Wedding Photographer Tutorial.....

Gilly B

Gilly B

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Gillian
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I have been searching through past tutorials on TP for anything that will point me in the direction of a DVD tutorial specifically for Weddings. Something I can just sit and watch over and over again making notes as I go.

I have collected loads of stuff off you peeps over the months and been very grateful for your knowledge. However, there must be a specific tutorial which narrates through a few weddings prompting you to check or suggest camera settings, people compositions, distracting backgrounds etc.

I have Googled away and not sure if anything quite fits.

Any ideas? :thinking:
 
There's the Rona Cox Course Gilly. I did a review on that and it's pretty good. Very reasonably priced and Rona does give you full telephone support if you need it which is quite remarkable for the price.

Rona Cox Course.
 
Thanks Cedric. I have read the review and at the moment don't want to do a complete course which includes business start up. My intentions are to cover weddings and portrait events alongside my day job.

What I was thinking of and maybe didn't come across well in my first post was to be able to watch a DVD of a photographer covering say 3 or 4 weddings from start to finish with someone narrating over, prompting you to check your settings against lighting, intimate portraits of the couple without being to cheesey. Do's and Don'ts really. I am one of those thick people that the old saying monkey see, monkey do! and then once I have a good grounding, I will then be more confident in developing my own style.

Any other pointers would be great - thanks
 
Gilly B said:
I have been searching through past tutorials on TP for anything that will point me in the direction of a DVD tutorial specifically for Weddings. Something I can just sit and watch over and over again making notes as I go.

I have collected loads of stuff off you peeps over the months and been very grateful for your knowledge. However, there must be a specific tutorial which narrates through a few weddings prompting you to check or suggest camera settings, people compositions, distracting backgrounds etc.

I have Googled away and not sure if anything quite fits.

Any ideas? :thinking:
Click to expand...

I'd say buy a book. These provide most of the detail you need.

Regards camera settings, it's all down to the light available. Use fast enough shutter speeds to stop motion and use the aperture to control the depth of field you need. Regards compositions, there's a few wedding forums around with some amazing images. Buy a book on weddings or posing. They will help. Regards backgrounds, use small depth of field. Imperative to have f2.8 and faster lenses. Moving the subject away from the background and using a long fast lens will give a nice oof background.

Regards checking, the only things I do are check my histogram constantly and check that I'm using appropriate ISO.
 
Thanks EOS JD. Yes I have already bought 3 or 4 books on the subject. Just thought there could have been a DVD to help. I am certainly going to make notes of the advice you all give me.

When you say it is imperative to have f2.8 and faster lenses - What does a fast lens mean. I must sound thick - sorry. :thinking: I have 85mm 1.8 and 50mm 1.4 are they fast? - compared to my 24-105mm L 1:4 ? :shrug:

KIM - Yes, sure I will bear you in mind if I stumbled across anything.
 
Have you seen this months Digital photographer mag?
Theres a feature on weddings as well as a draw to win an Annabel Williams 3-day photography course.
The feature gives you tips like....

A fast, short telephot lens is a must for candid prtraiture, invaluable for capturing intimate moments where you want to maintain a shallow depth of field.

Dont forget the groom... most people concentrate on the bride after the service, but its often the groom that provides the best candid shots of the day.

Dont be afraid to zoom in on things like the bride & groom holding hands. Close-ups of the groom looking nervous as he awaits the bride before the ceremony.
Also, simple things such as close-ups of a flower arrangement, the brides shoes... the kind of shots that will bring back memories of the day.

Be sure to have a wet-weather plan.



It goes on like this throughout, with hints & tips that may or may not seem like common sense.
Theres also a couple of sites to check out that may give you ideas, though I doubt the technical info youre looking for.....

www.onlineweddings.co.uk

www.slikshoots.co.uk

Also, have you seen the book ... Contempory Wedding photography by Julie Oswin & Steve Walton?
Ive not read it myself but it claims to give "Comprehensive checklists throughout, professional tips, tried & tested templates, advice boxes & step-by-step sequences to provide ideas & information"

Ive not see anything with regards to DVD's but if I do, Ill be sure to let you know.
 
Thanks info and links. I will check them out tonight when I get home.
 
Gilly B said:
Thanks EOS JD. Yes I have already bought 3 or 4 books on the subject. Just thought there could have been a DVD to help. I am certainly going to make notes of the advice you all give me.

When you say it is imperative to have f2.8 and faster lenses - What does a fast lens mean. I must sound thick - sorry. :thinking: I have 85mm 1.8 and 50mm 1.4 are they fast? - compared to my 24-105mm L 1:4 ? :shrug:

KIM - Yes, sure I will bear you in mind if I stumbled across anything.
Click to expand...

Speed of a lens refers to aperture. larger apertures allow faster shutter speeds (as I'm sure you know) so yes the 85 and 50 (I have these) is a lot faster than the 24-105 f4L IS (which i also have)! the 50 is 3 stops faster = 8x faster shutter speeds!!!

the reason i say you need f2.8 is if you are in a dark church f4 is too slow in many cases (even at high ISO) to stop motion blur. Try using the 240-105 in a dimly lit room to stop a waving hand (even a slow wave). f2.8 doubles your shutter speed at any given ISO. Also try the same shot with the 50 f1.4 @ f1.4. Shutter speeds are much faster.

