Don't you just hate the obnoxious photographer who seems to always be spoiling everyone's view and interrupting the event with the annoying flash popping off every few seconds? So do I and I am a photographer. 

This post is both a request and an expression of unwritten etiquette... Please everyone don't interrupt and disrupt the beauty and the sacredness of the wedding ceremony. Flashes from tiny point and shoot cameras from 5o feet away are pointless except to annoy everyone around you. Even large DSLR cameras with their huge flashes mounted on top are extremely disruptive.

We make it a point to purchase and use only cameras and lenses of the quality level to enable us to shoot in the often low light settings of a wedding without the blinding lightning strikes that leave everyone seeing spots.

The above picture is of a recent wedding as the attendants walked down the aisle. One thing that is also quickly recognized is the long and heavy lens we use during the ceremony so we can remain at a discrete distance. 

Some of it is gear and some of it is being positioned correctly to get shots but we take a sense of pride in capturing the magic moments as unobtrusively as possible.

Our request on behalf of the bride and grooms is please put away the iPhone and the point and shoot camera and enjoy the ceremony. Pictures afterwards are fine and you will have ample opportunities following the ceremony but please respect their special moments as witnesses to the proclamation of their love.