shaun_carter

i'm looking for feedback from anyone using shutterfly.com for prints. i'm

considering using them for 4x6 proof prints. at $0.19 per print for 4x6's

this is more economical for 300-600 proof prints than the pro lab i currently

use. i don't want to sacrifice quality though. also, how quick are they with

delivery? thanks!

I offer the Renaissance Milano removeable page book as my traditional style album. Bride and Grooms love it. The matte grain black w/4x4 window is what I sell the most. I considered the Renaissance Library Book but don't like it because when it's open the pages don't lay flat. Maybe they eventually relax, but the pages in the demo's I saw at Michel Company stood up like a "V" as I flipped through the book.

mary, that's a good point. i'm sure flipping through the book seeing that others are buying photos would make people not be so cheap and buy some too. there's power in numbers! do you include them as 4x6's and how many are typically in the book?

my thoughts were the same. i think the picts will present better because they're not covered in plastic (versus a 4x6 proof book), and i have had many bride also say that they got albums for gifts that they felt obligated to use. jen, i also use michel company and would go through them. it also appears that the fancy albums aren't a "must have" anymore for some brides and that they are just fine with 4x6 prints from uncle bob or aunt suzie assembled in an album from cusin joe. so why can't i be the one to give them the 4x6 prints. at least that way they see how superior my images are to everyone elses and their family and friends can see the same. just something to think about as i restructure my price list for the new year...

are these popular? if so why or why not??? thanks!

good feedback...thanks! it makes sense not to charge them, especially when they are showcasing my images for free. it doesn't appear that they plan to charge me either. if so i'd say forget it. does anyone have a sample of how they would mark an image with their name, company name, or website? would this only be appropriate for the prints or also for the electronic files for their website?

i shot a wedding at a country club last month that wants to use pictures for

their website and display case. do you normally just give them prints and

electric files to use with a stack of business cards to hand out when people

book there and are looking for a photographer? do you charge them? or what?<div></div>

i won't hesitate to crank out shots with the rebel xt at iso 800 indoors. usually my 85/1.8 and 430 ex are mounted on my xt and if there's a white ceiling i bounce. some of my favorite shots have been with this setup. my other camera is the 20d and on it i have the 17-55 2.8 and 580ex. i rarely use higher than 800 on either camera unless i feel i absolutely must. but usually indoors, my xt is set at 400 or 800 with a ahutter speed of 1/80th to 1/125th to prevent camera shake. i have no complaints about the noise at 800. it's about the same as the 20d.<div></div>

I would place the 70-200 on the 20D and the 24-105 on the 10D. You will most likely be shooting the 70-200 at higher ISO's than the 24-105 so you want it on the camera with less noise at the higher ISO's.

so in summary, the top one needed more fill, middle one is ok, and bottom one has a hot spot from the omnibouce (should have bounced off ceiling w/o omnibounce)...thanks! here's another one shot at 17mm, iso 800, f4, 1/25th, w/omnibouce tilted 45 degrees. my guess is no hot spot here because there was enough ambient light compared to the bottom one above. so the omnibouce was the right choice here but not in the one above. definately something to keep in mind...<div></div>

20d camera in manual indoors, av or tv outdoors; 580ex flash in ETTL evaluative outdoors, ETTL average indoors (CF-14)

nice shots Allen. sounds like you're using your flash in manual mode which is something I plan to practice and get better at. Nadine, I never really noticed the omnibouce hot spot until this shot (the bottom one). definately something to keep in mind for future large group shots. my primary goal is to be able to see all the faces in the picture and not have any hidden in shadows. so i guess i'm after eveness of light across the crowd.

Tom, i don't have any light stands, umbrellas, or softboxes yet for my speedlites. it's a good thought though. i'll be at calumet photo this weekend and price the speedlite umbrella setup while i'm there.

thanks for the reply nadine. here's my attempt to try and post the picts larger...

