Weddingbee boards

singasong      

So while doing a little browsing, I came across this blog post, which apparently caused quite a stir in the wedding blogosphere about two months ago. In it, the anonymous "Meg Surly" lays out her criticisms of trends in wedding photography and weddding blogs. If you don't feel like reading it, it essentially crticizes some of the most popular wedding blogs for publishing only over the top vintage wedding fests that essentially all look the same and not publishing many weddings that don't fit into that category.  The criticism of wedding photographers includes the overuse of Photoshop filters, particularly the "vintage" photo look in which the sky, for example, is washed out to an unnatural yellow.  Essentially, she argues that this will be just as dated as the black and white picture with the one colored object (for example, a red rose) and that photographers should focus on capturing weddings in true color.

What do you guys think?

SMP, which I think many consider the biggest offender (I know I used to look at it when I first started planning, then found it boring because everything posted there looks the same), responded here:  http://backstage.stylemepretty.com/2011/10/its-all-in-the-details-or-is-it/  I honestly don't think the SMP post actually addressed many of the issues brought up in this.  It isn't that SMP focuses on details, it's that nearly every single wedding on SMP looks like every other single wedding on SMP and many are way over styled.

So, here is the blog link: www.hindsightbride.com/2011/10/10/open-letter-wedding-bloggers

Here are some of the more interesting excerpts:

 

**taptap** Hello? Is this thing on? Oh, hey, wedding bloggers! I’m glad I have your attention. It’s your friendly neighborhood photographer here, sharing with you a little bit of insight from within the tiny walls of my office. You see, there’s a lot of blogging trends going on that I find particularly un-swoon-worthy. Of course, this is just my own humble opinion, but I am here to represent the other photographers and brides of the world who don’t feel heard or seen.

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Why are our weddings being repeatedly rejected from wedding blogs? It is certainly not because of the quality of photography. I have repeatedly seen photography on blogs like Cockles and Pretties that would make a 3-year-old look like a pro. At the same time, I’ve seen gorgeous wedding photography shot by colleagues turned down for publication. Why? Because not all of our weddings include brides sporting bird nests in their hair, or pretty, young Anthropologie-swathed bridesmaids, or meticulously stenciled miniature burlap dinosaurs holding up place cards made from the recycled issues of Rolling Stone, or weddings held in obscure meadows that can only be reached via bush pilot or a team of sled dogs. Sound over the top? It is, but you publish this stuff daily! So what is the reality behind many weddings?

Sometimes our clients get married in churches, country clubs, or even a VFWs (oh yes… it’s true!). Sometimes they wear a simple silk wedding dresses, or employ florists instead of roaming the hillsides of Sweden picking wildflowers the morning of their weddings. Sometimes they are doctors, lawyers, or police officers who are too busy to make custom bird cake-toppers and who don’t have access to a baby-blue vintage bicycles. Sometimes their weddings are simple/normal/average.

Now, don’t get me wrong; we all love the rustic, the unique and the detailed. I do too, but it isn’t realistic for every couple. And in turn, it’s not realistic to publish that type of wedding in every blog post! In fact, the state of the wedding blog-o-sphere is downright distressing for some couples.They’re visually overloaded by wedding blogs that showcase only the most unique and the most elaborate weddings, implying showcased weddings are the norm.

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Do something outside of the norm and you’d probably get even more visitors. And I’m not talking about finding the next fad. Focus on good photography and substance.  All your blogs are starting to look alike anyway.There are very few blogs I feel the need to follow any longer. I know what I’ll find when I visit most wedding blogs because so many posts are filled with the same: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• mason jars

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• burlap

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• wild flowers  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• vintage suitcases

 

 

 

 

 

• stuffed initials

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• feathers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• distant mountains

 

 

 

 

 

• tea-length dresses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• hand-made signs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

• and fields

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’d love to visit your site and see all sorts of weddings; the unique mixed in with the average and everything in between. This would make different posts stand out, and brides wouldn’t be apologizing to me about how “boring” their wedding is. Readers would see that every bride and wedding is different — not because of feathers and burlap, but because of the unique nature of human relationships; because of time and money constraints; and because the most important part of the day isn’t in the details. You know what I mean. Deep down I know you do.

By the Way, That’s “So 2011″

And, while you are considering what to accept, please consider the photography!

The truth is this: Fad Photoshop filters and actions are often used to cover-up bad or boring photography.

It doesn’t matter how many different shoe colors the bridesmaids wore if I can barely see the difference because the hideous yellow and pink of a Photoshop filter. Sometimes I can’t even tell if they’re wearing shoes because the tilt shift effect is used to cover up and blur anything that would reveal it for what it is: a boring photograph. How am I supposed to appreciate the little adorable dogs in tuxedos if the picture is so underexposed that I can’t see the detail in their rhinestone collars.

Learn to identify the difference between great photography and mere photographic fads. And for the love of Pete don’t keep promoting those fads! By way of example, let me remind you of selective color. Remember in 2006 and 2007 when you’d see that red rose sitting in a black and white room? Yeah – that’s what’s going to happen to the washed-out vintage fad in about 2 years. Then everyone is going to look at those weddings and think, “That was so 2011.” Eek. Stop being wooed by fads!

Stop Publishing Crappy Photography!

Let me tell you, those 1970s, flower-child, hippy-happy weddings are not helping you find your unique style for your blog. It’s also nauseating to scroll through all those bile-yellow filtered photographs of fields with the bride and groom all but obscured by fake, Photoshopped “sun-flares.”

We get it. It’s the trend. But let’s face it, it’s not a very attractive one. Perhaps it’s time to move on. Perhaps it’s time to consider accepting clear, clean photographs with accurate color. Photographs of the type of weddings that we all actually attend: regular ones. I guarantee these well-documented, professionally-shot weddings that honor true color will be the classics in 25 years. They are honest.

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How did this turn into high-fashion? Why are we daily hosting a who-can-have-the-weirdest-decorations-and-wedding-dress contest?

singasong      

@julies1949:   Agh!  Thank you :) I searched, but obviously not well enough since it's the same title :(

singasong      

@Amy43026:  It seems pretty ridiculous though to have to really go out of your way to find a blog that does not feature outside-in-a-field-only weddings with the obligatory shot of a guest drinking from a mason jar with a blue and white striped straw.  Or my favorite:  WACKY SOCKS PICS!  I admit, I like details; but it is hard to draw inspiration from 100 weddings that look exactly the same.