Wedding Photography

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Discussion

K12beano

20,854 posts

274 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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^^^ That sounds like a good plan - share the stress.


But, you need to get together first and have a very good plan of action to make sure nothing is missed!

sc0tt

Original Poster:

18,032 posts

200 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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RobbieKB said:
I would be a little weary of a few things, if I could give you advice. The noise at high ISO as someone already mentioned; that might be a bigger problem than you have anticipated. Flash gun - you need one. What lenses are you using? Be careful of AWB.

I'm interested to see you results, you seem quite casual about the whole ordeal which is both good and scary. hehe
Of course, I appreciate the noise will be an issue but it isn't in a church, we will be in a brightly lit registry office.

I have a flash gun and a slave unit. Lenses, I will be using are my best friend, 50mm Prime for the morning and static shots with the bride and groom, I have the kit lens and the 55-250 canon offering.

I also have the 10-20mm sigma but I am not so sure I will need that smile

Whats the point in being stressed over something I have no control over. I will try my hardest and I can't do any better than that. They live 190 miles away so if they don't want to talk to me again it will be easy enough hehe

Ali Chappussy

876 posts

144 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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sc0tt said:
They live 190 miles away so if they don't want to talk to me again it will be easy enough hehe
That's the spirit mate!!

crmcatee

5,691 posts

226 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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One thing to remember.

You're no longer going to the wedding. You're there providing a service.

Don't expect to enjoy their day; do enjoy the experience though.

anonymous-user

53 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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I'll be honest, I would rather (and have) cause temporary offence to the happy couple by refusing to photograph their wedding, than risking giving them sub-standard photos compared with a Pro.

Even though people say things like "oh I'm not looking for anything great, just a few shots will do us! I've seen your photos, they are great!" they rarely mean it.

What they actually mean is "I was absolutely horrified to discover that a wedding photographer was £1000 and I thought you will be able to do JUST AS GOOD A JOB as a professional but I don't have to pay you"

They will be expecting great photos no matter what they say!

But... If you are confident, and you have made the bride and groom fully aware that there's a chance your photos might be 'crap' then go for it smile

I would personally try to not use flash if you have a camera that handles higher ISO without an issue, but if you think you might need one, make sure you get a good diffuser on it, and here's a tip for you: when you put the diffuser cap on the flash unit, put a square of clean, pure white, printer paper inside the cap covering the flash lens. You have to ramp up the flash power a couple of notches but it really stops the glare and the whole 'shiny face' thing in the photos.

markmullen

15,877 posts

233 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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As others I'd recommend not doing it unless you're 100% comfortable with it.

I second shot a friend's wedding, they could only afford a pro for the service so I did preparation, reception, speeches, first dance etc.

My tips from this experience;

You might be surprised how high ISO you need to go. The hotel for the reception appeared bright enough to the eye but even with fast lenses (135mm f2) and a full frame body (1Ds Mk2) I was still in running out of ISO options without using flash, I was up to ISO 1600 and occasionally 3200. With flash I was OK but could only use it for certain jobs, the first dance for example.

Make sure you're happy with exactly how your camera works, in the stress of the situation you don't want to be trying to remember how to dial in flash compensation, or change ISO or whatever. Take plenty of cards and batteries, both for the cameras and for the flashes. Make sure you've got a backup plan, I shot with two 1 series bodies, both shooting two cards, smaller CF which I changed frequently and a large SD card backing up. I kept the main cards in a waterproof crush proof case in my inside jacket pocket and as soon as the reception was over at 1am I backed up to my laptop, and then from there onto a pair of external hard drives. One set of cards and a drive went into my girlfiend's handbag, one set stayed with me to split the risk, on the way home I dropped one set off at another house again to spread the risk.

Shoot in raw, make sure you've got white balance in hand, I used Colorchecker Passport to take a reference shot in each room I was shooting in, then I could batch them in Capture One when I got back. Shoot two or three of each shot in case of people blinking. Keep an eye on your histograms and blinkies, you don't want to blow out the bride's dress.

I used a BlackRapid DR1 dual harness to keep both bodies to hand and to take the strain off my (already injured) neck. It allowed the camera I wasn't using to slip down by my side under my suit jacket out of the way but ready for use when required. I used a 24-105 on one body and a 135mm f2 on the other.

If you're using fast lenses wide open be sure of your focus points, your DoF can be wafer thin, particularly close in, get the focus point wrong and you'll end up with the nose in focus but not the eyes, or the ears but not the eyes. It is even more or an issue when shooting a couple or a group where there is some depth to the pose.

Also if this sort of photography isn't your usual thing then practice and better practice. My thing is landscapes but I knew that 30 seconds at f11 on a tripod just wasn't going to cut it for this job, I spent every evening annoying the hell out of my girlfriend practicing low light and flash photography.

If you do decide to go for it then best of luck, I hope it works out and everyone is happy.

Jag-D

19,633 posts

218 months

Monday 25th June 2012
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Gemm said:
sc0tt said:
I'm not expecting award winning photo's and neither are they.
They usually say they aren't BUT they actually are!



Edited by Gemm on Monday 25th June 10:14
This

I've recently done a large wedding shoot for family (in laws) and it was a piss take...14 hours, lots of tantrums, people moaning, being bounced back from county to county with the bride and then no pay.

I won't be doing it again!

tog

4,517 posts

227 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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All this talk of ISO and grain - don't be scared of it is all I'd say. I'd much rather have a grainy photo than miss the shot altogether. And by miss the shot I also mean miss it by killing the atmosphere with flash. Flash does have it's place, but there are certainly times to avoid it at all costs.