 

all were shot with an omnibouce on my 580ex. i usually have it pointed at 45 degrees. i see what you're saying about the third picture. i got some ceiling bounce with the flash pointed at 45 degrees, but maybe the light would have covered the edges better with full bounce. i can drag the shutter handheld now that i have the 17-55 2.8 IS lens. the middle image was shot at 1/30th of a sec at ISO 400. in the top image the sun was high and to the right casting light on the left side leaving a slight shadow on the right. hopefully it shows up better with this posting. but you're right, more fill may have helped...<div></div>

nice shot jon! simple pose, well lit. thanks for sharing.

 

here are a few examples of shots that had shadows where i think more speedlites would have helped filled the shadows.<div></div>

i would like to improve the lighting in my large group shots and am looking for

a little advice on light setup. i have the 20d w/580ex and a 430 ex. i have

always done the group shots with only the 580ex on my stroboframe bracket. the

middle of the group gets good lighting but the light usually falls off on the

edges. these are usually shot at 17mm on my 17-55 2.8. would a third

speedlite improve large group shots (one on camera and one off to each side)?

or would the ST-E2 on camera controlling two flashes off to each side be a

better setup? i don't mind purchasing another 430EX or an ST-E2 if it will

improve these shots. thanks!

thanks dave! i'll print this out and save it in case i have this problem too. haven't had it happen yet, but who knows...

when getting romantic shots of the bride and groom how much coaching should be

done? are the best ones where you place them in a setting, snap on your

telephoto lens, ask them to interact by holding hands, look each other in the

eyes, throw your arms around him, hold her waist, give her a kiss on the neck,

etc., stand back and shoot away? how do you conduct your romantic shoots?

whenever you have a few seconds of downtime during the wedding take a moment to stretch your fingers and wrist by pulling them back and holding for 2-3 seconds. my hands cramped like crazy the first few weddings. a hand stretch before and during the ceremony (as needed) is routine for me now.

i figured i was screwing up but just wasn't 100% sure. thanks!

 

i normally shoot jpeg with the digital rebel xt and 20d. i'm not familiar with ACR. is that a photoshop plug-in for specifically dealing with raw images?

normally i set my crop to 4x6 and 300 dpi to crop images. even if i crop a

little bit, this gives me 1200x1800ppi at 300dpi which is a 2 megapixle image.

the image starts out at 8 megapixel 72 dpi. i don't necessarilly need a 4x6,

but use these settings to keep the same aspect ratio as the original image. is

this the right way to crop?

just hop in and shoot. they'll love the idea of you capuring this moment. tweak the pose if you must, but don't spend too much time in there because of course they want to begin enjoying some time alone. the limo driver is usually wishing you would hurry up as well.<div></div>

Does anyone use this software with the Soho, Fine Art, or Galleria albums by

Renaissance? Is it easy to work with? Are the templates nice? Does it save

time or would it be just as easy to design these templates with photoshop?

nice shot! do you think the lighting would have been this nice if you used the omnibounce?

Lisa I'm another one of those part-timers with a very demanding profession and a family that continues to grow (another kid on the way!) My goal this year was 10. It looks like I may end up with 12 based on current and pending contracts. I realized that in order for this business to work for me I need to reduce the amount of time I spend behind the computer "after" the wedding. Shooting the wedding is the fun and easy part, its after the wedding where the real work begins. There are lots of reasons the post-wedding process can be long and dreadful. Key is to find out what can reduce the amount of time you spend on images after the wedding and make those improvements. There have been several threads on how to improve workflow for both raw and jpeg images. Also, it may be something as simple as to stop taking so many pictures (last wedding I took 1000 plus), or something more technical such as improving your camera skills. You also have to figure out where your time is best spent. For example, I no longer print proof pages myself. Express digital software has a proof feature that allows me to do in 5 minutes what once took nearly 4 hours on my own. Yeah it's more expensive but the image quality is better than my ink jet and this extra expense can easily be passed on your clients.