Why WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY is BORING (and how to change that) 

To all those who are commenting that I’m just talking about candids, I apologise if I have failed to effectively communicate what I mean in this video. This isn’t about simply shooting candid shots. Even candid shots still have a formula and an aesthetic that you can take from other photos. What I’m talking about is finding influence and inspiration from outside of photography. Trying to tap into your intuition and gut feelings to make images rather than letting preconceived ideas about what makes a good image be your driving influence.

I‘m a professional divorce photographer. The way I tell stories is inspired by Rambo movies.

A friend i work with was going to a wedding. His son, about ten years old had just bought a point and shoot camera and wanted to take photos of the wedding. My friend asked the wedding photographer if it was ok if his son shadowed him. The photography was fine with it and helped the lad along. The thing is, the lad being lower down and a few seconds behind (or infront) of the photographers shot got people when they were not posing. The result was of course was beautiful pictures of people before and after posing, being natural. and from a low down perspective. I think most prefered his photos to the pro's! Always enjoy your videos James. Keep it up!

Wedding photography is trying to do portrait + fashion + event + art photography on the run with amateur models. Good luck with that.

I just recently shot a wedding and captured the brides best friends looking at a RU-vid video of “how to tie a tie” as they are helping the groom figure out how to tie his tie. I have no idea how they reacted to that photo (as I haven’t asked), but as I was taking it I thought to myself “this is what a real wedding day is like. This is humanity in this day and age”. I love that you’re preaching to find the humanity and inspiration in something that can become so bland. Bravo!

I think also part of the problem of why weddings photos are all the same, is because the bride and groom all want the same shots they see from other wedding photos. So wether you enjoy it or not, you are still expected to take those certain photos because you are getting "paid" to do your job. On the other hand, its also great when the couple lets you do your thing creatively and trust that you will take great photos because thats why they hired you. I completely agree with you though, its those candid shots/moments that you cant get from a formula that will always resonate with people the most. Great vid & message!

I shot wedding for over 20 years! You totally get it with this video. The basic shots of the wedding are the bread and butter, but the special candid moments are the spice! Great video!

I think most couples don't have the imagination to get your message here. Personally I think you are one of less than a handful of photographers putting out this standard of content on RU-vid. Serious, valuable work. Thank you it must take some effort

Those genuine photos really made me smile

Love it! Makes me want to really discover who my wedding clients are by doing more meet ups with the couple and figuring out what's unique about them / what's their story instead of just shooting the stock standard wedding

Very intelligent and perceptive analysis about why Hollywood is so infantile, and what photographer-story tellers can do to avoid falling into the same trap. Thanks, Jamie.

The editing in this video is amazing

I was in a similar situation with the couple dancing towards the end. I moved along with them and dragged the shutter, the couple was slightly soft and the background had motion, the moment was so genuine, the couple bought it without thinking about it twice.

I'm not disagreeing with anything you're saying in this, but I'd like to spin it a bit if I may? First off we got married back in the late 80s where the photographer shot bout half a dozen rolls of 120, probably on a Mamiya 645, and that was that. Guests arriving, various groups outside the church, job done: none of this trendy stuff you see now on Pinterest (which of course hadn't been invented!). So we got pretty much what everybody else got, plus some nice quirky photos some of our guests took. I agree that these days there seems to be a lot of formula ideas, and given how many images you get for your wedding now then there should be space to go outside the box. I watch a lot of fairly non cerebral telly, mainly cop shows ( never seen Girls, have no opinion of Lena Dunham, hold that delete button), and yes it's formulaic. But I don't want to relax in the evening with something which resembles my real life, where people have realistic arguments and plausible dialogue. I like to sink into what I expect like a warm bath and have a clear structured narrative I don't have to unpick, characters I understand and yes, even genuine movie hacking (it's encrypted at the firmware level!"). Maybe the thing about weddings is that they supposed to be unlike real life, the day we get married is supposed to not reflect our ordinary experience? Maybe the reason for the forumula photography is because we want to be part of an event with different rules to our lives? I love some of the quirky photos from our wedding, but I also like the very 1980s posed ones because they reflect that day when we were out of our ordinary lives and part of this event in which everything happens to you as the stars of this other narrative. None of which, for a second, negates what you said, and you know if we got remarried today I'd hire you in a heartbeat after this video and give you a free hand on the shutter!

