Whether photographing a wedding or creating a portrait session, I always look for reflective surfaces to help create my images. One of my keys to success is looking beyond the obvious like mirrors. In the image below, I was photographing the groom getting ready in his hotel room. It was hard to spot the reflective surface of the dresser in the room through all the clutter that was on top of it. Once I spotted it, I wasted no time in clearing everything off of it including the coffee maker and the lamp. Then I wiped down the dresser top with a towel from the bathroom. All that was left was to pose the groom and Voila!!!

Groom Getting Ready Portrait with reflection

When I do use mirrors, I incorporate any unique characteristic of the mirror to my advantage. You can see this in the image below where I used the frame of the mirror to frame the groom.

Another technique when using mirrors, is to look for angles which helps tell a story. In the image, I used an angle where you can see the mother of the bride looking at her daughter as only a mother can on her daughter’s wedding day. By choosing the right angle, I was able to photograph the mirror itself which showed both of their reflections. The mirror also served as a frame for them as well. Using the mirror as I did gives the image a non-intrusive feeling to the viewer.

Portrait, Mother Adoring Daughter On Her wedding Day, Mirror Reflection

The last set of images I used a portion of a baby grand piano to create a reflection.