Instagram quickly fills up with the latest photography trends — but what makes an image stand the test of time? A timeless image is based on emotion or a moment rather than a trending technique. This week, we asked five of our Rangefinder 30 Rising Stars of Wedding Photography what it takes to create timeless photography. Find inspiration in this week’s Photos of the Week from Radostina Boseva, Tash Busta, Aurora Ceriani, Traci Edwards and William Young.

View the full 30 Rising Star Winners Gallery for 2024.

Radostina Boseva

One way to create a timeless image is to use timeless technology, like the Contax 645, 80mm Carl Zeiss lens and Kodak Porta 400 film that Radostina Boseva (@radostina.photography) used to capture this portrait. Boseva created the image while wandering Italy with Vera, inspired by the architecture of the Duomo de Milano. She used a blank stretch of the building, a simple pose and natural light to lend to the classic feel.

“My advice will be to shoot more film, because film slows [you] down and makes you think,” she says. “In the medium format roll, you have only 16 frames and you need to be very intentional with every click. The other thing I can recommend is to try to cut the noise — there are many trends that come and go, limit your social media time and instead take a look at art books or even vintage film photographs. I have a master’s degree in history, and the past is always so inspiring to me.”

Tash Busta, Tash Busta Photography

An authentic moment and black-and-white editing lend a timeless feel to this image by Tash Busta of Tash Busta Photography. Inspired by the winter sun streaming through the window, Busta knew the light would look magical mixed with the bride’s veil. She captured the shot with the Canon R6 and a 50mm f1.2 lens.

“Try to work organically with the couple and not over pose them,” Busta recommends. “Capturing the authentic moment will always allow the images to feel timeless. I also find that black and white will always feel classical — I just love it!”

Aurora Ceriani, Yidaki Studio

The sunset streaming through rainclouds highlights the couple in this epic image by Aurora Ceriani of Yidaki Studio. Ceriani was inspired by the view and surreal atmosphere that lasted only a few seconds at the end of a rainy wedding day. She captured the shot with the Nikon Z6 II and a Sigma Art 35mm f1.4.

“What I think I’ve learned is that following trends isn’t always the best choice,” she says.

“My advice is to take what we like from each style and create your own, altering the original images as little as possible and working in advance on the choice of light. This, in my opinion, helps a lot to create images that are already beautiful and compelling from the start and give it a look that will never be out of fashion.”

Traci Edwards & William Young, Adventure and Vow

For the elopement photographers Traci Edwards and William Young at Adventure and Vow, it’s the moment that makes an image timeless. While the bride and groom were waiting for the ropes to be set up for canyoneering, they held on to each other to stay warm. The moment plus the warm backlighting inspired the shot, while asking the bride to add a bit of movement to her dress created a more dynamic image. Edwards captured the shot with a Canon R6 and adapted Canon EF 35mm f1.2 lens.

“My advice for creating timeless images is to not force it,” Edwards says. “I think what is timeless for each couple and experience is different. To me timeless is the couple looking back for the rest of their lives at their images and feeling that moment again or remembering this time in their life together — who they were. Capturing moments that are happening effortlessly, and ideally in good light with good framing, creates a timeless image.” 

Dig into our Photo of the Day archives for even more timeless photos, eye-catching wedding photos and portraits. Submit your wedding, editorial, documentary and other interesting imagery –up to 5 images at a time– to: [email protected].