Direct flash is soooo cool right now, but don’t you also want your wedding photos to feel kinda timeless? As a London wedding photographer, I see trends come and go all the time, and direct flash is definitely having its moment.

If you’re happy to have that date stamp on your photos because you know there’ll be nostalgic value in that in 20 years’ time – when you look back and say “that look was so in back then” – that’s great. But it’s worth remembering that sepia-tinted, soft-focus photos were the height of cool in the 80s. Every trend feels iconic until it suddenly doesn’t.

So it’s all guesswork. None of us, as wedding photographers, really knows whether what’s fashionable today will age beautifully or painfully. And while a lot of photographers claim to create “timeless” images, that’s kinda bullshit. We can’t promise what will feel timeless in the future.

And even if “timeless wedding photos” did exist (they don’t), my sense is that “timeless” often ends up meaning bland – stripped of any style or personality so they won’t date badly, but they also won’t make you feel much. A bit meh.

So am I contradicting myself? On one hand warning against leaning too hard into direct flash because it’s very “now”, and on the other hand warning against photos that try so hard to be timeless they lose all vibe? Maybe. But the point I’m arriving at is this: don’t go all-in on what’s fashionable, but do feel free to riff on it. Let it be part of your day, not the whole thing.

As an affordable wedding photographer in London, I’m always happy to work with trends and play around with style – direct flash included – but never at the expense of the couple’s story. The bottom line is simple: you’re the client. If you want a LOT of direct-flash photos, it’s your wedding – so you’ll get a LOT of direct-flash photos.