Tips on conducting a Wedding Photoshoot

[ianpinion]

I can see there is a lot to consider before embarking on a wedding shoot. One thing that keeps cropping up though is the need to work quickly. What would you say is the key to being able to work as quickly and efficiently as possible?

I know the wedding I've been asked to cover is only a small wedding, with few guests to try and keep in order. That should help, shouldn't it!

[wavemachine]

Good question and tricky as it depends on what works best for you.

Equipment is a big factor though, a colleague of mine has done a fair few weddings and he has two camera bodies 5D MK II with a 24-70L on it, and a 400D with 70-200 F2.8IS he is looking to get a 7D BTW he can quickly swap between cameras without changing lenses so can work quicker and stands more of a chance of getting the shots.

Most of his shots are done on the 5D.

Generally speaking though when you do have lulls check how much space is left on the memory cards and change if they are getting full before you get busy again.

Try to have a little flexability with your camera setup in other words shoot at a slightly faster shutter speed than you need so if the light does drop you will still have sharp pictures.

Just make sure you have the key shots and then get creative in other words don't get to hung up on tight apertures to throw the back ground out initialy (you can easly end up bluring subjects) as that can be sorted in post processing along with white balance etc just get sharp well exposed images (safe settings).

That is what I have learnt from my limited experience and hope it helps.

Remember to change your ISO when moving between indoors and outdoors, that is a common gotcha.

[ianpinion]

I'm going to have a chat with my niece about what shots she would like me to capture of her wedding. Apparently, she doesn't want any fuss at her wedding and to keep the whole thing fairly low key. There won't be many guests present for the wedding ceremony itself, as most of them are only being invited to the evening reception.

She's not looking for anything particularly arty, but I would like to keep just a little bit of creativity to add to the satisfaction.

[wavemachine]

Low key is good, part of the photography is capturing the day as it unfolds I guess working quickly is part of being unobtrusive.

Don't be surprised even though she wants it low key that on the day you will be ordered around a bit at various points to get shots of her and the groom with various people

It is a really good experience as a photographer and you will find yourself buzzing by the end of the day.

Good move talking to her about it as well, you will then be able to construct a shooting plan and have something to work from.

[ianpinion]

Well my brief as I understand it is that my shots are to have that family wedding snap kind of look to them.

[danphillips]

The key to working quickly is knowing your kit inside out - and what to do when it doesn't work properly. Being able to adjust your flash quickly and having everything fully charged is essential, as is bringing more memory cards than you think you need! At a recent wedding the best man (and a good snapper friend of mine) just 'happened' to have half a dozen cards on him which I had to pinch because I filled mine within about an hour!

[GeoffWessex]

For years and years - and up to the advent of quality digital cameras - a 'wedding photographer' could quite happily cover three or four weddings on a Saturday. There were some standard shots to be taken and the photographer would have his checklist, possibly with a couple of additions requested by the customer..... you know the ones - nervous groom and his best man at the church, bride arriving, maybe signing the Register, the couple outside, then with more and more family etc, cutting the cake, driving off. Simple.

Then more and more wanted to be more creative - good idea, it sells more pictures - and then it exploded with the creative possibilities afforded by digital cameras - change ISO for different conditions, shoot hundreds of pics if necessary and don't worry about the film, speed of turnaround (to samples). And the more that wedding couples see of other wedding pictures - there always seems to be at least one brand new angle - the more 'special' shots go on the list and then that list becomes horrendous.... you have to have an assistant or be at three places at once. You can sell more pictures, perhaps, but I wouldn't think that the increase in sales actually compensates for the increase in time spent during what's become a full day per wedding and then all the computer work afterwards.

My point? It ain't as easy as it looks! I bet many of the old pro wedding photographers yearn for the days when they could just set up outside the church with their plate camera and snap about 12 negs.

[ianpinion]

So what you're advocating is sitting down with the bride and groom to plan what shots they will need, to give myself an idea of what workload I am letting myself in for?

[GeoffWessex]

Exactly! And you can bet that they've "seen Sharon's pictures and they want this, this, this, this....... etc" - a lot of stuff that wouldn't cross your mind.

[ianpinion]

Originally Posted by GeoffWessex

Exactly! And you can bet that they've "seen Sharon's pictures and they want this, this, this, this....... etc" - a lot of stuff that wouldn't cross your mind.

Well that just goes to show how little you know about my niece, Geoff, because she doesn't want an official wedding photographer/professional wedding photographer at her wedding. She never has liked having her picture taken, so i think the order of the day is to keep myself in the background and blend in with the few guests there will be there in attendance and click away at anything I think is worth capturing for them. Now there's a complex assignment if ever I saw one!