Lapland is a dim place this time of year. It is even dimmer when it’s overcast. And that dimness only lasts for six hours or so. Otherwise it is dark.

Inside, things are only marginally better. Lights are mostly of the low-power tungsten variety. They are intended to glow rather than illuminate.

For an ambient light photographer, that makes things tricky.

I was in a world of 1/20th at f/1.8.

And that at ISO3200 or 6400.

If you’re a photographer, you’ll know that those are numbers to make you go unstable at the knees. If you’re not a photographer, curl up in a ball on the floor and roll around for ten minutes whimpering, “Mummy, Mummy, Mummy.” That’ll give you an idea of the horror those numbers represent.

The angels on my shoulder

A decade ago, I would have had to bite the bullet and photograph the wedding using flash.

I hate flash for documentary work. It produces photographs that bear no resemblance to what things looked like.

This was a dark wedding. The photographs had to show that.

Digital camera technology has progressed dramatically, though. While I can’t say the three cameras I had available to me are entirely comfortable at ISO3200, they did their job. In one instance, beyond what I felt was possible. That’s a post for another day. For now, it is enough to say that as yesterday’s murkiness enveloped me I was in good company.

Here is a quick selection of files that I worked on last night while backing up all of the files on to two separate drives. They are rough cuts and there is an imbalance in the coverage of the day. I’ll post a more complete set when I get back to Ireland. For now, these will give you a flavour of the day.

There weren

The groom and his son getting their ties on © Roger Overall 2011

The two stars of the day. That

Talk about practical. A torch mounted in a lipstick applicator to help overcome the murkiness in the cabin © Roger Overall 2011

When this happened, my mind just went,

Natural grace and poise. I couldn

When luck meets the prepared, special things happen. I

Flash would have ruined this © Roger Overall 2011

The final act of the day was the release of about 30 of these lanterns © Roger Overall 2011

Motorcycles leave me even colder. This is good news, as it means my mid-life crisis is unlikely to morph into a desire to dress up like a Rolling Stones roadie and straddle a chrome-encrusted noise factory so low slung that my rear end is barely four inches off the tarmac.

Not all men are so lucky. Earlier this year a crowd of bike enthusiasts gathered outside the Brehon hotel in Killarney for some kind of bikefest. Regrettably, it coincided with the reception of the wedding I was photographing. My eyes are still hurting at the sight of so much middle-aged blubber oozing out from under tight T-shirts and over the waists of even tighter leather slacks. And everyone walking about as if they’d scalp you if you glanced at them the wrong way. That’s a hard look to pull off when you are so clearly a purchasing clerk, or an accountant, or an insurance broker, or whatever office-imprisoned dullard in real life. Do honest-to-God warriors of the road really have Gold Member credit cards and rooms in four-star hotels?

As for the noise – it was like being punched in the ear. What is the point of riding something so loud it makes the flower girls cry?

The only redeeming feature of the bikes parked outside the hotel (if you discount the release of dopamine and adrenalin from laughing so much at the sight of a ‘Goldwing’, surely the most comedic bicycle ever built) was the fact that the occasional mirror allowed me to produce an interesting take on the wedding reception.**

This photograph was harder to take than it looks as I had to contort my body to get the right angle. In the end, I had to crop a little of the mirror (and myself) out of the frame. (c) Roger Overall 2011

*That said, I did enjoy touring the surrounds of Arles in July in a classic Porsche 911. Though this was likely more to do with the friendly and engaging company, the endless talk about photography, and the availability of good food and wine at the end of each ride than with the car itself.

**Don’t even think about suggesting what a great photograph it would have made to get the bride and groom to go on a bike.

Often, as photographers we tend to concentrate on a detail. We like to isolate particular things, actions or people. In this instance, I could have stepped in and filled the frame with the groom editing his speech. I could have gone even further and just photographed the pen in his hand writing on the paper. That would have been a very limited story, though. By stepping back, and I mean way back and including the environment, the story expands. To me, this says something of the separation of bride and groom on the morning of their wedding.

Editing (c) Roger Overall 2011

It was a very revealing exercise.

Turns out, I spend a lot of time on my knees.

