Yes, I have finally gotten round to do my first Wedding Shoot.
Thank Goodness it was a sunny day yesterday, as it made me more enthused to starting snapping. The wedding was based in a small chapel on the other side of the road to Stuart's house, so it was easy just to pop over when we needed to be of use.
11.30 am
I arrived just before half eleven and was informed about the itinerary of the day. Unfortunately I didn't use my camera as Stuart had three Canons set up for different focal lengths and depths of field. About five minutes away was the brides house, which was our first stop. Here we were to take photos of the bride getting ready; makeup, bridesmaids dresses and the brides dress. For most of the time I was holding reflectors and lamps to provide a natural light for the subjects. It was exciting watching everyone get ready. I felt like I was going behind the scenes on one of those bridal programs. I have been to three family weddings so far and it was interesting to see the day go by from a different point of view.
1.30pm
It was only once we had got to the church that Stuart allowed me to shoot with his camera. I was set at the back of the church and knew when the highlights of the ceremony were, so I took that to my advantage and Stuart was impressed with some of my pics. This gave me more of a confidence boost and helped to motivated me. He took most of the photos previously and outside the church. There were some really quirky photos of the groom and the best man. The brick wall provided a good backdrop and they used the shape of the wall to create relaxed but interesting poses.
3.00pm
After transporting the camera eqipment back to his car, we drove down to the reception. It was a lovely hotel/restaurant called the Mill House, with a gorgous garden and a peaceful abode for the newlyweds. As we arrived first we waited for the white 1952 wedding car to pull up before we could take some shots. We then went out back and took the couple behind the reception canopy and got them to stand by a tree, dressed head to toe in ivy. These poses were more cheeky and romantic compared to other photos of them during the day. It was lovely having the swishing of a stream as a backdrop and provided us all with a calm environment as we were getting hot under the sun. For this part of the day I was only observing but I held the reflector to capture the light gleaming in the couple's eyes. I learned a lot in this section as I'd never had the experience to see exactly what photographers do with the couples as it remains very secretive and special to the congregation.
4.00 pm
Now was time for the group shots. Stuart had a very interesting way of handling the families and friends by using some string and a wide angled lens. He position the camera infront of the bride and groom and then attached one end of the string to the camera. He then took the other end and asked the congregation to stand in one long line while he brought the string up to the people to make sure they were securely in line for his panorama shot. At the time I didn't realise what he was trying to do but I knew the string was used as a measure. Once he said "panorama shot " I remembered when I went first talked to him in January and he showed me in his studio a panorama wedding photo he had taken. I recall feeling inspired by its unique approach and that I would like to accommodate that in my own work. So yes, I have been going on about how I remember this technique, but I havn't told you what exactly it is - unless you have guessed already.
The camera is supported on a tripod but is able to pan from the left side of the congregation to the right. He split everyone into groups, separated by invisible lines. Even if it wasn't a persons turn they still had to smile incase the camera caught shot of them. Stuart then took four simple photos of the groups before working on the individual groups.
Just before the Wedding Breakfast began I went into the canopy where the meal would be held, and was allowed to take some photos. I knew this would easy for me as I work a lot with still life. It's a great way to start off when you are an amateur because you don't have to tell anyone what to do and you can feel confident before being interactive. There were two pictures I took that caught Stuarts eye. As I was snapping around I remembered what my college tutor Joe said about lines and diagonals. I remember thinking that they were unintentional and I must be a natural at it. Ever since, I have been aware of it and I captured the head table at an diagonal angle. There was also an impromptu moment where the bride had left her bouquet roses against a white chair. I just randomly chose this opportunity to experiment. Stuart seemed impressed my photos because he didn't think of taking them himself. "It's good to have another eye on looking at things..". I'm starting to feel like my photography could be worth something one day.
[If I hopefully receive the images and I will post them on my blog on a later date]
As it was an absolute hot rare day in England I was boiled and starting thinking about heading home after the group pics were done. Stuart and I went to sit down for bit and had a chat about how I found the day so far and what I had learned. He did give me the chance to go home but then I would miss out on the rest of the night and in the end proved important.
5.00pm
We were now just about to head back to Stuarts house to review some of the photos we had taken, while the congregation ate their meal. The photos were edited on Photoshop but as they were taken on RAW, Stuart had a compatibility pack so he could create effective edits. We started with one pic from outside the Mill House and we richened the blue sky before adding a Gaussian Glow effect. Those of you familiar with Photoshop or edit tools you will know how this effect makes colours bolder and adds depth to the final piece.
6.00pm - 700pm
We headed back to the Mill House where we had to sit through the boring part...the speeches. Yeah, sure they are entertaining when they are told by family and friends but this became the part of the day were you felt a little out of place. Nevertheless I was able to take some shots of the reactions of the congregation.
7.30 onwards
It was now getting on eight and Stuart and I hadn't had very much to eat or drink. He kindly let me have dinner with him and his wife before I was picked up to go home. We reflected over the day and I was happy, thinking that I really would like to do this as a real job :)
So a long day but what have I learnt...
I have learned that:
-At every wedding you will find at least five different people with their big cameras snapping away. Its a bit off putting for the professional photographer who is actually doing his job. When we were editing one of the photos I realised that its not about what camera you have and what picture you take of the bride and groom etc, but it actually how you edit it. I assume most people with these cameras only use JPEG, well in fact RAW provides a true image that isn't flattened and dull. If you want to take fancy wedding pictures then learning the professional tips will get you there.
- Reflectors and portable lights are useful for creating a subtle natural light. They also bring out a sparkle in the brides eyes.
- Create an plan of the day to structure and organize yourself.
- Setting the ISO to 1600, 200 and 1800 are the best settings to set your camera for a wedding.
- Have fun and improvise with the poses, the result could be a new interesting selling point.
Fortunatly you will be happy to hear that I have been doing alot of photography as I have been away - that is another story. Over April I was to go away to Florida for my birthday. I didn't realise that I would be staying away for another two weeks. Now, everyone has been saying that there could be worst places to get stranded, which is true, but maybe i'd be selfish saying that I wanted to be home more than away. Ok, I need head back to my photography, this isn't a travel blog!
