Wedding Shoot Tips

I've been approached by a family member to shoot an upcoming wedding.
I explained that I've never shot a wedding before - they seem OK with that.

Besides the expected challenges/headaches of good quality group and candid shots (as well as meeting the Bride's expectations), what advice/tips can you seasoned wedding photogs offer?

What is the going price/cost or what have you charged?

Do you charge for both the shoot and the prints or only the prints?

What focal lengths do you find the most useful?

I'll need a flash. Is a hot-shoe mounted flash adequate or is something off to the side better?

Thanks in advance!

Oh boy - Are you sure you want to get into this one?

Is this a 'real' full blown type wedding? Or more of a small gathering of people? It does make a difference since the expectations will be different. I have done weddings from shoestring to billionaires daughter and the list of expectations is very different between the two.

What doesnt change is that you want to back up everything you own. That does not just include cameras but also yourself. Ground rule #1 - NEVER do a wedding by yourself. You cant be in all places at once and it is just too risky. But again - if the expectations are low to begin with then maybe. Remember, after the wedding you will be providing the only thing they will have to remember it by (wedding videos - ugggh). So you have a great responsibility.

Price - Hard to gauge without knowing expectations and is variable based on experience. Give me a call and we can talk about how i go about setting this up.

I have extra cameras, flashes, lenses, batteries, tripods etc. On my Canon I use the 24-70L, 100mm Macro, and 70-200L f2.8 (IS). Speed is of the essence. I cannot emphasize this enough. I would say >75% of the churches I shoot in have a 'no flash' rule.

You will need a flash. Most likely to get best results you will want 2 and an STE-2 to remotely drive an off camera flash. I use my assistant to hold a second flash off to the side and drive it with the STE-2. You may want to look into a set of Q lights for the formals if you can get them up. Speaking of formals try to get the couple to agree to doing them before the wedding. The results are much better and you can control the amount of time required. Otherwise time is always an issue.

Be very careful shooting a family/friends wedding. I have done it several times always with good results. But always with disclaimers. I dont really like doing these events as I find myself asking too little for the project.

Also, make sure to do a lot of practicing. If you can find someone else to assist before your project that would be ideal. I thought I was ready for my first wedding (which was a reception dinner for a couple) and I most definietly wasn't. You might want to take a course in wedding photography before going.

Hope that helps. As I said give me a call and I can take you through more of the details.

RichieV

Hi Kalin,

I second and third what Richie suggests above. It's all about the equipment. It's also all about the expectations of the bride, groom AND THEIR PARENTS; especially the MOB (mother of the bride). I would get a FULL understanding from this group as to what they expect, what kind of poses they want and what events they wish, before answering the request. There are plenty of good advice and references on the Internet. They'll all start out with "don't do it"! Everyone - especially moms - will be on edge. If anything goes wrong, look out! This is one facit of photography where mistakes simply can't be made. Many professionals carry insurance in case they need to reshoot the ceremony. This would include paying for all the tuxes paying for the wedding party to come back, etc. etc. My advice would be to refer them to a pro.

Pricing. a decent wedding shoot will cost $750 (for really shallow coverage), to $5000 for top-line coverage and professional-quality poses. If I suggested that price range to a family member or relative, they'd think you're loony. You may even make enemies. The last wedding I did "for a friend" I charged them nothing and handed them the DVD with the images to do with what they wanted. It was my wedding gift. Life is too short.

Equipment. Now, if this hasn't scared you off, and you have any intention of eventually becoming a wedding shooter, (there's good money in it ), then you better get the right equipment (f2.8 lenses, or better), backup flashes, bodies, cards, batteries, lenses. Make sure there's someone to coordinate the poses and sequence of events (cake cutting, toasts, first dance, garter, etc.). Create a list of shots ("shot list") after discussing the expectations above. Then, get good with the flash (indoor versus outdoor fill flash). Oh, by the way, you better have a good handle on custom white balancing, because the lighting in churches is both dim and mixed. The worst situation is a sanctuary with regular window glass and a mix of florescent and incandescent lights. A lot of time, the bride's (white) dress will ultimately appear multi-toned (areas of white and brown or orange, depending on the ambient light. This can be fixed by ensuring the flash is the dominant light, but then the background may go dark. Ideally, you'll want a slow enough shutter to capture the background. You'll definitely want to go to the sanctuary in question to experiment. That's assuming it's a church wedding...

