Wedding pics. need critique

[x2z2001]

hey CRF,

I shot a Wedding this Weekend and i was happy with the outcome, but could use some critique on my work. Just trying to get better so good or bad critique welcome.

Shot with a Canon 6D using the 24-105mm and a Sigma 50mm 1.4 lens. was going to rent a 70-200mm but i thought that space would limit the lens. should i have rented it anyways? ive never used a 70-200mm lens.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/x2z2001du/8932298506/#
http://www.flickr.com/photos/x2z2001du/8931676527/#
http://www.flickr.com/photos/x2z2001du/8931665953/#
http://www.flickr.com/photos/x2z2001du/8932373318/#
http://www.flickr.com/photos/x2z2001du/8931706561/#

 

[Quasimodo]

Nice pictures!
I clicked the first link. The third picture (using the left arrow) I would have cropped away the bridesmaid, as her posture (in lack of better phrasing) steals energy from the couple. The process shot of the bride in the preparing, there I would see if I had another where she smiles. The rings are brilliant!

All over good, but I think there is something gloomy about the colors. Maybe increase exposure a tad, and shift the hue a bit?

 

[x2z2001]

Nice pictures!
I clicked the first link. The third picture (using the left arrow) I would have cropped away the bridesmaid, as her posture (in lack of better phrasing) steals energy from the couple. The process shot of the bride in the preparing, there I would see if I had another where she smiles. The rings are brilliant!

All over good, but I think there is something gloomy about the colors. Maybe increase exposure a tad, and shift the hue a bit?

Yea the girl in that picture is actually the brides Daughter so i dont know why she was in that mood at the time but i will crop her out possibly.

Adjusting the Hue...never actually messed with hue. do i need more greens? or magentas?

 

[bycostello]

pic 1...

nice pic.. but don't like hands, you crop through finger too

 

[bycostello]

pic 2...

not for me, but if you like and is your style....

 

[bycostello]

pic 3...

nice.. but i would of preferred to see the bride in the light and the groom if unavoidable int he shadow....

 

[bycostello]

pic 4...

nice detail shot, would of preferred a tighter crop...

 

[bycostello]

pic 5...

on the kiss shots try to capture just before he 'plants one on'.... a tighter crop would benefit the composition too....

all in my opinion etc etc....

 

[distant.star]

.
Nothing I like better than telling people what will make their pictures better!

Disclaimer: I'm no artist. And everything I tell you could be completely wrong. And with that...


No. 1 background -- she has distracting vertical line next to her head. If she were a foot to the camera's right, her head would have a fine cushion background. However he would then have to move right and would screw up the good background his head has now. There is a nice symmetry and distance in the lines between them and that should be maintained -- it would be lost if she moved and he didn't. Now, if camera went a little left, it might let them both have good background. Also, the passageway or doorway or whatever on the right edge has to be cropped out -- that's a real distraction.


No 2 looks contrived, and I really want to see them kiss -- not interested in the rings and they look like they're reaching out to punch me. There was probably some opportunity for contrasting their white hands with the rings against the deep red flowers.


No 3 that guy with the cell phone camera has to be cropped out -- I can't get past him to see the picture. The right side should be brought in too -- the guy at the table with his head in his hand looks bored. Lighting is warm for my taste, but that's just my personal taste. I might cool it down to see how it looks. And I'd amp up the light on her face -- she's too much in shadow against how lighted his face is. Overall, I'd dim the light on all that background stuff and lighten them up to bring them out from the background.


No 4 too centered, and what's on the right doesn't add much. I know you want to keep the glow of the candles and the third red flower bunch, but don't. Kill your darlings, as we say in the writing biz.


No 5 tighten up drastically. Cut the camera guy on the right and all of the guy on the left. If you can photoshop out the microphone, all the better. There's a lot of energy in that kiss -- it needs nothing else in the frame to make it work. You might also want to tone down the lights that seem to stick out of their heads.

I know it's never easy, but overall, I'd suggest you pay more attention to backgrounds when framing shots.

And thanks for asking!

