Wedding Photography - Equipment Schmipment, let's ask some other questions...

[saint2e]

Hey all,

Done a couple weddings now, some with assistance, some without, mostly for family and friends of family, and I'm just hoping to start a dialog about wedding photography with more of an emphasis on the logistics of the day, rather than the settings on the camera, and what equipment to have. There are quite a few pages on the interwebs about what equipment to use, what settings to use, backup cameras, batteries, etc. etc.

I'm interested to see what people do for the following scenarios:

- Rehearsal... Do you go to the rehearsal to get a feel for how the ceremony will flow? If not now, did you when starting off?

- Wedding Ceremony... Where do you, as a photographer, get your shots? This is assuming there are no limitations from the Bride/Groom/Minister/Church/Ceremony location. Do you stand at the front? Or do you linger at the back? Do you walk around quite a bit, or just stick to the same area?

- Formal Shots... How do you like to stage your subjects? Do you take a more casual approach, or take a lot of care in position hands, arms, where the subjects are looking, etc.

- Number of shots delivered.... Assuming you've covered the following areas of shooting, how many shots do you deliver to the couple after the wedding for these situations:
-- Groom/Groomsmen getting ready
-- Bride/Bridesmaids getting ready
-- Ceremony
-- Formal pictures
-- Reception Hall

[bhrm]

Answers below:

Hey all,

Done a couple weddings now, some with assistance, some without, mostly for family and friends of family, and I'm just hoping to start a dialog about wedding photography with more of an emphasis on the logistics of the day, rather than the settings on the camera, and what equipment to have. There are quite a few pages on the interwebs about what equipment to use, what settings to use, backup cameras, batteries, etc. etc.

I'm interested to see what people do for the following scenarios:

- Rehearsal... Do you go to the rehearsal to get a feel for how the ceremony will flow? If not now, did you when starting off?
Always if possible. Always did always will. Even if I have shot in the same church/venue/temple, it's still a chance to get to know family/friends of the clients and watch how they interact (warm loving family or stressed out high tension! )

- Wedding Ceremony... Where do you, as a photographer, get your shots? This is assuming there are no limitations from the Bride/Groom/Minister/Church/Ceremony location. Do you stand at the front? Or do you linger at the back? Do you walk around quite a bit, or just stick to the same area?
Really depends. This is where the rehearsal comes in handy, you can do your test shots and know where they stand, how tall they really are on stage, obstacles and tripping hazards.

- Formal Shots... How do you like to stage your subjects? Do you take a more casual approach, or take a lot of care in position hands, arms, where the subjects are looking, etc.
This is up to you really and seeing how comfortable your subjects are. Take charge and work fast!

- Number of shots delivered.... Assuming you've covered the following areas of shooting, how many shots do you deliver to the couple after the wedding for these situations:
-- Groom/Groomsmen getting ready
-- Bride/Bridesmaids getting ready
-- Ceremony
-- Formal pictures
-- Reception Hall

Depends what you feel like......for me personally 200-300 fits the bill.

[demi2004]

If you are not familiar with weddings much, you should attend rehearsals. I never do, but then I've shots hundreds of weddings in every possible scenario so I know what to do.
Always talk to the minister/priest/church coordinator before the ceremony. They'll tell you about any rules that they have.
Unfortunately many big churches created their own rules to make things easier for them to do the ceremony. Most of those are without any common sense…
Some of the rules:
No Flash
No shooting from the center aisle.
Photography is not allowed for the most part of the ceremony
Photos are only from the center isle where the exit door is
Photos only from the spot on the side where they tell you to stand

Believe me, they are so bad that they may even stop the whole ceremony if you move a few feet away from you designated area.
This is why you should always ask in advance about any of these things.

Number of shots delivered really depends on your style.
If your coverage is very traditional, chances are you won’t deliver a lot of photos.
If you do journalism, it will be more since you’ll have a lot of small moments captured
However, if you feel like you need to deliver 2000 shots to your clients, I really believe you would need to evaluate your style and perhaps get into videography

[projectmoonlightcafe]

I would say if you're new you should always try to go the extra mile to learn and be prepared. Going to the rehearsal will give you comfort you won't be seeing the venue for the first time during the hectic wedding day. If it's a similar time of day or if it's indoors you can also determine where the best light source is.

As the owner of a wedding planning company most of the time I see photographers linger all over....even up close shots of the exchanging rings process. As long as the venue allows it, of course, and many do. It's the churches that might give you some headaches. Generally the people who linger at the back use 70-200 2.8L's. You should always walk all over the place.

For the formal shots, it's all based on experience. In the beginning you'll probably not know how to ask people to pose...and it also depends on if the couple is open to posing. Many are shy and aren't. All the more reason to take engagement photo shoot with them to loosen them up so they are more comfortable with you. Do your research, take a look at fashion mags for posing ideas.

Number of shots are also based on your experience. Basically, your camera will be firing constantly for the first couple of weddings you do. Once you get the hang of it and know how many photos you want to deliver to each of your couples you can slowly trim down the number of photos you take.