This perfectly captured my feelings about wedding photography. I’ve only filmed a handful of weddings and I’m already frustrated with photographers who won’t go outside the box

Bravo... strong thoughts... as a wedding photographer, 'trying' to reinvent wheels can be a daunting task, but honestly and with integrity seeking the truth is the best way to photograph. I equally think it's important to lay the camera by your side, to listen and use that sense to guide you toward unique imagery, if that makes sense. Saw a comment below or above, or whatever way it falls, that wishes you had a bigger audience. From where I stand 80K is pretty good tbh, and your channel is improving and maturing with every new upload.

Love, love, love this! I love the thought of the candid of the bride smashing the glass as a contrast to the necessary posed group photos. And I think this makes the day more fun for everyone. Keep up the great work, I love the way you think.

I love this video! I find too many times photos feel very staged. I was very fortunate to hire a wedding photographer that captured all the little special moments of the day. We still got the traditional standard shots, but the most memorable photos are the ones of my husband and I bursting into laughter, of my husband sneaking a kiss on my nose and I'm smiling broadly, of my father in law having tears of joy. These are the special photos that I am really grateful I have!

Super video and those transitions. WOAH momma.

I am too high for these transitions

I don't get tired of rewatching some of your old video blogs. It's very refreshing the incitement to create thinker photographers and not just photographers. You are very relevant and inspiring. Thanks man!

Interesting take. I do always find that the pictures that were taken before digital cameras really took off, which is when I was in middle school, came across as so much more genuine and better representing the experience. Maybe because it wasn't possible to take too many, so people wanted to just capture the moment, rather than to capture the moment in the best possible light, which is what we do now and then often feels a little disingenuine. My colleague got in full make up and dress, and called in all of her bridesmaids the week after the wedding in order to re-shoot photos because there was better lighting than on their wedding day, which had been rainy. In the end those looked better but everyone who had attended the wedding knew they were staged so they had lost their heart and it was visible. They were no longer photos from their wedding day but from a random Saturday.

This is incredible. This affirms for me, one of my core beliefs about photographing weddings / couples: you are in love, and it’s my job to document it. Beyond the standard formulaic set of photos they expect, I want that downtime material. That has always been my favorite. Thank you for helping me feel a bit better about my craft.

I'm so dang inspired right now

I stumbled upon your channel because of my love for photography (and the lack of experience to already be any good at it), but the way you get into a topic, the way you explain it and pulling us into your vision is an awesome experience. I hope you will keep taking us along in your journey. Cheers!

"Burn down the disco Hang the blessed DJ Because the music that they constantly play It says nothing to me about my life" -The Smiths, _Panic_

I never commented on a RU-vid video but… You speak from my heart! Even the comparison with the TV Shows, you know what? Ive learned to get an eye for photography since I watched BREAKING BAD! I love how they took the scenerys, how the light falls, how they capture a moment! Most photographers are taking photos like an assembly-line job. Very honest video.

I agree with you on this one totally! Weddings are not just about how great a photo is or how different (not-yourself) you look on that day but those moments that actually make it special. I am very much impressed by your take on this. Thank you for posting this video.

First thank you for a really interesting and beautiful done video! But I really wanted to complement you on the photo with the bride and broken glass. Its fantastic how the postures of the whole group speak together and makes the photo living.

The thing about you is, you get me thinking and asking myself questions, and visualising how I can start to go about taking more authentic images. Thanks 🙏🏻

Intelligent, articulate analysis - so glad I found your channel!

What a great video Jamie! That's the type of content you don't see often on RU-vid. I can really see that you've been thinking a lot about the story you want to tell. Now I know why I never wanted to be a wedding photographer. I just couldn't stand all these "typical" wedding photos. But they work you were showing here really shows the special moments of the couples special day. Thank you for making me rethink photography!

Another great video by Jamie. Myself along with many others discovered Jamie from his Why BAD Photographers Think They Are Good video. His truth rings out in his videos. We identify with his detailed analysis of WHY we take a shot not HOW. We can get plenty of how-to videos on photography on You tube. I love Jamie's examination of WHY or maybe even SHOULD we take a shot. Keep it up, Jamie!

Brilliant, well said very thought provoking. Watched this 3 times now , keep thinking "your right". Then why didn't I think of that. Formal shots are expected but what makes someone's album different from everyone else is the candid , spontaneous shot. No one else has these and i think it shows the quality of a good photographer.

Beautiful story, as always. I really connect with your style of storytelling! 😉 And the transitions in the beginning where killer!