 

[Omar H]

I clicked on the first one and started browsing in flickr from there. Maybe not what you were asking but there's a couple on the casual session where you cut the hands and feet in others. That's usually a no-no. I liked the bokeh and how sharp they are.

BUT, I'm no artist nor wedding photographer... 8)

Keep it up!

 

[justawriter]

1,2, and 5 I would crop so they are vertical. That would put the focus on the couple and cut out some of the distracting background. 4 I would cut out the cameraphone guy on the left but keep the first table on the right. YMMV.

 

[mjbehnke]

I'm by no means a wedding photographer or a professional!

I did shoot a wedding last week with a friend who ask that I help him. I think the photo of the groom with the bride in the background is reversed from what I think it should be? I kinda of feel that a wedding day is really more about the bride than anything else, but that's just me! Here's the one I took at the wedding I helped shoot.

I also agree with others about the ?bridesmaid?, she does not work in the photo with that look on her face, etc...

Thanks,
MJB

 

[x2z2001]

.
Nothing I like better than telling people what will make their pictures better!

Disclaimer: I'm no artist. And everything I tell you could be completely wrong. And with that...


No. 1 background -- she has distracting vertical line next to her head. If she were a foot to the camera's right, her head would have a fine cushion background. However he would then have to move right and would screw up the good background his head has now. There is a nice symmetry and distance in the lines between them and that should be maintained -- it would be lost if she moved and he didn't. Now, if camera went a little left, it might let them both have good background. Also, the passageway or doorway or whatever on the right edge has to be cropped out -- that's a real distraction.


No 2 looks contrived, and I really want to see them kiss -- not interested in the rings and they look like they're reaching out to punch me. There was probably some opportunity for contrasting their white hands with the rings against the deep red flowers.


No 3 that guy with the cell phone camera has to be cropped out -- I can't get past him to see the picture. The right side should be brought in too -- the guy at the table with his head in his hand looks bored. Lighting is warm for my taste, but that's just my personal taste. I might cool it down to see how it looks. And I'd amp up the light on her face -- she's too much in shadow against how lighted his face is. Overall, I'd dim the light on all that background stuff and lighten them up to bring them out from the background.


No 4 too centered, and what's on the right doesn't add much. I know you want to keep the glow of the candles and the third red flower bunch, but don't. Kill your darlings, as we say in the writing biz.


No 5 tighten up drastically. Cut the camera guy on the right and all of the guy on the left. If you can photoshop out the microphone, all the better. There's a lot of energy in that kiss -- it needs nothing else in the frame to make it work. You might also want to tone down the lights that seem to stick out of their heads.

I know it's never easy, but overall, I'd suggest you pay more attention to backgrounds when framing shots.

And thanks for asking!

Thanks Distant.Star
All those are great pointer. will be more careful with the background next time. its just (as you know) everything happens so quick and this is only my third or fourth wedding i shoot. So will definatly take all as positive motivation.

Thanks everyone else too i try not to crop fingers but sometimes i cant avoid it to get the composition i want. have to keep and eye out for that. Also, what are the benefits of shooting with the 70-200mm besides longer focal length

 

[x2z2001]

I'm by no means a wedding photographer or a professional!

I did shoot a wedding last week with a friend who ask that I help him. I think the photo of the groom with the bride in the background is reversed from what I think it should be? I kinda of feel that a wedding day is really more about the bride than anything else, but that's just me! Here's the one I took at the wedding I helped shoot.

I also agree with others about the ?bridesmaid?, she does not work in the photo with that look on her face, etc...

Thanks,
MJB

What did you shoot this with?

 

[Tabor Warren Photography]

Hey x2z2001,

In my ever so humble opinion:

Pic 1
The focus of a wedding though predominantly of the bride, as others have mentioned, also involves the groom. I would alternate the focus and have the bride in the foreground of another shot to incorporate the focus on both of them. I have found before in wedding shoots that I go home to edit and have WAY too few groom shots. That is an area in my work that I am still addressing, but kudos for getting a solid groom shot here.

Pic 2
Great idea! I don't know if you found that on pinterest, but if you wouldn't mind, I might use that in a coming wedding. Others have mentioned cropping closer, but I like the feel of this shot. To each their own, but kudos again.

