Wedding Photography! Advice wanted!

[photocriticgirl]

I’m scheduled to shoot my second Wedding on July 4th, (the first wedding I shot I was only a second shooter!). I have mostely everything planned out. A shot list, locations for photos, ect.

I was wondering if anyone had any last minute advise or tips that they found helpful while photographing weddings.

Thanks in advance!!

[iliketag]

Be very careful. Weddings are very, very complicated. Do you have a friend or someone that can second shoot for you?

[Worst Case Scenario]

Conceptual = Lawsuit

[Worst Case Scenario]

Q. What’s the most important picture to take at a wedding?

A. What ever it was that you didn’t do!

Moral of this story, unless you have a good contract, a shot of the bridesmaids sisters shoes will become the most important photograph in the history of wedding photography, and with out it ALL your pictures are terrible and you have ruined the best day of their lives………. Just saying

[iliketag]

Photocriticgirl, I’m going to be brutally honest…
I don’t think you’re ready to solo a wedding. A lot of the work that you’ve shared with us has had rookie mistakes that are simple to fix when you have the time to reshoot… but you only get one shot at a wedding and, like WCS said, if you don’t have a solid contract, you’re very at risk of being sued.

I have stopped doing weddings, even for friends/favors, after becoming a regular to this little community. I am simply not ready to take them on alone. I absolutely need more experience and when I do decide to take on wedding clients; I will have a second shooter, be damn good at OCF and have an assistant with me to help swap lenses on bodies (yes, bodies, plural) and hold reflectors/scrims.

I look back at the last wedding I did, she’s a very close friends and wanted me to be a bridesmaid originally, but thought it would be better suited if I captured their day because I had seen the relationship from the very beginning and I knew them – thus I could offer a unique perspective into that intimate moment.
I will say with absolute certainty that I did my very best, but I am not sure I gave her what I wanted. I wanted to deliver the stuff that makes burgeoning photographers swoon. It’s very, very difficult to do. Every wedding I have shot (5 alone, two as a second) has had a VERY tight schedule. One couple (a second marriage) decided to forgo bridal portraits and photos of just the two of them because the groom was hungry – despite my protests. They didn’t fight me over it (due to our contract), but expressed that they were disappointed to not have them when I delivered the edits.

I really hate to put a pin in the balloon… but you’ve not put yourself in an ideal situation, here.

[nairbynairb]

Remember to bring enough memory, and spread it out over a couple of different cards in case of technology failing you.

Remember to be personable, all while getting the job done.

This is a no-brainer but in case you forgot: Make sure all of your batteries are charged… including ones for flash/remote triggers.

[Gerbles]

Yeah, hate to say it, but judging from your work you’ve posted and the fact you’ve only second shot once, I’d have the couple find another photographer. Do you have more than one camera body, high quality fast lenses and a good working knowledge of OCF and bounce flash? I know this is not the advice you were looking for, and you’re probably going to do it anyway, so having said that- have a well thought out contract and liability insurance.

[Thomas]

Way to not answer the question everyone! As much as I like laughing at real Fauxs who end up on here it does annoy me that sometimes questions can’t just be answered with more positive advice. Lets assume the bride and groom know that the OP doesn’t shoot weddings very often, have seen weddings they have already shot and liked the image so they hired her. Although the advice given is fairly sound, it’s rather negative so lets try something else…

On that note, tips for the day. HIGH ISO if needed, blurry shots are worse than noisy shots which can be fixed in post. Please have at least one fast lens, go buy a sub £100 (not sure how many $$$) 50mm f/1.8 if you don’t already own one. Shoot in aperture priority if you can’t keep up with changing aperture and shutter speed all the time, there is no shame in letting the camera do the work it was designed to do. Take control! If they want the posed group shots you need to be in charge. Take LOADS of shots just in case. If you have any time when you aren’t running after people, take some shots of the details if you can. Most of all, have fun and enjoy it. I hated the first wedding I ever did, I was sweating buckets all day due to the stress. I couldn’t take control of the situation and at times felt I didn’t have a clue what I was doing. Thankfully I had explained that I wasn’t good enough to shoot my friends wedding but he insisted as he liked my other work. Turns out they loved all the images but I hate them because I know they are bad, haha.

