T. rex and guest. Sharktopus and guest.
July 6, 2013 6:54 AM Subscribe
Photoshopping monsters into your wedding photos is now a thing. It started not that long ago, when a wedding photo featuring a T. rex chasing the wedding party went very, very viral. Now it seems every couple getting married wants a shot of the wedding party fleeing a threat to be pasted in later. From the Maclean's article: "'We're still trying to figure out what goes in the background,' [photographer] Tony [Lombardo] says. 'The couple hasn’t figured out yet what they want to be chased by.'" AT-ATs and Sharktopus have already been done. It's already getting old. Has it already gone too far [via]?
Honestly, showing your wedding photos to anyone outside of your immediate friends and family long ago went to far. People, I am happy for you in the abstract; now please get married, enjoy your lives, and stop telling me about it.
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:00 AM on July 6, 2013 [21 favorites]
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:00 AM on July 6, 2013 [21 favorites]
Regrettably The Office is no longer around to ape this brief trend two years after its termination.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:00 AM on July 6, 2013 [9 favorites]
posted by shakespeherian at 7:00 AM on July 6, 2013 [9 favorites]
Attention is the new money.
posted by davebush at 7:01 AM on July 6, 2013 [22 favorites]
posted by davebush at 7:01 AM on July 6, 2013 [22 favorites]
If my wife and I were to get married today I'd get a shot of us running away from our guests, who would be carrying Photoshopped pitchforks and torches.
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:02 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:02 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
A divorce lawyer would work.
posted by spitbull at 7:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by spitbull at 7:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
Photoshopping monsters into your wedding photos is now a thing.
No. No, it isn't.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
No. No, it isn't.
posted by Thorzdad at 7:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
I'd rather have Dean Stockwell and Scott Bakula Photoshopped into my photos.
What's the status, Ziggy?
posted by Redfield at 7:20 AM on July 6, 2013 [8 favorites]
What's the status, Ziggy?
posted by Redfield at 7:20 AM on July 6, 2013 [8 favorites]
Attention is the new money.
Cory Doctorow is holding for you on line 5.
posted by localroger at 7:23 AM on July 6, 2013 [10 favorites]
Cory Doctorow is holding for you on line 5.
posted by localroger at 7:23 AM on July 6, 2013 [10 favorites]
Whatever, this couple was being chased by a zombie in 2011. 2013 is so passé!
posted by Anonymous at 7:26 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by Anonymous at 7:26 AM on July 6, 2013
Damn, you know you're getting old when you only hear about "things" after they have already been declared passé.
posted by Curious Artificer at 7:30 AM on July 6, 2013 [18 favorites]
posted by Curious Artificer at 7:30 AM on July 6, 2013 [18 favorites]
I prefer these monstrous photos to the cliche photo of the dad(s) with their pockets turned inside out.
posted by vespabelle at 7:31 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by vespabelle at 7:31 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
Thorzdad: "Photoshopping monsters into your wedding photos is now a thing.
No. No, it isn't."
Saying something "is now a thing" is now a thing.
posted by symbioid at 7:37 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
No. No, it isn't."
Saying something "is now a thing" is now a thing.
posted by symbioid at 7:37 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
Modern weddings have become overblown and narcissistic according to Rev Dr Giles Fraser. But are brides to blame or the industry that has turned getting married into a mega shopping trip?
posted by robbyrobs at 7:38 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by robbyrobs at 7:38 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Oh I love that someday that zombie couple will look back and say "Ha haha, I can't believe we were ever so much into that Zombie fad... hahaha!"
posted by symbioid at 7:40 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by symbioid at 7:40 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
> Damn, you know you're getting old when you only hear about "things" after they have already been declared passé.
Don't feel bad. When we were young, things could be Things all year, or at least for a few months. Weeks for sure. Well...days, anyway.
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:40 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
Don't feel bad. When we were young, things could be Things all year, or at least for a few months. Weeks for sure. Well...days, anyway.
posted by The Card Cheat at 7:40 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
Yeah, go back to standing in boring ranks, maybe in front of a church. The last thing we want is people looking at these photos.
posted by DU at 7:45 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by DU at 7:45 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
Is this the 'Bridezilla' I've heard young people talk about?
posted by Segundus at 7:46 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by Segundus at 7:46 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
Newsflash. You're still allowed to Photoshop monsters into your wedding photos. Don't allow people to spoil your fun for the sake of fashion. Things are too old when you say they're too old.
posted by zoo at 7:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [18 favorites]
posted by zoo at 7:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [18 favorites]
Yeah, go back to standing in boring ranks, maybe in front of a church. The last thing we want is people looking at these photos.