Pic 3
She looks a little frightened. Also, I would go into crop mode on this one. I have found it best to try and eliminate distractions and bored people, both of which are in this shot. The fellow with the camera on the left side immediately draws our view away from the couple, I think it's probably part of our sub-conscious that says, "hey there's a camera!, look and smile!, or turn away!". Also, I'm not sure the folks on the right side of the photo know they're at a PAR-TAY. It is probably best to crop them out as well.

Pic 4
Awesome. I would crop it in a touch, just enough to eliminate some of the unnecessary border around the flowers. As long as they are centered or purposefully not, and every thing is level, great.

Pic 5
Smushy! That's how some folks kiss now-a-day though so more power to them. I might crop a bit, dragging the top right corner down some, and bump the contrast a few notches, but that's about it.

All in all, great work! As for the 70-200 2.8ii, get it, rent it, what ever you need to do. I did not have it for our first two weddings, rented it for our third, used the heck out of it, and bought it to use for every wedding since. It weighs 1.5 tons so make sure to bring a monopod, but it is worth every single penny.

Benefits I've found with the 70-200 ii is image quality, focal length, and consistency. I shoot with a 5Dii and every time I throw "the beast" on, I know I'm about to get a 'money shot'. The images are spectacular, the 2.8 tends to be more than fast enough, and it consistently focuses as it should and quickly at that.

Hope all this helps,
-Tabor

 

[bornshooter]

The others have all made good points,but after all i am sure the couple will be over the moon with them thats the most important thing and i am sure you gained a lot of experience from it

 

[GMCPhotographics]

Sorry but I don't critique photos on open public forums. Why teach the countless wannabies who browse through these pages? Especially for free. My skill and tallent was learned the hard way, by trial and error...but a lot of wannabies want to take quick short cuts and think that a learnt skill can be downloaded and is free. For every poster and replier, there are hundreds of readers.

 

[filo64]

Hi GMCPhotographics,

no worries - without lots of practice and an artistic vein, no one can consistently apply the overwhelming number of often conflicting advice on forums. What forum advice does for me is it helps me think and realize what I want and where I stand.

To the OP: I like the pics, especially the lighting in the first one and the bokeh in some of the others on your flickr.

 

[adebrophy]

Sorry but I don't critique photos on open public forums. Why teach the countless wannabies who browse through these pages? Especially for free. My skill and tallent was learned the hard way, by trial and error...but a lot of wannabies want to take quick short cuts and think that a learnt skill can be downloaded and is free. For every poster and replier, there are hundreds of readers.

Oh for goodness sake.... I usually don't critique people's comments on forums, why let people see my carefully honed skills of superciliousness and arrogance. For sure they would imitate and the internet really doesn't need any more screaming egos.

OP - well done on great photos - I'm a bit behind you on the learning curve but may have to help on a wedding soon and actually got some inspiration from your shots. After all, this is a community where people are supposed to share and help each other out, right? I agree with the issues of cropping and watching out for extraneous details that might interfere and make the shots a bit busy that others have mentioned though, but you've got a great eye for the moments and clearly have the technical skills. Now comes the practice.... the hard way, by trial and error.... [dramatic music swells, the audience gasp, there's not a dry eye in the house] ;D

 

[GMCPhotographics]

Sorry but I don't critique photos on open public forums. Why teach the countless wannabies who browse through these pages? Especially for free. My skill and tallent was learned the hard way, by trial and error...but a lot of wannabies want to take quick short cuts and think that a learnt skill can be downloaded and is free. For every poster and replier, there are hundreds of readers.

Oh for goodness sake.... I usually don't critique people's comments on forums, why let people see my carefully honed skills of superciliousness and arrogance. For sure they would imitate and the internet really doesn't need any more screaming egos.
;D

Screaming ego? Supercilious and Arrogant? No just a professional. I don't hand out my skill set on a plate to people I don't know. If you want to learn, go on a workshop and pay for your knowledge aquistion. You seem to throw an emotional responce to my company policy. There's at least three insults in your post. Maybe it's you who should take an ethics review?