After watching a few of your videos, I find your view on things very refreshing, extremely off the beaten path, and deeply inspirational. And your ideas resonate with me in a way very few traditional photographers have. You look for the person in a photograph more than the ISO, f-stop, and shutter speed. I'm always so concerned about the technical aspects of my photography that I lose sight of what I'm actually trying to capture. You are what I would call a true artistic photographer.

You tell such amazing stories with your videos! I wish my wedding photographer did more candid shots like these (I don’t like to be in posed photos) Also, I kept trying to like the pics at the end and forgetting it’s not insta, lol. It’s a very Pavlovian reaction to double tap a good image nowadays 🤔

Thank you for all the awesome videos, as a student of photography and wanting to do wedding as my source of income. This video really hit home. This is exactly what I want to give my future clients, the realness of the day. The moments that only by looking from the outside in can be put into perspective on how truly special that day is. Thank you again. Please keep making these really wonderful videos.

Wow. I love this video. Since I began my interest in photography, I've watched heaps of tutorials and reviews and bunch of technical stuff but this one has the "soul". It brought me back to WHY I wanted to press that shutter button. Especially when I saw that photo of the smiling bride mid-kiss. That's what photography is about. The moments. Beautiful. 💯

Thanks for this - I really needed to see it. One thing which makes me shudder is when a bride sends me a bunch of images pulled off Pinterest, of precisely the kinds of image you talk about here. The difficulty is when so many brides and couples want their albums to look just like their friends' albums, same look, same shots etc, and you find yourself, as a photographer, subconsciously working to a virtual look-book and shot list. Watching your video reminded me of exactly why we do photography in the first place. So thanks again ;)

another fantastic film, Jamie takes you tube videos to a different level

Jaime, I’ve been photgraphing wedding for a year now, and after a year i came back here, and realized this video gave me so much inspiration for my work. I wanna thank you, your video was one of the biggest influence on me as a wedding photographer! (Sry for bad english, not native speaker)

The reason I won't touch wedding photography anymore is that no matter how creative of a photographer you are, it's going to be a minority of couples who are up for it. More than any other genre of photography I can think of, weddings are those for which the clients most desire and insist on all those horrible, trite, cliches and mimicry of established tropes. There's no way to make wedding photography not boring. Because no matter how outside the box you're able to think, the vast majority of your work will still be banal and unoriginal... because that's unfortunately what most couples will want. Yeah, you can try some stuff here and there, but if avoiding cliche matters to you then wedding photography is not a good field to get into.

not only Lena, but I don't even care about wedding photography per se. but with your perspective, you can talk about Soros and I'd still listen to you :) why don't you have more subs is really beyond me. you are by far better and way more unique than any other photographer I stumbled upon on yt. your videos are gold. thanks a lot man, I learn a lot from you.

You're videos are amazing and consistently informative. Keep it up

Your artsy brain is so brilliant! I’m obsessed! Found your channel when I was looking for medium format photography 101, but your channel offers much more than just google-able explanations. Thank you!

That 1st wedding photo actually made me shed a man tear. You, my man, have a sub.

Love your vids! keep them coming!

I wish at least one quarter of the world population was as genuine and awesome as you Jamie...

I m just starting out in photography and I really appreciate the deep analysis of why certain things work and don't work, as well as the solutions!

Very, very good points here. I also love the editing and composition of the whole video. Looking forward for more, subbed now.

I feel exactly the same Jamie, wedding photography can be boring, but like you said during a wedding photographers are expected to harvest those stock images that your clients expect to receive, this makes them feel secure in the knowledge that they will have the images to make up their wedding album. But above all that you need to strive to find those rare captured moments of all the emotions, laughter, happiness, surprise, love. Pictures that a phone will never capture, great video, really enjoyed your thoughts.

Thank you for putting this out there. Too often I see content aimed at showing me how to create content similar to their own. This gives me a general outline to help me know what to look for in my photos that will continue to help me explore and experiment.

great thoughts - you put a lot of effort into your video! in short it is more to provide reportage skill and do less directing. its about the decisive moment and to be ready for it.

I recently spoke to my wife about this subject. My favorite thing to capture with both video and photography is "real" moments where you as a audience really get to experience what the people in the shots are feeling. A glimpse into a moment where people are just people. But it can also be quite hard to capture, depending on the people you're shooting. And of course my self :P Great video, superb value (Y)

I really disliked that charac..just kidding 😉 congratulations and thank you for this inspiring content. It really opened my view.

