wedding photography and flash

stan the man

stan the man

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looking for some general advice on the use of flash in wedding photography as i've been talked into photographing my brothers and his intended's wedding.i had some advice in as much as to use high speed sync,but is that advisable on all of the shots?thus far,the only subject i've used flash for is macro work,and the odd portrait shot with my grandchildren.

thanks in advance
 
Jeez m8 - that's an all encompassing question!

Flash is appropriate in all sorts of ways during a Wedding shoot - and, offhand, I wouldn't know how to answer this other than when it's appropriate! Which is no help at all

Soz

DD
 
lol dave..sorry i can't be more specific,but i guess i take your point that it's only needed when appropriate.i would hazard a guess that if i'm shooting outdoors,then it may not be needed,but there again..it might.same with indoor shots i presume:shrug:

i suppose i'm asking too much in as much as to get a generalisation on this subject:bonk:
 
The problem with using flash at weddings is continuity - if for example they're having an album that goes from shots without flash during the ceremoney to shots with flash when they're making their way to the back of the church, shots of say speeches with flash and then shots of dancing without flash, the whole thing can end up looking a bit of a mess.

So, where flash is/can be used it's a good idea to use just the bare minimum to preserve the ambient lighting and the continuity.

High speed synch is a bit like a political promise - it can work out to be exactly what you hope it will, but mostly it's less good than you expect. The only use I can think of is if you need fill flash in bright sunlight but also want to use a wide aperture to restrict DOF. The theory is wonderful, but the contribution the flash makes is minimal and it's usually easier/better to use a reflector instead, if you can't find shade
 
I was only allowed to use flash at the two registry office weddings I did, the church weddings the vicar said no flash - except for the staged photos of the signing of the book.
 
stan the man said:
looking for some general advice on the use of flash in wedding photography as i've been talked into photographing my brothers and his intended's wedding.i had some advice in as much as to use high speed sync,but is that advisable on all of the shots?thus far,the only subject i've used flash for is macro work,and the odd portrait shot with my grandchildren.

thanks in advance
Click to expand...


My advice is Get Out Of It,honestly I have been photographing weddings for about 15 years and only ever did 1 family wedding,it was a nightmare and that was just my wife's cousin's daughter.
If you have never done a wedding before someone as close as your brother is to much of a risk in case you get it wrong,tell them to get an official tog and you can take some candids during the day as well

If you do insist on going ahead just set the camera to P set the flash to whatever its P setting is and keep an eye on the preview screen,these were all shot on that sort of setting at a wet wedding I did a few weeks ago.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainpenguin/sets/72157607510114327/
 
JPS...the marriage is taking place at a local country club,with a registrar performing it,so i don't forsee any problems using flash throughout.i have to meet with her about half an hour before the ceremony do discuss,so all will be clear..hopefully :lol:

captain penguin..it's not really an option not to do it now,plus i think my brother and his intended aren't in a position financially to get a pro tog in,hence them asking me.they have told me they're not expecting proffesional quality shots,but i feel i must give them the best i can within my capabilities.

great shots by the way :thumbs:
 
stan the man said:
JPS...the marriage is taking place at a local country club,with a registrar performing it,so i don't forsee any problems using flash throughout.i have to meet with her about half an hour before the ceremony do discuss,so all will be clear..hopefully :lol:

captain penguin..it's not really an option not to do it now,plus i think my brother and his intended aren't in a position financially to get a pro tog in,hence them asking me.they have told me they're not expecting proffesional quality shots,but i feel i must give them the best i can within my capabilities.

great shots by the way :thumbs:
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In that case sit down with them and get a complete list of all the shots that they want
Make sure that you get the ushers or some other poor bods on the day to help you organise people
Make sure that everybody knows that on the day that you are the photographer as opposed to the grooms brother
Be prepared to order people around even at the risk of offending them in order to get the shots you want
Liaise with the reception staff to make siure you know what their timings are and stick to them,if you upset the hotel they will upset the bride and you will get it in the neck.
Check with the registrar to check what are the do's and donts
Make sure all your kit is clean and fully charged and take spares of everything if possible
Whatever happens on the day DONT PANIC

And remember everybody here who has ever done a wedding will be rooting for you on the big dy
 
