For thousands of years artists have been trying to capture or create images that portray romance. Photographers and painters and sculptors alike all struggle with the same question, “What does romance look like?” For that matter, what is romance? We have romance novels, romance languages, romantic music, and even romantic places.

You can have a childhood romance, you can have a romantic encounter, and an old car can even have a certain romance about it. None of that really tells us much about what romance is. Like beauty, romance is an elusive trait that can only be judged in the eyes of the beholder. Every person knows it when they see it, yet no two viewers will see it in the same place. This chapter describes a few of the techniques and thought processes that go into creating a type of image that contains such elusive qualities that no words can fully describe what it is or how it should look. According to the definitions, a romantic image is idealized, not based on fact, and remote from everyday life. It displays, expresses or is conducive to love. It is imaginary! Perhaps not completely imaginary, but certainly a romantic image does get much of its appeal and expression of love, from the fact that it leaves a lot to the imagination.

The part not shown allows the viewer to imagine all sorts of things. Upon seeing a romantic image, one person may imagine, and even actually feel, just a bit of the deep feelings of love that every bride is supposed to have for her new husband. Another may imagine that there is more going on in the scene than what is shown.

Another may imagine what it would be like if she were actually there – if she was the one in the picture, “What would that dress feel like? How would the sand feel between my toes? What would my man be like? No … I know what he would be like … he’s all the things I’ve ever dreamed of.” A romantic image sets the viewer’s mind free to imagine the love and emotion that they themselves want to experience. If you can create images that inspire romantic feelings in a woman, you can bet she will remember your name when she finds “Mr. Right”.

Glen Johnson. Digital Wedding Photography: Capturing Beautiful Memories (Kindle Locations 2278-2285). Kindle Edition.

Every photographer has experienced the gruesome distorted face of a child who has just been told to smile. Yikes! Sometimes the groom is almost as bad. Maybe the last time he was in front of a professional photographer was way back when he was a ring bearer and somehow he still remembers how to do it. Most of the clients we work with in the wedding business do not have any experience at modeling. In fact, it seems far more normal to find subjects that are shy, insecure about their appearance, and generally uncomfortable in front of the camera – at least for the first hour.

If you have a friendly personality that helps people feel at ease, most of the normal fears will disappear quickly. However finding someone who completely loosens up and acts naturally when you raise your camera is rare. The worst thing you can do to a camera-shy couple is to give many specific directions about how to smile and how to hold their body. The more you do this, the more likely you are to get the same results as the child who has just been told to smile – he or she gets stiffer and stiffer. Getting over the camera-shy stage takes some time.

I like to start the wedding day shooting in the dressing rooms, because it gives me a chance to bond with the clients and for them to get comfortable being in front of the camera. During this time, I start creating a few directed pictures. Not many because you can capture most of this time in a photojournalistic style, but just a few to get them used to working purposefully in front of the camera. Occasionally, I see some fleeting movement or glance that looked beautiful and I give the bride some direction to re-create it. A few window light portraits in the dressing room can also help to break the ice.

Glen Johnson. Digital Wedding Photography: Capturing Beautiful Memories. Kindle Edition.