Avant Garde Award-Winning Style

If a role model was ever needed to highlight the value of being skilled in the traditions of classic wedding photography, Julie Oswin is the one. With confidence and talent to push the envelope in the edgy arena of avant garde photography, Julie is a photographer whose images make you take notice.

Since 1994, when she joined the Master Photographers Association (MPA) and the British Institute of Professional Photographers, Julie has been featured prominently in the annual awards bestowed by these prestigious United Kingdom organizations, claiming the Classical Wedding Photographer of the Year title in 1999 and the Avant Garde Wedding Photographer of the Year in 2001. She concedes that the MPA Avant Garde award was the most satisfying as it vindicated her credentials. “Some observers might say that your first major award could be a fluke but when you follow it up with another win, it proves you can produce the goods consistently,” she says. To emphasize that point, Julie was also a finalist in consecutive years, 2002 and 2003.

And being in the winner’s circle in the British Professional Photography Awards does much more than establish your credentials among your peers—it’s good for business. “The awards are a major plus in promoting your business—everyone wants to be associated with success. It’s a reality that today’s brides are competitive and there is a lot of one-upsmanship—they want to have ‘the best wedding’ over and above their friend’s wedding. So, if their wedding is photographed by an award-winning photographer, so much the better,” says Julie. The quality of the photography on the day must meet expectations so, as Julie emphasizes, consistently good photography throughout the wedding day is another major factor. It’s not just simply a matter of producing the odd one or two good shots.

The image that won the U.K. Classical Wedding Photographer of the Year in 1999, of a bride on a hillside, is also on the front cover of Contemporary Wedding Photography (see top photo pg. 212), the acclaimed book by Julie and her partner, Steve Walton, a distinguished and highly respected photographer. This award-winning photograph definitely has universal appeal. “All brides want to be photographed like this,” shares Julie. “You have to remember that all brides have been dressing up as princesses since they were little girls and they know what they want to look like and feel like on their wedding day. It’s our job as professional photographers to help them achieve that.” She added that men, on the other hand, usually have a different perspective. “Most of the time the guys just go along with the program. They know whose day it really is.”

As with most successful photographers, Julie’s passion for photography was ignited when she was young. Her grandfather, a keen and accomplished amateur photographer, encouraged her but sadly he died when Julie was quite young. However, at 10 years old Julie remembers going on a trip to the Isle of Man, just before her grandfather died, and taking one of his cameras along. Acquiring her first SLR years later was the catalyst for Julie to learn more about professional techniques. With two young daughters, full-time college was not an option, so Julie enrolled in night school and for three years studied City and Guilds Photography, the U.K. equivalent of a technical college course, which was the launching pad to her professional career.

And while Julie has been a full-time professional photographer for almost 15 years, she has never deviated from learning more about the business through seminars and networking. Says Julie, “There will always be an emphasis on the traditional foundations of the craft. Photography is not easy—a lot of skill and ability goes into making a good image. Although the top photographers make it look easy, the bottom line is that it is a skill and a craft.” Julie continues, “Wannabe photographers must learn the basics, learn people skills, learn the craft, learn posing and above all learn lighting techniques. Too much emphasis is placed on the camera doing it all for you and then relying on software to help you out. My advice to any aspiring photographers would be to learn your craft, learn your camera skills and the postproduction work is easy.”

Julie, like many of her counterparts in the United States, is concerned that many “weekend warrior” photographers don’t place enough emphasis on their business education. “Too many part-time wedding photographers see it as a supplement to their regular income. They forget that the profit they make is subject to full tax and national insurance. They also get very busy photographing weddings at cheap rates and decide to go full-time, give up the day job, only to realize that they can’t make enough money. So they try and raise their prices, but guess what? They lose their client base—people who want cheap photography—so they have to start building their business again. They don’t help themselves and they undermine other photographers. Business education is very important,” she says.

