Sandor Welsh Photography

After graduating from Muhlenberg College in 1992 with a dual degree in art and psychology, I began working at various newspapers - photographing notable personalities, breaking news, professional sports, politicians and all the routines of small-town and big-city life.  I loved being a newspaper photographer.  I was doing what I'd always wanted to do - photojournalism - and assumed I'd be doing it for my entire life.

When my wife Laura and I got married, I cared so little for wedding photography, that I let my mother-in-law pick our photographer, a throwback to the old days who brought with him a marbled blue backdrop and stopped our reception every ten minutes to set up pictures.  My friends started to get married shortly after.  But by then, couples were becoming much more open minded about how their wedding photographs could look.  So I began photographing my friends' weddings and then their friends' weddings and so on and so on.  I now photograph about 40 weddings a year, love how wedding photography has become so much more exciting and more true than it ever was, and am still the photojournalist I'd always wanted to be.


 

 

My philosophy towards wedding photography is simple, guided not by a standard formula, but by each couples' unique desires and love for one another. And while I may offer suggestions, I do not impose my tastes. Color or black and white, formal portraits against a backdrop or relaxed, candid photos in a natural setting - this is your wedding, your choice.  My job is to simply stay in the background and let the day unfold. 

My work has received awards from the Associated Press, Brides Magazine and the WPJA.  It has appeared in Martha Stewart Weddings, Brides, The Knot, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia Magazine, and The Philadelphia City Paper.




 

 

Alison and Josh

Alison and Josh were childhood sweethearts.  They went to middle school together and Josh asked Alison to be his date to the eighth grade dance.  That was 14 years ago!  Photographing their wedding, I kept imagining them not at The Downtown Club, but in the school gymnasium, a giddy Alison and slightly shy Josh, full of infatuation.  Now, half their lives later and newly married, they were still together, classmates replaced by family and friends, infatuation by love.

Sarah and Chris

Usually, New Years is a time of introspection for me – a time to reflect on my family, career, accomplishments (and mistakes – one or two, tops).  This year that was all put on hold though, for Sarah and Chris’s New Years Eve wedding.  With Old Saint Mary’s Church bedecked in lights and trees, The Downtown Club even more beautiful and elegant than usual, and guests keyed up for the last/first party of the decade, Sarah and Chris’s wedding was the perfect way to end one year and begin the next.

March 3, 2010 - 10:03 pm EJ - Sandor your work is beautiful. Anytime I feel overwhelmed with wedding plans it is so refreshing to come back to your site and get excited about the moments you are able to capture. We are really looking forward to having you as a part of our day.

Jennifer and Matthew

The day started at Jennifer’s parents’ house, with a Vietnamese tea ceremony.  Traditionally, these begin early in the morning at the groom’s house, with family and friends saying prayers over presents and food, which they then bring en masse to the bride’s house.  I’ve photographed quite a few of these ceremonies and I’ve always been struck by their reverence for elders and ancestors, and that the day is a marriage of two families as well as two individuals. That, and no matter how big or small the room is, it’s always packed beyond measure!

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November 20, 2009 - 11:28 am Ryan Estes - Some of the best work I've seen from you, Sandor... nice job.

November 20, 2009 - 11:53 am Kate Sullivan - Love these photos! They have such style.

November 20, 2009 - 6:24 pm Cara Schmidt - Not only are the pictures (and people) beautiful, but you've really captured the happiness that was so apparent that day.

January 5, 2010 - 6:25 pm Alicia Nathanson - Sandor, I am total agreement with Ryan. These are not just beautiful but, so innovative!