I will confess that being a photographer in Vegas has given me a slanted vision of chapels. Even so it appears like they have shifted a whole lot from how they used to be. Back in the day, there was no problems with choosing chapels. In most instances, you would merely get married in the place of worship you had gone to from the day you were born. Your wedding chapel was really, well, your church. It made a lot of sense, if you consider it. Although not all chapels are beautiful, the one you were raised in is the one that most correctly represents your belief. A marriage ceremony is not so much a new start as a relationship meant to be a symbol of your endless commitment to neighborhood life. Why head to some exotic locale, when you can do it at home?
Vegas chapels, certainly, are the direct opposite of this. In some ways, they actually seem to take pride in their fakeness. Vegas chapels are almost fake. Some of them have gargantuan, ornamental organs that don’t play wedding songs – just props to make an awesome, Gothic picture. Still, you can bring a compact disk with wedding songs if you have individual wedding songs you wish to have as part of your marriage ceremony.
Other ones are set up to look like ancient Egypt, or maybe a woodland scene including neon flashing trees. Basically, modern American weddings have become something much different than what they used to be. Instead of signs of continuing devotion, they are flights in to fantasy. It’s no real surprise that so very few couples survive.
Of course, as a wedding photographer, I am definitely a part of it. Wedding ceremony photography, in fact, has nothing to do with showing reality, or even character. Because images of loveliness have become more and more homogeneous, good wedding photographs ought to be digitally edited til they most nearly resemble conventional standards of loveliness. Of course, there are some couples who wish for a wedding photographer with an artistic touch, but they are less and less. Just as individuals want their weddings to be held on California seashores, they want their wedding ceremony pics to show them as California seashore dwellers – skinny, tanned, and flawless.
Don’t get me wrong – there’s nothing wrong with utilizing a wedding chapel you find beautiful. chapels should be beautiful. All about the day should be beautiful. Even so, however, it is useful to keep in mind that a wedding ceremony and a wedding party are various things. The marriage ceremony should be hushed and holy. The party is where you let go.
Tags: wedding, wedding music, wedding songs, weddings
