I'm always looking for different ways to tell a story and different viewpoints. During this couple's reception, the horah and dancing were typically epic and wonderfully chaotic, so after capturing many frames from inside the dance floor, I decided to try for some alternative angles.

First, I photographed the dance floor from far back and wide, then I went up on the balcony. This was a perfect viewing point that showed the context of the scene and the crazy party unfolding below. Using the railings to balance the camera allowed me to vary the shutter speed to try to emphasize the movement a little more. I tried various combinations of shutter speed, from about 1/10 second up to about 1 second.

I also varied, adding off-camera flash into the mix too. It's always a bit hit-and-miss using such slow shutter speeds, but this frame managed to sufficiently freeze the bride and her expressions of pure joy while still giving enough movement and chaos to the rest of the scene, which was exactly what I was hoping for!