Back in 1994, Julie and Steve ran their business in the town of Loughborough (well known for its university) but in 2007, they relocated to a new facility at Glendale Lodge in Markfield, Leicestershire, which is in the East Midlands, a central location with convenient access to all major road networks and about two hours drive from London. By converting a triple garage into their studio and two offices they were able to have a well organized and highly efficient workspace adjacent to their home. “As a mother of two small children when I started the business I didn’t want to be out at work all day and having to arrange childcare for my daughters. The obvious answer was to work from home so that I was always there for my children,” she comments.

Under the overall banner of Contemporary Imaging, Julie and Steve have three separate facets of operation: Julie Oswin Photography for the wedding business; Lifestyle Portraits for the portrait business; and Fine Art Images for landscape and fine art photography. They have set targets of 40 percent of their total work for each of the wedding and portrait divisions with landscape and fine art making up the remaining 20 percent. “Our targets are 30 weddings a year and 250 portrait sittings. In previous years we have traveled all over the U.K. and to a few other countries to photograph weddings. We are now trying to work closer to home, which is much more preferable,” says Julie. Their work is evenly split between location and studio.

Contemporary Imaging has three part-time employees—one is assigned to wedding viewings and sales, another to production and the third to design some albums. As Julie and Steve work together as a team at weddings, they only require an assistant occasionally—usually for larger weddings. Their arsenal of equipment comprises Nikon D3’s with D300’s as backups and their range of lenses includes a fisheye, 14mm–24mm, 50mm, 35mm, 70mm–200mm, 17mm–55mm and 24mm–70mm (most are f/2.8 or faster). “Steve and I use different focal lengths to ensure we have a different look to the images. My favorite lens is the 24mm–70mm,” she says.

Given that photojournalistic coverage of weddings has become trendy, the question has to be asked of Julie—how would she describe her style or approach? Comments Julie, “Editorial/directed. As a wedding photographer you have to wear many hats. You are creating a family heirloom in the presentation of an album. You are also creating images that the family wants and above all images for the bride and groom to put on their walls. Some of our images of the couple are destined to go on the bedroom wall and not in the album. Parents want photographs with their families while mom wants a photograph posed with her daughter, not just a grab shot. People do not always stand in the right place at the right time, or in the correct pose and, above all, in the best lighting. So, they have to be directed.

“It could be said that traditional or over-posed photography is old fashioned, but all photographers should learn the skills of the trade so that you can adapt to contemporary photography. There’s a lot more to it than setting your camera to P and hoping for the best. ‘Shotgunning’—shooting thousands of images to get a few for viewing—is not good photographic practice but this is what is happening today. Unfortunately, we seem to have reached a stage where ‘the world and his wife’ with a modern DSLR and a website are calling themselves professional photographers,” says Julie. “All photographers should learn their craft and skills in photography and not mislead the general public. Too many couples are learning the hard way that bad wedding photography destroys what should be memories of a lifetime.”

As with any photography assignment, sound planning and attention to detail are essential. “We like to have one major pre-wedding session, which must be around six weeks before the event so that any adjustments to the timings can be easily dealt with. Leave the planning to the last minute and it will be too late. We work with the couple so that they can get the very best out of their day. Too little time and the day will be spoiled,” says Julie.
Two basic elements of successful wedding photography are communication and trust—and a bride and groom with great personalities. “Communicate with the client before the wedding and get their trust by being thoroughly professional from the beginning. On the day, outgoing personalities are obviously a major advantage—if you have a great couple, great venue and good weather you have the makings of fantastic imagemaking potential.

Unfortunately, everything comes together like that at only about 10 percent of weddings. Most of the time, you will find that the venue is against you, the weather is against you, you have a plank man and plank woman, wrong dress or one that doesn’t fit well, no light, very little time, and all sorts of other things that can make your life as a photographer difficult. This is where a professional photographer must work around and through all those drawbacks to create images far better than perhaps even the client expected,” she says. “You have to produce consistently good photography regardless of the situation.”