There's a huge, creative, attractive land sitting between "stand in boring ranks" and "Nerdgasm w/ dinosaurs"
posted by Thorzdad at 7:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
There's a huge, creative, attractive land sitting between "stand in boring ranks" and "Nerdgasm w/ dinosaurs"
posted by Thorzdad at 7:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
I like the photos, and I have to say the more disturbing trend is declaring everything fun that anybody does, if they have the temerity to share it via social media, to be an act of narcissism.
A giant guy with a sword riding a shark out of a fountain? That's a million times better than a T. Rex.
I mean, Jesus, a few days ago we had a thread about marriages encouraging people to be fun-sucking monsters because they are unbearable narcissists, and now we have one in which people having fun are narcissists.
I would like to ask that we declare a moratorium on calling people we have not met narcissists based on intentions that we ascribe to them in their absence. But, then, I would also like it if the web stopped picking over itself to find things to hate.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 7:48 AM on July 6, 2013 [37 favorites]
A giant guy with a sword riding a shark out of a fountain? That's a million times better than a T. Rex.
I mean, Jesus, a few days ago we had a thread about marriages encouraging people to be fun-sucking monsters because they are unbearable narcissists, and now we have one in which people having fun are narcissists.
I would like to ask that we declare a moratorium on calling people we have not met narcissists based on intentions that we ascribe to them in their absence. But, then, I would also like it if the web stopped picking over itself to find things to hate.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 7:48 AM on July 6, 2013 [37 favorites]
In my wedding photos my bride and I will be chased by aged, decrepit versions of ourselves, representing our fear of sickness and death. But in the sequence of photos we have stumbled and fallen, and Time has caught us and begins to devour us. "You are already dying," the priest will tell us during the ceremony. "You are practically dead already. What does one wedding matter? What does anything matter."
... Metafilter's own Thomas Ligotti?
posted by Renoroc at 7:49 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
... Metafilter's own Thomas Ligotti?
posted by Renoroc at 7:49 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yeah, lately it really seems like the Internet definition of "narcissist" is "someone who I suspect may be enjoying themselves."
posted by en forme de poire at 7:54 AM on July 6, 2013 [22 favorites]
posted by en forme de poire at 7:54 AM on July 6, 2013 [22 favorites]
My AVG caught a virus attack from one of the first two links of the original post.
posted by jjj606 at 8:01 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by jjj606 at 8:01 AM on July 6, 2013
Needs more Slender Man.
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 8:09 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 8:09 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
Modern weddings have become overblown and narcissistic according to Rev Dr Giles Fraser. But are brides to blame or the industry that has turned getting married into a mega shopping trip?
There's a current thread on this with some thoughtful critique of the "narcissist" label.
posted by Miko at 8:09 AM on July 6, 2013
There's a current thread on this with some thoughtful critique of the "narcissist" label.
posted by Miko at 8:09 AM on July 6, 2013
Given the whole 'de facto' thing, I think all wedding ceremonies are a little self-indulgent. But you know what: I think this second black Russian is a little self-indulgent, and I'm going to drink it anyway.
posted by pompomtom at 8:13 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by pompomtom at 8:13 AM on July 6, 2013
Avast isn't showing an anti-virus warning on that link - let me know if anybody else has trouble with it.
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:14 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by LobsterMitten at 8:14 AM on July 6, 2013
"Yeah, lately it really seems like the Internet definition of 'narcissist' is 'someone who I suspect may be enjoying themselves.'"
Calling people narcissists is now a thing.
Or, like Bunny Ultramod wrote, diagnosing people as narcissist from afar is a thing. It's sort of contemporaneous with beginning of counting the first-person pronouns in the President's speeches (which commentators have done with both Bush and Obama) as proof of narcissism.
What bugs me is that narcissism as a personality disorder really is not at all like "self-love" and it's not quite like "self-obsession", either. Being vain and selfish are garden variety vices that most people have to various degrees. Actual narcissism is toxic. Although diagnosed narcissists would say otherwise. Naturally.
"There's a current thread on this with some thoughtful critique of the 'narcissist' label."
Yeah, and one thing not explicitly discussed in that thread is the gender implications of that particular label as opposed to other pejorative terms and disparagement of brides and extravagant weddings.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 8:16 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
Calling people narcissists is now a thing.