That shot of the bride smiling as she was kissing the groom struck me as very wabi-sabi. Wabi-sabi is a Japanese aesthetic which appreciations transience, imperfection, and the natural beauty in things. I've long been a fan of Japanese photographers because of their upstaged, imperfect, images that make you feel that you're looking into the scene that they saw. You seem to have appreciation for that as well. One Japanese photographer who took this principle to extremes that stands out for me is Moriyama Daido. He did most of his work with point-n-shoot cameras, but collections of his work are full of moments like the ones you showed and appreciated. I'm a new subscriber and really enjoy the few videos of yours I've seen so far. I look forward to browsing through your channel more.

It's great that another photographer looks at films for an understanding of how visual narratives are being formed. I feel like you've been reading my mail. So refreshing to hear someone say *boring* outloud. What is the creative interest in making the same photos over and over again? Are we able to see something different in different settings? Or are we looking to force the same scenrios into different settings because they "work" and are expected? I've been looking through wedding photography websites and they literally all look the same. Yes, the era has changed from Monte Zucker to fauxtojournalistic style, but the formula has crept in as photographers flock to the safety of predictability. I can't live my creative life like this or I'll just die of boredom.

I agree 100% with everything you said.

I know this video is a few years old at this point, but I wanted to say thank you for articulately describing the issue with modern movie scripts. I find it so difficult to become engaged with characters because the conversations that are shown in movies aren't realistic at all. It isn't natural and it feels weird. People always make fun of me because I cant "just sit down and enjoy the movie", but it's nice to know that as least you understand this point, and that I'm not alone and weird. Thank you

Your explanation of this shot and the shot itself made my eyes go misty and invoked my memories from my wedding. Well done, my friend! Well done!

What you say is spot on, as is how you've delivered it. Subscribed! Finding & capturing the real moments in what can be a chaotic day requires a different viewpoint and an internally burning love for doing just that. Thanks for making this vid

Your films are superb Jamie, I never feel bored with your speech, something that happens so often even when the content is worth listening to on other films. And your editing and effects always delight, surprise and give a compelling edge. I look forward to just a handful of contributors on youtube these days and you're at the top of that list. So grateful for your work mate.

You are talking about the photos from a photographer's perspective, which is completely fine! The bride and broom haven't seen so many wedding photos than a photographer has seen. From a photographer's perspective these "standard" photos are boring because they have seen it hundred times. For the couple there's only one wedding - their's. Very cool input though! Thanks a lot for your work, that's really inspiring!

Your transitions always make me want to scream with surprise. Always have that freshness. Speaks volumes about your creative ability. Keep up.

Your videos are what RU-vid, Instagram, Pinterest, and the internet in general have needed so desperately. I tip my hat to you, sir ;)

As I grow older my tolerance for movies becomes ever-smaller. I haven't watched TV in 12 years. I would much rather watch interesting content like yours. Thanks!

I appreciate this. I’m not a wedding photographer but I play at a lot of weddings, and get bothered by all of them seeming like they’re about the photographs and filming rather than the event itself. Posed photos are great, of course, but too much of that seems forced rather than genuine.

so just 12 minutes to say, candid not posed

this is a fantastic video...i used to shoot weddings for a bit and then quit because i found it too formulaic. You hit a good point here about finding genuine moments to capture.

Your transitions are so good wow

cool vid. This is exactly what I tell my couples before they book me. I will do the usual formal pics, but most of what I'll do is letting me get away and capturing the day, rather than doing the usual shoe/perfume stuff. Every wedding is different and that is the difference between having a pro who can recognise the important shots for that couple, and someone who takes the same stuff every time.

Loved this video. It confirmed to me that I'm not far off according to your observation! I want to be the fly on the wall instead of the poser and creator of styled poses. I have a way to go technically, but in my mind's eye, I want to capture the couple and the day in a way that creates great memories, not a bunch of posed artificial set ups. I want to convey to the couple how special their day was. I have faulted myself over and over again because I am a more candid styled photographer, and my photos do not match the norm, but your video really helped me to see that I need to keep at it and remember that it's about their day and I need to continue to keep looking for those special and unrepeatable moments. Thanks for a great perspective and wonderful explanation about the differences in telling a story!! It truly relates well to the photographer's world! I will continue to press on!