Wedding photographers need fast glass. Don't get me wrog you can use the 24-105 in many cases and I do so. I also have a 28-75 f2.8 tamron which is a backup if I need it. the 70-200 f2.8L IS is probably the one lens that stays on the longest at weddings. It's fixed to one body and the other body has either a fast prime like the 85 or a 24-105 or maybe even the wide angle 10-22.

One point regards close ups.... Be careful to leave some room for cropping to image sizes like 10x8. if you crop too close in camera, you'll find that you will be stuck with the 3:2 ratio.
 
KIM- Great Video clip and photos. Thanks for that. How do you save video clips to your computer? I have tried right clicking - but nothing happens?

EOS JD - I thought that is what was meant by a fast lens. Thanks for the detailed description. It has made me think about which lens I should be using inside the church. I have just had a thought :cuckoo: Is a Macro lens just for Macro shots. Pleeeeze don't laugh all you experienced peeps..... I have a Sigma 105mm 2.8 which I don't use very often. I use it to play about with Macro flowers and insects etc. Could I use this 'fast' lens in low light on a tripod - say in a church? I have just put it on my 5D and focused on the other side of the room at a cabinet at 800 iso and it is pin sharp. If I put this lens on my 20D what would the crop factor be? about 160mm?? Cor! if the answer is yes to being able to use this macro lens as an ordinary lens, then I could use it for the Weddings. :bonk: :woot:

Can't wait for your response.......:nuts:
 
Yes you can use your 100mm macro as a normal mid range tele lens and it will be a 160mm focal length on 1.6X crop sensor.

The only slight word of warning is that they can be razor sharp and rather unflattering for close up portraits etc, but nothing you probably can't adjust in processing.
 
:woot: :woot: :woot: I have now got myself another lens then - 160mm (on my 20D). Cheers Cedric.

I won't use it for close up portraits so hopefully won't get unflattering shots as you have mentioned - I have my 85mm 1.8mm which I love for that job. Thanks for that information:thumbs:
 
LOL. THis shot was taken with my 180 macro.

IMG_4384-01.jpg


Being a prime lens it's also excellent with the 1.4X converter, which was the combo used for this shot..

OY8N3224-01.jpg


I haven't tried it with the 2X converter... yet! :D
 
Gilly B said:
KIM- Great Video clip and photos. Thanks for that. How do you save video clips to your computer? I have tried right clicking - but nothing happens?
Click to expand...

I asked the same question on iirc - there is a plug in for the firefox browser called videodownloader that does it. Far better with them on your harddrive.

I'll keep adding to this thread if i find anything more of use on youtube. So we can all benefit

Allan
 
Hey all, i am in the same boat as Gilly with wedding photography. my main issue is what the best f stop for groups shots - thats the area i most stress with. i have a nikon d200 with a 17-55.. f2.8. if it a big group i tend to shoot at f11 but smaller groups in one line i shoot at f8. problem is my shots dont seem that clear. its not camera shake. does it make a difference to the clarity of the people whihc fstop i use. i understand the background will be softer using larger apertures.
thanks for anyones help
 
Mart,

Depending on your shutter speed, then if it's not camera shake, motion shake on the subject, then it has to be down to either a soft lens, low in-camera sharpness (how do they sharpen out of camera?) or focus issues.

Post a couple of pictures, and perhaps a 100% crop and we'll take a look, but at f11 from a sensible distance, you should have plenty of DOF to play with.

Cheers
James
 
take a look at these DVD's on ebay, i've tried linking to them but it's not working so here are the item numbers.

150149202626

160145686724
 
Interesting read.

As mentioned in another thread I'm going to a wedding next year and assuming it's ok would like to take my camera to do some shots.

Going on what has been said about faster lenses, mine is Nikon 18-55 3.5-5.6 & 55-200 5.6 (D40) So they may not be suitable?

I was thinking more of shots outside the church and at the reception. I don't have a flash as such apart from the inbuilt one. Don't know if this would be an issue? From memory it's handy to have a shoe monted flash to bounch it off the celing or slightly away from the subject so they aren't pale and with eyes shut. Also the range is greater and more flexiblity. Having never used a modern flash gun or been to a wedding a bit unsure of what is needed.

Any advice appreicated.


Thanks


Jon
 
You should be fine with those lenses, I tend to take a lot of candid shots at weddings so leave my 55-200 on. and if your outside you hopefully wont need a bigger flash.
 
Won't any guide depends on the style you want to shoot ?

If you are doing a documentary style aka Jeff Ascough then you have the minimal interaction with the people. Just observe and take photos through out the day, with the minimal group and posed shots for the mother in law's mantle piece. Using fast lenses and available light where ever possible with no flash or reflectors.

If you do mostly posed shots then your technique will be entirely different, you might have an assistant with a reflector, or even a full flash umbrella set up for the event. And your interaction with the people will be different too. It'll be one you can plan a lot more in advance since you know the shots that you want.
 
One of the best ways to learn is to go along as an assistant, Ive had 4 in the last 2 years who have all gone on to do there own weddings and one even did my wedding a couple of weeks ago.
 
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