First paid photo shoot - DATE: 23 March 2013

cayenne

CR Pro
Mar 28, 2012
2,868
796
danski0224 said:
wickidwombat said:
regarding shooting weddings with any gear, I disagree and so does judge joe brown :p
(i know i've posted this before but its just so funny) I like the nat geo cartoon too RL

Damn, he ripped them a new one.

:)

Yep...sounded like the Judge knew his way around a camera too....that didn't help the "professionals' a bit....
:)
 
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Okay, processing is done... ???

THESE ARE LOW QUALITY RESIZED COPIES
IT WAS A BRIGHT SUNNY DAY, LITTLE SHADE AND HOT AS HELL,
I DID MY BEST TO GET THEM DONE AND BACK IN THE A/C AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE. I HAVE A CRAPPY CRAPPY KIT LENS EF 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

.... AND THEY WANTED HDR LOOKING SHOTS, BLACK AND WHITE, ETC.

I'M POSTING SOME RANDOM GOOD (NOT GREAT) AND SOME BAD ONES SO YOU
CAN SEE MY RANGE,.... PLEASE BE KIND !


:( 8) :p :-[ :-X :-\ :'(

It was a good day, so here are the results / outcome:

1) I took too much gear, flashes, tripods, etc.
2) I took a desk fan and extension cord SO WORTH IT ! It was freaking HOT!
3) Laptop worked great, while I ate, moved pics from SD card to laptop. :)
4) My son helped out, that was good, two people is way better than one.
5) I took 1,547 pictures, about 350 came out okay, 10-15 were good, none were excellent. :(
6) I made a CD of the pictures, a photo story DVD and two printed albums for them.
7) Getting $500.00 and investing in this: http://www.amazon.com/Canon-70-300mm-USM-Telephoto-Cameras/dp/B0040X4PQI/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=BXUXWWTANG66&coliid=I2JEP8WCBHXD6



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PLEASE BE KIND ! MY FIRST (PROBABLY LAST *cry* ) WEDDING SHOOT !

Before you reply, watch this.... ;D w w w . y o u t u b e . c o m / w a t c h ? v = 3 i 6 T 8 Y t B X m A


PEACE! 8)
 
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Oyy, I would not be happy with these photos at all. I'm going to be critical because you get nowhere if I told you were these were fantastic.
1. Both couples look unhappy in all the photos. The bride only smiled once. The groom never once smile it seems.
2. You really need to study some more basic poses and stances. They're just standing. (Eg. Holding each other, looking into either other eyes, kissing, smiling)
3. bride's arm. Yeah, they look big. Yes, there's stuff you can do to thin it out or hide it.
4. You need to back them away from the background.
5. You needed to use flash in a couple of them to pop the shade. Dark shadows on faces just make people look old and unflattering. Or you can rotate them till you have favorable lighting in that shade.
6. The guys hands/arms. Dont have it just dangling it. It's a prop too. Either put in his pocket. Put it around her waist. Cover and hide her big arms. Hold her wedding ring hand. Theres things you do with. Same goes with the bride.

Well, I'm sure there's more things I can rip into, but I'm being nice. If you serious about doing more wedding photography and couple poses, you gotta study more poses, master your lighting, understand your white balance, and practice more with some live couples.
 
Upvote 0
blaydese said:
Okay, processing is done... ???

THESE ARE LOW QUALITY RESIZED COPIES
IT WAS A BRIGHT SUNNY DAY, LITTLE SHADE AND HOT AS HELL,
I DID MY BEST TO GET THEM DONE AND BACK IN THE A/C AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE. I HAVE A CRAPPY CRAPPY KIT LENS EF 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS

.... AND THEY WANTED HDR LOOKING SHOTS, BLACK AND WHITE, ETC.

I'M POSTING SOME RANDOM GOOD (NOT GREAT) AND SOME BAD ONES SO YOU
CAN SEE MY RANGE,.... PLEASE BE KIND !


:( 8) :p :-[ :-X :-\ :'(

It was a good day, so here are the results / outcome:

1) I took too much gear, flashes, tripods, etc.
2) I took a desk fan and extension cord SO WORTH IT ! It was freaking HOT!
3) Laptop worked great, while I ate, moved pics from SD card to laptop. :)
4) My son helped out, that was good, two people is way better than one.
5) I took 1,547 pictures, about 350 came out okay, 10-15 were good, none were excellent. :(
6) I made a CD of the pictures, a photo story DVD and two printed albums for them.
7) Getting $500.00 and investing in this: http://www.amazon.com/Canon-70-300mm-USM-Telephoto-Cameras/dp/B0040X4PQI/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=BXUXWWTANG66&coliid=I2JEP8WCBHXD6



0214_zps12c90dbe.jpg





0108_zpsafb92fe8.jpg





0076_zpsd007ec7d.jpg





0118_zpsd885bf80.jpg





0115_zps61ccc318.jpg





0093_zpsa00c5f99.jpg






0083_zps57103d5b.jpg





PLEASE BE KIND ! MY FIRST (PROBABLY LAST *cry* ) WEDDING SHOOT !

Before you reply, watch this.... ;D w w w . y o u t u b e . c o m / w a t c h ? v = 3 i 6 T 8 Y t B X m A


PEACE! 8)

More smiling would have been nice...but not bad for your first time.
 
Upvote 0
cayenne said:
danski0224 said:
wickidwombat said:
regarding shooting weddings with any gear, I disagree and so does judge joe brown :p
(i know i've posted this before but its just so funny) I like the nat geo cartoon too RL

Damn, he ripped them a new one.

