danzel_c

<p>i meant "canopy" not tent...oops.<br />i guess by "acceptable" i mean was there another way to get this shot and not have the highlights blown out. if i was noticeable (i.e closer to them) i don't think i would have got the priceless expressions.</p>

<p>here's an example</p><div></div>

<p>i was under the tent about 50 feet from the wedding party as they were being announed at the reception. i took two shots: 1) took one with my 70-200 before they reached under the tent. this was so i could capture natural expressions because at that point because i was "out of site out of mind to them", and 2) i took one with my 17-55 w/fill flash after they reached under the tent which is when they noticed me and the expressions were not as exciting because they would usually stop and pose. so i pretty much ended up with one action shot and one posed shot for each. when i took my shot with the 70-200 they were far away from me and i didn't use flash which ended up blowing out the sky. my question is this: is a blown out sky acceptable sometimes? maybe the flash would have been effective, but i didn't even try it because i was so far back, plus i was under a tent and they were outside the tent.</p>

<p>i keep all my cheat sheets, check list, shot list, posing ideas, or whatever on my ipod touch. it's an amazing little thing...</p>

<p>thanks for the replies. a lot of similarities. but a few differences too. i often eat like a pig for breakfast because i know the rest of the day will be snacking here and there. i often get this burst of energy that starts during the formals and last the rest of the night. but like nadine and william, i feel it when i get home...</p>

<p>interesting timing for this questions...last night was the first wedding where i "couldn't move". i attended the rehearsal the night before so i knew the pastor rules (no flash and no moving) and was able to prepare for that (at least mentally) which helped because i had never been told that before. i ended up taking less shots, but still got the key moments and am perfectly happy with what i got. i also don't like being a distraction or the center of attention at a wedding as other have already said. and when i am allowed to move freely any movement is around the outer perimeter. this church was beautiful and had a balcony and at the rehearsal i asked the pastor if i could go up there for a few shots which basically amounted to me moving twice and he was ok with that. this movement was all in the back and never crossed sight of the guest. </p>

<p>just curious what others do to prepare on the wedding day. how do you clear your mind? prepare for the mental exhaustion? physical exhaustion? function check all of your equipment? do you create a game plan? study the game plan? decide what poses may work for this particular couple? make sure you have the contract? pack snacks? tylenol? etc…</p>

<p>these kids would just turn it on, then turn it off. one minute they were bored out of there minds, next minute having the time of their life. i was on one knee about 60 ft from them as they were being introduced at the reception. i hate that i cut the groom's head off though. details are: 40d, iso 100, 70-200 2.8 IS @ 110mm, f2.8, 1/800th. i only gave it a slight tweak in LR: bumped up exposure, contrast and, recovery.</p><div></div>

<p>rabbit ears, peace signs, crazy faces, gang signs, or whatever, when that happens i usually say "ok, now lets get one without the rabbit ears" and that usually works...</p>

<p >Great follow-up Nadine with an example of the type of dialog you were hoping to create. I think critiques work when it’s aimed at specific questions from the photographer (such as Theresa’s above), otherwise, we could just end up commenting on things they don’t really care about. </p>

<p>i think all the brides would be happy with them. but if it was me i would have chosen a telephoto lens for the top one, moved the bride a little further from the background, and tried to blur it more so it was still recognizable but got less attention. also, it kinda looks like the bride's undergarment is showing??? i would also probably have not included the bouquet. this picture could easily be cropped to remove some of the distracting elements though. melissa's portrait is really "all about the dress" and looks wonderful to me. melissa, would you mind sharing your thoughts on placement of the bride? john's, just curious, was this shot totally candid or instructed? all really seemed to get great expressions out of their brides.</p>

<p>thanks dave! i agree there are a bunch of nice images that get posted for the POW but never get talked about because there may be others with more room for critique. rather than "critique" which is very subjective, i think it would be more value added if pictures were posted to showcase a shot with comments based on a theme for the week. for example, come up with a theme for the week (ex. ring shot) and lets post our favorite from the weekend sharing information like what we did (ex. asked bride and groom to hold rings over bouquet), why we did it (ex. to use the bouquet as a simple background and show off the rings and bride's nails), and how we did it (equipment, camera settings, tripod, etc.). we'd probably get a variety of ways to get great ring shots or whatever the theme of the week happens to be. it would be nice to know what was in the mind of the photographer, what the elements were that they had to deal with, etc, when a shot was taken. another example: the shot by wayne is really a great way to show off the back of the dress, on top of the fact that the details are there in the dress and the highlights aren't blown out.</p>

