Another WEDDING!!!!!!!

[adam75south]

ok so as much as i tried to pick only 8 or 10 to post, i can't help it. so i'm gonna go ahead and apologize now.

i had a great time, very cool couple..he's actually a photographer as well. he didn't bother me in the least or give any recommendations whatsoever...just said do your thing and left me alone. even gave me heads up on things coming up.

shot with my two 30d's, the 30mm f/1.4, the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS, and the 70-200mm f/2.8 IS. used a 580ex w/ the cb jr bracket and lightsphere during the reception. everything else is natural light.

ok here goes.

1. first introduction as mr. and mrs. young
17mm ISO1600 f/2.8 1/40s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341291346_XD52v-XL.jpg

2.
17mm ISO1600 f/2.8 1/40s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341292413_3XszL-XL.jpg

3. my only keeper w/ off camera flash.
30mm ISO400 f/2.0 1/80s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341309017_FFLgS-L.jpg

4. first dance as husband and wife gets funky...they choreographed a dance haha.
30mm ISO3200 f/1.4 1/125s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341306974_dEY3i-L.jpg

5. a little bit softer now
43mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341302364_dL5Yv-L.jpg

6. hands
20mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341302249_ZCz2T-L.jpg

7. tunnel vision
50mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341301473_KKSk5-L.jpg

8. tunnel vision 2 w/ b&g
50mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341301076_iKPe9-XL.jpg

ok WAY more to come.

[adam75south]

9. now why would they even want it?
20mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341299686_VYWKh-L.jpg

10. crazy spooky kids, i swear they were planning to kill me
17mm f/5.6 1/10s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341296531_5JbLH-L.jpg

11. boo
17mm f/5.6 1/10s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341296679_UCXEF-L.jpg

12. they don't always look that evil
110mm ISO1600 f/2.8 1/50s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341310580_5wUk4-XL.jpg

13. polka dots in motion
31mm ISO3200 f/3.2 1/10s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341295508_gPjZn-L.jpg

14. polka dot camoflage
55mm ISO800 f/5 1/50s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341304224_SoeQe-L.jpg

15. polka dots keepin herself busy
55mm ISO1600 f/2.8 1/50s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341290341_APQ2c-L.jpg

16. i can't believe she said yes
17mm ISO800 f/2.8 1/160s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341290597_gF5WZ-L.jpg

more many more

[adam75south]

17. hug after the first dance
30mm ISO3200 f/1.4 1/125s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341307448_LvHwY-L.jpg

18. dancin away
17mm ISO3200 f/5.6 1/10s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341299040_Hw6zk-L.jpg

19. more danicing
20mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341300817_kD2XM-L.jpg

20. i'm not sure what that is
21mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341300119_9E28e-L.jpg

21. cool
28mm ISO3200 f/5.6 1/10s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341299123_g4kHr-L.jpg

22. more more dancin w/ bride
17mm ISO3200 f/5.6 1/10s w/ flash
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341297569_nEbCz-L.jpg

23. dancin with her former old man while the new old man watches
44mm ISO3200 f/2.8 1/30s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341293615_hAKhh-L.jpg

24. JUMP!
17mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341299596_Z3soa-L.jpg

ok one more and i'll be done.....

[adam75south]

ok last post.....a few of them leaving and some detail shots and that's it.

25. speech is funny
17mm ISO3200 f/2.8 1/30s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341294957_ZLMcW-L.jpg

26. leavin part 1
17mm ISO 3200 f/5 1/15s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341302593_nAF9F-L.jpg

27. leavin part 2 little bubbles
17mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341302780_oJWLq-L.jpg

28.leavin part 3 big bubbles
17mm ISO3200 f/5 1/15s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341302918_cihrL-L.jpg

ok here are a few detail shots...

29. you know i gotta do the cake topper
125mm ISO3200 f/2.8 1/40s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341305657_n7NGL-L.jpg

30. you know i gotta do some presents
30mm ISO800 f/1.6 1/40s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341310282_L6XWV-L.jpg

31. more presents
30mm ISO800 f/1.4 1/30s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341310382_N7hip-L.jpg

32. last but definitely not least....the BEST part of shooting weddings!!!!!
55mm ISO1600 f/2.8 1/40s
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341292259_YrpMX-L.jpg

ok that's it....i'm sorry for all the pics....i got excited.

here's a link to all of my quick picks if you actually wanna see more.
http://www.adammedders.com/gallery/5567766_Gckuo

[adam75south]

btw, i took 1750 pics from prewedding to the end of reception. good thing i picked up that 8GB extreme III card for $99 the day before to make it 1 8GB and 2 4GB cards!!!! ended up using about 14GB in all.

