I have been a
photographer all my life. I started by watching my father make
black and white prints in a makeshift darkroom in the spare
bedroom, progressing to working for the school magazine, the
university newspaper, and then to real newspapers and the old Fleet
Street.
The life of an editorial photographer is a fantastic one. I have travelled all over the world to cover stories, met amazing people, and often watched and photographed as history unfurled itself in front of my lens. The experience prepared me for anything and everything that can happen at a wedding.
But weddings are great! They're "good news" stories, that to my mind are waiting to be covered like any other story. There’s a beginning, a middle, and an end. There are incredible highlights, emotions, details, joy, laughter, tears - and lots of love and romance. And like any story, they are all there, waiting to unfurl in front of my lens.
I am an observational photographer. I do not expect the bride and groom, or their guests, to behave like paid for models. I do not turn up at a wedding with a specific plan for the pictures and force everyone to pose and do things my way. I watch what happens, taking pictures as the light and the compositions happen in front of me.
Of course, a certain amount of posing is required to arrange the formal and group photos that are part of every wedding, but I try to get that over with as quickly as possible, allowing me to concentrate on my real skill - observing and reacting to what I see.
My philosophy is empathy: "the ability to understand and share the feelings of another." It’s your day, not mine, and I am there to record and remind you, in the years to come, of what a fantastic time you had, the emotions you felt, the tears you cried and the laughter you laughed. I want my photographs to be a mirror to the reality of your day.
I am always friendly, polite and dressed in a suit - that should go without saying. So many people (including most other photographers!) seem to hold wedding photographers in low esteem, but I aim to raise the perception of the profession both by my photographs and my behaviour.
The life of an editorial photographer is a fantastic one. I have travelled all over the world to cover stories, met amazing people, and often watched and photographed as history unfurled itself in front of my lens. The experience prepared me for anything and everything that can happen at a wedding.
But weddings are great! They're "good news" stories, that to my mind are waiting to be covered like any other story. There’s a beginning, a middle, and an end. There are incredible highlights, emotions, details, joy, laughter, tears - and lots of love and romance. And like any story, they are all there, waiting to unfurl in front of my lens.
I am an observational photographer. I do not expect the bride and groom, or their guests, to behave like paid for models. I do not turn up at a wedding with a specific plan for the pictures and force everyone to pose and do things my way. I watch what happens, taking pictures as the light and the compositions happen in front of me.
Of course, a certain amount of posing is required to arrange the formal and group photos that are part of every wedding, but I try to get that over with as quickly as possible, allowing me to concentrate on my real skill - observing and reacting to what I see.
My philosophy is empathy: "the ability to understand and share the feelings of another." It’s your day, not mine, and I am there to record and remind you, in the years to come, of what a fantastic time you had, the emotions you felt, the tears you cried and the laughter you laughed. I want my photographs to be a mirror to the reality of your day.
I am always friendly, polite and dressed in a suit - that should go without saying. So many people (including most other photographers!) seem to hold wedding photographers in low esteem, but I aim to raise the perception of the profession both by my photographs and my behaviour.
Q Photography is a one man business run by award winning photographer Simon Grosset.
Awards:
1987: Features Photographer of the Year (British
Telecom)
1990: News Photographer of the Year (NUJ)
2003: Travel Photographer of the Year (Princess Cruises)
2006: VOWS award: nominated in wedding photography category
2007: VOWS award: nominated in wedding photography category
2008: VOWS award: nominated in wedding photography category
2008: Third Place, International Wedding Photojournalist
Association quarterly competition
2010: Eighth place, International Wedding Photojournalist
Association quarterly competition