Silvana Frammartino Captures Wedding Bliss

Photographer Silvana Frammartino met a homeless man named John, who lived under the St. Mary’s Street Bridge in San Antonio, Texas. But instead of avoiding eye contact and walking swiftly by as many do, Silvana invited the downtrodden man to dinner.

This chance encounter changed the course of her photographic career. With her studio, Impulse Photography—which specializes in weddings with an emphasis on environmental interaction—a rousing success, Silvana says her life-altering meeting with John has kept her grounded. “I learned it’s not about booking as many weddings as I can,” she explains. “It’s about making a difference and fulfilling my purpose in life.”

One of which, she hopes, will be to compile stories and images similar to John’s into a black-and-white book that puts a face on homelessness and helps others look beyond stereotypes. One hundred percent of the proceeds from this project will go toward helping the homeless, with the ultimate goal being to raise enough money to open up a shelter in Toronto.

Silvana says she discovered her photographic talent while working for a criminal lawyer. “I was not happy at all,” she recalls, “and believed there was something else I should be doing.”

That something else turned out to be photography. Photographs from a friend’s wedding sparked her interest in the craft, and she began assisting other photographers to hone her skills.

“I found I had such a passion for it,” she stresses. “I thought, ‘This is what I was meant to do!’ ” And in 1995, she opened her own studio.

In Love With Love
Impulse Photography’s bread and butter is weddings. However, its focus on nuptials has more to do with love than about paying the bills, says Silvana, who describes herself as a hopeless romantic. “I love weddings, I love romance and I love love in general,” she says. “It’s the number one thing humans were created for. Everybody wants to be loved and wants to love.”

Her favorite part of the wedding ceremony is when the bride walks down the aisle. While all eyes are focused on the bride, Silvana often sets her sights on the groom. “The groom’s anticipation says so much; I love capturing that,” she says. “A lot of times I get a little choked up.”

Silvana and her second shooter, Glendon, are passionate about capturing the raw emotions of the moment, which can range from tears to laughter and everything in between. Silvana explains that she feels like she sees things a little differently than others, which definitely helps her find the magic in these special moments. “I’m always looking at people around me, anticipating how they’ll react and what they’re feeling,” she explains. “Everything is a picture to me, and I have it in my head. It’s hard to explain, but it’s almost like I need to get those pictures/stories out of me so others can see them as well.”

Getting Personal
Silvana remembers the excitement of booking her first wedding at $1895. “I was really nervous,” she recalls. Today, after gaining popularity and respect in the community, her starting price is $6000 and she limits her studio to 20 weddings a year in order to be able to offer herself exclusively. “I want to make sure I give my clients a high level of quality customer service from beginning to end. They deserve that.

“A lot of times I end up being friends with my couples. We keep in touch, even after the wedding,” she adds. “When they begin to start a family, they often call me for their baby photos. It’s a nice feeling.”

Relationship building begins in the booking session, where clients visit the Impulse Photography studio in Woodbridge, Ontario, Canada. They are often wowed by the unique décor and warm, comfortable atmosphere in the studio. But instead of going directly into photography and showing her albums, Silvana will ask questions about how the couple met, how long they’ve known each other, how the groom-to-be proposed and so on. “I really want to know these things!” she says. “I want to make sure we are a good fit for each other.” After connecting, Silvana will present her images and pricing. Silvana enjoys having fun with her couples on their e-sessions (engagement sessions) and on their wedding day. It allows her to grab unique shots, like the ones from a recent e-session in Muskoka, Ontario, where she traveled north to the groom-to-be’s family cottage. After discovering the family’s private plane on the grounds, Silvana convinced the couple to sit on the wings of the plane for a shot, resulting in an unexpected and interesting image (see left).
 
When booking e-sessions, Silvana usually unearths the location the day of the shoot, going wherever the car takes them. She says she likes to be surprised, and rarely shoots at the same location twice so that she can give her couples truly different images every time. Sometimes she takes clients to downtown Toronto, other times farther north in a secluded field. It all depends on the couple and their unique personalities. “That’s why it’s important to know what my couples are about. I’ve taken some couples to the junkyard and they end up being wowed by their photos. I am thankful that my couples trust my suggestions and know that in the end it will be worth it.”

Silvana challenges herself to shoot something different and off-the-wall at every wedding. Take for example the time she decided the image at a beautiful countryside wedding should include one of the farm’s chickens. She, along with a guest, chased the chicken for a while before they caught it. She told her bride, Vanessa, to hold the chicken and the groom, Simon, to give the camera his meanest look. “The chicken pooped on the bride’s dress afterwards, but she was such an easy-going bride,” she laughs. The image (above), titled “American Gothic Chicken,” came in third place in the 2008 WPPI 16 x 20 print competition.

While the wild and crazy is part of her repertoire, so too are the standard family group shots. Silvana explains that every family needs those. She gets the “juicy shots” when alone with the bride and groom. However, she does not work off shot lists, stating that doing so would hinder her creativity. “Then I’m thinking ‘I have to get that shot,’ instead of thinking about my own original shots,” she explains.

Just recently, Silvana placed first in the second half of the 2008 WPPI 8 x 10 Print Competition in the engagement category with her print “She’s So Incredible” (see left). “It was one of our last shots of the session. It was a very hot day in a Toronto café,” she recalls. “Maryam spontaneously tied up her hair because of the heat, and as Ali watched her I could just see the intensity of passion and love in his eyes for her. I took the shot.”

Equipment Begets Creativity
The night before every wedding, Silvana prays for her couple. She prays their entire wedding goes smoothly, that they are blessed throughout their day and she asks for beautiful light and inspiration for her images.
Her creativity also flows with the right equipment, which includes two Nikon D700s and D300 DSLR bodies, and a host of lenses including an AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70–200mm f/2.8G IF-ED; an AF-S Nikkor 50mm f/1.4G; an AF-S Nikkor 14–24mm f/2.8G ED; an AF Fisheye Nikkor 16mm f/2.8D; the AF-S Nikkor 24–70mm f/2.8G ED; and the AF Micro Nikkor 60mm f/2.8D for detail shots. She carries an SB-900 and two SB-800 Speedlights and a Readylight 20-watt video lights.

Silvana uses Adobe Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS3 to further enhance the look of her images and add her artistic touches. Most often the wedding book designs are created by Modern Album Design and are printed by Vision Art Book and Forbeyon. Impulse Photography processes all prints at GTA Photo Lab in Toronto—a lab Silvana describes as absolutely amazing. Working with top-notch vendors such as these enables the studio to maintain a high level of quality.

“Photographing weddings is not just about taking a picture; it’s about creating a lasting product that will be enjoyed for many generations to come—the actual wedding album and prints that wow the couple’s friends and family,” she explains.

Taking Time to Recharge
Even with her hectic schedule, Silvana makes time to travel. She loves experiencing new cultures, settings and people. “I have the travel bug in me, just like my father,” she says. “I visit the Dominican Republic often since my father now lives there. I learned a lot from him and I love him very much.” But even when taking time for herself, her camera is always within reach.

Carrying a camera everywhere comes naturally to this Canadian photographer. She is one of the fortunate who has been able to connect her life with her true passion. “Photography is my life,” she explains. “It is not just a job to me. It’s what I absolutely love and need to do.”
View her award-winning work at www.impulsephoto.com.

Ronnie Garrett is the editor of a monthly trade journal and a photographer based in the Midwest.