We’re starting to see something different pop up in the wedding photo world.
It’s called mixed media, and it’s quietly showing up in portfolios, editorials, and galleries.

The idea? Mess with your photos. Draw on it. Cut it up. Layer it. Add things to it.

A purist photographer is going to HATE this. But entertain it for a second. Ask why.

It’s all part of a bigger shift in how photographers think. Leaning into not just showing, but telling. Not just documenting, but authoring. Not just capturing a moment, but building a visual world and aesthetic. It’s another layer in being ‘editorial’.

So, let’s go deeper. How are wedding photographers starting to lean into this? And how should we think about it?

At its core, mixed media for wedding photographers is about shaping meaning, not recording a moment. Combining a photo with other visual elements to say more than that one photo alone could. (We can thank Picasso for the early stages of all this)

It means:

The goal is to add to the idea of the photo. To pull out more meaning from an image. (for more on drawing more meaning, check out this article about artist Lorna Simpson)

It’s a line of ideas for photographers who are not trying document things honestly, they are trying to shape the a visual narrative and STAND OUT.

These images were posted just last week in a scroll post from Pablo Laguia ⬆️

The collage on the left, full of photoshopped cut outs of guests and moments says more about the energy and life of that wedding day than just one photo could. The shot on the right connects the shape and colour and feel of the dress with the flowers on the left. It’s more than just a photo. It’s a message.

⬆️ We love the way koko_king_photo is using details and photographing them over other photographs (or paintings). A set of wedding earrings placed on a vintage painting of a horse rider.

Is it a joke? An ode? A memory? Maybe a bit of all three.
It’s not literal. But it’s loaded. And that’s the point.

It’s making meaning through contrast and challenging ‘normal’ storytelling. And that’s the whole point of mixed media.

You can tell YOUR message, aesthetic or deep, by altering your images.

It’s leaning editorial.
We’ve seen this kind of thing in magazines for decades: layered layouts, text over image, visual storytelling that’s more design than documentation.

Now it’s starting to have it’s moment in weddings as photographers push the ‘editorial’ boundaries.

And if you want to try it? Start small. You don’t need to change your whole style.

Let us know what you think the mixed media thing? Would you try something like this?

You’ve seen wedding features before, but not like this. At Lensel, we are flipping the script featuring wedding stories told from the photographer’s perspective. The choices made, the gear and the inside word behind it all.

House on the Clouds captured this joyful celebration in Tuscany that blended tradition, emotion, and editorial beauty across three unforgettable days

Danilo & Sharon didn’t just follow the 'editorial' wave in wedding photography, they helped MAKE IT. Their work rewrote the rules on what modern, elevated wedding imagery could look like.

So if you want to level up your posing and directing: this is THE workshop you can't miss.

Wednesday 11th of June at 5.30pm CET (replays available)

Join our Lensel PRO program to be there. PLUS gain access to the next 12 months of incredible workshops, full replay archive of past workshops with Greg Finck, Koko King, Daniel Kim to name a few, our amazing community and full access to the Lensel newsletter every week.

And it’s only $799 for a little while longer before we announce some upgrades and a price increase.

⬇️ Bridal preps to the next level.
Ps. Get your morning timings right to be able to create these kinds of images and redefine what ‘prep’ is.

⬇️ We bet you will smile looking through these photos. Kindred Weddings nailing that perfect mix of moments, emotions, and alternative frames.

⬇️ Next level conceptual bridal portraits. On an actual wedding day. Enough said.

⬇️ Tired of seeing ‘Editorial’ shoots with all the same frames and poses?? Ha Nguyen shakes it up here, at an editorial shoot, but with a VERY different vision.