Blog
Storiesbehind every wedding
Real weddings, the places I know, and the craft behind the camera. Start with what fits you:
For couples
If you're getting married
Weddings told from start to finish, the places I've worked, and what's worth knowing before you hire a photographer.
Real weddings
Sofi & Diego: from El Paso to Guadalajara
They live in Texas and married in Sofi's father's hometown. A whole day spent waiting to see each other, and vows read before the ceremony.
Marla & Edy: a wedding chronicle at Santo Domingo, Oaxaca
At Santo Domingo, with a lasso from both mothers, a calenda with marmotas and tiliches, and rain that came at night.
Lucía & Iván: a wedding chronicle at Quinta San Carlos, Chapala
On the shores of Lake Chapala, with Lu's energy contagious all day and a party that got completely out of hand.
Laura & Andrew: an intimate wedding at Casa Pedro Loza
A real wedding in Guadalajara with family roots in the city, an intimate rooftop ceremony, and a couple who let me play with the camera.
Alex & Andy: a wedding full of light at El Altto, San Ángel
A real Mexico City wedding built around light, a full lighting production, and the families' love at its center.
Destination weddings: Bolivia, France, Belgium, and Colombia
Field notes on documenting weddings outside Mexico, logistics, and what changes when shooting abroad.
Venues and destinations
Getting married at Santo Domingo church, Oaxaca
Where the marriage file is really opened, which documents are asked for and when the light is right, with the real hours of a wedding there.
Getting married in Oaxaca
Santo Domingo, Mitla, a former convent and the coast at Mazunte. The hour the atrium is empty and how a calenda works.
Getting married at Hacienda El Centenario, Tequila
The best hour for portraits, the three ceremony options, the cacti, and the logistics of marrying an hour from Guadalajara.
Getting married at Monte Coxala, Lake Chapala
The sunsets over the lake, where to put the ceremony, the spa hotel and what to do if it rains. Close to twenty weddings there.
Before you hire
What to look for in a documentary wedding photographer
Everyone uses the word now, so it can't help you choose. Nine tests that tell the real thing from the label — including the question that reveals a photographer's philosophy.
Posed or documentary wedding photos? An honest comparison
What each approach gives you, what it costs, and the part most documentary photographers leave out: we all intervene. Where the real line sits.
How I work: before you choose a documentary photographer
What to ask, what to check in a portfolio, and why the documentary style isn't for everyone.
How I document a wedding without directing the scene
A look into the documentary approach: natural light, unrehearsed moments, and why I don't ask for poses.
The ideal wedding day timeline for great photos
How to build your wedding day schedule for great light and unhurried moments, with a sample timeline.
Real stories from weddings documented in Guadalajara, Jalisco, and international destinations — the work behind the camera of Christian Macías, documentary wedding photographer. New posts published regularly.
For photographers
If you photograph weddings
What I've learned about the craft, told plainly —getting paid, burning out, feeling it again— and a couple of technical problems that will catch up with you sooner or later.
The craft, honestly
What nobody tells you about raising your prices
I raised mine by almost 200% and it worked. Then it quietly made me worse at the job for a year. What actually happens after the number goes up.
The overjustification effect: why getting paid can kill the work you loved
The 1971 and 1973 experiments, what the evidence actually supports — including the part that works in your favour — and what a photographer can do about it.
Wedding photographer burnout: what happened when I stopped feeling anything
Five weddings a month until the calendar was full and I was empty. What it actually felt like, the psychology behind it, and what brought the desire back.
Technique
Why your photos look washed out once you upload them
Adobe RGB vs sRGB, with the difference measured on a real photo: 20.5 % less saturation.
Your pre-2018 presets no longer open in Lightroom
What changed in 2018, why renaming them does not work, and the process-version trap.