Or, like Bunny Ultramod wrote, diagnosing people as narcissist from afar is a thing. It's sort of contemporaneous with beginning of counting the first-person pronouns in the President's speeches (which commentators have done with both Bush and Obama) as proof of narcissism.
What bugs me is that narcissism as a personality disorder really is not at all like "self-love" and it's not quite like "self-obsession", either. Being vain and selfish are garden variety vices that most people have to various degrees. Actual narcissism is toxic. Although diagnosed narcissists would say otherwise. Naturally.
"There's a current thread on this with some thoughtful critique of the 'narcissist' label."
Yeah, and one thing not explicitly discussed in that thread is the gender implications of that particular label as opposed to other pejorative terms and disparagement of brides and extravagant weddings.
posted by Ivan Fyodorovich at 8:16 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
I loved the T-rex photo. It was creative and original. The idea that it's being mimicked by other photographers and couples is neither creative nor original. If they're having fun with it, awesome, but as an outsider I don't find it interesting. It's basically just, "Look, we did it too!"
Having said that, it's really hard to hire a good wedding photographer. The vast majority of wedding photographers are horrible. If they possess technical expertise (camera, lighting, etc), and if they conduct their business professionally—two huge ifs—then their composition and poses are tremendously uninspiring. It all looks the same, and it's all boring. And the remaining few wedding photographers who do consistently spectacular work that's thoughtful and unique to each couple? They'll charge you an arm and a leg and your firstborn, not including prints.
So I get why T-rex is becoming a crutch: Any new pose or idea is going to be jumped on eagerly, because everybody's been working from the same shitty book for years. If this inspires them to be a little more creative, to step outside that box and maybe try a few more ideas too, then that's a good thing.
posted by cribcage at 8:16 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
Having said that, it's really hard to hire a good wedding photographer. The vast majority of wedding photographers are horrible. If they possess technical expertise (camera, lighting, etc), and if they conduct their business professionally—two huge ifs—then their composition and poses are tremendously uninspiring. It all looks the same, and it's all boring. And the remaining few wedding photographers who do consistently spectacular work that's thoughtful and unique to each couple? They'll charge you an arm and a leg and your firstborn, not including prints.
So I get why T-rex is becoming a crutch: Any new pose or idea is going to be jumped on eagerly, because everybody's been working from the same shitty book for years. If this inspires them to be a little more creative, to step outside that box and maybe try a few more ideas too, then that's a good thing.
posted by cribcage at 8:16 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
This is all well and good until a Sharktopus actually attacks a wedding and no one does anything. Then it becomes like the boy who cried "Sharktopus."
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 8:17 AM on July 6, 2013 [24 favorites]
posted by dances_with_sneetches at 8:17 AM on July 6, 2013 [24 favorites]
I loved the T-rex photo. It was creative and original. The idea that it's being mimicked by other photographers and couples is neither creative nor original. If they're having fun with it, awesome, but as an outsider I don't find it interesting. It's basically just, "Look, we did it too!"
After much consideration I have decided that it's possible that two people getting married isn't always about me.
posted by shakespeherian at 8:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
After much consideration I have decided that it's possible that two people getting married isn't always about me.
posted by shakespeherian at 8:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
Oops...I thought I was posting on MetaFilter, not their wedding guestbook. Mods, please delete?
posted by cribcage at 8:29 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
posted by cribcage at 8:29 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
At least it's not another "Harlem Shake" or "Dancing Bridal Party Entrance" video.
Those are so past their freshness date they come with a Friendster account.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 8:41 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
Those are so past their freshness date they come with a Friendster account.
posted by Pirate-Bartender-Zombie-Monkey at 8:41 AM on July 6, 2013 [6 favorites]
We'll know when it's gone too far when the wedding party is on water skis and flying over a ravenous shark.
posted by Eekacat at 8:43 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
posted by Eekacat at 8:43 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
The Best Wedding Party Photo Of All Time
Ah, the old "Buzzfeed Hyperbole Channeling Effect." I know it well.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 8:44 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Ah, the old "Buzzfeed Hyperbole Channeling Effect." I know it well.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 8:44 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
I remember my last wedding photo, we tried having the photographer Photoshop in a divorce court. It looked good on paper.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 8:46 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 8:46 AM on July 6, 2013
Is there one of Ents chasing the Sean Parker party?
posted by bukvich at 8:53 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by bukvich at 8:53 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
These are private photographs meant to be enjoyed by the couple and their friends and family, not to be criticized by the entire world. I'm sure the critics in this thread would be appalled if we critiqued aspects of their own weddings and commented on how crass, narcissistic, banal and just plain played-out everything was, and isn't sea foam so 2004?
posted by sid at 9:01 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by sid at 9:01 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Has it already gone too far?