Below is a small selection of photographs alternating between Fergul’s photograph of me and the photograph I was taking.

(c) Fergul McClean/Diamond Photography 2011

(c) Roger Overall 2011

(c) Fergul McClean/Diamond Photography 2011

(c) Roger Overall 2011

(c) Fergul McClean/Diamond Photography 2011

(c) Roger Overall 2011

That’s what today’s photograph is all about. It’s a scene-setter. Nothing dramatic, but it will in the years to come help the couple recall the odd weather of the day.

Summer in Ireland (c) Roger Overall 2011

This year, my three back-to-back weddings are a Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. I had a verbal booking for the Saturday as well, but that fell through. In a way, I’m relieved. Four weddings in a row is probably one too many.

For the next three days, I’ll post a quick photography from each day.

Yesterday, I was in Adare. I’ve chosen this photograph because of the light, the pattern and the symmetry, and because it proves that photographers and videographers can work together.

To take the photograph, I stood behind filmmaker Maurice O’Carroll of Velvetine Studios, who had taken the low, crouched position. Maurice and I have worked together quite a few times, and we always get into a rhythm quickly on the weddings we cover together. Honestly, it’s a bit like a ballet, the way we move around each other – though I did almost run him over today in my car. He filmed the whole thing. Who knows, he may post the footage one day? Because Maurice was low he wasn’t blocking anyone’s view while he filmed. I took a quick shot from the high position and moved away so the congregation could see.

(c) Roger Overall 2011

I would choose the 24mm because I like to show context in my photographs. Rather than zoom in on a detail, I prefer to step back and show the surrounding story. It also allows me to show multiple worlds in a single frame, something that is much harder with a 50mm lens.

Sometimes, though, 24mm isn’t quite wide enough. For the picture below, I would have loved a little more, pressed up against the corridor wall as I was. Almost a great photograph.

(c) Roger Overall 2011

Earlier this year, Doug was due to give a week-long seminar on documentary photography in the US. I couldn’t attend. I would dearly have liked to. I hope the opportunity presents itself again in different circumstances.

Even though I wasn’t able to go, I did learn something from the seminar – or, more accurately, from the promotional material about it on the web, which contained a photograph. Maybe there were more, but one photograph sticks in my my mind and taught me something. Ironically, I can’t recall exactly what the photograph was of, merely that it was of a thing rather than of a person. It taught me that documentary photographs don’t have to include human beings.

Wedding photographers will cry en masse that they have known this for years. After all, the average wedding album is laden with detail shots of the shoes, the bouquet, the rings, the table placings and so on.

Yet I don’t think that a photograph of a detail is the equivalent of storytelling – the point of documentary photography. Let me explain.

If you photograph the shoes, for instance, what is the story? Obviously, they are important to the bride. But that isn’t the story. A more useful question would be, “Why are they important to the bride?” The answer to that question is a story.

That said, there may be a story in the shoes. An example could be their intricate nature that hints at an artisan manufacturer. Yet rarely is that expressed in a detail shot of the shoes. Generally, the shoe shot in a wedding album is little more than a statement.

I suppose what I’m getting at is the difference between setting the scene (a factual detail shot) and establishing a rich narrative (a story-infused detail shot).

So while a record of the shoes may be a valid component of the story of a wedding day, I have come to feel that the narrative of an object should be more than merely, “Here it is”.

Here’s an example.

The veil. (c) Roger Overall 2011

Why do I think that this is a narrative detail shot? I think it tells you a lot of story about the veil. It tells you how long it is by placing it in a context. It also tells you about its texture and transparency. Together, both of those things suggest why the bride chose it.

As you can tell, I’ve started to view detail photographs very differently. All because of a single image in on a promotional website. I have to marvel at how much more I’d have learned if I had actually had the chance to sit at Doug’s knee for a week to learn.

One thing I would like to do here is give a big, public thank you to Mike Hutt of Aquarius Photography and Con Scanlon of Anvil Studios, both of whom loaned me cameras last month when my second body had to go for urgent repair.

Mike also loaned me his Canon 50mm f/1.2 lens. This lens generally gets a bad press.

Let me give you a mini-review based on my own experience:

O. M. G.

If I decide to stay with Canon as my main camera system I shall buy one.

