wendyholden

<p>Thanks for your suggestions, I totally agree about the skin. At the wedding Steven (in the chair) didn't want the blanket on and I wasn't going to push the issue. I agree--the bride was stunning. Grabbed a candid shot of her waiting for the ceremony to begin that is one of my all time favorites. <strong>http://tinyurl.com/cogjlw<br /> </strong><br>

I took the portraits yesterday and although the situation was not ideal, I think the family will be pleased. 13 stressed out adults and 6 grumpy overstimulated babies/toddlers made it impossible to spend much time posing. I did two poses, one with me on a step ladder, using chairs and people kneeling alongside the wheelchair and the other from the balcony, which was a bit too steep of an angle for my preference. The posing is not as balanced as I would like in the first picture and there are some distracting background elements that will need photoshopping. I might even try to shift the lady in purple and family closer to the wheelchair to eliminate the fireplace grate and close the gap. These pictures are just quick proofs, will do more tinkering soon.<br>

(I suggested coordinating outfits but that wasn't even a consideration. Making the image B&W helps remedy this a bit.)<br>

I will post the finished product eventually but here are two of the proofs...<strong>http://tinyurl.com/bcg82b </strong> <strong>http://tinyurl.com/co85bx</strong></p>

<p><strong><br /> </strong></p>

<p>I am doing a family portrait session for a rather large extended family this weekend. I usually try to stay away from big posed group jobs like this but they friends and I couldn't say no. The group consists of parents, their six grown children (5 of whom have spouses) and 4 small children. In addition, one son who suffered a spinal cord injury (similar to Christopher Reeves) uses a wheelchair that is somewhat reclined. I am looking for suggestions about how to best pose this group. Space is also going to be an issue since weather will prevent us from being outside. There is a staircase with an open balcony that looks over the living room so that might be the best option. Still need help mentally laying things out. <br>

Here is a quick group shot that I did at a wedding this summer when most of the family was gathered together. http://tinyurl.com/c55p6n</p>

<p>Thanks!<br>

Wendy</p>

I have been a Smugmug fan since I first signed on with them over 2 years ago. Their customer service is great, the prices are low and I do not have to worry about using too much space. I work in a small town and I post everything I shoot, from weddings to the ballet and theater, and of course the wrestling team. The price for a one year professional subscription is $149.

 

There is a great deal of flexibility in customization and gallery options. You can enable ordering, password protect and limit gallery access easily. Also, you can set prices easily for individual images, specific galleries or the entire site once. All of this is done in an unbelieveably simple fashion. I tried pictage for a month or two but was put off by the high monthly fees and the amount of time that it would take to figure out the system. Also uploads seemed to take forever. Compared to smugmug it was a nightmare. The downside is that there is no way to create albums for weddings. (This was my reason for signing on to Pictage)

 

For photographers who do not need album design, this is a simple and affordable way to go. Egads, I sound like a cheesy spokesman for Smugmug. I promise, I am not on their payroll! (but, I do think that you and I both get a few bucks if you tell them I sent you.)

 

I would be interested to hear other experiences...

 

Wendy

I had the same idea as Bill. I use an engagement picture of the couple to make up business cards to have on hand at the wedding. I post most of the images from the wedding on my webpage and everyone seems to fine me and ask for a card. I don't like to be obnoxious about promoting myself but the couples, as well as their friends and family seem to view these more like party favors than advertising. I do two to a page and print them as 3x5 images. They are a big bigger than standard but they look great.

I have my webpage through smug mug and I have been pleasently surprised by the positive feedback I get from clients. Ordering is handled by the lab as is billing and shipping. Great prints but I still do my larger images locally. My yearly fee is under $100 and it hasn't been hard to cover that.

Do you offer photo thank you cards (or cards of any kind for that

matter) to your clients? What lab do you get these from? I have

been looking around online but haven't found anything that grabs

me.

 

suggestions?

Awesome link, Andrew. I have been trying to figure out a way to get up close and personal at the Ellensburg rodeo this year. A UK pass will impress everyone sufficiently.

 

Thanks.

Too bad your wedding party did not have the rig that the wedding couple I photographed yesterday had. Maybe they would have faired better in the bog Race.<div></div>

Thanks for the help. The IS lens is a great idea. I had no idea that the cherry picker would be unstable. I am going to try to arrange for a trial run so I can see what works best.

I am taking pictures for a local wedding in a few weeks and they

have a unique request...group pictures of the wedding party riding

on a chairlift. The reception is at a large hall at the

fairgrounds and the sky ride passes next to the building. This

particular ride has open seats and is reminiscient of a ski lift.

This family has a long tradition of skiing and so the lift is a fun

prop. They are arranging for a "cherry picker" to lift me up in the

air so I have many options. Bride and Groom each have 6 attendants.

