So you're finally shooting your very first wedding. Whether wedding photography is something you do on the side or full time, you are sure to feel those jitters that often come with doing things for the first time. To enjoy this experience and take good photos, follow these easy tips.
Ready your equipment. The excellence of photos you will produce depends on several factors, but most significant of this is your skill as a photographer. On the other hand, without the right lens, adequate memory card space, or a fully charged battery, your camera will never serve its real purpose and all your photography skills will remain stagnant. So check, and as much as possible double check, your gear before heading out of your office. Make sure that you have enough memory cards for the whole event, and that you have formatted each of them so they're ready for use; charge your batteries; take some test shots with your camera; and ready your lenses.
Hire an assistant shooter for this photo coverage, and get a second camera body as well. Having a second photographer to shoot alongside you will allow you to cover more ground and come up with more varied shots to choose from afterwards. To work well together, set up a work plan identifying who shoots which parts and which types of shots are expected. This will also minimise shots from the same angle from two different photographers. It also pays to have two digital camera bodies where you can use two varied lenses (a wide angle on one and a telephoto on another) in order to avoid having to switch in the middle of all the action.
Shoot from the hip, and pay attention to the details. Differ your shooting angles, because it's only when you are sitting in your office, browsing through all the photos, that you can appreciate how much easier it is to have many choices rather than just a handful. Take bird's eye view shots, close-ups, and macro shots, and don't forget to shoot from down below and from the hip.
Lastly, shoot RAW. Every Wedding Photographer should never debate on the utility of the RAW format. You're going to print your photos, so might as well take as much detail as you could in every shot. This is something your camera's RAW shooting functionality will easily cover. Bridal Photography is serious business, and you cannot afford to work on compressed JPEGs alone.
Ready your equipment. The excellence of photos you will produce depends on several factors, but most significant of this is your skill as a photographer. On the other hand, without the right lens, adequate memory card space, or a fully charged battery, your camera will never serve its real purpose and all your photography skills will remain stagnant. So check, and as much as possible double check, your gear before heading out of your office. Make sure that you have enough memory cards for the whole event, and that you have formatted each of them so they're ready for use; charge your batteries; take some test shots with your camera; and ready your lenses.
Hire an assistant shooter for this photo coverage, and get a second camera body as well. Having a second photographer to shoot alongside you will allow you to cover more ground and come up with more varied shots to choose from afterwards. To work well together, set up a work plan identifying who shoots which parts and which types of shots are expected. This will also minimise shots from the same angle from two different photographers. It also pays to have two digital camera bodies where you can use two varied lenses (a wide angle on one and a telephoto on another) in order to avoid having to switch in the middle of all the action.
Shoot from the hip, and pay attention to the details. Differ your shooting angles, because it's only when you are sitting in your office, browsing through all the photos, that you can appreciate how much easier it is to have many choices rather than just a handful. Take bird's eye view shots, close-ups, and macro shots, and don't forget to shoot from down below and from the hip.
Lastly, shoot RAW. Every Wedding Photographer should never debate on the utility of the RAW format. You're going to print your photos, so might as well take as much detail as you could in every shot. This is something your camera's RAW shooting functionality will easily cover. Bridal Photography is serious business, and you cannot afford to work on compressed JPEGs alone.
