Look at the wedding albums of anyone married before 1990, and you’ll likely see the same photos over and over again. It used to be that bridal photography featured a lot of posing of the couple and their families without any real documentation of the actual day itself. Somewhere along the lines, a photographer came up with the brilliant idea to treat a wedding like they would a news event: By taking pictures of anything and everything that happens with the hopes of telling the story of the whole day through pictures. As such, wedding photojournalism was born and brides find themselves turning more and more to photographers skilled in this area.

So what’s so great about wedding photojournalism? After all, it’s likely you’re also hiring a videographer to catch the day’s events on tape, so what’s the need to hire a photojournalist to “tell your story?” Again, take a glance back on the posed photos from your parents or older cousin’s weddings. The look of the wedding photography back then seems stale, unoriginal and uninspiring. When you share your wedding album with your children or grandchildren, wouldn’t you like to be able to not only share the photos of your family posed on the church altar, but also the photos of your sisters grooving on the dance floor, a stolen kiss between you and your soon-to-be spouse or the look on the bride’s mother’s face as she slips her wedding dress on? Wedding photojournalism is about capturing the moments that made the day special – and those moments are necessarily going to be the ones that everyone automatically thinks of when they think of a wedding.

A photographer skilled in wedding photojournalism knows how to take photos unobtrusively so those involved with the wedding aren’t even aware that a camera is there most of the time. Because of this, true emotion shines through the photographers and the happiness captured is real, not posed. The candid photos tell the true story of the bride and groom’s happiness.

A final benefit to hiring a photographer who specializes in wedding photojournalism is that they give you their time for the entire day, as to not miss a single photographable moment. At least one photographer (sometimes two or three) show up as the couple starts getting ready for the big day and shoots through the final dance.

When the final images are received, couples are always happy with the candid photos organized into a storybook-like album. From beginning to end, the entire day is told throughout a pictorial, making it easy for couples to share the happiest day of their lives with those who couldn’t be there – family, friends, children and grandchildren.

About the Author: Randolph Quan is a UK based wedding photojournalist. You can follow Randolph on Twitter or check out his wedding photography here.