Ages ago, I was covering a premiere at the Lyric Theatre in the Star casino, and there were celebrities and wannabe-celebrities gathering. They'd walk down the red carpet, pose in front of the media wall, and then stand around in groups, chatting over champagne.
Possibly Geoffrey Rush was there. I have a vague recollection. But the most famous person I definitely remember was Ita Buttrose, though to be perfectly honest I didn't know anything about her at the time, and my knowledge hasn't much increased since. A friend pointed her out to me. So, I snuck in close enough not to get blocked by people, pointed my camera at her, and pressed record.
What I remember was that she flinched almost imperceptibly. She knew that there was a lens looking at her, and I don't think she liked it. But either she was enough in the public eye to be accustomed to paparazzi, or she was too refined to say anything. Or both. She carried on chatting, and I got my five-second shot, and then I left to hassle someone else. My apologies to Ms Buttrose for making her uncomfortable under the unlikely circumstance she ever reads this.
But I think there's a lesson there for weddings, and the lesson is simply that, most of the time, you should just... do a Buttrose. Just be in the moment. Just carry on laughing, or chatting, or doing whatever you were doing, because, really, that's all that the videographer is after. You don't need to turn towards the camera, and you don't need to turn away. Just be natural.