What a strange question to ask about someone else's wedding photos.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 9:03 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
What a strange question to ask about someone else's wedding photos.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 9:03 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
Photoshop Marc Bolan of T. Rex into your wedding and birthing photos.
"Here's Marc Bolan dancing right out the womb".
posted by Redfield at 9:05 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
"Here's Marc Bolan dancing right out the womb".
posted by Redfield at 9:05 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
There's a huge, creative, attractive land sitting between "stand in boring ranks" and "Nerdgasm w/ dinosaurs"
There's also a huge distance between "a few people have done it and scored as a trend to the NYT" and an actual trend that needs bucking against.
posted by DU at 9:05 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
There's also a huge distance between "a few people have done it and scored as a trend to the NYT" and an actual trend that needs bucking against.
posted by DU at 9:05 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
My wife and I have one where we're running away from gluten.
No, not really.
posted by ODiV at 9:30 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
No, not really.
posted by ODiV at 9:30 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
My wife and I have one where we're running away from gluten.
But then the gluten transforms into a harmless granny carrying a plate of warm chocolate-chip cookies, dishing out old-timey advice.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 9:35 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
But then the gluten transforms into a harmless granny carrying a plate of warm chocolate-chip cookies, dishing out old-timey advice.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 9:35 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
These are private photographs meant to be enjoyed by the couple and their friends and family
Precisely. So why am I seeing them?
posted by davebush at 9:35 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
Precisely. So why am I seeing them?
posted by davebush at 9:35 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
Until we're somehow forced to sit and look at repetitions of these photographs, I'm happy to keep voluntarily looking at them to see how creative or uncreative they might be. Giant Barney with eye lasers? Sure, why not!
posted by Atreides at 9:43 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Atreides at 9:43 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
I've always been a little fascinated by the thought process, Wow! That's so original! Let's copy it!
posted by Sys Rq at 9:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by Sys Rq at 9:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
Complaining about things being a thing is a thing. Complaining about complaining about things being a thing is also a thing. Being a thing, on the other hand, is not a thing. It was over before it began; don't bother starting: it's already done. Look at the fucking hipsters looking at fucking hipsters being fucking hipsters and complaining about them being fucking hipsters. Fucking hipsters. I hate narcissists mostly because they have nothing to say about me.
That should cover it.
posted by mcwetboy at 9:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
That should cover it.
posted by mcwetboy at 9:47 AM on July 6, 2013 [15 favorites]
I wish that "a thing" would stop being a thing.
posted by jonmc at 9:50 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by jonmc at 9:50 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
what cribcage said about wedding photographers. And not only is it hard to find a good one, it's hard to know what you want from a wedding photographer. Do you want one of those stage-y albums that looks (to me, at least) like an ad brochure with close ups of your shoes? Do you want an album of excellent portraits, documenting precisely everyone who was there dressed in their finest? Do you want a documentary album, showing all the "moments"? Do you just want candid shots, taken with a really good camera by someone who knows how to shoot in bad light and bad circumstance? How do you get that across to the person you hire who only gets one chance to get it right?
These photos strike me as a reaction to people ending up with wedding photography packages that mean nothing to them and don't fit with their ideas of themselves. So, me and twelve of my best friends have to trapse around all day, being posed in these dresses while someone takes pictures of us when we just wanted to be dancing at the reception? Seriously, can't we do something fun? People like them and that's great and they will undoubtedly look ridiculous just a few years after the fact (like those faux tintypes you have taken at amusement parks). It seems horribly petty to label them a "trend of [negative stereotype]"
I think the actual negative trend here is gawking at, and generalizing from, things people put on the internet. Yes, the internet is public and if you put it there, someone you don't know/don't intend as the audience will see it. But the internet is also how we share with our friends and family. Just because you can see my pictures on the internet does not mean I intended you to see my pictures on the internet nor that I put them there to prove something about myself, even if I did very little to control their dissemination. It's easy to share on the internet; it's hard to share selectively on the internet. The assumption that something is on the internet in order to impress everyone that sees it is a very toxic assumption indeed.