[DLugassy]

Beautiful photos :)

[FLiPMaRC]

:cool: Awesome pics Adam! #25 is my fav :)

[Nickcanada]

Great stuff man. I like the PP!

I like #23

[Gopher]

Great job! Love your B&W conversions.

[cdifoto]

Damn that's a lot of pics (both posted and captured)! :eek:

Looks like a good solid set there Adam. You can definitely tell everyone had a great time. Great work! :)

[adam75south]

overall this was the best wedding i've shot yet...out of the 5 or 6 haha. but i loved the location for the reception, the church wasn't TOO bad either...and EVERYONE danced. and they never stopped dancing.

i did get a little annoyed when the wedding coordinator asked me to "back off some and let other people get their pictures too". i looked at her and said "wait...what?" with what i can only imagine as the most confused look possible on my face. i wanted to say, "don't you realize that my pictures ARE their pictures?" and who am i to compromise the job i've been PAID to do? it was after i got in close for the cake cut shot.

you guys ever get anything like that too?

[cdifoto]

A videographer in Philly told me I should back off some because I was getting in his shots (actually I wasn't letting him get any clean shots at all...and I had no idea really...I'm generally oblivious to anything not in my viewfinder), but no wedding coordinator ever told me to back off for the guests. Guests photos are gonna suck anyway and they usually acknowledge that.

Start printing up business cards with the B&G's proof gallery link...and give one out to every guest. I walk around to the tables and talk to folks as they're waiting for their meal, handing them a card and explaining the deal at that time. People love the one-on-one. That'll smooth things over with the guests even if you do get in their way. Something like this:

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/cdifoto/bizcardsimplefrontmessingertproofs.gif

[Nickcanada]

overall this was the best wedding i've shot yet...out of the 5 or 6 haha. but i loved the location for the reception, the church wasn't TOO bad either...and EVERYONE danced. and they never stopped dancing.

i did get a little annoyed when the wedding coordinator asked me to "back off some and let other people get their pictures too". i looked at her and said "wait...what?" with what i can only imagine as the most confused look possible on my face. i wanted to say, "don't you realize that my pictures ARE their pictures?" and who am i to compromise the job i've been PAID to do? it was after i got in close for the cake cut shot.

you guys ever get anything like that too?

Other people!?!? That's crazy! you should have clubbed her with your 70-200mm 2.8 IS. :D:eek:

[michaelb]

Other people!?!? That's crazy! you should have clubbed her with your 70-200mm 2.8 IS. :D:eek:
Ditto on that. What the Hell?

Great stuff Adam - I especially like #4, 9, 15, 18, 23, 25 & 29.

[adam75south]

how bout that ISO 3200???? where's rhys when you need him around?

yea they're noisy...but nowhere near as bad as some people lead you to believe. btw, i was very impressed with lightroom's noise reduction and masking ability, this was my first time to really put it to use.

when it's the difference between 1/10s and 1/60s...you do what you gotta do. it's either noise, tons of motion blur, or overly flashed/harsh shadowed/amateur looking pics. i say bring the noise.

[Nickcanada]

how bout that ISO 3200???? where's rhys when you need him around?

yea they're noisy...but nowhere near as bad as some people lead you to believe. btw, i was very impressed with lightroom's noise reduction and masking ability, this was my first time to really put it to use.

when it's the difference between 1/10s and 1/60s...you do what you gotta do. it's either noise, tons of motion blur, or overly flashed/harsh shadowed/amateur looking pics. i say bring the noise.


Damn right! LR noise reduction is awesome! To be honest though I think camera manufacturers should try and simulate film grain and make the noise look less digital.

[cdifoto]

ISO3200 is cake. OK not so much on my 10D. Looks more like...fish.

[Gopher]

you guys ever get anything like that too?

Given the number of photos you took I'm guessing you were possibly over zealous and I don't believe you need to capture every last good moment, but you do need a few key ones during the cake. If you hadn't gotten those; I'd brush her off as nicely as possible then make some space after you've got them.

In the few weddings I've shot; I've not been shy at all looking very awkward to get those shots, although far enough back to not ruin it for them.

Some photos of David Jay working a wedding show him craned over rooftops, etc. With his celeb name I doubt a WC would tell him to back off.

[adam75south]

i understand what you're saying gopher...but this is only like my 5th wedding or so...and i'm trying to get more regular gigs. so until i'm making enough to support myself and quit my job, i'm gonna try and get every last good moment.

btw, it was 8 hours from pre-wedding to end of reception...so 1750 pics is really only 4 pics per minute...and let's not forget the formals.

speaking of, i usually wouldn't post formals, but got some decent ones.
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341304043_VSvKn-L.jpg

gotta straighten that one up
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341304710_zZff2-L.jpg

[Gopher]

I've only shot 10 or 12, sorry to come off as preachy. I'm guilty of exactly the same so was just envisioning how it went. The key moments, you're pumped. Dude; your photos are amazing so don't mess with success.

