Question for Wedding Photographers, Particularly USA

So interesting news today regarding marriage.

For the wedding photographers here, have you had the opportunity to shoot a same-sex wedding? Enough to make some generalizations? Things like easier to work with, or not? (Ie, fewer demands, more relaxed, etc - no bridezillas could be a good thing, but two might be a problem!)

How about posing? Any problems there? (Specifically, there are some poses - man on bended knee, carrying the bride, etc - that seem to have defined gender roles. Do you just “shoot as if” or did you find you have to find poses where the subjects are co-equal?)

Could you tell if the same-sex couples bought more or less prints than average? Any other observations?

If it works out that same-sex weddings become permissible throughout the land, does your experience allow you to have an opinion on the impact to the photography word? Would it be a boon to us? Can you see if there would be more weddings in general? Or the additional number insignificant from a photography standpoint?

Rad

I've shot several and I can't say there are any generalities that don't apply to hetero marriages. Each couple is different. The way they relate to each other and those around them is different from person to person. They are just people like any other. Most have been very great to work with. A few have been totally obnoxious.
Regarding clothing, I've shown up for two women in dresses. Two women in tuxedos. One of each. On the male side I've never seen a dress - yet. I'm sure it may happen but I don't think it will ever be common.
I think many would be surprised to find that they take their weddings just as seriously as anyone else. For some reason I think many people expect a show - as if they are trying to make a mockery of traditional marriage. But that's just not the case. Most gay men see themselves as men and dress as such.
One thing I've found interesting is the makeup of the wedding party. In a hetero marriage you will have groomsmen on the husband side and maids of honor on the bride's side. But on a gay marriage I've see n nearly every possible combination of men and women on both sides.
Something else interesting is that since traditions for these types of marriages haven't been firmly established they tend to rely a lot on my ideas when it comes not only to photos, but the ceremony itself. For example, I was recently asked what I thought about the groomsmen and bridesmaids....should they mix them? Put girls on one side and guys on the other? If they mix them, should it be boy girl boy girl? Or should they put guys on the inside and girls on the outside? There just isn't a "standard" for this so many are looking for input. Personally I think it makes the most sense the wedding party of each to be the same sex as the person they are attending. And if not, then the same sex ones should go on the inside. I just think it balances better visually. But hey, that's just a photographer's opinion. lol

One thing I don't think many people realize is that gay marriage already happens a lot in every state. A "lot" being in line with the percentage of gays in the population. So about 2-3% of all weddings are gay marriages and the numbers probably won't change much. The only real difference is that they are working to be legally recognized. At the moment they are just ceremonies in front of friends with some kind of officiant. They have no legal basis but they happen all the same.

No matter what the case, they are just as emotional and maybe even more so than traditional marriages. To be of such a group and possibly to have spent a good deal of time in the closet, such a public ceremony can be incredibly moving. think if those who are so dead set against it saw just one of these ceremonies, many would change their minds.

Interesting read - thanks for sharing your insights kfreels.

Some interesting statistics for anyone hoping to capitalize on increase of ceremonies (marriage or civil unions or even non-legally recognized ceremonies) mostly taken from http://www.huffingtonp​ost.com …_b_1500277.html​#s=951920:

• The Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, a sexual orientation law and public policy think tank, estimates that 9 million (about 3.8%) of Americans identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (2011). The institute also found that bisexuals make up 1.8% of the population, while 1.7% are gay or lesbian.
  
• 84 Percent Of Couples Are Having A Legal Marriage Ceremony, travelling to other states if need be.
  
• The Top 3 Ways Couples Find Vendors Are: Google, Word Of Mouth And Online Directories
  
• 74 Percent Found It Very Or Somewhat Important To Hire Gay-Owned Businesses
  
• 64 Percent Of Couples Have A Wedding Party
  

kfreels, some good insightful experience there! Certainly timely!

Wilt wrote in post #14411416
Some interesting statistics for anyone hoping to capitalize on increase of ceremonies (marriage or civil unions or even non-legally recognized ceremonies) mostly taken from http://www.huffingtonp​ost.com …_b_1500277.html​#s=951920:

• The Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, a sexual orientation law and public policy think tank, estimates that 9 million (about 3.8%) of Americans identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (2011). The institute also found that bisexuals make up 1.8% of the population, while 1.7% are gay or lesbian.
  