posted by crush-onastick at 9:52 AM on July 6, 2013 [19 favorites]
These photos strike me as a reaction to people ending up with wedding photography packages that mean nothing to them and don't fit with their ideas of themselves. So, me and twelve of my best friends have to trapse around all day, being posed in these dresses while someone takes pictures of us when we just wanted to be dancing at the reception? Seriously, can't we do something fun? People like them and that's great and they will undoubtedly look ridiculous just a few years after the fact (like those faux tintypes you have taken at amusement parks). It seems horribly petty to label them a "trend of [negative stereotype]"
I think the actual negative trend here is gawking at, and generalizing from, things people put on the internet. Yes, the internet is public and if you put it there, someone you don't know/don't intend as the audience will see it. But the internet is also how we share with our friends and family. Just because you can see my pictures on the internet does not mean I intended you to see my pictures on the internet nor that I put them there to prove something about myself, even if I did very little to control their dissemination. It's easy to share on the internet; it's hard to share selectively on the internet. The assumption that something is on the internet in order to impress everyone that sees it is a very toxic assumption indeed.
posted by crush-onastick at 9:52 AM on July 6, 2013 [19 favorites]
When I was younger, I was at a family get-together where I played a youtube clip of Jabba on the Dais one too many times. Let's just say that it was pretty clear when I crossed the line between hey, that's kind of funny to dude, give it a rest.
I think it takes a little longer for society-at-large to get the office memo on some of these things when they go past the expiration date.
posted by SpacemanStix at 10:04 AM on July 6, 2013
I think it takes a little longer for society-at-large to get the office memo on some of these things when they go past the expiration date.
posted by SpacemanStix at 10:04 AM on July 6, 2013
These are private photographs meant to be enjoyed by the couple and their friends and family, not to be criticized by the entire world.
So why was it posted to reddit "/funny"?
posted by crayz at 10:05 AM on July 6, 2013
So why was it posted to reddit "/funny"?
posted by crayz at 10:05 AM on July 6, 2013
I wish that "a thing" would stop being a thing.
Plato felt the same way, although Hereclitus may have said it better.
posted by GenjiandProust at 10:06 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
Plato felt the same way, although Hereclitus may have said it better.
posted by GenjiandProust at 10:06 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
It's basically just, "Look, we did it too!"
which is why at least 39-percent of couples get married in the first place.
posted by philip-random at 10:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
which is why at least 39-percent of couples get married in the first place.
posted by philip-random at 10:18 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
So why was it posted to reddit "/funny"?
Just helped wedding photographer friend with a 'running wedding party' photo
Not Here are my own wedding photos
posted by shakespeherian at 10:21 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
Just helped wedding photographer friend with a 'running wedding party' photo
Not Here are my own wedding photos
posted by shakespeherian at 10:21 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
Whatever, people have been including in-laws in their wedding photos for years.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:22 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 10:22 AM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
Has it already gone too far?
I dunno. Has anyone done the wedding party jumping over Henry Winkler yet?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:25 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
I dunno. Has anyone done the wedding party jumping over Henry Winkler yet?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 10:25 AM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
These photos strike me as a reaction to people ending up with wedding photography packages that mean nothing to them and don't fit with their ideas of themselves.
That's insightful, and I agree. It's analogous to the prints problem. Historically, photographers make money by selling prints. But increasingly, couples don't want prints; they want digital files for Facebook, their mobile albums, etc. Some wedding photographers still charge four figures and deliver no digital files. The market suffers from a serious mismatch between supply and demand.
And you're right, the same is true of the photos themselves. We collectively have these three or four ideas of what "wedding photography" entails. And for people who don't find those ideas appealing—a group that grows as the ideas age—there often isn't any alternative being offered. So an idea like this catches on like wildfire, partly because it's kinda neat but probably more so because it's something, anything different.
posted by cribcage at 10:35 AM on July 6, 2013
That's insightful, and I agree. It's analogous to the prints problem. Historically, photographers make money by selling prints. But increasingly, couples don't want prints; they want digital files for Facebook, their mobile albums, etc. Some wedding photographers still charge four figures and deliver no digital files. The market suffers from a serious mismatch between supply and demand.
And you're right, the same is true of the photos themselves. We collectively have these three or four ideas of what "wedding photography" entails. And for people who don't find those ideas appealing—a group that grows as the ideas age—there often isn't any alternative being offered. So an idea like this catches on like wildfire, partly because it's kinda neat but probably more so because it's something, anything different.
posted by cribcage at 10:35 AM on July 6, 2013
"If they're having fun with it, awesome, but as an outsider I don't find it interesting. It's basically just, "Look, we did it too!""
