Wedding Series: Photographer Wedding Terminology 101

A Client’s Guide to Wedding Photographer Terms

As photographers, we use a lot of terminology that you may not understand. This article is to help you get to know some of our terms in regard to your wedding photography.

  • Traditional – Traditional wedding photos are the standard portraits, poses, and events taken at weddings. These are the images that we get at every wedding, no matter what. For example, bride and groom standing side by side looking at the camera, or the exchanging of rings and kiss during the ceremony.


  • CandidCandid images are photos that are not planned, but are taken as they happen. They are very much in the moment and are different for every single wedding. They aren’t posed or forced.


  • PinterestThis is when a photo is posed via a style that can be found on the popular website, Pinterest. We often have clients show us Pinterest boards they’ve created of different images they like.


  • Romantic – These are images that are based on the couple and shows them interacting with one another and being lovey toward each other. They are sweet and more natural poses.


  • Fun – Fun photos are spontaneous, in the moment photos where the couple or bridal party acts silly and loosens up as opposed to the sometimes stiff feeling of formal photos.


  • Details – Detail shots are just that – pictures of details, like the flowers, your rings, place settings, shoes, jewelry, etc.


  • Formals – Formal photos are typically done after the ceremony (sometimes before) where the family and bridal party gets together with the bride and groom and takes photos where everyone is looking at the camera and smiling. There are a variety of photo groups here depending on the family bridal party sizes and with whom you want photos.


  • RAW – This term is used to describe the files before they go through their editing process. 


  • JPEG – A JPEG is the type of file your images are converted to after they are edited and the format that most photos are printed from.


  • Editing – This is where we adjust your photos. If we need to make them brighter or darker or enhance the colors. This is our editing process. We can also take the color out and make the image a black and white photo. 


  • Proof – Your proofs will be an album of the best images from your wedding, but not the final version.