<p>here's some photoshop fun. after i saw this guy sticking his camera phone in the isle i grabbed a shot of his phone then a shot of what he was shooting at with the intent of doing this. i tried just touching up the picture on his phone screen but it wasn't that great so i pasted mine. this was last saturday. canon 40d, 70-200 IS @ 70mm, 2.8, 1/200th, ISO 100</p><div></div>

<p>here's a shot of the bride and daughter. looks as though she's wondering what it's like to be pampered... canon 40D w/70-200 IS @ 110mm, iso 800, f2.8, 1/50th sec, no flash</p><div></div>

<p>one more time...</p><div></div>

<p>here's one from last saturday. canon 40D, 17-55 2.8 IS @ 18mm, f5.6, 1/100th, ISO 100, no flash</p>

<p>i'm up front like most others - on the bride's side. i jump in and out of a pew if there is one up front with some space, otherwise i'm up there where the bridesmaids are standing. i try and wait till they get far enough up the isle to show that they had guests and capture some expressions from the guests. if I want a nice tight shot i'll crop on the computer. on a few occassions i have had a brides maid and groomsmen stop because they think i need that to get a good shot or something but i just motion them with my hands to keep on walking. sometimes people bunch up. if so i just get a shot of the bunch such that all faces are showing. i take quite a few shots of the bride coming down the isle. only 1, 2 or 3 of the others depending on if i think got good expressions or depending on what they do.</p><div></div>

<p>i placed the couple in this general area and asked them to adore each other, make out, or whatever they wanted to do for a minute or two. made some nice kiss, almost kiss, hugs, laughs, and just adoring each other type shots. some shots had grass on their face depending on where they moved to. the ones that were worth keeping i was able to photoshop the grass out. details are: 40D, 70-200 2.8 IS @ 70mm, ISO 160, f3.5, 1/160sec, no flash, shot raw</p><div></div>

<p>i placed the couple in this general area and asked them to adore each other, make out, or whatever they wanted to do for a minute or two. made some nice kiss, almost kiss, hugs, laughs, and just adoring each other type shots. some shots had grass on their face depending on where they moved to. the ones that were worth keeping i was able to photoshop the grass out. details are: 40D, 70-200 2.8 IS @ 70mm, ISO 160, f3.5, 1/160sec, no flash, shot raw</p>

<p>just pleasing the bride can mean performing way below your capabilities. i have had brides book me based on a friend's album they looked at from 3 years ago. i ask "have you seen my recent work" and they say "no". i know i have gotten better since then so to just please her would mean taking 10 steps back. also, i think at a minimum you should be pleasing your bride (we shouldn't book with anyone we aren't 100% sure we can please), but most important is to attract future customers and pleasing the bride is just a part of that. each wedding is more work we can show to attract future clients, plus each happy bride is more referrals! also, just like with any business, if you're not improving you're falling behind these days. not necessarily improving picture quality, but finding ways to reduce cost while at the same time delivering the same great picture quality.</p>

<p>Normal posting time for me is 2-3 weeks after the ceremony, however, I am sure that anxious family and friend who have my business cards from the wedding check the website before then. I want to make sure those people come back. So I post a few of my favorites within the first week, with comments beneath the gallery stating a specific date that the complete gallery will be posted on or before. This lets everyone know that I am working on the pictures and gives them a specific date to check back by. I have noticed that this communication has increased the number of hits/sales shortly after the complete gallery is posted. Also, since most people these days have phones that can receive picture messages, I send the bride one or two shots within the first week that she can use as wallpaper on her phone as well as share with others. The brides are always excited to see a few pictures ahead of time. And since I give them a date that the complete gallery will be posted, they don't bug me...I just have to meet the date!</p>

 

<p>great ideas. "think outside the gazebo!" great way to put it mark. i'll be sure and watch out for the parking lot and the dead tree. yeah dave, the dead tree looks horrible.</p>

<p>would a group shot of the girls tapering off to the back on the left, and the guys tapering off to the back on the

right (somewhat like they are standing now) work for this style and size gazebo? the wedding party will be a

little larger than shown here. there were a few people missing. also, any good ideas for informal poses?

usually i have had steps or rails that were low enough to sit on but you can see that's not the case

here. thanks!</p><div></div>

<p>Hello Jeff. I have been enjoying reading all of your comments above! Thanks for thorough replies. My question is do you provide engagement photos for your clients and if so how do you conduct your engagement photo sessions?</p>

<p>again, thanks for the replies. this thread has indeed helped me to develop a new approach regarding a private moment before the ceremony for the bride and groom. for those of us who would never offer the idea, at least now you know that there are some out here who do.</p>