Well, yeah, but wedding photos are almost never interesting to outsiders. I mean, don't spread it around my facebook, but plenty of my, like, second degree friends (where you're glad you didn't get invited to the wedding, but you still see the photos posted) have boring ass shit that I don't care about with their wedding. I'd rather they got back to cat memes and trap videos.
posted by klangklangston at 10:36 AM on July 6, 2013
Well, yeah, but wedding photos are almost never interesting to outsiders. I mean, don't spread it around my facebook, but plenty of my, like, second degree friends (where you're glad you didn't get invited to the wedding, but you still see the photos posted) have boring ass shit that I don't care about with their wedding. I'd rather they got back to cat memes and trap videos.
posted by klangklangston at 10:36 AM on July 6, 2013
Anyway, I'm just going to have a simple ceremony in front of a greenscreen so we can fix it all in post.
posted by klangklangston at 10:37 AM on July 6, 2013 [9 favorites]
posted by klangklangston at 10:37 AM on July 6, 2013 [9 favorites]
Bridezilla vs Ghidrah.
Yeah, I'd watch that.
posted by mazola at 10:56 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Yeah, I'd watch that.
posted by mazola at 10:56 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Bridezilla vs. Mothra-in-law
posted by ODiV at 10:57 AM on July 6, 2013 [12 favorites]
posted by ODiV at 10:57 AM on July 6, 2013 [12 favorites]
That I know about this trend is a sure sign that it has jumped the Sharktopus.
posted by mazola at 11:08 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by mazola at 11:08 AM on July 6, 2013
Precisely. So why am I seeing them?
People share stuff nowadays. Stuff gets around. I guess my question, in response, is why are you looking? When I don't care about somebody else's photo, I just stop looking at it.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 11:10 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
People share stuff nowadays. Stuff gets around. I guess my question, in response, is why are you looking? When I don't care about somebody else's photo, I just stop looking at it.
posted by Bunny Ultramod at 11:10 AM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
When I don't care about somebody else's photo, I just stop looking at it.
Sometimes, what has been seen cannot be unseen.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:16 AM on July 6, 2013
Sometimes, what has been seen cannot be unseen.
posted by GenjiandProust at 11:16 AM on July 6, 2013
I have no opinion and I must comment.
posted by shakespeherian at 11:22 AM on July 6, 2013 [12 favorites]
posted by shakespeherian at 11:22 AM on July 6, 2013 [12 favorites]
I saw those photos and all I could think was, thank god they're not running from a real tragedy. Like you take these cutesy photos and then something horrible happens and it's suddenly not cute anymore. I think this was right around the Boston marathon thing so images of people being scared were on my mind.
posted by bleep at 11:23 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by bleep at 11:23 AM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
Oh sure, I did this to someone else's wedding photo years ago (2003ish) and everyone looked at me like I was monster.
posted by drezdn at 11:25 AM on July 6, 2013
posted by drezdn at 11:25 AM on July 6, 2013
> In my wedding photos my bride and I will be chased by aged, decrepit versions of ourselves, representing our fear of sickness and death. But in the sequence of photos we have stumbled and fallen, and Time has caught us and begins to devour us. "You are already dying," the priest will tell us during the ceremony. "You are practically dead already. What does one wedding matter? What does anything matter."
Oh, so Werner Herzog's officiating?
posted by EXISTENZ IS PAUSED at 11:44 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
Oh, so Werner Herzog's officiating?
posted by EXISTENZ IS PAUSED at 11:44 AM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
jjj606: "My AVG caught a virus attack from one of the first two links of the original post."
I get something similar with the second link using Avast.
posted by aerotive at 11:49 AM on July 6, 2013
I get something similar with the second link using Avast.
posted by aerotive at 11:49 AM on July 6, 2013
The original TRex photo is so awesome it makes me jealous. I would be embarrassed to copy it but hey, it's pretty fucking awesome so I can see why people do.
posted by fshgrl at 12:08 PM on July 6, 2013
posted by fshgrl at 12:08 PM on July 6, 2013
I hope someone recreates the red wedding.
posted by orme at 12:20 PM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
posted by orme at 12:20 PM on July 6, 2013 [7 favorites]
"Oh, so Werner Herzog's officiating?