Prints. That concept may be pretty old-fashioned these days. Usually, those in the wedding party will just want the images on CD/DVD. Possibly some may want you to put together one of those photo books. Fo those that want prints, you'll want to consider some sort of on-line service - especially for those (usually parents, or older, that want them) where they can order what they want, so you're out of the loop.

Arghh, there's just too much to cover! I don't know whether I've really helped or not - I hope so. A lot of what I've learned was by trial & error - lots of error! Anyway, look to the Web for much more...

Ken

Kalin, I've had a lot of fun shooting as a second photographer at 3 weddings (close friends - no charge). Let me say, it has given me a real appreciation for the work involved being a full time wedding photographer. I think Richie's advice of finding an opportunity to assist should be seriously considered. Every wedding is different, but assisting, even just once,will help you work out the bugs and anticipate at least a few problems. I had no idea how inadequate an f4 lens can be inside a church - even at high ISO!

Good luck!

Thanks guys! Great info and suggestions. This gives me ammo to go into the discussion with. I have no intention of making wedding photography a habit (or profession) and I won't be buying a bunch of new equipment just for this (although it might be a good exuse).
I believe the wedding as a whole will be on the low end of the spectrum. It will be informal but your info will help me shape some questions and help me set expectations.

Thanks again. If anyone else has more info, let me know!

2 words... RUN AWAY! (I used to shoot weddings)

Seriously, take Richie's offer and call him up. There's just way too much to go into here. But one of the basics, besides equipment, is "make a list." Meet with bride and groom and start a list of everyone and specifics groups of people that they want photos of - formal and informal. That is your priority #1 category. Add a priority #2 category with shots requested by family and friends. Run those by the bride and groom and promote shots they like and may have missed to priority #1. Carry that list with you everywhere on the wedding day and check them off as you go. You never want your customers to say after everything is done and over, "Oh, I wish we had a shot of us with Great Aunt Zelda, we'll probably never see her again..."

Richie will be able to give you lots more advice. Good luck and have fun!

The photographer for my wedding was pretty cheap, and that explains the results. They were pretty incompetent. They were unfamiliar with the equipment, and had many problems. (Lost some CF cards, so they had to shoot everything with one card! Had to stop in the middle of shoots for them to download onto a portable hard drive, so they could keep shooting). They had problems with the studio flashes not firing, or firing at the wrong times (the were annoyed that our families' snapshot camera flashes were interfering with their studio flash triggers). The experience was terrible, and the results were terrible. And I will resent them for the rest of my life. You don't want that happening to you, do you?

A while after my wedding, I went to a wedding of a friend of mine, and they had a great photographer. And expensive. At that point, I was kind of a "nosy photographer", and watching everything they were doing, in case I ever wanted to try wedding photography. There was the main photographer, and I believe two assistants. They had three cameras, a Nikon D2x or something, and a couple D70's. They had studio flashes for all shots in the church. And a ladder. I seem to remember them shooting a bunch of the formal stuff from on the ladder. For the reception, the main photographer did most of the shooting, and the assistant followed him around. He had a hotshoe-mounted flash, and the assistant had a second flash, a lot of times holding it high in the air on a pole of some kind. So you had some direct front light, and some high side light. All flashes were fitted with Sto-fen Omnibounce diffusers.

And they definitely had a shot list they carried around.

I would probably recommend looking at some online wedding photography web sites or checking out some books at the library or book store. This should give you an idea of different types of shots.

Good luck! Oh, and like everyone above said... talk to Richie.

Kalin,
How close are you with the bride and groom? The reason I ask is that if you have a great
relationship, and can set appropriate expectations, I think you should go for it!
My first wedding was for some close friends. They completely understood that there was a
difference between me shooting trees and flowers and me shooting a bride and groom. I
charged them nothing (they were going to invite me to the wedding anyway) and made it
clear they should expect nothing in return. Due to the lack of pressure I had a blast and
came away with some great shots. The bride and groom were very happy and I got to really
expand my photographic knowledge and creativity.
Everything the other guys are telling you is absolutely true for most weddings. But, in
the right situation (and only you can determine that) this could turn out to be one of
your most enjoyable photographic experiences. You'll be able to push your boundaries in ways you can't even imagine.
I did several more weddings after this and had great fun, but I realized how much I hated
post-processing, so I decided to not pursue wedding photography.

