Social & Lifestyle

When technology and emotions come together

My name is Fiona Bishop. I photograph people, specializing in portrait and wedding photography. For over 10 years, I have been photographing people from early childhood to old age. In 2015, I decided to focus on the latest innovation in photography; mirror-less cameras. After a short test photoshoot, I quickly fell for the Olympus E-M1. Compared to the small, light-weight Olympus, my 4 kg single-lens reflex camera was heavy and cumbersome. Switching to the Olympus was an easy choice. I have been photographing with the E-M1 Mark II since January, and I am thrilled to witness the latest development.

I'd like to take you all with me on a wedding reporter-style photography session. A wedding is one of the most beautiful days in one's life. By capturing the day in the photos, we can relive the special moments and share the memories with grandchildren in the many years to come. I see wedding photography as the pinnacle of all photography genres. The wedding day flies by and every moment must be captured beautifully with speed and precision. It is a demanding field that incorporates many different aspects of photography. A wedding photographer usually spends nine to 15 hours a day behind the camera. Posed and candid wedding photos are taken in photoshoots and throughout the day's events. Macro images have to be created. We must also capture the atmosphere of the event, by photographing architecture or landscapes. And of course, the delicious food and cakes must be photographed. The variety of photos taken is precisely what makes wedding photography so charming.

Behind every wedding is a very special love story

The bride and groom, Muriel and Fabian, met when they were young. Having grown up together in kindergarten in Eastern Switzerland, they later fell in love. The young couple married in the beautiful town of Diessenhofen, right on the River Rhine.

I love how quietly the camera takes photos at weddings. Beautiful, natural photos can be photographed from 'behind the scenes' without interrupting the ceremony or celebration. The new E-M1 Mark II can now take perfect photos in dark churches, into the upper ISO range. The fantastic image stabilizer also lets me use slower shutter speeds. I like to shoot weddings with my camera in hand, using the secure strap. After years of experience, I'm convinced it's the best approach. During the test photo-shoot with the new Olympus E-M1 at a wedding, I took my Nikon camera just to be on the safe side. Better safe than sorry; at the end of the day the Olympus 60 mm macro lens still hadn’t arrived.

Sensational close-range photography left me 100% convinced

To perfectly capture the rings, I wanted to get my second bag from the car. But as it goes at weddings, there simply wasn’t enough time to get the bag. I made a rash decision to photograph the rings without a macro. I planned to make up for the macro images later on in the evening. Yet to my astonishment, I discovered that I didn't need to take the pictures from far away or repeat this stage in the evening. This was made possible by the extremely close setting-limit of the Olympus lenses. I'd never seen anything like this before. The camera’s close range provides a great deal of flexibility at weddings. It's incredibly easy to switch between this mode and reporting during fast-paced moments. Now I can't imagine working without this flexibility.

Authentic & natural

Taking quality candid pictures of the bride and groom and their guests is not quite as easy as it sounds. The photographer must seem invisible. The best pictures are taken when guests don’t know that they’re being photographed. Thanks to the light, compact equipment, being invisible has never been easier. Initially, I worried about how I would be seen as a photographer without a bulky, long lens. But I overcame this fear a long time ago. After all, it all comes down to this: If you take high-quality photos, you don’t need a fancy camera to say “I’m the photographer”.

I love the small case and that I can take pictures without a battery grip. This lets me work much more discreetly without carrying unnecessary weight. Of course, there are still moments when I ask my Uncle Claus if my camera takes good pictures. After all, his camera is bigger than mine. Well, yes, but I'm ashamed to admit that mine is no better than this small camera.

Sophisticated and bold

My camera is small and handy, yet it has everything I need and more to boot. The face recognition feature is incredibly helpful when quickly taking candid photos, and I've been impressed with its accuracy and speed. The LiveView boost gives a sense of security and the innovative swivel display offers great new perspectives, all of which was never possible before. In short, I am very happy with my new Olympus equipment for the incredible opportunities it has provided.

Author & Photographer: Fiona Bischof