davidandkara

I've found that if I end up with shots like this that boosting the fill light by about 30 or 40 in Lightroom, and then boosting the Blacks by 5 or 10 can really help it out. give it a try and see if it does anything for you...

I use the 50 1.8 all the time for portraiture

if you're that picky, why limit it to just photographers in that region?

I'd give them the files. Happy customers make for good marketing.

I'd also make a habit of not delivering ANY files to customers until the balance is paid in full. that's just

asking for headaches...

I shoot concerts and dance recitals and other events at my church all the time, and rarely do I charge them. Usually I just have the sessions done as tax write-offs, which gives me time to experiment and hone my craft, as well as exposure among the members who see me doing it and then see my work afterwards.

 

That said, if the agreement was to pay you, then the agreement was to pay you. Worse case scenario, you sit down with them and discuss the time it took and come to a mutually acceptable agreement on the payment.

you could always black and white it. ;oP

rule of thumb: if she's happy, you're happy.

while Jeffrey's reply was a little harsh, perhaps, he's basically summed it up. first of all, most pros won't reveal trade or business secrets, and that includes the contracts that they use for their clients. secondly, even if they did, they're not the people you want to talk to. you want to talk to a lawyer, who can give you the verbage you need to create a document that protects you and your business properly.

 

either that, or just pinky swear.

First off, Facebook has billions upon billions of photos; it's the world's largest photo sharing site. So worrying about them going off and trying to make a profit on pictures their users have uploaded is a baseless fear of a nonexistant threat.

 

Second, a LOT of my clients have come to me because of the photos they've seen on the Facebook pages of brides/grooms who I've shot. I see Facebook as an immensely valuable marketing tool, not a threat to my image copyrights.

ugh. makeup artists.

 

[sorry... couldn't resist.]

Typically what I do after a wedding is this:

 

...

 

[1] Copy RAW files from memory cards to hard drive. Don't delete files from cards yet.

 

[2] Automatically burn a copy of the unprocessed RAWs to DVD as a backup.

 

[3] Sort through the pictures in Adobe Lightroom, flagging unusables and duplicates as Rejected.

 

[4] Process the rest of the pictures [adjusting lighting/colour/white balance/vignetting/etc] in Lightroom.

 

[5] Choose [Flag as Pick] the best 50-100 pictures in Lightroom [for slideshow/album/portfolio use].

 

[7] Export all processed RAW's as JPG's.

 

[8] Burn one backup DVD of processed JPG's immediately.

 

[9] Any Photoshop editing/tweaking happens here.

 

[10] Burn two copies of final results; one for backup, one for client.

 

[11] Format memory cards.

 

[12] Put together slideshow/album/etc.

 

...

 

I don't batch process [and don't recommend it] because every picture is going to be slightly different, and to

get the best results they need individual attention. After all; that's what we're paid for.

 

As for sizing, I give my brides full size images, but many photographers don't because the bride would be able to

print anywhere with full resolution files. So if your business model depends heavily on print sales it might be

best to resize your files.

 

Hope that helps.

The pictures this lens takes are pretty good... provided you get it to focus right I've had it miss focus on a lot of shots when it was wide open at 1.8 and even 2.0, but at 2.2 or smaller it usually focuses fine. The bokeh isn't the greatest ever, but it's good for such an inexpensive lens. Go for the 1.4 if you can afford it, but the 1.8 will still do a good job.

I've seen female photogs wearing Crocs. I'm sure their feet were comfortable. Ugly, but comfortable.

good to see another local here!

 

I like the site. it's a template site, yes, but it's a nice one, and you have some solid shots on there.

 

I'd suggest you keep the landing page as it is, with micro-sites for weddings and commercial, and possibly a third for miscellaneous [more on that in a second]. the more skill and versatility you can put on display, the better.

 

for the gallery on the wedding site, I'd say get rid of the band and scenery shots. your viewers will be clicking on "Weddings" to see pictures of weddings and/or engagements, not buildings or bands. those really should either have their own category/site, or just left off.

 

the music ... well, I'd agree with the others; it's a little on the edgy side for a wedding site. targeting your audience is good; but too fine a target and you can miss some on the edges of your target market. choose something more wedding-ish [it's a word, I swear!], or else drop the music all together. from someone who comes from a background in website development, music is either done really well, or really poorly; there's very little middle ground.

 

side note: I'm not sure what part of the market you're aiming for, or what your experience in the area has been, but from what I've seen in the KW area, 2000 might be a little steep for a starting price. you may find your prices more marketable here if you offer a graduated plan... eg. 4-6 hours for 1500, 6-8 for 2000. just a thought. :o)

 

hope to see more of your work, and if you ever find yourself in need of a second hand, give me a shout!

unless you have a date change clause in your contract, I'd say just switch it. a bird in hand is worth two in the bush.

you could also rent a couple prime lenses with wider apertures [like 1.4 or 1.8]. that'd get you a more workable shutter speed.

I think it depends on your bride and how badly she wants that shot. You should be talking to her beforehand to figure out what shots she really really wants, and asking her how much she would prefer you direct things. Some brides don't mind at all, because they'll want really great pictures... other brides would rather you just blend in and document it as best you can with more of a spontaneous journalistic approach that's less encroaching. You can't go wrong by asking her what she prefers. ;o)

When I'm shooting live events, I typically use black Lowepro lens cases attached to the belt that I wear with my dress pants, and toss the batteries and cards in my pockets. Works great for me, and didn't cost much at all. ;o)

It will depend on the length of the wedding, how many shots you take, and a bunch of other variables, but when it comes to essentials like batteries, it's ALWAYS better to play on the safe side. You don't want to get stuck without them, and you can always use the leftover batteries next time.

If you're shooting for prints, you're going to want to shoot in RAW, not JPEG, and not using the quality or size settings. RAW format allows you to tweak settings without losing the integrity or quality of your images, while JPEG files will always degrade the quality and tend to show up at their worst when you print them.

 

However, if you MUST shoot JPEG, you'll want to use the highest quality setting and the largest size possible. This will allow you the most flexibility for how you use your images after you've taken them.

I typically give all of mine to my clients, but I'll choose the best ones and put them in a separate folder on the disc, or else give them a "best shots" disc and a second "miscellaneous shots" disc. I realize that not everyone agrees with handing out your less-than-perfect work, but generally the bride and groom could care less about photographic perfection, and care only about the memories from their big day.

vignette's are often overused. I fell victim to that in my first few weddings, and I don't think it does this picture justice.

 

the problem with this particular vignette is that it [a] is too drastic between the shaded area and the unshaded area, and causes the colours in the picture to "pop" even less, due to the gray casting all over.

 

I also wouldn't crop this picture. you get random heads on the right side with no reference as to who they are. are they guests of the wedding? groomsmen? random people who decided to stand up right as the picture was shot?

some of the coolest prom pictures I've seen [and I'm sorry I can't find examples for you at the moment] have been wide angle shots from a low [almost ground-level] perspective, with the kids spread out and staggered, looking casual in their formal wear.

 

but that said, the traditional poses are also generally highly desireable. I think if you follow Nadine's advice [starting with the formal/traditional stuff and then moving into more fun/creative shots] you'll be set.

having worked at a hotel myself, I'd agree with the above statement; leave it at the desk. things disappear from rooms pretty frequently, especially overseas.