Nerves, Intimidation, and Camera Shake

[lovcom_photo]

Ok, so I have 12 years of EOS experience, doing semi-pro work with

products, events, and portraits. For my own uses, I've shoot many

landscapes, etc.

 

My first wedding is coming up on the 25th. I got the equipment,

loads of it, 14 lenses, mostly L, many primes, zooms, several

flashes, back up bodies, 2 1D Mark II's, a 5d, etc.

 

I've studied for months what it takes to shoot a wedding, and after

doing all this I have profound respect for what you pros have to do,

in regards to pulling it all together.

 

So where am I going with this? Well, I am very nerveous about the

shoot. Years of event jobs have not prepared me for the coming big

day, or so it seems. I'll be using tripods and a monopod as required

so perhaps my shaking hands can be dealt with. But as we all know,

being human, a nerveous mind can make mistakes, causing missed shots,

opportunities, that could belie one's true talant.

 

So what advise can one give to help me cope with the big day?

 

I'll be attending the rehearsal the night before, and although I'll

be using primes for the big day, during the rehearsal I plan to bring

just one or two zooms so that I can take notes on what focal lengths

as I seek out standing/kneeling positions, places to shoot from, etc.

 

Ok, give it to me hard and blunt if you must. I' eager to learn.

Don't be surprised if I take too much equipment, as it may be a

security blanket of sorts.

 

The magnitude and importance this big day is for the B&G is not lost

to me, so I want to do the best I can to insure success.

 

How many weddings till one feels secure/relaxed?

 

Oh, the pressure!

 

Thanks,

Dan

[colleendonovan]

I felt the same way before my first wedding. I didn't sleep at all for about a week before and I thought I was going to barf the whole day!! But, when i got to the wedding and started shooting I forgot that I was so nervous and everything was fine. I even had fun!!! Once you start shooting it all comes naturally anyway. That's why beginners should practice, but I think you will have it down pat. So don't worry. Enjoy yourself and let your mind relax!!!

[jmichaelc]

The No.1 way that I've found to be relaxed is to develop a good relationship with your client before the big day. Next, during the day, approach them in a way that allows them to be comfortable with you in their space. This is a fine line......you do not want to be blasting them with a flash every 5 seconds in close proximity when their trying to do their thing. Use good judgment regarding distance and when to use natural light only. The key is to be in a situation where they know that you are there but could care less about you. This is where you will be able to capture true spontaneous moments and it all begins with your approach. Simply put - be courteous at all times and use good judgment. They'll appreciate it and in turn will allow you in their space comfortably, which will in turn relieve you of so many pressures. Good Luck.

[anner]

First and foremost, identify exactly what the most cruicial shots are, and focus on making those perfect. The rest is butter on the bread. The rehearsal may or may not have the same lighting conditions. Often times they use more lights in the sanctuary during the rehearsal than they actually do on the wedding day. The most difficult shots to nail consistently are processional and recessional. Find what works for you and prepare for it. Equally difficult can be the bouquet toss.<br><br>

 

The best time to prepare is in those few moments when people are gathering together. The lighting isn't going to change, and your distance is going to be the same, so test away. When I find myself in difficult lighting situations where I haven't had a chance to work out my settings before the wedding day, I just tell the crowd that I'm testing the lighting while they are getting in place. Since I always start with the largest group first, it takes some time for them to get together. I've heard some people on this forum think that this is "unprofessional", but I think it's more unprofessional to ruin a large group shot in a difficult lighting situation. Sometimes you even get some funny out-takes, like this one, which I actually included for the bride...<br><br><center>

<img src="http://static.flickr.com/38/100843272_4cc1547b87_o.jpg"><br><br>

....she loved it. Her family was somewhat oblivious to her frustration with them. ;-) (As a side note, I applied the vignette in photoshop to draw attention to her reaction.)<br><br></center>

 

The fact is, there are so many unknowns about the scene and lighting until you're actually in the midst of everything and there isn't a cookie-cutter approach that works for every situation. Use any down-time you have to get your settings perfect for the lighting conditions. Luckily, you have digital and can get instant feedback on your test results.<br><br>

 

Most importantly, be friendly, easy-going, and gracious. No one wants an uptight, stressed-out, selfish photographer at their wedding. Take the time you need, but do it with laughter instead of shouting. Have a good time and enjoy yourself (but not the alcohol). If you appear calm and collected, everyone will have more confidence in you.

[conraderb]

Dan - well, you have the gear angle down pat. Were you asking about this earlier?

 

Nerves takes a long time. my stomach had the butterflies for my first 8 or 9 weddings. Now, I get a bit nervous the night before and the mornign of, but it's probably good.

 

first - if you have years of event experience, shouldn't you have a pretty good grasp of focla lenghts? ie. ceremony from the back row - long lens. group shots at the reception- wide to normal. portraits of bride and groom together - medium telephoto, around 85mm-120mm or so.

 

I would recommend that you try out as much as possible at the lcoation.

 

maybe you can ask to assist a pro in the future - I find that a lot of it isn't about camera skills per se, but about knowing WHERE and WHEN and all of that. a pro makes it look easy, which it is not always, IMHO.

 

best of luck.

 

Conrad

[lovcom_photo]

Thanks all of you!

 

Conrad, you nailed exactly, it's about WHERE and WHEN...it's that part that scares me.

 

Events were not so "critical". When I shoot a corporate event, nobody complains about a missed shot. The margin for error is much fatter with corporate events and even some personal functions I've been hired for.

 

But with weddings, well, it seems so different. Much more important. Much higher expectations.

 

One thing for sure, I'm gaining more and more respect for you folks that do this for a living.

 

Thanks again, y'all!

