Before & After with Mircea Brânda

Several weeks back, our friend and colleague Mircea Branda had us scraping our collective jaws off the pavement with these gorgeous images. So, yeah, we had to learn more about how he crafts these rich and intimate wedding portraits. Check ‘em out, guys!

Mircea. You. GO!

Hi there. I am a photographer from Romania. More recently I've been shooting weddings, but it all started as a hobby seven years ago when I bought my first camera. For a long time my artistic focus was macro and street photography. Then, a good friend of mine and a great photographer as well, Lucian Borza, asked me to join him and shoot a wedding together. That is how it all started.

By what artists/creatives are you influenced? What inspires you?

I'm inspired by the work of some great wedding photographers such as: Ed Peers, Jonas Peterson, Dylan Howell & Sarah Byrne, Gabe Mcclintock, Gianluca Adovasio and many others. Also, the fact that I did macro and street photography for many years has trained my eye to focus on the little details that matter.

Do you have a vision in mind before going out and shooting? Tell us about about your workflow and how the vision comes to life before shooting and in post.

Before a photo session, I like to meet with my clients first and find out a little bit about them. What are their interests or passions?  I also observe them as a couple. Are they adventurous or reserved? These bits of information can really set the mood to a session and even inspire a location. Then during the session my main concern is to keep it all natural. The first thing I tell my clients before a wedding is to try to forget that I am even there.

I like to keep my workflow as simple as I can. At a wedding I shoot somewhere around 3,000 photos. The first step, which I consider most difficult, is selecting the photos that I give to my clients. Then I import all my photos to Lightroom, choose an action and start working.

Now tell us how this amazing image came together, from conception to completion.

I had this location in mind after finding out that the groom is an architect and that the couple also loves nature, just like me. The place itself is a complex of traditional houses in a village near my hometown. We woke up very early in the morning and started shooting. Long after the sun rose, as we were heading back, I accidentally saw this wonderful place behind a hill where the sun hadn’t shown up yet. That is where I took this photo. Back home, I selected Kodak Gold 200 and started to get to work.

SOOC

Final Edit

Bonus Eye Candy!

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Post by LOOKSLIKEFILM contributing editor, Seth Langner | www.karmarthartic.com Jacksonville, Seattle wedding photographer