Pro Advice required!! Really worried - First Wedding, as non-pro!

jcoutts

jcoutts

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Justin
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Hi,

Could do with some advice from the pros! Bit of a long story but been asked to cover a wedding. Its been made lower key due to the loss of a twin sister of the bride very recently to cancer! :'( Due to this sad event, they cancelled the all day pro tog as it isn't now going to now be an all day affair!!.

I did some candid, shadowing on the other sisters wedding a few months back and so she has said could I just do some of the day because mine were good!!!... No pressure...... :eek:

Anyway, am worried because I do take it seriously even though I don't think she would be too bothered either way, but ME personally want to do a good/reasonable job.

Ordering a Sigma 17-70 DC Macro f2.8 for the job to give me an increased light advantage over the stock lens, but still envisage the use/requirement of flash in the church - (What settings on the camera?) Av, TV, Program mode) what would be best???. I am also thinking I should get a diffuser to lessen the harshness of the flash? http://www.warehouseexpress.com/product/default.aspx?sku=1007295

would this be a good idea?

I was planning to shoot in Raw, but a good friend of mine that has done a few weddings (Even mine) said he could not make the post processing time worthy of shooting Raw and so went back to Jpeg - Just take lots!!!! he said...

I think I am O.K with the poses, I may need. Have some ideas on what I'd like to do, just the pressure of not getting the shot on the day is worrying me.

I plan to do a wrecky and take some test shots (When the lens is here) to see what I can get away with in the church light wise. I guess its different when you are doing it all the time you just know what to set the camera at - I DON'T... :bonk:

But other than that any tips, settings or advice would be very welcome and very gratefully recieved.

:clap:

Thanks guys:wave:
 
If you're unsure about all the shots you need to get, take a list...at least for formals :) Pin it to a tripod or keep it in a breast pocket!
 
i'd think a diffuser and/or bounce flash would be what you ought to go for, direct flash would leave harsh shadows.

also if you're not 100% sure on the settings i'd leave it on program, any picture is better than none, when you think you've got enough for the album you can play about with AV to get the background out of focus by using f/2.8, just try not to leave it too late in the day or the light will drop and you'll lose shutter speed

For some ideas on poses ask to look at some relations wedding albums and if the couple like the poses just copy them

you may need a longer lens than 70mm as candids are best shot without the subject being aware of the camera

I'm sure someone will be along who knows what they're talking about soon, good luck :)
 
when i did it i made a list of pictures to take

and a list of equipment and settings so as in the rush i new where i was

i also asked the happy couple what pictures they wanted ie. with a favourite aunt that sort of thing

good idea to have a try out first

good luck
 
good luck
 
I tend to shoot on aperture priority in available light and just keep an eye on the shutter speeds to make sure I'm not going too low. I know what I can usually hand hold and since I was put right recently on my grip I'm finding it even better!

Use your flash where you need to. Put the camera on manual f5.6 or f6.3 you can choose any shutter speed you like between 1/30 and 1/200 so long as you have the custom program set to second shutter synch.

Some pics from a recent pro training day on winter weddings.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25027524@N05/

Try it out with your family and friends beforehand and it should take some of the stress out of it.
 
raw raw raw ..

your mate said hes not bothered thats fine ...

but you say your alittle unsure so shoot raw and give yourself alittle more of a safety net...


md:thumbs:



it might take longer to process but as and when your happy to shoot these things then you can go to jpeg:thumbs:
 
AliB said:
Some pics from a recent pro training day on winter weddings.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25027524@N05/
Click to expand...

They seem to be landscapes Ali

..MD.. said:
raw raw raw ..

your mate said hes not bothered thats fine ...

but you say your alittle unsure so shoot raw and give yourself alittle more of a safety net...


md:thumbs:



it might take longer to process but as and when your happy to shoot these things then you can go to jpeg:thumbs:
Click to expand...

Agreed.

