Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Picture Perfect

This is not me obsessing :) Let me just say that first! 

In order to to organize my thoughts on different photographers and hopefully make a decision, I thought I'd do a photographer comparison. 

Arden Photography - Birmingham, AL




Zoeiac Images - New Orleans, LA




Mark Elkins Photography - Atlanta, GA

509 Photography  - Birmingham, AL



Kim Box Photography - Prattville, AL


So....as you can see, there are 3 images that I picked from each photographer. I'd LOVE your opinions!! Who you like best; Which image you like best; The pros and cons of your favorites; ...just whatever!! 

...also, there are 2 more that i might possibly consider but that depends on their pricing and availability since i haven't checked those yet. If both of those factors work out then I'll post some images from them as well. For now though, just pretend like these are the only ones...cause they just might be! Thanks everyone!!!! :)

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

arden: good color in the shots, but the second picture posted is bad (car and drive in the background, sign taking focus away from the hands)
zoeiac: not bad photos, but they seem a little blurry. the blurriness might be because of the motion and outside location.
mark elkins: i can't deny the professional touch of these pictures, but they look like ads, not wedding photos. where's the heart?
509: these aren't bad.
kim box: no opinion either way.

Unknown said...

well.. my opinion is that ALL of these, as well as other wedding photography i have seen, do not look like candid shots of two people in love. well in love, yes maybe, but not genuine pictures at all, i'm saying they all look forced and posed. even the shot of the two leaving from 509 looks posed. i mean quite honestly, i have seen much better pictures that capture more emotion taken with just normal digital cameras. these are often times from people who actually know you and don't get you in standard poses.

i guess my only thing is that i can't visibly notice any difference in quality, and am not terribly concerned about that. my only concern is that i want someone who isn't an arrogant ass, like my sister's photographer. i mean, sure there is an art to wedding photography (no offense) to a certain degree; however, setting people in positions and snapping a picture with an expensive camera is not art. i want a photographer who realizes that and just wants to create shots that are representative of real people with flaws and imperfect shots occasionally. for example, i want genuine smiles and laughs because we are not that serious all the time, and the photos shouldnt be either.

also, the prices for pictures are ABSOLUTELY ridiculous. seriously, i don't even think most lawyers charge as much as these photographers. i mean, the wedding industry has become so greedy and expensive, it's pathetic.

the purpose of the photos should be to have pictures that we can look back on and should remind us of our wedding, and most importantly not be embarrassed of, i.e. not dated looking or attempting to enter the photos into a magazine or ad. the other purpose is to send to friends, relatives, and show your children. i just think people lose focus of the "purpose" of pictures. anyway that's my rant. basically, i don't really care farther than i want someone who realizes their craft and scope regarding "wedding" photos and doesn't charge an outrageous price. because i'm being very honest when i say that liz you have taken some really awesome pictures of us on vacation or whatnot that are just fine for any application i can think of, with just your digital camera.

as far as these: not crazy about 509, not sure why.
Mark Elkins is pretty good, as well as the others, except im not crazy about kim box either.

maybe these people, like the guy and girl in New Orleans, are just bad at posing, but i dont like how people are doing all these things in their wedding attire, thats not natural. could we bring a change of clothes and have us doing things for real, like we actually would be. i've always had a problem with that, because it's not like you're actually hanging out and having fun doing these things on your wedding day, like maybe you should be, but your just posing for pictures. does that make sense?

Liz said...

I understand what you're saying....but wedding pictures are suppose to be in wedding attire - duh!!! i want them to be relaxed and natural too and compared to most wedding photographers these are not "posed". But i think most of these that i posted are probably the more posed shots from these photographers - for example, they aren't the reception or ceremony pics...they are mostly just pics of the couples that you'd usually take after the ceremony (or before if you see each other beforehand). Although, I don't imagine the people were specifically posed, more so just receiving a little bit of direction from the photographer.

Unknown said...

I'd go with 509 or Kim Box. Do you want a photographer who is an artist or one that is a craftsman sensitive to your desires on your special day? You want someone who is going to give you good photos that you and family will want to look at for a long time. You don't want to take a chance with an "artist" who is making shots for themselves and not for you.
My $.02, Chris