Jag-D

19,633 posts

218 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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tog said:
All this talk of ISO and grain - don't be scared of it is all I'd say. I'd much rather have a grainy photo than miss the shot altogether. And by miss the shot I also mean miss it by killing the atmosphere with flash. Flash does have it's place, but there are certainly times to avoid it at all costs.
Couldn't agree more Tog. The last wedding I were at, we were prohibited from using flash during the ceremony where the light wasn't exactly the best. I ended up shooting at 30th, F5.6 at ISO 1250 and the results were great

sc0tt

Original Poster:

18,032 posts

200 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Jag-D said:
Couldn't agree more Tog. The last wedding I were at, we were prohibited from using flash during the ceremony where the light wasn't exactly the best. I ended up shooting at 30th, F5.6 at ISO 1250 and the results were great
Just aswell, I can't find my flash gun hehe

Can't be too far ...

Simpo Two

85,150 posts

264 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Anyone who shoots weddings, professional or amateur, wil have their own favourite kit and their own preferred way of doing things - not just how to use the kit, but in how they work with light, interact with the guests and so on.

Hence if you ask how to do it, you will get lots of advice which will be different!

I would suggest that instead of trying to adopt someone else's style, which may not be familiar/natural to you and so cause more complexity on the day, you should practice being thoroughly conversant with your kit and do it the way you think most suitable. The less you have to think/worry about on the day, the easier it will be.

MartinP

1,275 posts

237 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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^^^ What Simpo says!

The only thing I'd add to that is the more preparation you do, the less stressful it will be on the day, so have a plan for where you going to be shooting from, what locations you'll use for formal shots etc. You don't have to stick to it rigidly, but it can save a moments panic here and there if you know what you'll be doing next.

tog

4,517 posts

227 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Jag-D said:
I ended up shooting at 30th, F5.6 at ISO 1250
Pah! That sounds like daylight! wink I shot a wedding reception at Wilton's Music Hall in London, which is basically a dimly lit 19th century theatre. Exposures varied from 30th, 1.4, 2500ISO in the brighter areas, down to 15th at 1.8 at 6400 in the darker corners. In fact the graininess added to the atmosphere very much and the couple loved the shots smile

Jag-D

19,633 posts

218 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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tog said:
Jag-D said:
I ended up shooting at 30th, F5.6 at ISO 1250
Pah! That sounds like daylight! wink I shot a wedding reception at Wilton's Music Hall in London, which is basically a dimly lit 19th century theatre. Exposures varied from 30th, 1.4, 2500ISO in the brighter areas, down to 15th at 1.8 at 6400 in the darker corners. In fact the graininess added to the atmosphere very much and the couple loved the shots smile
Jesus Christ that's dark!!!!!!

Ok, you win on this one sir wink

What kit are you using?

Simpo Two

85,150 posts

264 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Jag-D said:
What kit are you using?
An f1.4 lens!

I have one but don't use it beyond f2; DOF is too shallow for me.

Jag-D

19,633 posts

218 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Simpo Two said:
An f1.4 lens!

I have one but don't use it beyond f2; DOF is too shallow for me.
I should have clarified. I was wondering what body to make ISO 2500 usable for that kind of thing.

5D?

The lowest I have is an F1.8 50MM prime...well, I have one "Nifty" 50mm which broke and a Sigma 50mm Macro which is my walk about lens

silverfoxcc

7,683 posts

144 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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When i did it on a professional level, i had a 'shot list' for after the wedding, B+G add best man, add bridesmaids, add parents,take out BM and Bridesmaids, parents only, one ech with respective parents, grannis etc, bros and sis, best friends, rest of mob, bride with small dressed up children etc. That way, you dont miss a pic, perhaps there will be others suggested on here, after all this i was doing 35yrs ago. Only stopped when colour came in, and couldnt do the printing well due to being red/green colour blind!! Also at Reception, get one, if you can in the hall, with a no way out sign in the background!!, One with bride holding cert over grooms back and winking, fun stuf, photo journo etc. Good fun and after taking orders at the rception, being invited to stay. 'And enjoy yourselves'!!!!

K12beano

20,854 posts

274 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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Jag-D said:
I was wondering what body to make ISO 2500 usable for that kind of thing.
I wonder what your current experience is. I have recently jumped from D2X (2004 technology) to D800 (2012 technology). Where I would have been very scared of going to ISO 640, I would (not that I'm going to volunteer for a wedding any time soon) now be quite confident to 3200, maybe even 6400 and with two F/1.4s to choose from, I'd relish that bit of the challenge!!!

Jag-D

19,633 posts

218 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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K12beano said:
wonder what your current experience is. I have recently jumped from D2X (2004 technology) to D800 (2012 technology). Where I would have been very scared of going to ISO 640, I would (not that I'm going to volunteer for a wedding any time soon) now be quite confident to 3200, maybe even 6400 and with two F/1.4s to choose from, I'd relish that bit of the challenge!!!
Most of my background was motorsport, made the jump to portrait type stuff a few years ago which naturally progressed onto weddings. I've done weddings in the past, but never like this.

I've used Canon 5D, 10,20,30,40,50 & 60 D, Nikon D2H, D2X, D3, D70

I've owned and used a Canon EOS 10D for the past 7 years or more which I found the ISO almost unusable if I went anywhere near ISO800, which is how and why I developed a steady hand for those slower shutter speed and long exposure shots, sans tripod.

Now I'm using a 40D, I find the dark light performance a vast improvement over that of the 10D, the last wedding being the first time I've gone up that far.

Other than weddings, most of my work is daylight portraits, family portraits with or without flash, but not usually requiring anything like the levels of ISO increase that a dimly lit church dictates.

markmullen

15,877 posts

233 months

Tuesday 26th June 2012
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My 5D3 is useable even up to ISO 8000! I've not needed anything more than that yet, I might have shot some at Le Mans at 12800, yet to go through them.