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What is Wedding Photojournalism?

A wedding photojournalist is a person who takes photographs during a wedding using an alternative approach where images are captured spontaneously to emphasize moments and emotion. Much like photojournalists for the media, wedding photojournalists present the story of the day through their photographs. A wedding photojournalist typically shoots images quickly using available light or on-camera flash rather than using traditional, formal posing techniques. The phrase wedding photojournalist has been in vogue for at least 10 years and has now become almost synonymous with normal wedding photography.

Wedding photojournalists consider themselves to be photographic storytellers. Most wedding photojournalists value shooting techniques that minimize posing and scene manipulation. Their goal is to be as unobtrusive as possible while capturing the reality of the event with little interference. They focus on finding moments during a wedding that happen naturally, rather than setting up portraits.

Most wedding photojournalists still provide wedding group photos, often referred to as formal wedding portraits. The main difference here is that these are typically less rigid and make up only five to 10 percent of the entire coverage. Wedding photojournalists commonly use an on-camera flash or take the portraits outside instead of using elaborate lighting set-ups for these portraits.