Everything you said is 100% spot on. As a beginning wedding and event photographer i alsways think of something stand up comedian Mike Birbiglia said “only emotion endures”

I'm not a wedding photographer. I'm not even a half decent enthusiast, but that was bloody great content. You got some soul in there and I felt it. Shock horror - great photography doesn't come from combining gear with Instagram. Subscribed.

That is insane! This exact concept that you talk about 4 years ago is a trend today. Keep the blurry photos, keep the grainy photos, take photos of the most true to self moments of your subject and allow them to be more candid.

Just brilliant - your perspectives are so original and inspirational. It's refreshing to see something which gets away from obsessive technicalities which appear elsewhere and really see why and how wedding photography can be so important and beautiful.

I want to thank you Jamie. I just watched ‘I Daniel Blake’. It moved me to tears. Truly wonderful film.

Ive been doing wedding photography for 7 years, and this just changed my position on the wedding industry tremendously

I'm a videographer/editor, and I kinda sorta just started doing wedding videos on the side on my own (not ideal, I know, but that's a story for another day). As I watched a lot of wedding videos for inspiration, as good as a lot of them were, they were all starting to blend together really quickly. On a technical and production level, they were all amazing, but few told a story that was unique to the couple and edited in a style that was unique to the editor. This video, as what others have said already, is a breath of extremely fresh, brisk air and encourages me to not necessarily stray from a working formula, but more often look for the moments in between that shows who the couple are as people. Hell, I'll probably learn about myself just trying to find those moments, both as a professional videographer/editor AND as an individual. Thank you for encouraging individuality and not just teaching people how to take technically pretty pictures

I like your analysis of shots at the end. Like this video a lot. Your comment interested me "Now a lot of photographers can sometimes look down on wedding photography as a bit of a lesser form of photography. They can be a bit snobbish about it". I'm guilty of this, although not necessarily for the snobbish reason but rather because I know I'm not really compatible with wedding photography. I've never shot a dud before, every wedding I used to shoot resulted in very happy clients and some gorgeous, unique shots. I love to capture the humanity, like you say. Yes, there was always a feeling that I *should* get the funky/fashiony (read: dull / cliche / brainless / formulaic) shot and I snuck a few of those in. But the real reason I look down on it - FOR ME - is that I can't make money from it. I put too much of myself in, too many 18 hour days, and couples' budgets just couldn't match the amount of work that I would put into a single wedding. I wouldn't do a wedding under £2k. Now I don't do weddings - but I make a special exception for weddings under 500 quid. The couple know I'll turn up for 2 hours or maybe more, NO prep work, nail some gorgeous shots, edit them to perfection, and that's it. No "liaising with the caterers" or "bringing spare frilly white umbrellas". But a lot of being very clear with expectations. People who pay low amounts like that are generally ... second marriages, older couples, etc., and they don't want a big deal, and they don't pay silly dosh for a big wedding. I'm a happier person now. Okay - I don't exactly "look down on wedding photography" and I have a great admiration for what you're saying about the "humanity" of the photos you like. I agree. That's what kept me going with wedding photography. But - gimme corporate shooting any day. It's what I'm good at, it's what I'm compatible with, and it's what I love. Sorry if that was off-topic!

Really enjoyed this video Jamie, thanks. One of the biggest flaws with sharing ones ideas online, is to that everyone else copies. I guess we’re all either trying very hard, or we’re running out of ideas? Personally, if I could should candidly all day I would. And when I get the chance I do. But I understand when a couple ask for things also. But agree when it comes down to it, the small moments end up being the best - great stuff

Totally agree with this approach, this is the way I try to shoot weddings and I believe this results in capturing the true emotion and atmosphere of the day.

I've been watching these videos for a few years. I've reached the opinion that you have a great way of explaining the depth of photography (I get a feeling you know about Barthes etc). As far as wedding photography goes, I couldn't agree with you more. I've been shooting professionally for the past 25 years, and I've found that the wedding experience or event (for the bride and groom at least) has become a kind of myth. The mythology of what a wedding should be as opposed to what it actually is has inevitably affected the shots we take - bride prep, make up, the dress, the kiss etc I could go on. So we are imposing a kind of structure of our own on how the wedding is presented photographically, and that is the myth. I've decided to withdraw gradually from pro wedding photography and just shoot the odd weddings that are authentic. The 'authentic' weddings are the ones where the bride and groom are smoking, vaping, often swearing mildly, and the reception is at a local social club with kids, and lads at the bar. The posher the wedding, the greater is the mythology.

Let’s just appreciate all the perfect badass smooth transitions you pulled off.