Producing great images includes coping with inclement weather, especially in the U.K., noted for its changeable weather patterns. “We work all year round and wet weather is not a problem—like all good photographers you simply have a plan if the weather is too bad, if it is dark or too cold. A favorite saying in the U.K. is, ‘If you do not like the British weather, wait a minute.’ We will shoot outside with the bridal party holding umbrellas—it makes for great photographs. Usually the couple is up for it, by gaining their trust during our previous meetings. Last year, because it was raining, we photographed a couple in a bouncy castle since it was the only dry place. They got soaked anyway but they just wanted to have some fun, so it worked out,” she says.

Powerful and dramatic lighting is a defining characteristic of Julie’s images. One unwavering approach Julie takes is to study the direction of the ambient light and plan the images accordingly. “Too many photographers look for the backgrounds and then look for the light—that simply does not work,” she says. While conceding that light in virtually any shape or form can be harnessed—even car headlights in a pinch—her favorite source is a stormy sky, overcast and replete with mood. “I definitely do not like direct sunlight but will work with it if the situation dictates,” she adds.

Julie and Steve take no chances with color and always capture images in RAW. Comments Julie, “Trying to remember what color pink the bridesmaids’ dresses were a couple of days later leaves too much to memory.” White balance is set during the shoot through the camera using Lastolite Ezybalance. Their workflow is through Adobe Lightroom and then Photoshop. Other facets of postproduction include trans-proofing images direct to the bride and groom so they can select images for their album. The wedding images are then put online for six weeks so guests can purchase images.
“We do all the design work in-house. Because we prefer to have unique albums, for our matted-style albums we use Jorgensen albums and have done so since 1999. We print all our images for the albums and reprints using the Epson Gemini system. The storybook albums are produced by Loxley’s in Scotland but we do all the design in-house with Page Gallery and then send the flatted JPEGs to the lab for production,” says Julie.

As with most successful studios, their most rewarding advertising or promotion is their internationally acclaimed word-of-mouth from satisfied customers. Other marketing approaches include a website, local and regional promotions, press releases and networking with wedding suppliers.

Another marketing and promotional tool is their highly acclaimed book Contemporary Wedding Photography (David & Charles, December 2006), a publication that started out as a relatively simple production of about 50 pages and 20,000 words that grew into a 45,000-word book containing 220 images in its 144 pages. Judging by the rave reviews the book is receiving the extra effort has been more than worth it. The initial print run of 12,000 copies sold out so a second printing was needed. The book is available through a variety of book clubs in the U.K. and on Amazon UK.
Julie and Steve have used the book’s wealth of information as the platform for an exciting range of hands-on workshop courses to provide aspiring wedding photographers with the tools to operate a successful business.

These workshops are offered through Contemporary Imaging Consultancy (www.contemporaryimagingconsultancy.com). “Our workshops are a dramatic departure from those we have witnessed over the recent past and we really encourage audience involvement. We want people to leave our workshops inspired and itching to get started on all that we teach,” says Julie.
And does Julie offer one final piece of succinct advice to wedding photographers regardless of where they ply their craft? “Above all,” she advises, “under-promise and over-deliver and you’ll always have a flow of
good customers.”

To see more of Julie Oswin’s work, visit www.contemporaryimaging.co.uk, www.fineartimages.co.uk and www.lifestyleportraits.biz.

Freelance writer/photographer and author Peter Skinner, who relocated to his native Australia in 2003 after living for 23 years in the U.S., has more than 25 years experience in the photo industry in public relations, media liaison, corporate communications, and workshop production and coordination. His magazine articles and photography have been published internationally and he has co-authored or edited numerous publications and books including the 5th and 6th editions of the authoritative ASMP Professional Business Practices in Photography (Allworth Press). His latest book is Sports Photography: How to Capture Action and Emotion (Allworth Press). He can be reached at [email protected].