Several really important bits of knowledge I came away with are:
1. Bring an assistant/second shooter. Preferably a woman. My girlfriend helped me on all
the weddings and she just had a much better eye for detail than me. Also, having a second
shooter doubles the odds of getting the shot.
2. Learn your flash. Certainly, some churches will not allow flash, but you'll need it at
the reception and in other areas. You'd be amazed what a single on camera flash bounced
off a wall or ceiling, can do.
3. Have a list of shots. This will keep you on track when you get hurried and stressed.
4. Try to have a look at the church and even reception hall if you can. If not, get there
an hour early and scout.
5. Don't get involved with prints and albums. Give them a CD/DVD with images.

If you go into this with an open mind and can set the expectations of the wedding party, I
don't think you'll regret doing this.
BTW, you didn't say when the wedding is. If you've got time, Kelby Training has some
online classes you might consider. Shootsmarter also has some good flash training dvds.
Good luck with whatever you choose.
Paul

Kalin,
I'm coming to this thread late, but would echo what has been said. I photographed my first wedding in the 1970's (film) and didn't enjoy the experience. Last year I shot a couple of weddings and had a blast shooting them. Part of the difference is the greater control and flexibility that shooting digital (raw) gives you and part is just that I'm a little bit more mature and calmer than I was 36 years ago.

The lens I use most is a 70-200 f2.8 on a D300 so the effective focal length is 105-300mm. It's versatile and great for many circumstances but is too long for group shots. Another lens that gets a lot of use is a 17-35mm f2.8. The 24-70mm f2.8 is used a lot less than the longer and shorter lenses. You will probably want to get some detail pics of the ring(s) flowers etc. that a macro lens will be useful for. Don't put too many images on any one card just incase the unthinkable happens. Download and back up ASAP.

Flash is another matter. You need to be ready to use available light because flash is often not welcome. One minister related a story of his having to stop a ceremony because the photographer blinded him with a flash and he couldn't see what he was doing. The next problem is getting enough power. If there is going to be enough time I'll bring studio strobes with me. you can't beat them for power and the quality of light when shooting through an umbrella or using a softbox. I found that the Nikon SB800 just didn't have enough power unless you just aimed it at your subject and I HATE direct flash (especially if the bride is over 20 yrs old)! As Paul says, bouncing off a wall or ceiling can do amazing things, but you will find an amazing number of situations where it won't work (ceiling is too high, walls are dark brick, ceiling is dark wood, the room is too big and your in the middile, etc) in which case you need an assistant to take the flash off to the side. A monopod can be used by an assistant to raise the flash overhead to good affect.

If you can meet with the couple for an engagement photo shoot before the wedding, do it. It will give you a chance to work together before the wedding day and will help you get comfortable with each other.

Don't forget to have fun doing the shoot...It will show and people will respond. It will help get the type of reaction and expressions that will make the photos.

Dave

I don't know if I can add much. But I've shot one wedding for a cousin and I'll say take lots and lots of shots. Shoot anything and everything. The shots the bride and groom liked usually differed from those I thought were the best, so having hundreds to choose from helped. And don't crop off the feet when taking full-length shots of people. My sister's wedding photographer did this on 3/4 of the shots!

I started reading this because I'm in the same boat as Kalin and now I'm wishing I would have taken Scott's advise from above and RAN! Thanks for all the useful tips guys, it should be quite an experience.

Hi Kalin,

I understand your reluctance to invest in more equipment (unless the cost is part of the negotiation?), but if nothing else, get yourself a good flash bracket and extension cable. This will go a long way towards eliminating red-eye. Typically, the taller the bracket, the better. I'm using one of the upper-end Strobo-Frame units with camera bracket that flips H & V. You might also look into some sort of flash diffuser for the closer shots.

Renting the equipment you need may also be an option.

Don't miss the kiss!

I agree that for a quick refresher on flash, that http://www.shootsmarter.com would be a good resource.

Ken

Another good place to look for flash instruction is at Strobist.