Dreading the day - wedding photography

"dwight" wrote in message
...
In my family, I'm the "photographer," because I have a Rebel XT and a
number of lenses. So it has come to pass that my niece has asked me to
photograph her wedding next summer.

I know, I know... I should politely decline. Even though there are no
grand expectations, I don't care to be responsible for being the sole
chronicler of this happy event.

Is there a general starter book I should read, while I mull over the
option of hiring a professional?

dwight
www.tfrog.com



Take more than one camera!

"J. Clarke" wrote in message
...
Jurgen wrote:
On Thu, 06 Nov 2008 19:59:20 -0500, dwight wrote:

In my family, I'm the "photographer," because I have a Rebel XT and
a number of lenses. So it has come to pass that my niece has asked me
to photograph her wedding next summer.

I know, I know... I should politely decline. Even though there are
no grand expectations, I don't care to be responsible for being the
sole chronicler of this happy event.

Is there a general starter book I should read, while I mull over
the option of hiring a professional?

dwight
www.tfrog.com

Some of the worlds's best wedding photographers do it all on the day
with one lens and one speedlite.

If he was one of the world's best wedding photographers then he
wouldn't be asking for advice. If you've done something a thousand
times then you can get away with a lot of things. If he can get every
shot he wants with one lens and a speedlite that's fine but he should
plan out what shots he wants and make sure that he _can_ get every one
of them, successfully, in conditions approximating those of the actual
event, with that setup.

Again... I can shoot plants, buildings, birds, small critters. People, not
so much. In fact, I live with two fine-looking redheads, neither of whom
EVER wants their photos taken, even to help me practice the art. My human
portraiture is limited to family gatherings at Thanksgiving, Christmas, and
the occasional happy event, and my results, while they don't stink, are less
than stellar. I find that quantity (shooting in bursts) can improve the odds
of quality (why do humans have to blink, anyway?). If I can produce 50 solid
photos out of 500 taken, I'm doing okay!

Look upon the task as having two objectives. One is to record the
events of the day in a way you can construct a story in pictures
from. The other task is to produce at least one bridal portrait the
bride will like and at least one portrait of the couple they will
both like.

Well, actually it's to do whatever you've agreed to do in a
workmanlike manner.

The job here seems to be to chronicle that the event actually took place.
Above and beyond that, no one is expecting the standard wedding portfolio. I
doubt that I'll be taking posed shots at an altar, or taking the happy
couple outside for a photo shoot amongst the trees and flowers. My personal
goal is to do the bride justice - my niece is a beautiful girl, and will be
the prettiest bride I've seen in a long, long time. The groom... well, I
haven't met him yet, and, frankly, I don't care if he comes out blurred and
underexposed in the background. (heh heh)

Everything else is hype and fear. Stired up in large amounts by your
own insecurities about how good you are or are not. Address those
first then decide if you really are the shooter you think you are.

The best "shooter" in the world is going to screw it up if he has
never done one before and didn't plan it out. And you don't get a
do-over.

Here it is. No question, I would do the very best that I can, and will
probably come away with three or four wonderful shots. But, never having
done this before, I want to increase the odds that I won't miss anything
important AND, maybe just maybe, come away with MORE than three or four
wonderful shots.

How hard is it to press the shutter? How hard is it to grab
someone's shoulder and push them together?

Does this goomer need to be in the shot? Where the heck did the
father of the bride _go_? Oh, you mean they wanted a _picture_ of
that? Whaddaya _mean_ I can't use a flash in here? Geez, he's
blacker than his tuxedo and she's whiter than the wedding gown--how
the Hell do I expose for _that_?

If this comes to pass, I'll be talking with the bride-to-be about what shots
she would like to have, then plan ahead to get them. My big fear is that
they'll want outdoor shots at the height of a sunny afternoon or that the
bride has a gross case of redeye. And I know just the redeyed redhead to
practice on.... if she'd let me.

Why are you worried you can't do it?

You mean besides that he's going to be catching Hell for it for the
rest of his life if he screws it up? A pro moves on to the next job
and usually never sees the clients again unless they liked his work
and have another wedding. Shoot your relatives and you're going to be
hearing about the results for decades.