RAW shouldn't even take that long TBH, as long as you're pretty close with the exposure. Just a few adjustments should get you where you want to be.
 
raw with large jpeg - best of both worlds then
 
..MD.. said:
raw raw raw ..

your mate said hes not bothered thats fine ...

but you say your alittle unsure so shoot raw and give yourself a little more of a safety net...


md:thumbs:



it might take longer to process but as and when your happy to shoot these things then you can go to jpeg:thumbs:
Click to expand...

Thanks MD.

I did think this to myself inwardly.. When he said it to me. I have been using Raw for a little while and I am amazed and now very aware just how much more level of recovery is open to you.

Think I will go with that...

Thanks to ALL the comments and the link to the tutorial will be especially useful.

All I can say is keep it coming.. Tips & Techniques I can hear all day long. :thumbs:
 
fabs said:
They seem to be landscapes Ali
Click to expand...

Blast, should be there, they are all public.... oh well lets try this instead. Thanks for the heads up fabs.

3059958866_72410310d4.jpg

Lit by a diffused flash on camera using the second curtain synch.

3059958718_537b8f3caa.jpg

Lit by an off camera EX580 with a lastolite softbox.

3059121183_4404ae7690.jpg

Window light only. Hand held with a 70-200mm.

Hope that helps.
 
Thanks AliB,

I did realise the photos were landscapes, but just did not want to offend!! After all all of the people on here are so kind and full of great advice. The last thing I would want to do when someone has taken the time to reply is pull there post apart!...

Thanks Fab for raising the issue....

Great pics by the way AliB, and nice examples showing me what I can expect. Just waht I needed. Thanks a lot.

Need to have a read on this "Second Curtain Synch" function though. I know its in the custom functions but not sure what it actually does or how it works!
 
Thanks fabs, yep I agree. With natural light I tend to shoot in aperture priority because I want to control the depth of field or utilise the wide end for getting as much light in as I can. With flash it goes on manual because I'm then using the shutter speed to allow an amount of light into the camera. The slower the shutter speed the more ambient light gets in. Then the flash goes off at the end of the exposure to freeze the movement.
I went on a course on shooting winter weddings to learn these techniques so they are in my toolkit whenever I want to use them.

The second curtain synch is down to the way a shutter works. In the old days they were leaf shutters but modern cameras tend to have curtains. Basically the first one moves across the frame and opens the camera to light. Then the second one follows it to close it again. Now when this speeds up they actually both move across at the same time but with a gap between them. The flash can be synched to either but the default is first curtain so the flash is going off as the first curtain moves. This tends to leave movement trails in the pic. The second curtain synch allows a bit of movement before freezing the action. Much more what you need for a first dance.
 
in all honesty mate you will have enough to think about on the day to worry about non basic flash..

your priority's imho

bride and groom ...

posed well

exposed well

sharp.
unless your being creative " which i would leave for now"

then the familys :nuts:

do you know them if so how well..

which shot next who will be in it. and so on

get yourself a list of shots and work to that.. anything else is a bonus...

if i am way off the mark i am sure someone will put me right thus you get the right answer



md:thumbs:
 
The second curtain flash is dead easy!
f5.6 or f6.3, 1/30 to 1/60th sec and set the camera to second curtain synch. AWB and ISO on 400.

Have a practice at home and you will see how easy it is. Promise. :)
 
AliB said:
The second curtain flash is dead easy!
f5.6 or f6.3, 1/30 to 1/60th sec and set the camera to second curtain synch. AWB and ISO on 400.

Have a practice at home and you will see how easy it is. Promise. :)
Click to expand...

i will try this tommorrow..:thumbs:

i best leave this thread now :nuts: i just reread the title :nuts: to all pro's:nuts:


:wave:


md:wave:
 
Hey, I'm not pro either but since I did go on a course to learn how to do it recently I thought I could be an impostor for a few minutes.

We can all dream ;)
 
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