My name is Erin McAllister. (EM for short). I’m happily married (really I am), but I just discovered that I may not be as happy with my wedding photos as I had previously thought. I mean, I have photos of me and the love of my life, pictures of my family, and they’re all stuffed in a nice little book. But when I saw what Nuaje Visions did for Kentrell & Marquell Harris, it kinda made me wanna get married all over again. Well, not really — but at-least I wanted to interview the man behind the camera that made it happen, Juan “Rain” Faidley.
EM: I love your work. You have a unique approach to your wedding pictures. Your couples look like models. How did that come about?
Rain: I didn’t start off doing wedding photography. I am primarily a commercial photographer who has had the pleasure of working in the fashion/glamour world. I impart non-wedding photography styles in both the engagement photo session and the actual wedding day images. Since I didn’t start off as a conventional wedding photographer, I had no choice but to bring a unique perspective to my wedding photography clients.
EM: Your pictures look so natural and un-posed. Everyone acts like you’re not even there.
Rain: I believe in natural, candid shots. I think they call it the “photo- journalistic” approach to wedding photography. In some case, I will pose a situation and then inject a little “chaos” to make it look more natural. I’m there to record your special day and not get in the way of it. That said, I am really effective at capturing the formal family portraits as well.
EM: Do you shoot a lot of weddings?
Rain: I limit the weddings I shoot. In order to keep bringing fresh looks to my clients, we avoid running a wedding photography factory. Also, since we’re not booking back-to-back weddings, we’re able to give more personal attention to the clients we do work with. Our turn-around time in completing the photo products for our clients is also very quick.
EM: I have a photo album that has a bunch of 5x7s and 8x10s slid into plastic sheets. The book you put together is actually printed with a combination of images and graphic elements. It looks incredible. It also looks expensive. What’s the story behind the album?
Rain: Everyone has a digital camera and the competition in the wedding photography market is crowded. From day one, we wanted to differentiate ourselves so the finished “fine-art” photo album is the cornerstone of our product offering. It’s a lot more involved than stuffing pictures in plastic sleeves, it takes more time to put together, and it is more expensive. When all is said and done, it’s an heirloom piece designed to live in our client’s homes for decades. Our clients wouldn’t have their special day remembered in any other way.
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