Wedding photography vocabulary

While on the hunt for a wedding photographer, have you found yourself looking at a blog post, scrolling their Instagram, or exploring their website and you come across a word or a phrase that makes you go “hmmm?” It’s not uncommon for there to be specific language to each area of expertise in the wedding industry. Some of these are common enough now that you’ll know what we’re talking about, or they’re self-explanatory, but just in case, we’ve asked Frances of Frances Beatty Photography to explain 5 popular wedding photography terms for you. This way when you sit down with a photographer for a consultation you understand what the heck they’re talking about and can even chime in and request certain things.

Wedding Photography terms

First look -
This is a fairly new event that happens at weddings. The tradition is to see your partner walking down the aisle for the first time on the day of your wedding. That’s a beautiful tradition, but there’s a new tradition as an option. At the first look, the couple getting married see each other before the ceremony in a private setting. This means they can get any jitters out ahead of time, take some portraits, maybe even do family portraits. It’s perfect for couples who want to spend more time at their cocktail hour, or anyone who is private or shy.
Golden/Magic hour -
These two terms are interchangeable. Magic hour is that time of day when the light is dreamy, the shadows are long and sometimes you get that golden hue of light to play with. The warmth of the light and the colour you see is why it’s referred to as “golden hour”. It occurs twice a day for about an hour right before the sun rises or the sun sets. This tends to be the most flattering time of day to take photos. Of course, we photographers cannot guarantee that you will get this beautiful golden light, but it is a great time of day to steal away and have photos taken even if it’s cloudy.
Formals -
This is referring to portraits, and it’s usually in reference to family pictures. The general preference for wedding photos these days is to have natural and candid images, rather than stiff and formal photos. This is amazing, but one of the best ways to guarantee a great photo of each member of your family is to have family portraits which are usually shot in a more formal way. (Standing next to each other, smiling at the camera)
Candid -
I just mentioned that couples tend to prefer candid images. Let’s explain that - When we say candid, we don’t mean cheesy pictures of people being goofy for the camera. What photographers mean by candid is that they take photos of your friends, family, and even you, when you’re doing your thing and not posing for the camera. It means you get images of what your day looked like without the photographer intervening.
Camera aware -
On the FLIP side of candid, is camera aware. Camera aware is just that - being aware of the camera. It’s never a bad idea to have at least a handful of images in which you are looking directly into the camera - parents love those.