You really brought out why we feel a certain type of way or the inferences we make from the cinema portion. There are certain things we infer/feel about a character that's universal but hard to explain and you put that into words with the computer example.

Class words fully appreciated. And exactly why I shoot weddings... and when sat with a client for the first time be bold; don’t walk onto a job with creativity stifled. Cheers James.

Man. I feel happy now, after watching this video. You made something incredible with these 12 precious minutes. Never stop "youtubeing" about photography. Please!

I liked this photo for the intro. But watching on I can say I really enjoyed the way you constructed this video. Thank you for making a photography video so interesting

Emotion. Jamie is talking about capturing authentic emotion.

Two of the best images I ever captured in a wedding were not outstanding technically. They were both out of focus,one quite out of focus. I wouldn't have chosen either as ones I would print or put in an album.But for the couples they were both the highlight emotional part of the wedding. One was the bride and the groom entering the reception hall.On an angle when angles weren't fashionable,slightly out of focus. The bride said she chose this as an enlargement as at that moment when her and her husband walked into the room and saw all their family and friends standing and applauding, she felt like a million dollars.The second was in a dimly lit church. They decided to bolt for the door instead of stopping to greet family and friends as they came down the aisle.They moved so quickly and took me by surprise, that I did not have time to focus my camera,(pre auto focus days) and the flash was not charged and did not fire. I took one shot.I only showed it to them as I always believed in letting my customers see the rejects as well.They went into hysterics. I hadn't seen the Bride's garter around her ankles. It slipped down as she was running and they were both laughing. Nice article and illustrations.All weddings have mostly the same ingredients but all weddings are different. I would still be doing weddings but age and health has caught up with me.

Also, I've always aimed to keep a point to my photography, or a narrative in some way. I feel this goes hand in hand with a great photo - the viewer needs to see and feel what's happening really quickly for an image to be a success. I feel always asking yourself 'whats my point' when taking a photo is a good place to start. What you described with the couples photos is bang on, it doesn't matter about technical rules, it could have been shot on an iPhone and still contain rich information that the viewer can feeeeeeel

Very interesting, as usual! In my humble opinion (as an amateur of photography, not doing any wedding photography at all), one issue in wedding photography is that the subject in itself (a happy couple dressed in fancy clothes) is not really - objectively- super interesting, as could be a more enigmatic scene, sometimes a darker or more neutral scene (war photography, street photography and its authentic feel, portrait of someone with really interesting features, etc.). To me, it's more of a souvenir for the married couple and their guests, than real artistic photography.

Thank you Jamie, this video has inspired me. I also really love the ‘in between’ moments during shoots, where people’s guards are down and they are at their most natural. Those are almost always my favourite keepers and often my clients make a certain sound when they see them, as if to say ‘Wow I didn’t know you shot that but I’m really glad you did!’.

I unanimously agree with what you have said. A sense of your own perception of literature in what you shoot will not always get you the best looking pictures, but will give you pictures that mean a lot to you and can mean a lot to the people you're taking shots cause you and they can relate. You shoot the story; they appreciate the literature and the moment.

I was watching The Disaster Artist the other day and I’ve had the phrase “real human emotion” stuck in my head. You nailed it in explaining why these real moments are so important 👌🏽

Dude you have the best vlogs on the YT. So much on point and in depth! 💪🚀

On point. 🙌🏼I'm a wedding video editor and I always look for those kind of shots whenever I edit. It's what makes the day, the feeling, the couple. Most magical feeling to be able to do what I do and witness those moments.

I really appreciated this video. I'm a grad student studying journalism and documentary practice. I loved your overall message, but I actually do the opposite tactic to create an unexpected video. For example, I like to apply cinematic techniques to documentary videos so that they tell a story in an unconventional way. There's a video on my channel that illustrates this. I filmed an older couple's "how we met" story by casting younger actors and recreating it with the older couple's voiceover. A pretty typical cinematic montage. But at the end, I revealed the couple actually met as an older couple, and all the meet-cute moments viewed in the first few minutes of the video actually occured when the couple was older. The point was to illustrate that not everyone meets their life partner when they're young as many people assume. And that older people can still find love if they go out and try. I ran out of time and didn't get to do the fast edit of replacing the young couple with the older couple to really push this reveal point, but I think I still got the effect.

Definitely can relate to this! Im a person that wants to break from traditional wedding and add my fashion flare to my wedding images have my customers have something out of the ordinary from they special day. Good video Sir :)