Nowadays, our industry offers three types of wedding albums: coffee table books, flush mount albums and matted albums. Today, I’d like to talk about flush mount albums and I’ll try to cover coffee table books and matted albums in my next few posts.

Flush mount albums are probably the most popular type of album as of today and it’s probably safe to say that every Tampa wedding photographer has them. These albums usually come with variety of covers and normally have thick, unbending pages which are made by mounting photographic prints on cardboard. Then, the pages are bound and a cover is added. Your cover options are literally limitless – glass, acrylic, metal, leather, leatherette, silk, photopaper, wood – just to name a few. The photos in such albums can extend across both pages, especially in albums which don’t have (or have very narrow) gutter. Flush mount album designs often resemble magazines, although each and every layout is different and largely depends on your photographer’s taste and creativity.

In addition, many manufacturers allow you to select different types of paper for your album. Plain, photographic, laminated, metallic, textured and so on. Personally, I like to favor one type over another based on the feel and mood of each wedding individually. However, it’s always a good idea to see samples for yourself before committing.

Below are few pictures of some of my studio sample albums. Enjoy!

We started our session at the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art in Sarasota just a couple of hours before the sunset. This was Nicky’s idea and the moment she mentioned it – I knew we absolutely had to do it. Many Sarasota wedding photographers are quite familiar with this place – Cà d’Zan Mansion is probably one of the most recognizable architectural wonders in the area and a very popular venue for wedding ceremonies or receptions. And even though we didn’t get a chance to shoot around the mansion itself, (due to a wedding photo shoot taking place there), we managed to capture quite a few very nice photos in the museum’s gardens.

From there we headed to another popular among Sarasota wedding photographers spots – Siesta Key beach. This place was very special to both of them – it was here, about a year ago, Wayne actually proposed Nicky and she said “Yes!”. We hoped for a clean sunset but the sky was a bit cloudy that evening so we ended up shooting tons of awesome portraits with the help of this incredibly soft light coming from above. Here are some of my favorites from that day:

Photographer’s secret: we love shooting engagement sessions and here is why – it allows us to establish personal connection with the couple way before the wedding day. I think it’s essential for the couple to trust their photographer, to be confident in his/her ability to produce photos of great quality. Couples learn to get a lot more comfortable in front of the camera, get familiarized with our shooting style (the angles we take, the prompts we give, the poses we show, etc) and we, wedding photographers, get a chance to learn more about what works for this particular couple better – whether it’s posed shots, motion posing, candid approach, etc. There are lots of other benefits engagement session (or pre-wedding photoshoots) have, and I’ll talk about them in my future posts.

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The fact is, on the day of your wedding, we wedding photographers get to wear many different hats. We act as photojournalists, portrait photographers, product photographers, on-location photographers, party photographers, and the list goes on. Take, for example, your typical wedding:

As I arrive at bride’s suite, first thing I usually work on is creating beautiful detail shots of bridal gown, shoes, bouquet, veil, rings – exactly what commercial product photographers do. Next comes candid photography: capturing the excitement of bride and groom getting prepared for the wedding, their families and friends joining them for the first time that day, final touches of makeup, guys straightening their ties – that’s right, I’m wearing my photojournalist hat. From here we switch to family and portrait photography. Posing the bride for a portrait which her mom, future husband and probably all members of both families will keep on their desks, walls, wallets probably for decades to come – you guessed it, portrait photographer!

During the ceremony we’re pure photojournalists. We’re there to tell the story as it unfolds, without adding anything to it. But once it’s over – studio lights come out. It’s time for formal pictures – family, friends, bridal party, aunts and uncles, grandmas and grandpas – as the coordinator calls out names and next group of relatives gathers around bride and groom, it’s amazing to observe how several generations of each family unite in every photo I take. Oh yeah, forgot to mention – group portraits photographer’s hat is on my head.

On-location photography with bride and groom after the ceremony is always fun no matter where in Tampa Bay area we are. While their guests enjoy pre-dinner cocktails, we sneak away and spend 30-40mins shooting romantic portraits of just the two of them. This is probably my favorite part of the day – editorial pictures, candids, closeups, in motion, kissing/hugging, standing/running – a little bit of everything!

During the reception, the style of photography returns to candid and photojournalism. I capture the reception itself, the beautiful details at the reception site and the dining hall, table arrangements, cake cutting and first dance. After that – the party begins and party finally, my photographer hat is on. Often the last hat for the day, but definitely the most festive one!

Here are just a few samples of the shots I mentioned above, each one representing different style of photography, yet all together – telling the same story. Enjoy!

Megan and Jonathan Wedding (Macdill AFB Wedding Photography)

I haven’t really blogged since I established VadimPhoto, but it’s never late to start, right? I have lots of material I’d like to share with you – some of it recent, some from not so distant past, but I’ll try to keep it interesting and exciting. I am inviting you on a “behind the scenes” tour of our industry – visit the places I shot at, enjoy the weddings I celebrated, get to know the couples I worked with and learn a secret or two about wedding photography in beautiful Tampa Bay area.