CaptainPenguin said:
In that case sit down with them and get a complete list of all the shots that they want
Make sure that you get the ushers or some other poor bods on the day to help you organise people
Make sure that everybody knows that on the day that you are the photographer as opposed to the grooms brother
Be prepared to order people around even at the risk of offending them in order to get the shots you want
Liaise with the reception staff to make siure you know what their timings are and stick to them,if you upset the hotel they will upset the bride and you will get it in the neck.
Check with the registrar to check what are the do's and donts
Make sure all your kit is clean and fully charged and take spares of everything if possible
Whatever happens on the day DONT PANIC

And remember everybody here who has ever done a wedding will be rooting for you on the big dy
Click to expand...

thanks for the advice....much appreciate you taking the time to help.most of the folk going already know me,but i shall be making it clear that i'm also the tog for the day.i spoke to the owner last saturday,and she was very accomodating,but she also stated that there was another wedding there that day,so we'll have to consider them too..as said,i will be talking to the registrar 30 mins before the ceremony to discuss the do's and don't's,so hopefully all will be clear.

thanks again everyone who has helped,but keep it coming if you can think of anything more..:thumbs:
 
you have to start somewhere. Wedding photography is no big deal if you are actually a decent photographer and doing a family wedding is a great way to get into it. Not done a wedding yet where I or my partner in crime did not know the bride/groom.




CaptainPenguin said:
My advice is Get Out Of It,honestly I have been photographing weddings for about 15 years and only ever did 1 family wedding,it was a nightmare and that was just my wife's cousin's daughter.
If you have never done a wedding before someone as close as your brother is to much of a risk in case you get it wrong,tell them to get an official tog and you can take some candids during the day as well

If you do insist on going ahead just set the camera to P set the flash to whatever its P setting is and keep an eye on the preview screen,these were all shot on that sort of setting at a wet wedding I did a few weeks ago.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/captainpenguin/sets/72157607510114327/
Click to expand...
 
POAH said:
you have to start somewhere. Wedding photography is no big deal if you are actually a decent photographer and doing a family wedding is a great way to get into it. Not done a wedding yet where I or my partner in crime did not know the bride/groom.
Click to expand...

i've only been togging for about 5-6 months,so a relative begginer really,but as you say..i have to start somewhere,but shadowing a tog would have been more ideal :)
 
POAH said:
you have to start somewhere. Wedding photography is no big deal if you are actually a decent photographer and doing a family wedding is a great way to get into it. Not done a wedding yet where I or my partner in crime did not know the bride/groom.
Click to expand...

Taking photographs at the wedding is only half the job,if you dont know how to pose and organise people you are going to be stuffed,we have all seen the stories of couples distraught because of the rubbish turned out by so called Wedding Photographers,in fact there was a post along those lines on here only a couple of weeks ago.
I shadowed for about 6 weddings before I went solo and I needed that learning curve
 
CaptainPenguin said:
Taking photographs at the wedding is only half the job,if you dont know how to pose and organise people you are going to be stuffed,we have all seen the stories of couples distraught because of the rubbish turned out by so called Wedding Photographers,in fact there was a post along those lines on here only a couple of weeks ago.
I shadowed for about 6 weddings before I went solo and I needed that learning curve
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Rude remark removed


twas true though lol
 
Taking photos of people involves posing them and giving direction anyway, so its easy.
 
I would recomend using a flash in t-ttl mode (or equivilent) but use a Flash card (do a search for make a better flash card)

will lighten your subjects without looking like a flash has been used andwill keep continuity because you cant tell a flash has been used.

Also it costs nothing to make --well excpet the cost of an A4 piece of photo paper and watever it costs you to watch a tutorial on the net for about 5 minutes
 
Quick tips (some hopefully obvious)

Use bounce flash, don't direct flash your subjects unless you want a mugshot style photo.

Get a diffuser for your flash, like the omnibounce or lightsphere, they really do help diffuse light.

Using a low power, non-direct flash outdoors with a bounce card can help direct a small amount of light into your subjects eyes giving them a slight lift.

At the reception try using rear-sync curtain flash (in your flash settings) at shutter speeds of less than 1/250, instead of completl freezing the scene this will allow some movement (blur) to be captured which can give a nice sense of movement.

If you get chance then take a look at the Scott Kelby digital photography books (1 & 2) which both contain sections on shooting weddings, they really helped me when I shot my brother-in-laws wedding.