[will_perlis]

IMX, all of the above, plus ignoring the physical symptoms of nervousness. If you ignore them and just go about your business they'll go away quickly. If you start concentrating on how your hands are shaking or how your guts rumble, it will get worse.

[anner]

The where and when are 70% predictable. You know when the bridesmaids are going to make their entrance because you're there with them, you know that there is going to be a little bit of action when the bride reaches the end of the aisle because she and the groom are locking eyes for the first time during the ceremony or she's being given away. You know when they are going to the unity candle because the music starts, or they start to move. You know when the kiss is going to happen because the pastor announces it... etc. Most critical things are predictable or announced before they happen. HOWEVER- if you're focused on something other than the actual event, and your focus is distracted than you may miss these obvious signs. The unpredictable moments are a big bonus if you can tune into the people enough that you can prepare yourself for a special moment. So, in short (well, not that short apparently), be aware of your surroundings and listen to what's going on so that you can be prepared for critical moments.

[kennyahn]

Dan,

 

I'm sure you'll do just fine. Enjoy yourself and take pictures like Anne. Great picture Anne.

[lovcom_photo]

Wow, lots of great advise here! Thanks.

[picturesque]

It was probably a year of shooting lots of weddings before I didn't have butterflies in my stomach before a shoot. Even now, after many years, I still get betterflies, like for tomorrow, the first big wedding of the year.

 

Preparation depends on your personality. If you know yourself, you know what it will take to push yourself to perform at the top level. For me, it is planning. I would pre-plan everything--be ultra prepared--make lists--and it works for me. I still make lists for each and every wedding I shoot. On the job, I consult my lists often, and just by reviewing my notes, I can recall all the preparation that went into the note. Might be another technique that works for you, although partly, you are just going to have to acquire the experience. Can't do much about that part.

[wedding-photography-denver]

Hey Dan,

 

I wish every new entrant to wedding work had the same respect for the job and did half of what you are planning for the day.

 

You seem capable and you certainly have covered your backup bases. So, what to do about the butterflies. My approach on my first wedding (circa '89) was all messed up. I began by allowing everyone to direct me to do what they wanted. This sounds like something you shoud be willing to do, but in fact I now realize that you must have a pretty clear notion of what you are going to do well before you arrive. Once in the seing of the day, previsualize your shots and place yourself accordingly. You may well miss one or two that you *could* have gotten due to nerves and so forth, but by having your mind on what you are going to do next, you will likely find you cover it all quite well. I would have found someone to follow for a few if I had my time over.

 

Take charge and don't be afraid to do it over if you need to. It would be better than to miss a needed shot.

 

Relax, enjoy the day and shoot like it was the only thing you care about :-)

 

Best of luck, D.

 

...and you never really get over the jitters, they just diminish.

[discpad]

Dan, how do you plan on so many lens changes without getting dust bunnies on the CCD's?!

 

Try to pare down the list, so you have less to worry about. Also, consider dedicating one body to lens changes, leaving the other two with permanently attached glass.

 

Lastly, bring your battery chargers along, as you'll want to use your LCD to check the histograms for proper exposure and it sucks down the charge. Also, since your cells are NiMH, they have no memory (unlike older NiCad), so swap out your batteries during downtime and top them off. Same goes for the batteries in your flashes.

 

Oh, and one more thing: Take a look at the thread entitled "Survey: Whats unique items are in your Wedding Kit" at:

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00FHgq&tag=

[lex_jenkins]

It isn't always possible to do anything about conditions that can lead to camera shake, whether due to nerves, physical exertion or other reasons. I have a neurological condition that often causes shaky hands, so it's a challenge even when I'm perfectly calm. I also have a very rapid resting pulse, close to 100. Even when I was a long distance bicycle rider my resting pulse never slowed down. So the rapid flutter can cause problems as well.

 

I use tricks learned from target shooting when I was younger, mostly involving breath control and body alignment. To avoid straining my back, neck and knees I do minimal leaning, stooping or kneeling. I rest my left upper arm against my chest to support the camera. To minimize movement of my support arm I concentrate on using diaphragm control, allowing my stomach to expand and contract for free breathing with the least possible chest movement. Really helps.

 

If you have a slow resting pulse you can time your shutter releases to coincide with breaks between pulses and breaths. This isn't practical for me, tho', so I just concentrate on breath timing.

 

It's difficult to mimic high stress conditions in practice. Even if you could psych yourself up to nervousness for a practice run it's probably not necessary or a good idea - life is stressful enough already. Instead, walk rapidly or jog while carrying your equipment to elevate your heartrate and breathing. Pause and shoot. Be sure to practice in lighting that will let you use exposures similar to those you'd use during a wedding shoot. It won't do any good to practice in bright sunlight at fast shutter speeds when you'll probably want to shoot at 1/60 second or slower during the wedding.

 

An IS lens can also be of tremendous help in minimizing camera shake due to twitchy muscles and nervous breathing. The tricky bit is finding an IS lens within the focal range and aperture range you need. I don't know what Canon offers, other than some excellent long telephotos with IS. Nikon's only midrange zooms with VR are slow variable aperture types, which limits the usefulness of these lenses in dim available light when trying to balance ambient light and flash.

[r.m.]

Dan, I think I asked the same exact question when I first started shooting weddings :). Truth is, I still get a little nervous at the start of each event. You're dealing, for the most part, with people you don't really know and photographing an extremely intimate moment in their lives. I think it's perfectly natural. I just double check all of my equipment and get everything packed and ready to go the night before. I find that I'm only edgy the first 15-30 minutes of the day now. Once I start shooting, I pretty much just lose myself in what I'm doing and the nerves settle down. Good luck with it!

 

Well, I'm off to check & pack my equipment now. I have a wedding to shoot tomorrow...wish me luck...:)

 

Best,

Reina

[lovcom_photo]

Thanks everyone!