Styled shoots are carefully curated photography sessions crafted with the intention of getting great pictures. They’re usually centered around a wedding, but other events like showers, engagements, and anniversaries may also be used. While the pictures are definitely amazing and helpful for social media content, there are good things and bad about these photog events.
Defining a Styled Shoot
Everything– and I mean EVERYTHING– is hand-selected for photo-worthiness. Models are chosen. Hair and make-up is professionally done. Outfits/ dresses are selected. Decor and props are arranged. It’s all very purposeful and centering around an intended aesthetic or vibe. If you were to peruse styled shoot images, you likely wouldn’t know you were looking at a fake event.
How Styled Shoot Images are Used
All participating vendors use the images created as promotion for their products or services. This includes everything from hair/ makeup artists, cake-makers, party planners, bridal/ groomswear boutiques, accessories vendors, decor/ rental providers, venue managers, invitation designers, etc. Vendors may use pictures on their websites, in social media, or in print advertising. Some photographers submit their images for publication in well-known blogs.
The Perks of Participating in a Styled Shoot
As a vendor, the perks are many. You get high quality images. You get to flex your creative muscle and maybe try something new. And you get to network with other vendors. Plus, it’s normally a very small-scale event.
The Secrets Consumers Should Know
These events are FAKE. A photographer who has never shot an actual wedding but has amazing images of a styled shoot will look like a high-quality photographer. However, they may have gotten these images while photographing over a more-skilled photographer’s shoulder. They didn’t actually find the good lighting or pose the subjects. They didn’t know the flattering angles or tricks. They may have shot 1000 pictures to get those FIVE amazing ones you see. And most importantly, they didn’t have to deal with the unpredictability of a real wedding day. So those images you see, they may be at all representative of what you’ll get when you hire that photographer.
Identifying/ Asking Your Photographer
If you’re perusing a gallery and see no pictures of parents, kids, or guests, chances are that you’re looking at a styled shoot gallery. And, if the decor is fabulous, florals are over the top, and you see pictures of only one table (not a whole room), it’s even more likely that it’s probably a styled shoot. It is 100% acceptable to ask a photographer you’re interviewing if they participate in styled shoots and which pictures are from actual weddings. Or just ask for a gallery from a full wedding day at the outset. It’s not a bad thing for a photographer to participate. It’s just bad if all their good pictures are from styled shoots.
Every image shown on this page was from a styled shoot. They’re convincingly real. Don’t be fooled. Ask the questions. You need a wedding day photographer who is prepared for inclement weather, a disastrous timeline, a transportation mishap, and all the other unpredictable things that may happen on your wedding day.
About Sarah DeMaranville Photography
SDP is an intimate wedding photographer in the Iowa/ Illinois Quad Cities region. I welcome weddings of less than 50 guests, fewer than four hours in length, and all at one location. With ten years of experience photographing weddings, I can definitively say that I am prepared for whatever your wedding day throws my way. Check out my weddings page or contact me for more information.
