While wedding trends seem to be a never-ending structure of doing this and doing that to make sure your perfect day is captured without a hitch, and that your guest also captures the atmosphere, gone are the days of suggesting that every table has a disposable camera or having an individual area for everyone to take pictures.

These new camera trends take that creatively a little bit further but are perfect for any photographer getting married or for any photographer looking to upgrade their wedding packages.

Stuart Deavall from TonerGiant shares three photo trends that engaged couples can implement into their wedding, and what wedding-goers can expect to see at weddings as we head towards 2024.

1. Polaroid picture stations 

“A fun alternative to a standard wedding guest book is a Polaroid picture station, which has grown in popularity over the last few years. To ensure that the guest book is everything you’ve hoped for on your big day, be sure to leave clear instructions for your attendees.” 

2. ‘Wall of Fame’ collages 

“Wall of fame collages are a beautiful way to showcase a bride and groom’s best moments throughout the years, and an easy way to add a personal touch to your wedding reception’s decor. Spend an evening with your partner to select your favorite photographs together and think about how you would best like to arrange your photos for a show-stopping display.”

“I would recommend using matte or glossy photo paper, with a quality inkjet printer, for printing at home. The glossy paper provides a nice, shiny appearance. However, the larger the print, the more we would recommend opting for matte photo paper. This is because the contrasts can look too strong on glossy paper for large pieces of wall art. Matte paper also has the ability to reduce light reflections- which is perfect for if you’re creating your wedding wall collage near a window, where sunlight will be beaming through!” 

3. Photo wedding place cards  

“Add a personalized touch to your special occasion by creating your own table cards. A great way to move away from the standard table card is by incorporating a photograph of each attendee, alongside their name, on their respective table card. This will add a fun appeal to your table cards and allow your guests to incorporate their favorite memories into your big day. Table cards are simple to print at home; for the best results, I would recommend using quality cards in a matte finish.”

• Nature photographer Chris Burkard offered me iPhone photography advice before my trip to Iceland.
• He said to use the wide-angle lens, put objects in the foreground, and play with lighting.
• My iPhone photos came out so much better, and I saw Iceland with a more trained eye.

Iceland is known for its otherworldly landscapes and incredible phenomena like the midnight sun and northern lights. Ahead of my visit there this summer, I wanted to know how to capture the best photos with just my iPhone 13 Mini’s camera.

Before embarking on my trip, I asked award-winning nature photographer and author Chris Burkard for his top iPhone photography tips.

Burkard has published 10 photography books and had his work featured in National Geographic Adventure, Surfer Magazine, and galleries across the US. His striking landscape shots have also earned him nearly 4 million followers on Instagram.

He gave me three main pieces of advice:

• Use the iPhone’s wide-angle lens. “Any iPhone that has the wide-angle lens is critical,” he said. “That’s one of the things that I would just make sure that you have with you. If you don’t, you’re going to be really limited.”
• Put objects in the foreground to create perspective. “I love to approach a place or a location utilizing a strong sense of foreground in order to make my background, which might be a waterfall, or whatever my hero subject is, feel more three-dimensional,” he said.
• Play around with lighting and silhouettes. “The iPhone doesn’t do super well when it’s pointed directly at the sun because the sun turns into a blown-out orb of light. The one thing I’d consider is, how can you avoid that at all costs? Sometimes I’ll hide the sun behind a leaf or behind just out of frame, or I’ll use my hand to protect the lens from the sun.”

Burkard’s tips helped me see Iceland’s natural beauty with a more trained eye, and my photos came out a thousand times better. Take a look.

Nikon Peru has come up with an ingenious campaign to prove the power of real photography over AI-generated images. In the last few months, AI image generators have claimed to be able to replace photographers offering cheaper, faster alternatives to hiring the real deal. Editorial and advertising photographers in Latin America have been particularly affected by these recent new developments but Nikon’s campaign is a testament to the beauty of what they call “Natural Intelligence”.

Using the slogan ‘Don’t give up on the real world’ Nikon found a series of surreal-looking landscapes you can actually visit, all shot on Nikon cameras. From from colorful Hornocal Mountains in Argentina (John Fowler) to the giant Renisdranger basalt stacks on Iceland’s infamous black sand beach (Marco Nürnberger), it’s hard to imagine that anything AI generated could beat these magnificent areas of beauty.

Cameras used in the campaign weren’t just the latest and greatest such as the Nikon Z9 or Nikon Z7 Mark II (in fact, they didn’t appear at all) but some of the older DSLR models including a Nikon D5100, a Nikon D850 and a Nikon D610. Not only does this campaign demonstrate that nothing can replace the beauty of real photography and you don’t even need to use the latest kit to create awe-inspiring magical images. 

• Check out the best Nikon cameras ranging from impressive entry-level models to top-spec professional systems

AI image generators such as Midjourney and Dall-E are meant to be able to create photo-realistic images from a simple text prompt but they still don’t have that true essence of reality photography offers. Programs such as Photo AI are advertised as being a more affordable alternative to hiring a photographer by offering professional studio headshots that are created using a collection of selfies you upload. But the results aren’t accurate and many of these generators are still facing issues of racial bias. Nikon’s stunning images however go to show that sometimes, the beauty of real-life locations can’t be replicated. 

Just as you would in AI, Nikon has included an imaginative prompt that you might use if you were generating the images using AI. The cliffs in Iceland for example were accompanied by the prompt /imagine prompt: a realistic Minecraft cliff at the seashore in winter season while the Hornocal Mountains in Argentina were paired with the prompt imagine/prompt: psychedelic mountain range painted in colors with expressionism art style. 

