Martin Makowski

Hi there! I’m Martin, a wedding photographer from Nottingham, UK. I specialise in documentary wedding photography and I’ve been doing so for nearly a decade. I’m a curious observer and love shooting weddings in a completely unobtrusive manner.

I believe that wedding photography should be as unique and authentic as the people in it. I don’t apply a template or work to any pre-planned ideas. I approach each wedding with a fresh mind and open eyes. In constantly changing surroundings spontaneous photo opportunities await. It’s a bit like street photography at weddings.

Finding myself amongst a large crowd of people that is fully loaded with positive emotions is like a free ticket to a Funland! Being around happy people makes me happy. Creating meaningful and storytelling imagery for people is both very exciting and fulfilling.

Cameras

Fuji X-T3 x2 – Until early 2018 I was a loyal Nikon shooter, I then decided to go mirrorless. I switched to Fuji and absolutely love this system. It was one of the best decisions I’ve made.

I’m not a camera geek and technical aspects of photographic equipment are not that important to me. If the camera is capable of capturing the photo I’m aiming for, it’s a winner. Fuji gives me exactly that, yet it’s such a joy to handle.

It may sound weird, but I somehow feel an emotional connection with Fuji cameras. I love them for their image character, colours, grain, size, and exposure triangle dials.

Lenses

Fujinon XF 23mm f/1.4 – This is my most used lens during the wedding day and it’s fair to say that I capture 85% of my images with this beauty. I generally photograph in ambient light and would only reach for the flash at the dance floor, so having a faster lens is a massive bonus. It stays attached to one camera body all day long.

Fujinon WR 23mm f/2 – This is my go-to lens for street photography, days out, and travel. I absolutely love it for image quality and size. At weddings, it usually sits in my car as a backup to the main 23mm f/1.4.

Fujinon 56mm f/1.2 – This lens goes on my second X-T3 body. I trained my photographic eye to see in either 35mm or 85mm, it’s a pure gem. However, it only covers a small percentage of the overall wedding shoot.

Fujinon 16mm WR f/2.8 – This is a very recent replacement to its big brother the 16mm f/1.4. I use this lens mainly on the dance floor when I’m super close to the action, or in small rooms where 23mm is a tad too narrow.

To flash the action on the dance floor I use my trusty pocket FLASHQ 20 from LightPix Lab. I also have a Nissin i60 that I occasionally pull out of the bag, usually when the FLASHQ battery goes flat.

On top of the mentioned gear, I pack a few items into my Peak Design Everyday Sling bag 10L including various SD memory cards from Sandisk and Lexar, plus a few spare batteries for my Fujis. Not to forget a tiny umbrella for rainy days.

Over the years I went through some camera gear obsessions and by eliminating unneeded and unwanted stuff, I found my perfect cameras and lenses.

www.makowskiphotography.co.uk | @makowskiphotography

Highly Recommended

11 Tools for Wedding Photographers

Check out the 11 essential tools and apps every wedding photographer should be using this year.

Includes limited time discounts.

Learn more here

You'll Also Like These:

12 Best Fuji Lenses in 2023 for Fujifilm X Mount (All Budgets) Best Wedding Photography Gear Best Fujifilm Cameras of 2023 (Latest Fuji X-Mount Models) Best Cameras Under $200 Fuji X-Pro 2 Compact System Camera Review 117 Different Styles & Types of Photography To Try in 2023