aisle to be married.
I will leave you with this one as a closer but there are lot more to come soon.
A Kiss on the Beach
Jason and Darrah were married at Golden Gardens Beach on Sept 6th. We went out after the rain and made some photos walking on the beach. This which we made just as the sun was setting on a rainy yet sometime brilliant sunny afternoon was my favorite photograph of the walk. More to come after the final edit.
Great Wedding Portraits and How To Get Them
Jamie and Brian July 18th, 2009
A Beautiful Day Photography, the BLOG , has moved to our new wedding photography blog. It is now located at our website A Beautiful Day Photography. It will continue to look much the same and feature the same great wedding photography. It will give us a lot more options with the design of the blog and add functionality. Please change your RSS or bookmark to the new address http://abeautifuldayphotography.com/blog or just click on Seattle Wedding Photography Hope to hear from you there soon.
Secret to Getting Great Wedding Photography Portraits
Coming from a photographer you might expect this piece to be about having a great background to the photo like this one on top of Crystal Mountain, Washington, with Mt. Rainier in the distance. Or how to get people to smile with a witty joke. Instead it is about how to get the bride and groom relaxed enough that their natural smile emerges naturally.
Stressed out is how I would describe a lot of the brides and grooms that I meet at the start of their wedding day. Making a great set of photographs of a stressed out wedding couple is a real challenge. It is mostly impossible if they are stressed out over too many of the details of their wedding day. One solution to reducing the stress level is to get help from a wedding-day coordinator. This can be someone hired for the task or it can be someone recruited from the ranks of friends or family.
While the bride and groom may prefer to plan out all the events of the day, the coordinator is given the responsibility of all of the little details that can cause the bride and groom to get stressed out and prevent them from relaxing and enjoying their wedding day. Then they can be photographed looking their best, relaxed and not preoccupied with the goings on around them. The will smile more easily with the anxiety missing and in general the wedding photographs will be better for it.
As a photographer I have found the one detail to reliably improve the process of making the posed formal portraits of the wedding party and family members is to insist that the bride and groom prepare a shot list at least a week or two before the wedding.
This is simply a detailed list of everyone they want to include in the making of formal posed portraits. Listing the actual names of everyone makes it easier to work with. The shot list really eliminates all of the stress of having to decide on your wedding day who will be in which photos. It helps to think it through in advance and only spend time making the photos you want. It works best when you can get the list down to about 8-12 shots. If you try, think about who would want to have these photos and what they would do with them.
It should look something like this:
1. Bride and Groom
2. Bride & Groom with Bride’s parents – Rob and Cathy
3. Bride & Groom with Groom’s parents – Kate and George
4. Bride with Bridesmaids _ Cat, Rita, Sally and Blanch
5. Groom with Roger, Franz, Peter and George
6. Bride and Groom with Jason, Josh and Gail.
7. The entire wedding party
8. Etc…. but try to keep it from going past #12.
The shot list goes to either the wedding day coordinator or a good friend or relative who already knows the majority of these folks. (It helps if they have a drill sergeant attitude. It’s funny, but in my experience it seems everyone knows just the perfect person to give it to). It functions like this:
When the photographer is making the first photo on the shot list, they are rounding up the people in shot 2. and holding them in the on deck circle. Then when the first shot is done, he says next and they proceed to the location to be photographed in their turn. Then the folks in shot #3 are gathered up to stand by. This continues until the end of the list.
This allows the bride and groom to not have to make any stressful decisions on the day of the wedding. It also helps them to know exactly who to tell to come early if the photos will be taken before the ceremony. That is also a stress reducing factor in itself. Take the portraits before the wedding for for a more relaxed wedding day for sure.
A Seattle photographer and photojournalist specializing in photojournalism for publications and a Seattle wedding photographer with an unobtrusive, story-telling approach creating award winning Seattle wedding photography and wedding photojournalism, Daniel Sheehan, a wedding photographer at A Beautiful Day Photography, is ranked among the best Seattle wedding photographers by the WPJA.
Jennifer and Paul’s Whidbey Island Wedding
A Beautiful Day Photography, the BLOG , has been moved to our new wedding photography blog. It is now located at our website A Beautiful Day Photography. It will continue to look much the same and feature the same great wedding photography. It will give us a lot more options with the design of the blog and add functionality. So this is the last post of this blog here at Word Press. Please change your RSS or bookmark to the new address http://abeautifuldayphotography.com/blog or just click on Seattle Wedding Photography Hope to hear from you there soon.
