Quite often, couples will contact me with concerns about their wedding venue being very dark. “Is that a problem for you?” or “Can you work around that?”
The very quick answer is this – no, it’s absolutely not a problem. Not every location has access to tons of natural light. I have photographed hundreds of weddings in dark locations.
If you are looking for a wedding photographer and you have a dark wedding venue (ceremony or reception location, or both), be sure to ask your photographer about whether they use off-camera flash or just flash photography, and ask to see a sample of their work in a dark location if it isn’t obvious from their portfolio.
And I would think that the work in my portfolio would show people that I can work in dark locations, but perhaps I light them so well that people can’t tell the difference…because they still ask!
If you have a notoriously dark venue for your wedding, and a potential photographer tells you that they are ‘strictly a natural light photographer’, I would continue looking.
Listen, I love shooting with natural light. It’s very complimentary. The problem is, it is not always available, or, sometimes, you can have too much natural light (e.g. a very sunny day with no clouds or shade) and you have to use flash to fill in shadows and make a better photo.
That’s what I aim to do. Take the best photo possible.
Lighting conditions determine what tools I use to create those photos, and I am more than prepared to deal with all sorts of possibilities.
I have worked in venues that are like literal caves. Which is why I travel with my own portable lighting equipment – so that you don’t have to worry about whether you will have beautiful wedding photos!
I’ve got you covered. Your wedding is going to be lit…no matter what!
Worried about tricky lighting at your wedding venue?
Click here to contact me and we can talk all about your wedding and how I will plan to light it so we make sure the photos are beautiful!
Or, you if you want to see more of my portfolio, you can view my galleries here on my website, see my recent work here on the blog, or head over to my Instagram account.
But, I think you should contact me directly so I can show you some full galleries of weddings shot in dark or poorly lit venues. I will put your mind at ease knowing that you’re in good hands.