"In the bride's face, I discover no kinship, no understanding, no mercy. I see only the overwhelming indifference of nature. To me, there is no such thing as a secret world of marriage. And this blank stare speaks only of a half-bored interest in food. But for the groom, this bride was a friend, a savior."
posted by klangklangston at 12:57 PM on July 6, 2013 [19 favorites]
"In the bride's face, I discover no kinship, no understanding, no mercy. I see only the overwhelming indifference of nature. To me, there is no such thing as a secret world of marriage. And this blank stare speaks only of a half-bored interest in food. But for the groom, this bride was a friend, a savior."
posted by klangklangston at 12:57 PM on July 6, 2013 [19 favorites]
I loved the T-rex photo. It was creative and original. The idea that it's being mimicked by other photographers and couples is neither creative nor original.
It's fun to participate, to see other people who are doing something fun and try to do it yourself. It's not terribly original, no, but the thing about original ideas is, most of the times when someone has one, it's in a context that doesn't make sense or around people who won't appreciate it, and it dies on the vine. That's why creativity seems so rare. And most people internalize that environment and assume nothing they think of can ever be any good.
But imagine the guts it took to be the first person to get your friends to post for a wedding picture so you could photoshop in a monster attack later. What if that hadn't turned out well? If you try something like this and it doesn't work, you risk having your friends not listening to your ideas later. But hearing of a fun fad you can join in is a way to have fun with a thing without having to spend the social capital to establish it yourself.
And I don't think there's necessarily anything wrong with that, if you're not overbearing about it, either in its production (making people play along who don't want to) or its results (making everyone look at your poorly-made zombie attack wedding photos).
and everyone looked at me like I was monster.
I hate to be pedantic, but before the word "monster," you forgot a word. It is "cookie," of course.
posted by JHarris at 1:00 PM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
It's fun to participate, to see other people who are doing something fun and try to do it yourself. It's not terribly original, no, but the thing about original ideas is, most of the times when someone has one, it's in a context that doesn't make sense or around people who won't appreciate it, and it dies on the vine. That's why creativity seems so rare. And most people internalize that environment and assume nothing they think of can ever be any good.
But imagine the guts it took to be the first person to get your friends to post for a wedding picture so you could photoshop in a monster attack later. What if that hadn't turned out well? If you try something like this and it doesn't work, you risk having your friends not listening to your ideas later. But hearing of a fun fad you can join in is a way to have fun with a thing without having to spend the social capital to establish it yourself.
And I don't think there's necessarily anything wrong with that, if you're not overbearing about it, either in its production (making people play along who don't want to) or its results (making everyone look at your poorly-made zombie attack wedding photos).
and everyone looked at me like I was monster.
I hate to be pedantic, but before the word "monster," you forgot a word. It is "cookie," of course.
posted by JHarris at 1:00 PM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
People are commanded by the relentless imperative of late capitalism to exhibit themselves. If you don't want to see millions of human lives used as fodder through which The Fucking Internet conditions you to consume, put out your eyes.
posted by junco at 1:04 PM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by junco at 1:04 PM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
More seriously, if a link is giving virus scanner warnings, it probably shouldn't be on the Blue, and we've gotten at least two comments about that, probably for the second link in the FPP. Sometimes exploit code is written into ad banners so they only pop up if that ad comes up in rotation. A mod might want to have a look at it.
posted by JHarris at 1:07 PM on July 6, 2013
posted by JHarris at 1:07 PM on July 6, 2013
I wish I'd gotten a virus warning from that one groomsman.
posted by box at 2:25 PM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by box at 2:25 PM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
We still have a giant stack of proofs in a box; we never got around to ordering prints.
20 years this month!
I remember at one point, after the "serious" shots were done, he wanted us to put on clown noses.
"Yeah, no."
posted by chococat at 2:40 PM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
20 years this month!
I remember at one point, after the "serious" shots were done, he wanted us to put on clown noses.
"Yeah, no."
posted by chococat at 2:40 PM on July 6, 2013 [1 favorite]
klangklangston: "Anyway, I'm just going to have a simple ceremony in front of a greenscreen so we can fix it all in post."
Starts looking for his DVD of Caligula...
posted by Samizdata at 2:53 PM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
Starts looking for his DVD of Caligula...
posted by Samizdata at 2:53 PM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]
"'We're still trying to figure out what goes in the background,' [photographer] Tony [Lombardo] says. 'The couple hasn’t figured out yet what they want to be chased by.'"