Jennifer Ulrich and Paul Geoffrion were married on Whidbey Island at Freeland Hall on May 30th. I posted the large group wedding panoramic photograph earlier this week and promised to post a selection of the candid wedidng photos as well. So here it is Friday and I am only about 3/4 of the way through editing. I had an assignment in eastern Washington this week and lost 2 days i had hoped to be editing. Still have to finish up the reception photos. I thought I would pick out some of my favorite so far and present them now and then when I finish editing I will come back with another representative sample of all of the posed portraits and candid wedding photographs.
The bouquet was beautiful.
Paul begged for Jennifer’s hand. Actually this was after the ceremony while we were shooting the posed portrits. Paul was a hoot. Left are jennifer’s parents and right are Paul’s.
The actual ceremony with the service being lead by Patricia Stimac, outside Freeland Hall on Whidbey Island.
Coming down the aisle.
Paul enjoying a hot wing.
Paul signing the wedding license with his characteristic handwriting.
Jennifer enjoying the reception on the deck of Freeland Hall.
The wedding cake top with a representation of Paul and jennifer and their motorcycle.
Wedding Photographers-Craig and Katie
Seattle Wedding Photography Here are a couple of photographs besides the panoramas I made at the wedding of Craig and Katie March 7th. I was shooting it alongside Laurie Matanich and it was a lot of fun. They are such a great couple. These pictures taken before the group panoramas were made. It was a cold and snowy and rainy day at the Red Barn Studios near Chehalis Washington. Before it started to rain Laurie made the formal portraits outside under an overcast sky. When the rain and snow came later, we were all safe and warm in the 1937 gothic barn, a former dairy barn, turned into a unique venue for weddings other social gatherings by Laurie and her husband Jason.
Laurie shoots some group portraits.
Katie and Craig right after they walked down the aisle at the end of the ceremony.
Skansonia Wedding Photography – Kelly and Shaun
I wanted to put a couple of my favorites from Kelly and Shaun’s wedding on the ferryboat the Skansonia. They were a blast to photograph
Shaun dips Kelly at the end of their first dance on the floor of the Skansonia Ferry on Lake Union.
Kelly gets ready to snap Shaun’s suspenders on the dance floor of the Skansonia.
Seattle Wedding Photographers – Meghan and J.P Finale
Meghan and JP at St Ignatius Chapel at Seattle University wedding photographs continued from the end of the ceremony just after the signing of the wedding license to to the end of the reception. What a great wedding to have had the privilege to photograph. They had all had so much fun at the reception.
This is the end of the photos from Meghan and JP’s wedding.
Stella and Rob’s wedding in the Italian Alps will be the next wedding to be posted here. I am almost done with the first edit and should get them up soon.
Andrea and Eric
It has been a while since my last post. I have been away to a wedding in the Italian Alps in mid January and so between the holidays and the wedding in Italy and then Germany where I went after the wedding to stay with friends, I have been away from posting to this blog. I am back and plan to try and get up to date and finish posting Megan and JP’s photos and then start to post some of the Stella and Robert’s Alpine wedding. It was a real blast.
In the meantime I wanted to post this shot of Andrea and Eric who will be getting married in Minnesota this summer. They were out here for the holidays and asked me to make their engagement photo.
Seattle Wedding Photographer – Meghan and J.P
Back to Meghan and J.P ‘s wedding at the chapel at Seattle University, St Ignatius. Above, Meghan speaks with JP’s parents and below, JP with Meghan’s parents.
The wedding ceremony of Meghan and JP begins in the lobby of the chapel at Seattle University, St Ignatius.
And after signing the license it is official. More pictures to come in the next day or so. We did some formal portratis before we headed out for the reception.
Wedding Photojournalism Defined
Adam smokes a cigarette just before he gets dressed before his wedding ceremony at Freeland Hall on Whidbey Island.
Wedding Photojournalism also known as Documentary Wedding Photography is here to stay. Many of the bridal magazines circulating today have conflicting information which only complicates a search for the right wedding photographer.
Often times when a bride looking to sort out the confusion over the term photojournalism needs only read a newspaper and see the storytelling photographs they publish. “Wedding Photojournalism” was coined by professional newspaper and magazine photojournalists to describe the kind of photography they practiced when they accepted commissions to photograph weddings. They were anxious to make sure people would distinguish the difference between the kind of photography they practiced in contrast to the traditional studio wedding photographers whose only work was almost entirely posed and highly styled wedding and portrait photography. Wedding Photojournalist’s work is best described as a documentary approach to wedding photography focusing on real moments, instead of staged moments. Instead of stopping action to get their staged posed shot, they stayed in the background and looked for real interactions and emotions that told the story of the day.
Wedding magazines soon picked up on the new trend and made it the “hot” fashion for wedding photography. This forced traditional wedding photographers to hop on the photojournalism bandwagon as well, including those without the real skills to do photojournalism. What they did was fake the “look” of photojournalism’s real moments by staging faked real moments that almost look like they are are real. the problem is the wedding couple still know every time they see the photo that was faked. Also adding to the confusion, several other styles developed during the same period – elements of fashion photography, beauty photography, and fine art photography were all being used in wedding photography.