Do you have a failure rate? figure it out in percentages and then
over shoot by that percentage to arrive at enough half way decent
shots, everyone will love your for.

Percentages don't work if you have specific shots that are expected
and don't get do-overs.

Y'mean... like missing that once-in-a-lifetime shot of the groom smashing
wedding cake into the bride's face? (Attention, future grooms - NEVER do
that. That will follow you to your grave.) Or fumbling with white balance
when someone is saying, "You may now kiss the bride"?

Wedding photography is not about great photos, it's about creating
emotion in the person looking at the photos. Do that and you are
half way there.

Not if the emotion is "I'm going to _kill_ that idiot photographer".

--
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

The one saving grace in all of this is that the wedding will be in Lake
Tahoe. So, whether I do well or not during those few hours, I'll have the
chance to spend a couple of days exploring the area and practicing the
photography I MUCH prefer.

dwight

dwight wrote:

The one saving grace in all of this is that the wedding will be in Lake
Tahoe. So, whether I do well or not during those few hours, I'll have
the chance to spend a couple of days exploring the area and practicing
the photography I MUCH prefer.

In spite of your own doubts, and the advice by a few, it looks like your
mind is made up to do this. I think you're making a mistake. But you
will enjoy the "other" photography up there.

Good luck!

--
John McWilliams

"dwight" wrote in message
...
In my family, I'm the "photographer," because I have a Rebel XT and a
number of lenses. So it has come to pass that my niece has asked me to
photograph her wedding next summer.

I know, I know... I should politely decline. Even though there are no
grand expectations, I don't care to be responsible for being the sole
chronicler of this happy event.

Is there a general starter book I should read, while I mull over the
option of hiring a professional?

No. Just ask yourself the question: am I willing to risk the biggest day of
my neice's life on a single set of gear? If the answer is no, then get ready
to pony up for backups, or forget the job. Save your money, hire a pro, and
enjoy the day as you should.

"John McWilliams" wrote in message
. ..
dwight wrote:

The one saving grace in all of this is that the wedding will be in Lake
Tahoe. So, whether I do well or not during those few hours, I'll have the
chance to spend a couple of days exploring the area and practicing the
photography I MUCH prefer.

In spite of your own doubts, and the advice by a few, it looks like your
mind is made up to do this. I think you're making a mistake. But you will
enjoy the "other" photography up there.

Good luck!

--
John McWilliams

If I protest too much and say that I'm giving my niece a professional
photographer as a wedding gift, my wife says, "Do you know how much they
cost?!?"

If I muse over doing this myself, and talking about rented lenses and
purchased flashes and other assorted goodies, my wife says, "Oh, this is
going to cost us too much."

While I'm mulling over my artistic insecurities, my wife has boiled it all
down to the lesser of two dollar totals. Believe me, it's still early yet,
and nothing has been decided.

dwight

dwight wrote:
"John McWilliams" wrote in message
. ..
dwight wrote:

The one saving grace in all of this is that the wedding will be in
Lake Tahoe. So, whether I do well or not during those few hours, I'll
have the chance to spend a couple of days exploring the area and
practicing the photography I MUCH prefer.

In spite of your own doubts, and the advice by a few, it looks like
your mind is made up to do this. I think you're making a mistake. But
you will enjoy the "other" photography up there.

Good luck!

If I protest too much and say that I'm giving my niece a professional
photographer as a wedding gift, my wife says, "Do you know how much they
cost?!?"

I wouldn't go that route; esp. if it doesn't turn out great; you'll get
the bill and the blame.

If I muse over doing this myself, and talking about rented lenses and
purchased flashes and other assorted goodies, my wife says, "Oh, this is
going to cost us too much."

Probably renting some stuff, buying some that you'll "need" anyway it'll
come out o.k.

While I'm mulling over my artistic insecurities, my wife has boiled it
all down to the lesser of two dollar totals. Believe me, it's still
early yet, and nothing has been decided.

You might at least start demurring with your niece, saying how poor a
photog you are, and while you love her a lot, you wouldn't want to
disappoint her. .... mind you, I am not saying you are a poor photog....

--
john mcwilliams

dwight wrote:

If I protest too much and say that I'm giving my niece a professional
photographer as a wedding gift, my wife says, "Do you know how
much they cost?!?"