Other locations photographers include the Hallelujah Mountains (also known as the floating mountains) in the Zhangjiaje National Forest Park, China which was used as the location inspiration for the 2009 film Avatar. The Grand Canyon in the US and a lone Dragon’s Blood tree in Yemen were also featured in the campaign.

As an experiment, I used the prompts Nikon came up with and inputted them into DALL·E 2 (my go-to AI image generator is Midjourney but you needed to sign up for a subscription to use the service), and as expected, the results were underwhelming. They looked computer-generated, they didn’t possess the natural beauty of Nikon’s photographs and the AI was unable to generate images that looked truly realistic. 

So far, Nikon’s genius piece of marketing has been a roaring success in Peru leading to an increase in camera sales. But this is perhaps not the most important outcome of the campaign. It once again reiterates the importance of creativity, an artistic vision, and the photographer’s technical abilities to capture what AI cannot recreate – real, honest, beauty. 

Why not also check out the best mirrorless cameras and browse our top picks from Nikon, Canon, Sony and more

Photo: Peter Kramberger

As American Football continues to grow in Europe, we need those who will stand on the sidelines and capture their best image of the players, coaches and fans.

For Austrian photographer Hannes Jirgal, he has had this passion from a very young age when he got his first camera. Years later, his work is showcased all around Europe for many eyes to see.

AFI was able to have a chance to ask Hannes questions about his journey, experiences and opinions from his time as an American Football photographer in Europe.

AFI: How long have you been in photography?

Jirgal: I got my first camera when I was about 13 years old. At age 20 I went to art school and learned photography from scratch … (in the meantime I am 56 years old). After finishing art school, I worked in a photo studio professionally. After digital photography was invented and changed the landscape of photography totally, I basically do photography as a side job only. The meaning of photography to me has still not changed, I just do photography much more extensive and thorough,than in my early years.

 AFI: How did you get into American Football?

 Jirgal: A schoolfriend of mine had been playing as a running back for the Vienna Vikings and he invited me to a game in 1986. Since then, I have not missed a lot of Vikings games. In the beginning, I tried to be a player, however, after a severe knee injury I returned to being the photographer.

AFI: How many photos do you usually take at a game/event?

 Jirgal: It depends on the weather, the teams, the level, never less than 1,000 pics per game, in the ELF mostly about 2,000 and more.

AFI: What is your routine when photographing on game day?

Jirgal: I start by trying to be at the stadium as early as possible, viewing the facility spots and places to take the best photos from different angles and perspectives. Preparing the working space in the eventual media center, set up electricity source and W-Lan, mounting cameras to get ready. Taking photos of the arriving players, locker room situation, warm up, maybe covering fans outside, game day and hospitality events.

After that, jumping into the game, usually the league administration wants to have photos quite simultaneously sent, so I always need to work on best photos and send them right away. After years of working together we developed a great team covering the success of the Vikings over the years, mentioning the great Kiki Klepsch, Director of Communication, who is holding the reins of the Vikings Media Department with lots of empathy and professionalism.

Gameday routine starts days before, working on travel itinerary, gameday schedules and preparing equipment is essential, usually I travel with the team to every away game, stay in the same hotel, joining meals and meetings.

Hannes Jirgal sprinting to find the best shot at a San Francisco 49ers game.

AFI: What do you enjoy most about your job?

 Jirgal: That might be the hardest question, I took my first ever photo at a football game in 1986, so I had many anniversaries since. At the beginning of every football season, I ask myself if I still have the same fire and energy to cover every game, to search and go for the perfect football photo. I enjoy every new location, every play of every game. Enjoy covering the energy of this game and the boundaries and brotherhoods of many generations of football players in purple and gold.

In the meantime, sons of my old teammates play on the team, so I even be able to compare their way of playing football to their dads. It’s about creating stories, showing the colorfulness, the complexity of the sport, visible in newspapers, books, magazines, nowadays in social media. Every year, team, game, play is different, so photography has to develop the same way, it’s about reinventing photography every year, game, play.

AFI: What are your opinions on the growth of American Football in Europe?

 Jirgal: The growth of American football in Europe is quite impressive in regard of the ongoing improvement of quality of players, teams and leagues. Meaning, football in Europe is quite on a high level, especially in Germany, Austria , by chance also in Scandinavia. Especially if you compare the limited financial background of football programs in Europe. Football in Europe is based on the obsession of people, coaches, players and staff, building an environment of being able to work and train professionally without getting their input paid accordingly. In my eyes, the ELF is starting to try changing mechanisms. Viewer interest, fan bases and spectators at football events start growing, but unfortunately cannot be compared yet to the crowd watching Soccer here.

Photo: Peter Kramberger

AFI: What is your favorite experience from photographing American Football.

 Jirgal: In many years I have had great experiences taking photos at football games, most memorable ones have been taking photos in the US at high school, college football and at NFL games. Being able to take photos of Joe Montana and Jerry Rice in their active times, meeting and shooting J.J. Stokes or William Perry, attending NFL practice or meet and greets … This gave a lot of inspiration for the years to come in Europe.

Hannes continues with his passion and fire every time a new season comes around. In the eyes of Jirgal, the perfect football photo has not been captured just yet. From what it seems, this is what keeps Hannes going every season.

For Hannes, we thank you for your art, as your photos continue to shine light on American Football and help it grow in Europe one picture at a time.