Hiring a wedding photojournalist does not mean having to give up on having posed portraits at your wedding. Newspaper photographers have always been assigned to make been portraits of various subjects from movie stars to Presidents and the people next door since the first newspaper photographs were published. Most wedding photojournalists focus on relaxed portraiture – a directed image where the subject may or may not be looking at the camera. While such images may give the impression of being candid, a wedding photojournalist would never try to pass off the picture as a real moment. A wedding photographer to be successful today must dabble in several approaches in addition to newspaper photojournalism, for example mixing in some of the editorial fashion look and not just focusing on only one style in particular.
Some traditional photographers insisted photojournalism was merely a fad or a “buzzword.” But the buzz has persisted and many of the country’s top wedding photographers use a photojournalistic documentary approach. We are now past the point of calling photojournalism a fad. It’s simply what many brides want. With many newspapers across the country laying off their staff photographers due to the rise of the internet, many of the top wedding photojournalists nowadays come directly from the newspaper industry, where they were leaders in the photojournalism field and most of the experienced wedding photojournalists have a great understanding of their digital camera and computer equipment. Today’s discerning brides and grooms will pick the photographer that is right for them based on style and budget. For most of them, true to life real wedding photojournalism by a real photojournalist is the right choice for telling the story of their day.
Photographs by Seattle wedding photographer Daniel Sheehan at A Beautiful Day Photography. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Visit www.danielsheehan,com for other photographs by Seattle Photographer and photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits, jazz photography and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Getting Ready – Olivia
So as of today, Jana, my wife and webmaster, and I have redesigned this blog with the emphasis on displaying the photographs a bit larger than is possible with the default style of this template. With this design, the details in the pictures are now more apparent and easier to see. We hope you like the change.
Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer with an unobtrusive, story-telling approach, creating award winning Seattle wedding photography and wedding photojournalism among Seattle wedding photographers. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style.
Wedding Photojournalism – Father of the Bride
Father of The Bride
Going through the wedding pictures I shot at Olivia and Adam Bergsneider at Freeland Hall on Whidbey Island on August 23rd, I think that this photograph is one of my favorites. It is a quiet moment of a bride, her Dad and her bridesmaids. Olivia’s Dad is waiting among the bride and her bridesmaids for the moment to go out and walk down the aisle with his daughter and give her away to Adam to start the wedding ceremony.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Seattle Wedding Photography – End of the Evening
Richard and Anne relax in the back of their Rolls Royce limo as they head off for their hotle at the end of their wedding reception at the Lake Union Cafe.
A slideshow of the wedding of Anne and Richard can be seen here.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Good Night Kiss
Anne and Richard kiss just before they leave their wedding reception and take off in their Rolls Royce limo to end their wedding celebration at the Lake Union Cafe.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
A Father’s Toast
Richard and Anne listen as Anne’s Dad makes a toast to the wedding couple.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Dancing the Night Away
Here is the beautiful girl who was dancing the night away on the dance floor of the Lake Union Cafe at the wedding of Anne and Richard.
Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer with an unobtrusive, story-telling approach, creating award winning Seattle wedding photography and wedding photojournalism among Seattle wedding photographers. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style.
First Dance
As they dance for the first time as a married couple they watch one of the girls enjoy herself dancing away nearby on the wonderful dance floor at the Lake Union Cafe.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Watching the Sunset
Anne and Richard take a break from the wedding reception to look out the window and watch the sunset behind Lake Union and Queen Anne Hill.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Wedding Photography of Anne and Richard
Anne and Richard at the end of their ceremony as they prepare to come down the aisle.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
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Lake Union Cafe Wedding Photography
Anne and Richard get married on the stage at the Lake Union Cafe.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Anne Walks
As Richard waits and watches, Anne walks down the aisle towards him.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Seattle Wedding Photography
Anne waits in the front room of the Lake Union Cafe for her turn to walk down the aisle.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
Wedding Photojournalists in Seattle
At the Lake Union Cafe, the room for brides to get ready is through the kitchen and down some stairs. The walls leading to the brides room are covered with tags of past brides and here Anne adds her tag to a mirror on the wall.
Daniel is a Seattle wedding photographer. His Seattle wedding photography is created in an artistic, editorial fashion with classic photojournalistic style. He photographs weddings using a subtle, unobtrusive, story-telling approach and creates artistic documentary wedding photojournalism. Photographs by Seattle Editorial Photographer and Seattle photojournalist Daniel Sheehan. In addition to weddings, Daniel specializes in portraits and photojournalism for publications and corporations.