If I muse over doing this myself, and talking about rented lenses and
purchased flashes and other assorted goodies, my wife says, "Oh,
this is going to cost us too much."

While I'm mulling over my artistic insecurities, my wife has boiled it all
down to the lesser of two dollar totals. Believe me, it's still early yet,
and nothing has been decided.

If it were me ... I'd let them know that they should employ a professional
to get a professional result. Then I'd offer to take photos on the day, and
rove at will taking candids. Spend some time shadowing the pro and working
with their setups, but capture people when they are naturally interacting
with each other, rather than grimacing on demand. You'll record a very
different aspect of the day, closer to how people remember it, rather than
the cliched posiness of the majority of wedding shots.

On Sat, 08 Nov 2008 09:36:47 -0500, dwight wrote:


Is there a general starter book I should read, while I mull over the
option of hiring a professional?

dwight
www.tfrog.com

Some of the worlds's best wedding photographers do it all on the day
with one lens and one speedlite.

If he was one of the world's best wedding photographers then he
wouldn't be asking for advice. If you've done something a thousand
times then you can get away with a lot of things. If he can get every
shot he wants with one lens and a speedlite that's fine but he should
plan out what shots he wants and make sure that he _can_ get every one
of them, successfully, in conditions approximating those of the actual
event, with that setup.


It seems my attempt to help you overcom the fear of a first important
shoot has invoked a lot of negative sentiment from people.

If you need to consider what photos to take, maybe a Pro photographer's
shoot list could help?

http://www.pghpeople.com/*wedding_photography/
Pittsburgh_Wedding_shot_list.html

From what you now say about your self confidence, maybe graceful retreat
might be the better part of valor?

JH

"JT's Keeper" wrote in message
...
Rita Berkowitz wrote:

Never rent when you can own. First off, if you don't have the proper
equipment there's no sense in attempting this. At a minimum you will
need a
D3, 17-35/2.8, 28-70/2.8, 85/1.4 and 200/2 if you want to pull this off
while getting the best results.


Nice equipment list, gotta be in the 11-13+K range... Any chance you
want to help the OP out with the cost of buying all this? IIRC the OP
has a Rebel XT and some lenses (I'm guessing nowhere near what you're
suggesting as far as lens quality goes).


- JT
"good" glass lasts forever, bodies are replaceable

I've been around long enough to know to ignore Rita's posts, since they're
almost never helpful to my particular interests.

I've got the 50mm/1.8, the 100mm/2.8, the 17-40/4. (also the kit 18-55 and
the 70-300/4-5.6, neither of which would be good enough). I'd also arrange
to have the 70-200/2.8 on hand. Out of the four, I should be able to get
passable photos.

But, of course, this is all still very much up in the air.

dwight

dwight wrote:
If I protest too much and say that I'm giving my niece a professional
photographer as a wedding gift, my wife says, "Do you know how much they
cost?!?"

If I muse over doing this myself, and talking about rented lenses and
purchased flashes and other assorted goodies, my wife says, "Oh, this is
going to cost us too much."

While I'm mulling over my artistic insecurities, my wife has boiled it
all down to the lesser of two dollar totals. Believe me, it's still
early yet, and nothing has been decided.

You really do need to explain to them that there's a reason people hire
pros when they want a pro look. Maybe they don't care much about product
that looks like photos at the wedding of the friend who hired the pro.
They just need to know they're going to get essentially candids and as
many classic shots as you can pull off as well as you can do them but
that it's not going to look like what would be done by the specialist.

In case they do hire a pro and you contemplate doing any significant
shooting behind him, make sure you find out if that's a problem. Most
won't be too worried about a relative with a point-and-shoot hitting a
few of family members around tables and such. But I've known pros who
made it clear that when the relatives start shooting, they stop. Of
course, it's been thirty years since I did a wedding. Maybe the business
model's changed.

At any rate, keep your setup simple. You'll need to be thinking fast,
not fiddling with gear. The closer you can come to the spirit of the
old-time press guy's strategy of working out a standard distance that
pretty much all of the assignment can be shot at (considering his 4x5
press camera no automation and slow rack focusing and flashbulbs), the
better off you might be.


--
"Nothing has any value unless you know you can do without it."