Getting married in Granada

Granada is, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful cities in Spain and the world. Its cultural and historic patrimony, its pleasant climate, its urban landscape, the charming streets and squares, the originality and variety of its gastronomy, and its wide-ranging tourist offers make this city a very special place to spend a few days and of course to get married.

People are attentive and pleasant with foreign visitors; always ready to help. The city is very convenient for its size. You will find your way around easily, and you will enjoy walking and visiting the different bars and restaurants of “Paseo de los Tristes” and The Albayzin.

The omnipresent Alhambra bewitches Granada from its hill, and at dusk its magic will spellbind you wherever you are. The setting of the sun has ever been described by important visitors such as the former president of the United States Bill Clinton as “the most beautiful sunset in the world”.

Imagine your wedding bathed in the light and the charm of this romantic Andalusian city, which you will always keep in your heart.

Organising your wedding in Granada will cost you the same or it will be relatively cheaper than organising it in your town; and it will definitely be more original, interesting and fun. Take the decision and you won’t regret it!

Your guests will be offered with the perfect excuse to enjoy a small holiday. In Granada, they will find history, culture, flamenco, gastronomy, tapas, sun, snow, beach and a lot of party time.

I have been hired on many occasions to make wedding photos of many British and American couples, and I have seen the couple, family and friends enjoying themselves from the beginning to the end of the wedding celebrations.

Philosophy of work

Of all the services I offer in my studio, I consider wedding photography to be the discipline where the photographer is most challenged. During a wedding there is a constant succession of events and these may take place where lighting is not appropriate. Lacking the time to take decisions, it is in the photographer’s hands and expertise to get the most out of it, relying on his knowledge of technical aspects, aesthetic and composite criteria, together with the empathy to share the feelings and emotions of the couple, family and friends.

Photography is a language and as such it requires norms so that its communicative function is evident. The knowledge and observance of these rules do not detract from the freshness of the images. I am not in favour of turning the simplicity of an image into an excuse to obviate the technical quality or the composition; quiet the opposite, I try to find a balance between the technical and aesthetic, and all the aspects of the photographic message such as expression, narrativity, and the communicative ability of the image.

I could describe my style in wedding photography as a search of elegance through expression and narrativity, respecting the grammar of photography: “Aesthetic Simplicity”

Let’s take a look at the photos from my QEP portfolio (Qualified European Photographer) (the first section of the wedding section). Without a doubt, these pictures have no tricks. They are simple, and care has been taken over the technical quality and framing.

I give a lot of importance to spontaneity, and I truly believe this results in the most genuine photos. However, I would never base the wedding photography solely on journalistic photography due to the lack of control over facial and corporal expression, and the insecurity it entails. The photographer must always be alert and ready to capture the moment when it occurs. This will add dynamism and freshness to the wedding album. However, a posed portrait, where all the technical and aesthetic details are taken care of before the shot, will add beauty and elegance to the finished work.

I have resolved the conflict between the security guaranteed by the posed picture, and the risk implied in wedding journalism by a comprehensive knowledge of both techniques; using either intuitively depending on the moment to be captured and the technical and aesthetic criteria.

Interview with the bride and the groom

Once you have hired my services as your wedding photographer, we will arrange a date to have an interviewwith the couple. The purpose of this relaxed interview is to get to know each other, which will increase a reciprocated confidence, and will favour the necessary atmosphere to capture more spontaneous images.

We will note down all the necessary information and we will organise a plan for the wedding day (not only in photographic issues but some others as well). Once the interview is finished, the couple will take away a printed copy of the plan, comments, suggestions and recommendations, times, as well as the place and moment where the photos of the couple, family and friends will be taken.

Since this interview takes places weeks before the wedding, the couple can inform the photographer of any relevant last minute changes they wish to make to the original plan.

This interview will also avoid forgetting to take any photos the couple wish to have taken on the day. The photographer and his assistant will ensure the plan is followed, organising the different photos with family and guests.

Only one wedding per day

At “Márquez Fotógrafos”, we have had this norm for years. If we are hired for wedding in the morning, we will not be hired again for a wedding in the afternoon, even if there was time between one wedding and another. Undoubtedly, this is one more guarantee for our clients, since they will have a photographer coming to the event not feeling tired from having been previously to another event, or pressed for time rushing!.

Besides, we have not got a crew of photographers. Once we are hired for one wedding, it is the only one we concentrate on. At “Márquez Fotógrafos”, Jose Maria Márquez is the only wedding photographer, and only one wedding per day.

The finishing touch

The pictures are taken in RAW format. The files obtained in this way (not “cooked” yet) allow an extremely high control over high and low lights, contrast, saturation, and colour balance amongst other things.

The treatment of the image is done by areas. Each part of the image (i.e. the wedding dress, the groom’s suit, the sky, the texture of a wall, floor or a piece of furniture, etc) is worked on separately, thus obtaining a high quality photograph with information in the areas with high and low lights, and with the most appropriate values in the rest of the areas.

This is translated, for example, in the fact that the details and the texture of the bride’s dress will become more evident, instead of being just a white area with no form or shape. The same happens with the groom’s outfit, where the different shades of dark grey will be noted with its volume and texture.

Black and white photos will not just be desaturated, filtered or manipulated with a Photoshop plug-in. A good picture in black and white is only obtainable by manually treating density and contrast in different areas.

In relation to facial finishing touches, I am in favour of a subtle correction of any imperfections, respecting the texture of the skin; it must be unnoticeable.

Selection of the photos

During a wedding, there are around 500 photographs taken. I select the ones I consider to be appropriate to be in the album, and the selection I want the couple to choose from. There are usually between 150 and 250 photographs. I process the raw images of all photographs adjusting the framing, tone, contrast, saturation, and exposure.

Previous to that selection, the images are shown to the couple in a multimedia video of 25 minutes. After that, the pictures are all looked at one by one, deciding which ones will go in the album. If the wedding reportage goes on the classic or multi-format album, the couple will be able to decide the precise size of each photograph. If the bound album is chosen, the couple will have to divide the photos into large, medium, small, and very small size, which will also allow me to create the design bearing in mind the preferences of the newly weds.

Availability of original files

It is possible to purchase the original photos of the wedding. The first option is to make a multimedia DVD with a video to view the photos from the selection process, together with another DVD with the final album design. The second option is to buy the files (including the ones that were not selected). They are given together with the final touches (the ones selected for the album), and in their original size.