Meanwhile, the busy Christmas period means lots of photographs to show and discuss.

I like a reflection, as regular readers already know. I also like to capture my subject in a splash of light. If I can get both: happy days! I set the exposure for the pool of light and waited for the groom to appear. Then it was down to luck. The groom appeared fixing his collar, which adds story to the photograph. Only afterwards did I really notice all the triangles and sharp corners in the frame, which I think really enhance it. I also like the shadow on the wall on the right. It adds a quirkiness. (c) Roger Overall 2010

For the bride and her entourage, wedding day clothes are a big deal. Much less so for the guys. In fact, I went out and bought a new pair of shoes on the morning of my own wedding. So it's not uncommon for the lads to be putting on their suits on the day and only then notice various tags that need attention. Teeth, bread knives, scissors - anything will do, really. In addition, the clock gives us a time check that adds some a chronological anchor. (c) Roger Overall 2010

Women are amazing. They know everything about clothes. Even men's clothes. More impressive still is that this is the bride. To me, this picture tells an awful lot about Kristel. She is calm, authoritative and has the respect of others. The kind of person you go to with a problem you need help with. She is cool when others might feel pressure and accommodating when others might not be (this is the morning of her wedding, don't forget). (c) Roger Overall 2010

What can I say? Flower girls just melt your heart every time. From a documentary photographer's point of view, they are the best invention ever. (c) Roger Overall 2010

A fluke. He looks as if he is holding the door open. Yet if he were, he'd be about eight feet tall, or have arms of similar length. There is something Escheresque about this picture that appeals to me, though at the time I was merely concentrating on his gesture. (c) Roger Overall 2010

Wedding guests often go off into their own little microcosms that are worth keeping an eye on. The father and his child are in a bubble of their own. A lovely moment amidst the bustle. I saw the interaction and decided to stand face-on to them, placing them at the edge of the frame, where your eye comes to rest. Then it was a case of waiting for the right moment. (c) Roger Overall 2010

The most story is often in the smallest gestures. (c) Roger Overall 2010

You don't need to be standing right on top of the bride and groom to tell the best story. By stepping back, you give context and something for your eye to dwell on. (c) Roger Overall 2010

I find getting a good shot on the receiving line is either dead easy or absurdly hard. Ideally, I look for interaction between both the bride and groom and their guests. Sometimes, it just isn't working for me and I can't seem to get it. A cluttered line of sight is most often the problem. Here, though, there was plenty of space in which to move and free up my view. (c) Roger Overall 2010

A light shining above a group of talking people is always a promising situation. Especially if they are enjoying themselves. One of them is bound to throw their head back in laughter, illuminating their face. (c) Roger Overall 2010

It is comparatively rare to see the groom discussing his ring with his friends. For a shot like this, in a crowded room, I like to get close. Often you blend in better by standing nearby, particularly in small spaces with lots of people. Groups talking amongst themselves rarely pay much heed to anything outside their circle. (c) Roger Overall 2010

It's a long day for children. (c) Roger Overall 2010

This is a very special photograph for me. Not only does it show a terrific moment, but it shows two brides whose weddings I've photographed embracing. (c) Roger Overall 2010

The area around seating plans is always a rich hunting ground for documentary photographers. I was able to get an elevated view on some stairs and then simply waited to see what happened. (c) Roger Overall 2010

I spent a lot of the time over the Christmas holiday period shooting at slow speeds at high ISO. Here, I was able to rest the camera on a railing, allowing a slowish shutter speed to get a hint of motion blur. The Canon 5DII autofocus is truly miserable so there was no hope of the camera locking on and holding focus as people walked towards me. Instead, I pre-focused and popped the shutter when someone walked into range. (c) Roger Overall 2010

Taken before the couple went into dinner, three things come together here: the reflection, the groom fiddling with his newly acquired ring and the bride's expression. It often happens on wedding days that the short time before the bride and groom go in to dinner is one of the few chances they have to chat to each other. I often hang back for a few minutes as these moments are usually full of photographs. I don't linger too long though. I don't want to intrude on this precious time together. (c) Roger Overall 2010