I'm tired on many fronts... Anyways...

A friend recommended I pick up the April issue of Shutterbug because it was focusing on "The Art & Craft of Wedding Photography". And by first glance, i.e. the front cover, I thought I was going to be in for a treat. As it turns out the magazine was at least 50% advertisements, and the wedding portion was oh 15 pages out of close to 200 pages. Also the part focused on weddings was basically advertisements for authors of photography self-help books. Needless to say but it was definitely not worth the $4.99 I spent on it.

One of the wedding sections was entitled "Wedding Photography Roundtable - Four Top Shooters Give Us Their Take". The "four" shooters were actually five, and they were: Andy Marcus, Cherie Steinberg Cote, Doug Gordon, and JB & DeEtte Sallee. Their images were awesome, but some of their attitudes were not awesome. Dane Sanders would describe them as "grumpies". Let me pick out a couple quotes:

• "Just about everybody who picks up a camera thinks they are a wedding photographer these days." (- Doug Gordon) 
• "It used to be really cool to be a photographer when I started... Now everyone wants to be a photographer and for $1000 and a business card they can!" (- Cherie Steinberg Cote)

But the advice and attitude of the younger photographers, JB & DeEtte Sallee was better. :

• "Q (Shutterbug): What can photographers do right now to set themselves apart?  A: Perceived quality is the best way to stand out from the crowd. Offer quality albums and products that amateurs cannot offer because of the prices they charge."
• Regarding Shutterbug's question on what the next 5 years looks like: "The key is to stay educated, always sharpen your skills in both shooting and after capture, and to be open to new ideas and techniques - this is how we'll be differentiated as professionals."

I did enjoy the short segment on Traditional vs. Photojournalistic styles of wedding photography. Some all around good advice follows:

• "Though most wedding photographers lean toward either the traditional or photojournalistic approach, it's still important to develop a style that sets you apart from the crowd."
• "Your viewpoint is something no one else shares... [The] best photographers are the ones who break free and have their own vision, which becomes the one others want to copy. A photographer's role is to show the rest of the world how they see." (- Tony Hewitt)
• "...When people are looking for a photographer, they will buy the person before they'll buy the style, technique, reputation, and awards." (- Tony Hewitt)
• (from elsewhere in the magazine) "The right photograph needs to be created when you click the shutter, not your computer mouse."