[ryan_lau100]

Hey all,

Done a couple weddings now, some with assistance, some without, mostly for family and friends of family, and I'm just hoping to start a dialog about wedding photography with more of an emphasis on the logistics of the day, rather than the settings on the camera, and what equipment to have. There are quite a few pages on the interwebs about what equipment to use, what settings to use, backup cameras, batteries, etc. etc.

I'm interested to see what people do for the following scenarios:

- Rehearsal... Do you go to the rehearsal to get a feel for how the ceremony will flow? If not now, did you when starting off?
Rarely go to these. Nothing is ever really the same the day of. You will always have to do stuff on the fly. I did a few times when first starting out. Not anymore.

- Wedding Ceremony... Where do you, as a photographer, get your shots? This is assuming there are no limitations from the Bride/Groom/Minister/Church/Ceremony location. Do you stand at the front? Or do you linger at the back? Do you walk around quite a bit, or just stick to the same area?
Always speak to the officiant. He/she will have rules for you to follow.... Regardless we try to be as quiet and unseen as possible, meaning we will stand and shoot maybe one or two shots and then immediately duck or move away so that the guests can actually enjoy the ceremony.... Biggest problem I find with photographers at weddings when I attend as a guest is when they stand in front of the alter for the full hour....

- Formal Shots... How do you like to stage your subjects? Do you take a more casual approach, or take a lot of care in position hands, arms, where the subjects are looking, etc.
Both candid and posed. Attention to detail is key. Shifting a hand or fingers or even a pinky can mean the difference between a good photo and a great photo

- Number of shots delivered.... Assuming you've covered the following areas of shooting, how many shots do you deliver to the couple after the wedding for these situations:
-- Groom/Groomsmen getting ready
-- Bride/Bridesmaids getting ready
-- Ceremony
-- Formal pictures
-- Reception Hall
Depends. The more that goes on is the more we deliver. It can be a 20hour wedding but if its just 20hours of eating they wont get a lot of photos.... On the other side if its a 5 hour wedding with tonnes of stuff included in that 5 hours they will get more. No set number.

If I were you I would assist some pros if possible and see different shooting styles and approach. I've worked with countless photographers over the years and everyone has very specific differences with how they approach weddings. Once you know how to be comfortable its just a matter of shooting.

[ryan_lau100]

I would say if you're new you should always try to go the extra mile to learn and be prepared. Going to the rehearsal will give you comfort you won't be seeing the venue for the first time during the hectic wedding day. If it's a similar time of day or if it's indoors you can also determine where the best light source is.

As the owner of a wedding planning company most of the time I see photographers linger all over....even up close shots of the exchanging rings process. As long as the venue allows it, of course, and many do. It's the churches that might give you some headaches. Generally the people who linger at the back use 70-200 2.8L's. You should always walk all over the place.

For the formal shots, it's all based on experience. In the beginning you'll probably not know how to ask people to pose...and it also depends on if the couple is open to posing. Many are shy and aren't. All the more reason to take engagement photo shoot with them to loosen them up so they are more comfortable with you. Do your research, take a look at fashion mags for posing ideas.

Number of shots are also based on your experience. Basically, your camera will be firing constantly for the first couple of weddings you do. Once you get the hang of it and know how many photos you want to deliver to each of your couples you can slowly trim down the number of photos you take.

^pretty much bang on....

[spicytofu]

I'm having a bit of anxiety, my friend asked me to take pics of his bro's wedding ceremony at his house. It's a small gathering with just their immediate family but I'm the photographer of the event. Not entirely comfortable which I told him but he told me not to worry. Just afraid I won't be able to capture the moment correctly as my equipment is at the hobbyist/enthusiast level (no pro lens)...not giving an excuse but indoor shots are not something I've had great success with. I know some of you say you can use any equipment to capture a moment but my experience and knowledge isn't at your level. Might borrow my bro's 7D.

[stasbasko]

just always be prepared to the worst.

[spicytofu]

just always be prepared to the worst.

I'm bringing all my gear and some of my bro's! lol

[RCGA]

Know your venue and have a gameplan/shot list

[spicytofu]

It's at my friends place and I plan to check it out this week. I fear the lighting won't be too good as it's a north facing house so sunlight will mostly come though the back kitchen windows when the ceremony is taking place in the front living area so won't get the sunlight. Looks like I'll be using my SB600 flash. It's not the biggest living room but then there will be less than 10 people attending.

Have absolutely no experience with this so will go with their schedule. My biggest problem is the initial set-up of camera, I frequently say to myself after I take a series of shot, why didn't I adjust this...damn!

[iridium001]

Remember to shoot in RAW so you can adjust White Balance later.

Good luck; sounds like you'll need it!

[spicytofu]

Remember to shoot in RAW so you can adjust White Balance later.

Good luck; sounds like you'll need it!

thanks! I suspect I'll be adjusting much more than white balance afterwards.