Photo by Irina Martinez
http://www.5weststudios.com
http://www.spencerlumweddings.com
Irina is a frequent second shooter at the weddings I cover. You’ll find her grabbing gear, snapping candids, covering grooms, and just running about getting things done, all with the weight of two D3s bearing down on her without ever a complaint. I’m lucky, because as the owner of the company, I get all the attention. But this post is about her.
You never quite get that perfect shot. There’s always something that’s a little off. Maybe you wish you were half an inch left or half an inch right. Whenever I see this picture, I wish it were just the slightest bit wider – maybe a tiny bit more of some hands or something to hint at the crowd surrounding Evelyn and Andrew, the bride and groom. But, man, oh man, Evelyn’s expression. It is all heart. 100% pure, unfiltered, and raw. It is, as I see it, perfectly imperfect. Or maybe imperfectly perfect. If the force of yesterday’s picture of the day came from being picture perfect, this one’s power comes from the fact that it is so perplexedly real. The remnants of a cry, almost a laugh, joy, appreciation, love. Irina got right in there, nice and close, and she nailed it. Capa would be proud. It’s not idyllic, it’s not aesthetic. It is meaty and sloppy in a wonderful way, a rich soup of emotion you could almost sop up with a piece of crusty bread. It is essence.
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