Maxwell 48: The Maxwellhood of the Traveling Vest

[Fun-Dee]

On 5/24/2021 at 6:56 AM, Maggie Mae said:

How has Christopher had so much experience taking wedding photos with so little improvement? I didn't see any trash this time, but again with the backs of people's heads, bad framing, awkward setups, and the filters. 

And the photos of women's backsides! I guess Chris is a butt guy, which makes sense, considering how his family is hyper vigilant about ankles, knees, and cleavage. 

 

 

One thing I noticed, as much as he likes to do the wedding dress on a hanger picture, you would think he would buy a nice satin covered hanger and bring it with him to a wedding shoot.  I always notice the cheap plastic hanger, which is fine if you're not going to take a picture of it!

 

[fundiefan]

Chris could do something very simple & basic - and that goes along with his sister's advice. 

Just Google it. 

If you Google "hanging wedding dress photos" or something like that, you get a lot of examples of successful photography with wedding dresses on hangers. Typically, someone "in business" wants to improve and and advance. Seems Christopher just wants the world to love the techniques he read about 20 years ago in a home photography book. 

Actually, instead of just Googling ideas for one picture, he should probably pick up a few more books, watch some Youtube videos, read photographer blogs...something, anything. His photography is stale and every picture he takes is one he's taken a hundred times before. Compare a wedding from 2010 to a wedding in 2021 that he did - same shots, different couple. 

Guys in the church pews, Done. Girls holding flowers forward, done. Wedding dress on random hanger in random spot, done. Big picture of the church, done. Girls walking & laughing, done. Guys jumping, done. The back of someone's head, done. Seriously. Every wedding on his web site has the exact same freaking pictures, with the same over exposure or over editing to make them dark. I don't know if he's trying to give shadows or what. 

I am no photographer, but I have been pretty consistent about "taking pictures" most of my adult life. I have fun with it and would never consider myself a pro or anything other than someone doing something she thinks is fun and creative. And I take better, more well composed, more usefully edited pictures with my iPhone. 

If he can't see a picture needs to be cropped, he really has no business wielding a camera for money.

Edited May 26, 2021 by fundiefan

[Hane]

@fundiefan, he has a way of making that wedding-dress-on-a-hanger look like a shroud. Those shadowy sepia shots always look so bleak.

[Alisamer]

29 minutes ago, Hane said:

@fundiefan, he has a way of making that wedding-dress-on-a-hanger look like a shroud. Those shadowy sepia shots always look so bleak.

Appropriate, for some of these weddings, I'd imagine. I keep trying to imagine how some of the more extreme fundy girls must feel - this is the pinnacle of their life, their big day, their main achievement... after this it'll be babies babies babies. And some of them barely know the guy they are marrying. It's got to be a strange combo of excited and abjectly terrified. Are they going into a loving happy relationship? Are they going to be abused? They have no real idea!

[freejugar]

Those sepia shots look like those in memoriam photos used in funerals

[crawfishgirl]

I'm not into photography, but just by looking at Christopher's pictures, I can tell how awful the lighting and the staging are done.

I took another poster's advice and googled 'hanging wedding dress photos', and some of them are really well done.  They are on appropriate hangers, have gorgeous backgrounds, and other accessories.  It's a stark contrast to his pictures.  

 

[Maggie Mae]

10 hours ago, Fun-Dee said:

One thing I noticed, as much as he likes to do the wedding dress on a hanger picture, you would think he would buy a nice satin covered hanger and bring it with him to a wedding shoot.  I always notice the cheap plastic hanger, which is fine if you're not going to take a picture of it!

 

I know! I think this is also one of @nelliebelle1197 or @nausicaa's pet peeves. (I can't remember which one of you always complains about this. Sorry!) 

For me, it seems like Chris should not have been assigned "Official Maxwell Photographer." He doesn't have the attention to detail that he needs. 

Spoiler

the dress is off centered between the two windows. One window is slightly open. Either he's too lazy to care, or he didn't notice. Neither one option is something that someone wants in a photographer. 

On his website, you click on Job and Bethany's wedding (I was looking for the picture of the dasani water bottle) and it takes you to Noah and Abby. In  this one from Joshua/Maryanna (and he labeled it as "Anchorage Alaska," when it is very clearly Palmer, Alaska) , 

Spoiler

he could have cropped out the cleaning products in the background, and had them move the paper towels. But nope.  Furthermore, it's not like we can see their faces or what they are doing? Why even take this photo? Why post it? 

Spoiler

 

[Hane]

Re the third pic @Maggie Mae shared here: WTAF? It looks like a setup for a “funny caption” contest.

[fundiefan]

I just clicked on the Job & Bethany wedding link on his site because I really wanted to compare - and the link goes to Noah & Abby's wedding.

More Maxwell Internet skillz at work. 

[kpmom]

I have a question for those of you who have had, or been in, weddings.

How many of you got dressed at the wedding venue?