• 84 Percent Of Couples Are Having A Legal Marriage Ceremony, travelling to other states if need be.
  
• The Top 3 Ways Couples Find Vendors Are: Google, Word Of Mouth And Online Directories
  
• 74 Percent Found It Very Or Somewhat Important To Hire Gay-Owned Businesses
  
• 64 Percent Of Couples Have A Wedding Party
  

So one might conclude that you need to live in a state that recognizes gay marriage or civil unions (NOT the majority of states!), you need to be gay/lesbian yourself, and you need to promote yourself on Google or amass enough references to spread word of mouth about your photographic specialization.

I don't buy that need to be gay. I think more important is that you are referred by someone whom you've shot previously that they were comfortable with and that they trusted. I stumbled into such a wedding many years ago when a gay family member needed someone to shoot for them. I just took it all in stride as any other job and just did my best to get them pics they liked and they were thrilled.After that I was referred to several others.

Wilt wrote in post #14411416
Some interesting statistics for anyone hoping to capitalize on increase of ceremonies (marriage or civil unions or even non-legally recognized ceremonies) mostly taken from http://www.huffingtonp​ost.com …_b_1500277.html​#s=951920:

• The Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, a sexual orientation law and public policy think tank, estimates that 9 million (about 3.8%) of Americans identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender (2011). The institute also found that bisexuals make up 1.8% of the population, while 1.7% are gay or lesbian.
  
• 84 Percent Of Couples Are Having A Legal Marriage Ceremony, travelling to other states if need be.
  
• The Top 3 Ways Couples Find Vendors Are: Google, Word Of Mouth And Online Directories
  
• 74 Percent Found It Very Or Somewhat Important To Hire Gay-Owned Businesses
  
• 64 Percent Of Couples Have A Wedding Party

So one might conclude that you need to live in a state that recognizes gay marriage or civil unions (NOT the majority of states!), you need to be gay/lesbian yourself, and you need to promote yourself on Google or amass enough references to spread word of mouth about your photographic specialization.

Interesting....when I read the OP's post, my first thought was that a gay couple would be far more likely to want to hire a gay photographer if possible. I could be wrong, but I would think that a gay couple would want to hire someone with whom they felt could relate the best to their situation (assuming good picture quality).

jra wrote in post #14419003
Interesting....when I read the OP's post, my first thought was that a gay couple would be far more likely to want to hire a gay photographer if possible. I could be wrong, but I would think that a gay couple would want to hire someone with whom they felt could relate the best to their situation (assuming good picture quality).

I'm not a wedding photographer but I would go along with that reasoning.

jra wrote in post #14419003
Interesting....when I read the OP's post, my first thought was that a gay couple would be far more likely to want to hire a gay photographer if possible. I could be wrong, but I would think that a gay couple would want to hire someone with whom they felt could relate the best to their situation (assuming good picture quality).

Nope. This thread got me curious so I called a few couples that I knew would be happy to answer questions and asked about this. Although they do find it important to buy from gay owned business when all things are equal, when it comes to a wedding - that once in a lifetime event, the emphasis is on having someone who will capture that in a way that they like. Your artistic "vision" is paramount. Of course the comfort level is almost as important because if you aren't comfortable you can't bring out that vision. If two photographers are competing and one is gay and the gay photographer's vision matches what they want, then of course they will go that way. But if they like your work better and are comfortable with you, most won't choose someone who's work they like less just because they are gay.

kfreels wrote in post #14420910
Nope. This thread got me curious so I called a few couples that I knew would be happy to answer questions and asked about this. Although they do find it important to buy from gay owned business when all things are equal, when it comes to a wedding - that once in a lifetime event, the emphasis is on having someone who will capture that in a way that they like. Your artistic "vision" is paramount. Of course the comfort level is almost as important because if you aren't comfortable you can't bring out that vision. If two photographers are competing and one is gay and the gay photographer's vision matches what they want, then of course they will go that way. But if they like your work better and are comfortable with you, most won't choose someone who's work they like less just because they are gay.

Excellent points!