:)

Yep...sounded like the Judge knew his way around a camera too....that didn't help the "professionals' a bit....
:)

We do have to remember that it's a TV show, so they are "playing things up" alot.

That said, I think the Judge made the right choice, but not necessarily for the right reasons. Yes, their gear was very low entry level (I don't know what year this was, but he does mention a 7D, which tells me the XTi they were using was QUITE old even back when this show was aired), but to base the decision just on that is not fair. A good photographer can take an XTi and an 18-55 kit lens and still get great shots.

I think the main problem is what they produced DID suck, and they didn't seem to know ANYTHING about their gear. He asked them the speed of the lens, they didn't know?? He asked a few times what aperture they were shooting, they didn't know.

Even the newest newb type photographer who's into this stuff would know that. These "photographers" portrayed themselves as glorified point and shoot people, that's what did them in.

Oh, and they were also really annoying, they probably didn't help. Calling anyone old is usually not a good idea, they judge hearing your case? BAD idea.
 
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first off congrats for putting yourself out there and actually doing this. For sure groom is one grumpy guy, gotta do more to get him to smile. I don't get the branches cutting the frame on one of them, flowers in the others, and the pictures of the hands and rings are a little creepy mostly because you really didn't have the equipment to reproduce that shot (generally shot wide open, rings with creamy background). That all being said considering the limitations of the gear and you not having done this before I think you did just fine. Sure they could have been better with some more posing, paying a little more attention to the groom smiling and picking a few better locations, but it is what it is at this point. I can assure you you probably did a better job than they expected, and certainly better than someone they would have hired for the paltry sum they were willing to pay.
 
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cayenne

CR Pro
Mar 28, 2012
2,868
796
I"d also like to echo the thoughts of some of the others by saying congratulations on getting in there and doing that first one!!!

That is the toughest part I think. I'm hoping in the near future, I can do my 'first' too....my problem is, I've dodged marriage all these years, I'd not even know what goes on at weddings for what you need to take.

I"m going to try to get on as a 2nd or 3rd camera.....and learn that way.

As to the photos....yeah, they need to be smiling more, supposed to be a happy day.
:)

Those kind of looks come the week after when they realize what they've actually done...hahaha.
I joke, I kid...

What are you using for post production? Did you shoot all RAW?

Glad you got your feet wet......keep at it!!

cayenne
 
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What a treat!

I've seen so many people come here and ask about shooting a wedding. Pages and pages of advice are given, most of it good and worth reading -- all of it worth considering. Then, nothing. We never hear back. Don't know if the shoot was done, how it went, did anyone get killed!! So, thanks for being considerate of the folks who tried to be helpful.

Given your skill level I think you did as well as could be expected. The new family now has sufficient visual triggers to carry them back to their beginnings -- and flood the hearts with nostalgia. Can't ask for much more.

My self-critique is that I did not tell you the people in front of the camera in posed shots will reflect the person behind the camera. The best event shooters I've seen were always gregarious people persons -- or more likely had the ability to transform themselves into that at the event. They will smile if they know you're smiling!

If you're not burned out at this point, you may want to watch this video about shooting events:

How to Photograph Events and Make Money Doing It
 
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Sporgon

5% of gear used 95% of the time
CR Pro
Nov 11, 2012
4,719
1,537
Yorkshire, England
This thread has reminded me why I have never ever photographed a wedding despite having been in photography for over 30 years.

The OP's pictures are also a good example of how a successful photo has little to do with the equipment it's shot on, it's the person using it who must create the picture.

By far the best advice given in this thread is go and assist an experienced wedding 'tog' at a couple of weddings.

But the OP's brave for sharing his first attempt, and with the good advice given we can all look forward to the second one :D
 
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Thank you everyone, and thanks for the tips.

I know I have a KIT LENS :eek: ::) and I did do my best. ;D


..and by the way, he did smile, not much, HE'S SHY and IT WAS REALLY HOT AND MISERABLE OUT... so ....

He did smile...I just did not post them... there are a lot more, but here is enough PROOF ;)


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PEACE! 8)
 
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rpt

Mar 7, 2012
2,787
21
India
blaydese said:
Thank you everyone, and thanks for the tips.

I know I have a KIT LENS :eek: ::) and I did do my best. ;D


..and by the way, he did smile, not much, HE'S SHY and IT WAS REALLY HOT AND MISERABLE OUT... so ....

He did smile...I just did not post them... there are a lot more, but here is enough PROOF ;)




PEACE! 8)

I love the B&W and the sepia. They look just great! Congratulations! Well done.
 
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I have to agree with most others points
but good on you for having a go

one thing thats bugging me still is how soft these images are looking
softer than the 60D and lens combo should be giving which leads me to think it could be
something in you post processing workflow

if I PM you an email address would you email me a raw file of one of your best shots so i can have a look
and try help out a bit more?
 
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They are better than my first attempt of doing something like this anyway, ;D so congratulations on your work.
In hindsight for the following images
1) removing the flowers in the top right as they draw attention would give it more balance.
2) having sunlight reflected (something like a foldable reflector) onto them to brighten the couple up compared to the background.
4) the green is a bit overpowering. maybe desaturate the colors a little more to give it a more subdued look?
6) same as others remarked, the branch is too attention-grabbing
7) someone snuck up on you and is visible in the frame, so maybe some recropping.

Having said all that, I'd have been perfectly happy with a picture like number one and three and the sepia ones. so I'd say very nice work.
 
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