It seems at like every wedding Christopher photographs the wedding party gets dressed at the church.  Is that typical of everyone's experience?

I got dressed at home, along with my attendants and mother.  It seems a lot easier than dragging everything to the church.

But then I didn't have a huge wedding party like these fundies do.  Just two attendants in my case.  So maybe the church is easier for them.

[Alisamer]

20 minutes ago, kpmom said:

I have a question for those of you who have had, or been in, weddings.

How many of you got dressed at the wedding venue?

It seems at like every wedding Christopher photographs the wedding party gets dressed at the church.  Is that typical of everyone's experience?

I got dressed at home, along with my attendants and mother.  It seems a lot easier than dragging everything to the church.

But then I didn't have a huge wedding party like these fundies do.  Just two attendants in my case.  So maybe the church is easier for them.

My church has a Bride's Room that is meant for getting ready - it has lots of mirrors and lighting, places to hang dresses, etc. At all the weddings I've been to we got ready at the venue, either in a Bride's Room or a hotel room for the one that was at a hotel. At the botanical garden I worked at we also had a small bride's room with attached bathroom and vanity with sink. Much easier for the bride than navigating a public restroom stall in a big white dress. 

I'd prefer to get ready at the venue, otherwise I worry I'd end up with the Princess Diana wrinkled bedsheet look by the time I got there in a car. 

[catlady]

While I didn’t notice how off-center the dress was, I immediately saw the dollar store hanger and the one open window.

 
And the incorrect link— Rufus H Reindeer, anyone who paid for anything related to the 1TonRamp probably got screwed.  How did they not check that?  I regularly send links via email, and I always proof them to see that they direct correctly.
 

Well, at least Chris’s photos are on par with Sarah’ books.

[Dark Matters]

15 hours ago, ElizaB said:

I wonder if Abby chooses to dress like her Aunts. I imagine she idolizes them and tries to emulate them. She has no peers to try to be like so she tries to be like her Aunts. 

We also know that Nathan's kids do non Maxwell approved things with Melanie's family. I wouldn't be surprised if they dress differently for times spent with other people. 

That picture with her, Tina and Teri, she looks like she is so over everything.  Her smile never reaches her eyes.

[BullyJBG]

1 hour ago, kpmom said:

I have a question for those of you who have had, or been in, weddings.

How many of you got dressed at the wedding venue?

It seems at like every wedding Christopher photographs the wedding party gets dressed at the church.  Is that typical of everyone's experience?

I got dressed at home, along with my attendants and mother.  It seems a lot easier than dragging everything to the church.

But then I didn't have a huge wedding party like these fundies do.  Just two attendants in my case.  So maybe the church is easier for them.

I only wore my wedding dress at the church where I got married. I got my hair done in the morning and wore my veil with regular clothes until then. I saw that on The Wedding Story pretty often.

  The rest of our families dressed at home, except my one attendant. I think late husband and his attendant dressed at the church too, because we left in regular clothes. We got married in the winter, so it was better to not transport ourselves in wedding attire. We had everything at the church; photos in different places, ceremony in sanctuary, and reception in the downstairs main area,

[ClareDeLune]

On 5/25/2021 at 1:10 PM, fundiefan said:

 

Not one word about Gigi in the post, other than they had her over for lunch. Wasn't she a good mother to Teri? If it weren't for Gigi, there would be no Maxwells. 

Just another day in the bubble that is Steve Maxwell & his robots. 

I can hardly believe they didn't make mothers day all about Gigi. Well they are very self-absorbed so I can believe it but oh god. Their elderly grandma lived alone and survived a pandemic; they should be kissing the ground she walks on and making it all about how thankful they are to God for her!  But she is Teri's mother not Steve's mother so no flowers for Gigi.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Today's post: Prairie dresses and puffer jackets.

They are just so odd. All but one "girl" (i.e. unmarried female) has pants on under the skirt--just wear the damned pants/leggings/jeans already. Good grief.

[ifosterkittens]

2 hours ago, kpmom said:

I have a question for those of you who have had, or been in, weddings.

How many of you got dressed at the wedding venue?

I've been a bridesmaid twice. 

One wedding we got dressed at the church (venue of ceremony), the hair and makeup people came to the church and we used a conference room they had. Girls and guys had separate conference rooms to gather/ get ready. 

Other wedding the bride and groom rented a house on the water for the ceremony and reception, and we got hair done at the salon, we did makeup and got dressed at the house where the ceremony and reception were held. I believe the guys came dressed, but had a room to gather before the ceremony- it was pretty causal attire for the guys. 

[NancyDrewFan1989]

1 hour ago, Dark Matters said:

That picture with her, Tina and Teri, she looks like she is so over everything.  Her smile never reaches her eyes.

