First Wedding Today & 80% Rain - Help!

Well wouldn't you know it. My first wedding shoot is this

afternoon, and they are predicting 80% chance of rain and 10-20 MPH

wind. Oh, and it's a outdoor/private home wedding. And I was

worried about to much sun!

 

Any suggestions for shooting in inclement weather?

 

Maybe I'm looking at this all wrong....if my pics are bad...I can

blame it on the weather right? Ha j/k. As if I wasn't stressed

enough.

Well it's a good thing you bought the 16-35mm because you'll probably be using it exclusively if you're forced to stay inside for everything. Unless the house is very large, you'll be pressed for space. Fortunately, shooting indoors is easier than dealing with changing/challenging lighting conditions outside. Most houses have the white/light eight foot ceilings, making them ideal to use as large bounce surfaces. In a sentence--bounce your heart out.

 

I've had good experiences with a plain OmniBounce indoors. Use a wide to medium aperture, drag the shutter some and everything should be fine (manual mode on the camera). You'll have to tweak flash exposure but fortunately with digital, you can see what is happening. I would use ISO400, f4 or f5.6, 1/30th or 1/60th. You might want to review some of Ben Rubenstein's comments about the 10D/550EX combo, though. If I'm not mistaken, he says this combo overexposes when in bounce mode. If you do't have an OmniBounce, use a white bounce card to put some of the bounced light back onto faces. You might want to use ISO100 for the formals but only if you have enough flash power.

 

For the formals, you can incorporate the sofas or chairs that are already in the home to pose people, especially if you start running out of space for standing formals.

Forgot--also for the formals, you might want to use smaller apertures for depth of field for groups where you have layers of people, but again, your flash must be able to put out enough light.

Sorry for the multiple postings but I keep remembering things. If the rain quits or lessens, you might want to pose the couple on a patio or under an overhang where the background will be greenery or the "outdoors". That way they stay dry and you get some shots with the outside as background.

 

If you go outside and it is overcast, use AV (or meter/manual) and set the flash to -2 or -1 to help fill eye sockets.

 

Right now, I'd be testing your bounce setup before leaving for the wedding.

Cant really help you with lighting issues/rain, but if it stops raining and is overcast, your lighting will even out somewhat over bright direct sunlight. You also could have some nice, unique photo-ops using umbrella (the rain kind, not the photo kind) such as B/G walking away under the umbrella, kissing under the umbrella, etc - you get the idea. Let some of the butterflies in your stomach out and use the opportunity to be creative and see what you come up with.

Thanks, that really helps a lot. Nadine, here is an equipment update. I have the 580EX in addition to my 550. After serious buyers remorse I did return (but only for now :-D) the 70-200L and reluctantly the 24-70L. Ouch. I gambled with getting another version of the Tamron 28-75 and thankfully, got a good copy this time. Very happy with it. No, not as good as it's counterpart...but really very good. Even though I have the Tamron 90mm macro, I did get the Canon 85mm 1.8. I love it. I will zoom with my feet for the shots I'd hoped to get with the 70-200L and it will just have to do for now. And yes, there was just no substitute for the 16-35L and I'm glad to have it. Oh, and of course my 50 1.4 prime. Again, later I will look at replacing the Tamron with the Canon again, and getting the long zoom. Let's see how the business goes. But for now, I'm happy with what I have. I've played a bit with using the 550 as a slave but only outside in prep for this wedding. Inside a moderately sized living room, perhaps to much light, or no if bounced like the master? Hard to tell?

Hi Jan,

 

Get yourself a large 'brolly' :-)

 

here's a shot from a wedding on a golf course and the couple wanted a shot on the green and, IT RAINED.

 

Ah well, make the most of it...<div></div>

Jan, I'm afraid I jinxed you. On your previous post about the harsh light I suggested you might be lucky and get a cloudy day. Given the apparent power of my posts to change the weather, I'm going to say that it won't rain, it'll just be cloudy-big dramatic clouds that will give you a great background-I hope.

I wouldn't experiment with multiple lighting the first time out. In fact, I'd get more used to just on-camera flash first before getting into multiple lighting. In a moderate sized living room, having both flashes in a multiple light situation isn't necessarily too much light. If your living room has light/white walls, plain bounce from a single flash should work well.

Well David, I was hoping you would show up. I can always count on you for the common sense solutions as well. Thanks, I'm going to put one with my equipment and take it with me so the wedding party doesn't have to scramble to find one.

 

So, far...sunny skies.....a tad windy however, but great for veil blowing...unless it gets so bad it blows off. Ha. Man, I've got all this information bouncing around in my head...I sure hope it finds it's place once I start shooting! I think I must be more nervous than the bride! :-)!

Yeah Paul....I was thinking about you! Be careful what you wish far huh? Thanks for the encouragement!

In the future always have a "rain plan" ready to go. If you can, locate a porch or an over hang where you can shoot. But you have to be as ready for this, as for sunshine.

 

 

I have learned to smile, and do my best. I also tell the bride & groom that it's lucky for rain on their wedding day ( I lie).

Mostly whats done is to shoot more in church(when it's a church wedding).And also you can shoot "formals" in an empty reception room.Most catering halls understand that the weather can't be helped.

 

At an outdoor, private home wedding. I would think that the dance floor in the rented tent would work. If they didn't rent a tent, you are in trouble unless they have huge rooms in their home.

By the way, if you haven't left already, bring a couple of large plastic bags in case they are stubborn and insist on having the ceremony (or other parts) in the rain. You can then cut out holes in the bag for your lens and keep the camera under the bag. Your 16-35 is, if not weather sealed, at least resistant to moisture, but the camera body is not. Non-L lenses are also not. If you have an assistant you can have him/her hold an umbrella over your head and gear. A little rain won't bother the gear, but a lot might. I shot a wedding where the bride and groom and minister were under an overhang but the guests (an I) weren't. The guests had umbrellas, I didn't.

So how did it go Jan?