Feature article: James Harber of Who Shot the Photographer
By Dr. Helen Vines
Why not begin your married life in hiking boots and a wedding dress?
Photo by James Harber
Photographer James Harber believes every wedding should begin with an adventure. The photos can look incredible, says Harber, founder of ‘Who Shot the Photographer’. “I give lots of advice beforehand, I’ll advise on what kinds of dresses work well on a hike and allow for a backpack.”
Harber grew up in Southern England, bought his first camera in 2009 and immersed himself in nature photography. “The landscape I grew up in was very green and lush, and I have always been heavily inspired by nature,” says Harber, who went on to complete a degree in biology at the University of Redding followed by a MSc. in Wildlife Management and Conservation.
He lived in the jungles of Madagascar for six months in 2010 while working for an eco-tourism company, then in a surprise move, became an accountant in Canberra. It was a short-lived career that was overtaken by the demand for his figurative photography that in turn became a successful wedding photography gig, specialising in elopements, with regular weddings on the side.
“Since then, I’ve been diving deeper and deeper into what I enjoy, what my values and principles are, and what people want,” says Harber.
“What I really care about is that couples have an authentic and intentional experience on their wedding day instead of feeling pressured to conform to certain ideas about what people expect from them. It should feel intimate and represent their relationship,” Harber says.
Photo by James Harber
The idea that the best weddings are the ones where you spend $100,000 and you must be constantly kissing and showing affection does not represent many people, argues Harber.
“There are slow and invisible ways that people connect. It can be something as simple as the way people look at each other, the way they hold hands, and that might be enough. Not everyone wants to kiss in front of their parents and 100 guests,” he says.
He says it is not appropriate to make a spectacle of the couple. “I don’t subscribe to a conventional notion of romance: romance is a nice thing, but I believe in letting people just be themselves. When people are comfortable enough, they will show you who they are.”
“I am aiming to produce a set of images that helps the couple remember how they really felt on the day.”
Photo by James Harber
Communication and trust
Harber acknowledges the impact of Rembrandt and Vermeer in his desire for a painterly look in his photography “which accentuates the mood and atmosphere in a scene” and reflects on how important chiaroscuro (the study of light and dark) has on the result.
“It creates a more three-dimensional look. Often people think we need a lot of light for a photo, but using light and shade makes us appear more real.”
Communication and trust are key ingredients in a successful relationship between photographer and client. He wants to hear and understand the couple’s story and then translate that into pictures “to remind you of your day forever”.
Photo by James Harber
Harber is very clear about his vision and beliefs. He is not offering a series of photoshopped perfect photos. His images are intended to look natural, and he draws heavily on his experience of cinematography to achieve the ‘world building’ so intrinsic to the creation of film.
So, a couple might begin their day at an Airbnb in the Blue Mountains, for example, and photographs will capture the setting for the beginning of their special day. “I want people to look back on these photos and remember the landscape and how they experienced their day; it’s about telling the narrative of their relationship and the story of their wedding,” says Harber.
Photo by James Harber
The elopement is virtually story boarded by Harber, who can offer location suggestions and recommendations for restaurants and vendors.
“People often only have one wedding and they usually don’t know what the hell they are doing. Couples put themselves under such immense stress for one day of their life.”
“It’s a very important day, but it can turn into a small festival for everybody else and not the couples themselves, involving a lot of time, energy, and emotional stress. One of the things I like to do is reassure them, and say if you need a hand, just talk to me, because I do this day in and day out. I really do want couples to feel like they have someone they can confide in.”
Photo by James Harber
Harber photographs both conventional weddings and elopements, but it is the adventure elopements that are his calling. This might involve a three-hour hike to a lake in the Snowy Mountains, and on the return, friends and family meet them at the start of the hike.
“I did that in December; it gives couples an experience they want to look back on and they can start their marriage with an adventure.”
In this case, it was photos first and then a formal ceremony over an eight-hour day.
“It started at an Airbnb, where they were photographed getting ready. They then drove to Charlotte’s Pass, did a walk, stopping along the way for photos, and got back around sunset. Friends and family turned up for the ceremony and at the end they told everyone they were pregnant as well, so it was a fantastic day.”
Photo by James Harber
“If couples love being outside in nature, there is no reason why they can’t get a wedding dress that is practical.
I did an elopement in Coffs Harbour where the bride went barefoot to a waterfall and they had the elopement under the waterfall, and then she was barefoot and muddy all day, the dress was soaked in mud, but she loved it. She was like: ‘this is my dream’.”
Photo by James Harber
In an interesting diversion in the story telling process, Harber sometimes asks people questions about their history, about exciting things they have done together, and then photographs them as they share these stories.
“They are going to look back and remember talking to you about the boat they met on, or a time they needed their partner, and they were there for them. I love creating cinematic photos but at the end of the day the most important thing is about the couple having a really great time and that it resonates with them. When they look back a photograph of a couple on a rock against the sunset might remind them of a whole story they recalled: these photos become a time capsule not just of the wedding day, but of everything that led up to this moment.”
Photo by James Harber
About the author
Dr. Helen Vines is a freelance writer. Her recent book “Eve Langley and The Pea Pickers” has been shortlisted for the Walter McRae Russell Award for the best literary scholarship published in Australia in the past two years. Dr. Vines completed a BA (Hons) and DipEd at the University of Melbourne, and an MA and PhD at the University of Tasmania.