I agree with you. Abby hasn't seemed genuinely happy, to me, in a Maxwell post in a long time. She does seem to be focused on pleasing both her parents and Steve and Teri. When I read her "book report" I got the feeling that she only wrote it like that because she knew it would please Steve and Teri rather than a summary. To make matters worse, she probably doesn't have many friends her age outside of the compound and gets probably gets most of those interactions when she is visiting Melanie's family. I get the feeling that she is realizing she is missing out on having friends outside of the family and wants to start participating in more, albeit  Christian approved, activities with kids her age. Hopefully, Nathan realizes that keeping her under lock and key on the Maxwell compound isn't healthy and lets her start hanging out with kids her own age whether it is at church, going shopping, or just having them over to play games and hang out.

4 hours ago, Maggie Mae said:

I know! I think this is also one of @nelliebelle1197 or @nausicaa's pet peeves. (I can't remember which one of you always complains about this. Sorry!) 

For me, it seems like Chris should not have been assigned "Official Maxwell Photographer." He doesn't have the attention to detail that he needs. 

  Reveal hidden contents

the dress is off centered between the two windows. One window is slightly open. Either he's too lazy to care, or he didn't notice. Neither one option is something that someone wants in a photographer. 

On his website, you click on Job and Bethany's wedding (I was looking for the picture of the dasani water bottle) and it takes you to Noah and Abby. In  this one from Joshua/Maryanna (and he labeled it as "Anchorage Alaska," when it is very clearly Palmer, Alaska) , 

  Hide contents

he could have cropped out the cleaning products in the background, and had them move the paper towels. But nope.  Furthermore, it's not like we can see their faces or what they are doing? Why even take this photo? Why post it? 

  Hide contents

 

It took me a few seconds to realize the groom in he last photo was praying. I couldn't figure out what he was doing nor can I figure out why Christopher thought this was a good wedding photo to take of the groom. 

[Maggie Mae]

If you to Christopher Maxwell's website and click pricing, he has a whole list of demands before he will even consider letting you pay him to photograph your wedding. 

No drinking, no dancing, modest dress (for women). You have to "click" with Christopher. 

I have a photographer I use for some stuff and honestly I can't stand her as a human. But she takes good photos and her price is fair. I also have hired a guy, who also takes great photos of specific things, but not people. He's also not someone I "click" with, as he just doesn't talk much. The woman I mentioned before is married to a photographer- I used him once, and he was the easiest and friendliest and we got along great. Pictures were ok to "I love this for other people but I'm not a fan." 

I just want to take the raw photos from these weddings and try to salvage something useful. Cropping, getting rid of the filters, photoshopping/lightrooming the shadows and trying to focus on the joy. There should be more photos of the guests and wedding party that are well lit, with people looking at the camera. Fewer shots of the backs of heads!

1 hour ago, NancyDrewFan1989 said:

It took me a few seconds to realize the groom in he last photo was praying. I couldn't figure out what he was doing nor can I figure out why Christopher thought this was a good wedding photo to take of the groom. 

It could be some sort of kink combined with praying. I think I read that "chair sniffing" is a thing. 

I do not understand why anyone would need to position themselves like that to pray. Or why someone else would photo it. Or why the church office appears to be in an attic. 

[sparkles]

6 hours ago, Maggie Mae said:

 

  Hide contents

the dress is off centered between the two windows. One window is slightly open. Either he's too lazy to care, or he didn't notice. Neither one option is something that someone wants in a photographer. 

Of course, it doesn’t help much that the dress is basically a sack. The windows are much more interesting.

He does love his filters, doesn’t he? 

[mango_fandango]

Of course, the photo of the church is ALWAYS the first thing in every album. Because that’s the most important thing. 

Also, so many of the photos are taken from such a distance that you can barely see who’s in them. 

[JermajestyDuggar]

The very worst hanging wedding dresses were the Bowers girls hanging theirs in a fucking tree. It was so weird.

[16strong]

Am I the only one that hates the hanging dress pictures? They always look so ghostly and downright eerie. No plans to marry anytime soon, but I assume any photographer would take pictures of me in my wedding attire at all angles, so that is plenty enough.

[SassyPants]

About Abby not looking happy... and this is not a knock on Abby, but more an indication of how odd and dysfunction the Maxwell’s’ approach is. Abby does not really fit in with how Steve likes to portray the family. All of the women tend to be dainty, exercise fiends, and Abby has a totally different frame. I hope to Bob that Steve does not make nasty comments or attempt to counsel her. She is at a tender, impressionable age. I hope the adults in that family are nothing but kind, loving and accepting of Abby for who she is and not who they think that she should be. Eff all that control, control, control and self deprivation.

[MamaJunebug]

8 hours ago, catlady said:

Well, at least Chris’s photos are on par with Sarah’ books.

Even as Steve sniffed, “We don’t read books, we write them,” I’m 99% certain that Maxwells don’t study photographs, they take photographs.

After all, can they learn anything from looking at a photograph?  
 

EXTRA thought: The most recent hanging wedding dress photo is SO seriously awful — is Chris getting passive-aggressive in turning in bad work because ... well, for whatever reason?