It's a common request, more common than you'd imagine. Especially
in times of recession couples are trying to stick to tight budgets.
They are considering every purchase, working out if every purchase can
be done for less or even for nothing.
So they know you. You're a friend or a relative. They know you've got a fairly nice camera and they know you like taking photographs. They have seen some of your pictures and they think they're quite good. So you can do the photography for their wedding can't you, why not?
This article will help you to understand what you are about to undertake and whether you say yes or no!
The first question to ask yourself is "are your technical skills up to it?".
If you have never taken your camera off the P setting then it's time to learn and fast. You will not be able to shoot a wedding in its entirety in all locations using the P setting. Why?
You need the flexibility that shooting with some degree of control will give you. Do you understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO? In certain circumstances you will want to control the aperture. For example when taking the group photographs you would select a fairly narrow aperture to ensure a good depth of field. In certain circumstances you will need to ensure that your shutter speed is fast enough. For example for the bride walking down the aisle in the gloomy church. How are you going to ensure that the shutter speed doesn't drop so low that you get motion blur or camera shake?
Not sure how to achieve this or even why it's important then you should consider saying no to their request or taking a course! Otherwise some really important images will simply not be good enough.
So you're comfortable with using aperture or shutter priority or even shouting in manual. You understand how to use ISO to help control exposure. You recognise what settings are appropriate in different situations. That's excellent but that's not all you need to know...
My next question is what are you going to do if it's a really bright and sunny day? How are you going to ensure that there is a nice even balanced amount of light on people, especially their faces?
You really have to use some fill in light. If you're working on your own then it's got to be fill in flash. Do you have a decent Speedlight (aka flash gun)? Your pop up flash (part of the camera) simply won't allow you enough control. A Speedlight works fundamentally by communicating with your camera and by assessing the picture for you and sending out the appropriate amount of flash. If you don't use fill in flash you run the risk of dark faces or shadows across the faces.
Using a Speedlight isn't as straight forward as it seems. Yes you can set it on ETTL (electronic through the lens) and hope for the best but I wouldn't recommend it. You will need to control the amount of flash and so should know how and why! It's also important to think about defusing the flash somehow.
The easiest and cheapest way is to bounce the flash off a wall or ceiling. There are other ways for example by using a diffuser that fits on to the Speedlight. The principle is that the larger the light source the softer the light. That's why overcast light is better to shoot in than a bright sunny day. It's also why bouncing the flash works.
By doing this you increase the light source from your small flash head to the size of the wall or ceiling.
In part 2 I'll explore how you need to be in control and organise the day in order that you get the job done and I'll discuss the hard work that needs to be put in before, during and after the big day and that you will NOT be a guest at your friend's wedding you will be there to work ALL day!
So they know you. You're a friend or a relative. They know you've got a fairly nice camera and they know you like taking photographs. They have seen some of your pictures and they think they're quite good. So you can do the photography for their wedding can't you, why not?
This article will help you to understand what you are about to undertake and whether you say yes or no!
The first question to ask yourself is "are your technical skills up to it?".
If you have never taken your camera off the P setting then it's time to learn and fast. You will not be able to shoot a wedding in its entirety in all locations using the P setting. Why?
You need the flexibility that shooting with some degree of control will give you. Do you understand the relationship between aperture, shutter speed and ISO? In certain circumstances you will want to control the aperture. For example when taking the group photographs you would select a fairly narrow aperture to ensure a good depth of field. In certain circumstances you will need to ensure that your shutter speed is fast enough. For example for the bride walking down the aisle in the gloomy church. How are you going to ensure that the shutter speed doesn't drop so low that you get motion blur or camera shake?
Not sure how to achieve this or even why it's important then you should consider saying no to their request or taking a course! Otherwise some really important images will simply not be good enough.
So you're comfortable with using aperture or shutter priority or even shouting in manual. You understand how to use ISO to help control exposure. You recognise what settings are appropriate in different situations. That's excellent but that's not all you need to know...
My next question is what are you going to do if it's a really bright and sunny day? How are you going to ensure that there is a nice even balanced amount of light on people, especially their faces?
You really have to use some fill in light. If you're working on your own then it's got to be fill in flash. Do you have a decent Speedlight (aka flash gun)? Your pop up flash (part of the camera) simply won't allow you enough control. A Speedlight works fundamentally by communicating with your camera and by assessing the picture for you and sending out the appropriate amount of flash. If you don't use fill in flash you run the risk of dark faces or shadows across the faces.
Using a Speedlight isn't as straight forward as it seems. Yes you can set it on ETTL (electronic through the lens) and hope for the best but I wouldn't recommend it. You will need to control the amount of flash and so should know how and why! It's also important to think about defusing the flash somehow.
The easiest and cheapest way is to bounce the flash off a wall or ceiling. There are other ways for example by using a diffuser that fits on to the Speedlight. The principle is that the larger the light source the softer the light. That's why overcast light is better to shoot in than a bright sunny day. It's also why bouncing the flash works.
By doing this you increase the light source from your small flash head to the size of the wall or ceiling.
In part 2 I'll explore how you need to be in control and organise the day in order that you get the job done and I'll discuss the hard work that needs to be put in before, during and after the big day and that you will NOT be a guest at your friend's wedding you will be there to work ALL day!
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