It will be early evening but still with bright daylight. I can shoot

with the sun behind the group and add flash to brighten the faces.

toward pictures Has anyone done anything like this? Any

suggestions?

WPPI--as in Washington? Where are you located, I am out of Ellensburg. Wanted to make the convention last weekend but couldn't get away. Congrats on the great shot!

 

Wendy

Ditto to the "simple" reply. I have found a variety of proof albums at Costco and Target. I get compliments on them from the brides and they are inexpensive.

SO, it may be that digital is where to learn the stuff, and once confident in it you "advance" to film

 

Marc,

 

This is exactly the way I see it. I shot film for fun for many years but it took going digital for me to have the freedom to experiment and try new things. I love my D100 but if I could have another camera it would be film. Digital has been a great learning tool but I am ready for a Leica now.

Belle, I think you might be on to something. I added a few programs that might be messing me up. Unfortunately, after a variety of search attempts, I still can't find anything. No luck in the Recycle Bin either. I still have my memory cards but the one that I used for these images has been written over already. I used Nikon View to transfer the files. I am not giving up. I will try the ztree solution next. The more I work on this, the more obsessed I am becoming. I can see every useless picture that I have ever taken so, it does not make sense that not one of this image group is showing up.

I am in a panic. One section of photos are missing from my wedding

images from last Saturdays wedding. I saw the images Saturday night

but didn't try to back them up until I got home on Monday. I

know... stupid stupid stupid. They seem to have disappeared. I

have run two recovery programs (from seperate disks--not from my

hard drive) but I don't see the pictures anywhere. Any ideas? They

are not critical to the wedding, and are a small portion overall of

the pictures I took but, I am sick over it. I am too Type A to

chalk this up as a hard lesson learned (yet). The files are NEF and

jpgs and my system is XP.

Any ideas?

I am married with young kids (6 to be exact) and for some reason destination wedings are especially appealing to me. Heck, for bus fare and a few minutes of quiet I would go just about anywhere!

Whew. I was worried. So glad I am not alone in this.

I don't know if this is my best but it is one of my favorites.<div></div>

I have been reading the archives and I was excited to see the recent

thread on prime lens (can't wait to try the body cap gluing trick).

I have found that I too, switch from one prime to another during

weddings and although it is a hassle, I like the pictures much

better than when I use a zoom. Maybe I need a few more cameras to

help me juggle...

 

I am in need of a wide angle lens to use for formals and family

group shots when space is tight. I currently have a 50 1.8 and an

85 1.8, along with a 28-200 zoom and a few other mid range zooms

that I rarely use. I shoot with a D100. My question is, should I

go for a 20mm or 24mm lens? I was leaning toward the 24 but am

worried that the digital factor will make it not quite wide enough.

Suggestions?

I shoot most wedding pictures on my D100 at fine, using RAW for large family shots and a few of the posed formals of the couple. I have not tried going smaller than that, I would rather play it safe than have an awesome shot that I can't enlarge like I want to.

 

I am also a bit paranoid about switching cards. I use the same one 99% of the time, although I always carry backup. I don't know which is riskier in the end, chancing a bent pin, or putting all of my eggs in one basket.

I am speechless. Neat Image is amazing. Just downloaded the demo and it gets rid of grain perfectly. I have been trying to tweak images in PS using smart blur but this looks so much better. This will make dragging the shutter much more attractive to me.

 

Thanks

Wendy

What an awesome forum this is!I have so much to ponder now.

 

My primary flash is a Speedlight sb80-DX but, I do have an extra flash that I am going to play around with off camera. I think that in this case less (equipment and $$$) may be more. I have been amazed by the beautiful flash shots posted here and think I can fine tune my dragging technique to get the effects I want. Also, I work alone and would be hard pressed to find time to set up and tear down light stands, not to mention time to protect them from toppling.

 

Thanks for the great insights.

 

Wendy

After surviving my first summer of wedding photography, I am

worrying about the cold dark winter when all of the beautiful

natural light disappears. I am feeling comfortable with my flash

but I am wondering if I need to add off camera lighting. I shoot

with a D100 and mainly use my 50 or 85 1.8 lens, although I have

others. I have been looking at Alien Bees and am wondering what size

and set up might be best. I am most concerned about posed portraits

and group shots in dim churches. Are off camera lights necessary or

is a good flash sufficient? Suggestions?

 

Wendy Holden

http://lifeisart.us/

This is the first year I have done senior portraits but, I am having a blast. All are done on location and I have had great success. No complaints.

 

Wendy

I have had several couples request their enlargements on canvas. My

local lab doesn't do these so I checked out MPIX. I just received

my test picture today and it seems to me that the canvas effect is

minimal. Does anyone have a lab to recommend or better yet, has

anyone else used MPIX? Is this a popular option elsewhere? I always

thought the canvas thing was a bit cheesy...am I mistaken?

 

Wendy

 

http://lifeisart.us