The Stay Puft man would make an interesting choice.
posted by jamjam at 2:58 PM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
The Stay Puft man would make an interesting choice.
posted by jamjam at 2:58 PM on July 6, 2013 [2 favorites]
20 years this month!
Were clown noses the Photoshopped monsters of the early '90s?
posted by box at 3:09 PM on July 6, 2013
Were clown noses the Photoshopped monsters of the early '90s?
posted by box at 3:09 PM on July 6, 2013
We had Slender Man added to our photos... or maybe he was there all along!
posted by drezdn at 3:24 PM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
posted by drezdn at 3:24 PM on July 6, 2013 [4 favorites]
I hope someone recreates the red wedding.
posted by orme
for a second i forgot i was not on tumblr and tried to reblog this
i feel that this shows how far gone i am, but also know that that is how much i liked your post
posted by six-or-six-thirty at 5:46 PM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
posted by orme
for a second i forgot i was not on tumblr and tried to reblog this
i feel that this shows how far gone i am, but also know that that is how much i liked your post
posted by six-or-six-thirty at 5:46 PM on July 6, 2013 [3 favorites]
I was relieved to not find my own wedding pictures in the link. My wife photoshopped a T. Rex into a picture to replace herself. Also, lady Gaga, Betty White, and Michael Jackson made an appearance. This was 3 years ago, so maybe it was still cool.
posted by schyler523 at 6:04 PM on July 6, 2013
posted by schyler523 at 6:04 PM on July 6, 2013
According to Wedding Bells magazine, $2,300 of the average cost of a Canadian wedding ($32,358) goes to photography, increasingly for more outsized approaches.
In general, I don't like to compare costs with anyone, but since this is average costs we are talking about: My wife and I had two wedding ceremonies, one in India and one in Singapore, and I dont think we even came close to that average amount. But then, we weren't shooting Jurassic Park I guess.
posted by the cydonian at 6:12 PM on July 6, 2013
In general, I don't like to compare costs with anyone, but since this is average costs we are talking about: My wife and I had two wedding ceremonies, one in India and one in Singapore, and I dont think we even came close to that average amount. But then, we weren't shooting Jurassic Park I guess.
posted by the cydonian at 6:12 PM on July 6, 2013
Yeah, the average cost is just about what I make in a year, so there's no way my wedding would come anywhere close to that. But I am above average height, so, you know, it evens out.
posted by klangklangston at 6:17 PM on July 6, 2013
posted by klangklangston at 6:17 PM on July 6, 2013
AT-ATS ARE NOT MONSTERS
posted by krinklyfig at 12:38 AM on July 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by krinklyfig at 12:38 AM on July 7, 2013 [2 favorites]
Well, that depends on which end of the cannon you're on, doesn't it?
posted by Kirth Gerson at 3:52 AM on July 7, 2013
posted by Kirth Gerson at 3:52 AM on July 7, 2013
It was probably fun for the guests to stage the photo, and they will be amused to get a copy of the picture in their thank you note for the blender or the check. So it's a win for them, and, let's face it, the imitators are probably better than the people who are more original but tasteless, stupid and/or bizarre. Weddings are a great opportunity to get pictures of Great Aunt Sophie while she's still with us, and Grandpa before he's had a few too many, etc. All of your closest family and friends are there, as cleaned up as they're likely to get - preserve it. I'll draw the line at Godzilla in the church.
posted by theora55 at 7:51 AM on July 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by theora55 at 7:51 AM on July 7, 2013 [1 favorite]
Man, fuck these people. I actually got attacked by a monster at my wedding, and now everyone and their mother are going to think MY pics were photoshopped too.
Oh wait, that was my wife.
I'll see myself out.
posted by nevercalm at 6:33 PM on July 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
Oh wait, that was my wife.
I'll see myself out.
posted by nevercalm at 6:33 PM on July 7, 2013 [4 favorites]
Look, there's damn little that hasn't been done before. If it amuses the couple to have monster photos, then why is that any worse than the 100 millionth photo of smooshing cake in each other's faces? Geez, folks.
posted by jzb at 1:35 PM on July 8, 2013
posted by jzb at 1:35 PM on July 8, 2013
There's still room for awesomeness in this trend.
posted by ShutterBun at 10:09 PM on July 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by ShutterBun at 10:09 PM on July 11, 2013 [2 favorites]
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posted by rebent at 6:56 AM on July 6, 2013 [5 favorites]