[cameraclicker]

Following Thomas’ example…  and assuming you have read what the others have said about being careful, personable and having an iron-clad contract…

If you have any time when you aren’t running after people, take some shots of the details if you can.

If you can, have the bride and groom assign a person from each side of the family to keep track of people and have them ready at the right times.  They can also identify people listed on the shot list.  This works pretty well because each person assigned should know their family and the friends.

Don’t just bring charged batteries, bring spare charged batteries too.

Spare bodies and/or good zoom lenses mean fewer lens changes, which saves time and keeps the sensor cleaner.

Figure out ahead of time how high you can set ISO before noise is unacceptable, then keep ISO below that threshold.  Shoot raw, it gives much more latitude to fix exposure later.

Shoot the details.  Pay attention to depth of field when shooting the details, use a tripod if necessary.  Chairs and tables can substitute for a tripod in many cases.  Research the venues and shoot the outside of each location.

Shoot as many guests as you can, even if they are just walking into the church or reception.  Shoot the guests seated for the ceremony, from the front of the church, both sides, and again when they are seated for dinner.  Shoot all the speeches, mothers expect to see those photos even if the bride and groom don’t.

Find out ahead of time if you can use a flash during the ceremony.  Some ministers won’t let you.  The last one I shot said he was used to lights and to do whatever we thought was necessary.

Shoot wide to show the environment and shoot tight for the details.

Ask if there is anything you should pay special attention to.  Last wedding, weeks after it was all over the grooms mom told me she was glad I got a picture of the bride’s earrings.  Apparently the bride was wearing jewellery worth $17K !  Who knew!  They didn’t say anything ahead of time.

[Nightrose]

Thomas and cameraclicker have some great advice!

Also, try to capture these things:

The groom’s face when he sees his bride for the first time. It’s easiest if you are positioned near him up the top of the aisle to one side, so you can snap a shot of bride coming up the aisle, then swing around to get his reaction.

Obviously, their first kiss. Be at the top of the aisle, and hunker down so that you aren’t in the way of all the guests.  If the kiss is long enough, you might have a chance to quickly stand and snap off a shot as well. Take multiple photos if you can, but really try to ensure you have your focal point correctly on them. Push up your ISO to give you faster shutter speed, and don’t make aperature too shallow.

Photograph everyone else taking photographs with their phones! You can’t avoid them, so do some wide shots of all the guests crowded around the couple with their cameras.

Details are important, so photograph them!

Best of luck to you 🙂

 

[photocriticgirl]

Thank you to everyone who was HELPFUL!

I didn’t ask for you opinion on if I should do it or not. They liked my photography from the other wedding and I’m doing this as a favor since I told them I wasn’t too familar in the field.

There’s some background info on this as well I may want to add!

The wedding is outside, in a circle shape.  The “circle of love” idea. Has anyone ever shot a wedding like that?  Where the bride and groom are in the middle while the guest’s chairs are in a circle around them?

It begins at 5:30 and runs late. It’s the 4th of July, so fireworks are going to be there. I’ve purchased some fireworks and had my brothers play around wtih them to practice.

Also, I’ve photographed the Bride and Groom (Not engagement, just a few photos outside) To find what angles and positions I like best for them.

And, one final detail, my Uncle’s a lawyer and has been for 25 years. Trust me, I have a great contract.

[cameraclicker]

Pray for nice weather.

Drag your brothers outside at 5:30 for the next few evenings and photograph them standing, facing different directions.  Figure out how much flash you need.

Are they going to be turning to give everyone in the audience a chance to see them or will they have their backs to some of the audience for the whole ceremony?   How many rows?  Standing or sitting?  Figure out how close you will be and choose focal lengths accordingly.

What is the plan if it rains?  How does that change your photography?

Find out as much as you can and plan carefully, then be prepared to “wing it” when something completely unexpected happens anyway.  Look around, keep your options open as far as possible and take advantage of what you observe.

 

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