Practice on everyone you can as much as you can before the day. If you can get there early and scout the locations it really will help you, especially if you take someone with you to practise on. Anything you can do in advance to take the guess work out of it will help.
 
Chris M said:
Quick tips (some hopefully obvious)

Use bounce flash, don't direct flash your subjects unless you want a mugshot style photo.

Get a diffuser for your flash, like the omnibounce or lightsphere, they really do help diffuse light.

Using a low power, non-direct flash outdoors with a bounce card can help direct a small amount of light into your subjects eyes giving them a slight lift.

At the reception try using rear-sync curtain flash (in your flash settings) at shutter speeds of less than 1/250, instead of completl freezing the scene this will allow some movement (blur) to be captured which can give a nice sense of movement.

If you get chance then take a look at the Scott Kelby digital photography books (1 & 2) which both contain sections on shooting weddings, they really helped me when I shot my brother-in-laws wedding.

Practice on everyone you can as much as you can before the day. If you can get there early and scout the locations it really will help you, especially if you take someone with you to practise on. Anything you can do in advance to take the guess work out of it will help.
Click to expand...

Cheers chris...i have the first scott kelby book digital photography book,so i'll have a read of it.is a flash card just a piece of card 'stuck' to the top of the flashgun as to bounce light towards the subject,but not directly :shrug:.what would be the best material to make a flash card?

i already have a sto-fen omni bounce diffuser...but i've not used it much,only for taking a few portrait shots of my grandchildren.
 
Comes as part of an SB800 and other flashes (not sure if flashcard is correct name for it), or if you've got a flash without one, like my SB600 then a peice of white card taped to the back of the flash at the top has the same effect, it just gives the light a little kick forward.
 
This is one idiot-proof method for indoor flash: set your flash to auto (ttl) and your camera to manual with the shutter @ 1/125, fstop 8. Let your flash do the work of metering. This will get you through every indoor situation. Hand-held, you have little assurance of capturing the ambient light indoors unless the church sanctuary itself is extremely bright. If you're shooting a static subject up close, (Say, a head-and- torso portrait with the church sanctuary in the background), you might be safe with 1/30 second. That will capture some of the ambient background light and give you an acceptably sharp image. REMEMBER TO RESET THE SHUTTER TO 1/125!

I hesitate to put the camera on full auto because in a backlit situation (and with the exposure improperly set) the flash will be fooled. Result: a perfectly exposed background and an underexposed foreground. There are other ways around this, but considering the time element...

When I shot weddings on film this was my setup: Vivitar 285 set to auto, camera set to manual with the shutter at 1/125 and the aperture set to f8. Because things happen, all settings on the camera were taped in place with electrical tape. The condition and appearance of my camera and flash almost always scared the bejabers out of everybody, but I always got the shot.

With ttl, there's not much difference now, no matter which ttl-capable flash and camera you use.

The problem with a P setting is that the camera and flash strive to conserve energy. The way that the system accomplishes this is by using the largest aperture/slowest shutter speed combination. If you photograph a group of people who are standing on different focal planes, and your camera selects f2.8 (provided that your lens is that fast), you'll have a serious problem on your hands. Anyone a little bit in front of and a little behind the plane of focus will be out of focus. That's why I suggest the 1/125 f8 combination.
 
Try

http://planetneil.com/tangents/category/flash-photography/

for some practical advise on using flash for a wedding


try

http://strobist.blogspot.com/

for excellent information on flash photography in general


The key to good event/wedding photography is the subtle mix of ambient and flash. Choosing which will dominate or balancing them equally is one aspect of the art of the good wedding photographers.

Practise and practise some more until your flash and how you use it is second nature. You don't have time at a wedding to be learning so take the time now to really understand it.
 
Chris M said:
At the reception try using rear-sync curtain flash (in your flash settings) at shutter speeds of less than 1/250, instead of completl freezing the scene this will allow some movement (blur) to be captured which can give a nice sense of movement.
Click to expand...



Hmm?? do people really want (blur) in their wedding pics??
 
p4ddy said:
Hmm?? do people really want (blur) in their wedding pics??
Click to expand...

For the first dance it's an absolutely ideal technique and one that you really should pay attention to. I learned it on a Brett Harkness Winter Weddings course. I'd absolutely recommend it.
 
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