I figure the WP has a license to be where normal guests can't go, but only to a point and not throughtout.

That said; some wedding coordinators are idiots and I have a feeling this one was just messing with you.

The photos you're producing - you've got the stuff and you're on your way. One WP book I was reading said you should shoot your own style and weddings that fit will find you. If you are indeed over intrusive (I really doubt so) then somebody who's more interested in an invisible photorapher than the perfect shots to savor will pass on you. I think the perfect photos will sell more weddings than if you were afraid to stand up and get your shot.

That said; don't get banned from too many churches, lol!

PS: great formal shot! Wow! Surely you'll PP out those vents and floor trash, but even as-is who cares - they'll all love-em.

[adam75south]

haha yea the groom will be doing his own pp. he booked me a year ago and the deal was i did no pp and he got me for $500 w/ raw files. if i ever get married he gives me the same deal no matter how good he's gotten by then.

could work out, could never work out haha.

but i will say i'm definitely intrusive. especially during the ceremony. i just keep walking around and sometimes will get RIGHT over the preacher's shoulder...they(two preachers) were taller than me though so i just peaked around them when needed. i'll walk in the middle of the isle and take a shot, i'll walk to the back of the isle. i just keep moving. and i'm sure it gets distracting, but as long as i do my job i don't really care.

but after she did ask me to back off, i did. i just zoomed a little more and used less wide angles. i just love the view of a wide angle...and less flash required.

[GaryS]

Related reading:
Is Professional Wedding Photography Dead? (http://digitalprotalk.blogspot.com/2008/07/bbusiness-day-thursday-is-professional.html)

[adam75south]

wow some people really need to relax. i woulda never pushed the priest out of the way if i didn't think he was strong enough to take it.

i could see where i might get distracting by walking around during the ceremony, but never disrespectful to anyone. and other than the ceremony you wouldn't even know i was there.

and when the wedding coordinator said that, once i got past the initial shock and confusion and realized what she'd actually said to me, i was like, ok and i was nice about it. wanted to be rude, but was nice anyway.

[GaryS]

Just FYI adam, I didn't mean to imply anything about you. I just had read it this morning, and I thought it was interesting to hear someone else's thoughts. He seemed a bit old fashioned to me... Its good to be polite and all, but people like the 'paparazzi' style now, so as a photographer you need to find the right level. After all, they want you to get the shot, not make friends with everyone....

[Gopher]

Related reading:
Is Professional Wedding Photography Dead? (http://digitalprotalk.blogspot.com/2008/07/bbusiness-day-thursday-is-professional.html)
Thanks - interesting read.

Something I've noticed is that extreme measures don't seem to make a big difference. If you're an average photographer then climbing over Gramma's lap to get a shot won't make them better. If you're exceptional, then just about any approximate position seems to produce a winner.

Ansel Adams talked about knowing where to stand but I'd really want to know I need to be there if it's going to intrude on someone's wedding day.

Adam's obviously got the touch so if he feels the need to get a shot from the marine crawl position, then head upstairs for UWA of everything, then down the isle, then along the side, etc then more power to him for doing it.

[cdifoto]

I try to be subtle for the ceremony and first dances while still moving around to get multiple angles, but all bets are off the rest of the day. People love it if you're energetic, friendly, and smiling a lot. [CLICK (http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a304/cdifoto/wedding/2008-07-19-1277.jpg)]

[adam75south]

..so if he feels the need to get a shot from the marine crawl position, then head upstairs for UWA of everything, then down the isle, then along the side, etc then more power to him for doing it.
haha you're not kidding. that's what i do.

but i thought really seriously about laying down on the floor at 17mm to get the flower pedals in the bottom left of the frame and the b&g completely out of focus on this one...but something just didn't feel right about it. i think it woulda been a little over the top.
http://www.adammedders.com/photos/341289710_HUp4s-M.jpg

plus you could only see the bride....i also thought about grabbing some pedals up and dropping them like that in the middle of the isle for that same shot....but like i said, didn't wanna distract that much. when i move around i try not to make eye contact with anyone in the crowd and i try to be as quiet and invisible as possible...while walking out in front of everyone.

[cdifoto]

I did that once adam. It was a pretty traditional wedding overall so I was struggling a bit to be creative. It felt kinda cliché anyway. My shot was down the aisle rather than from the side. You can see it here (http://www.cdifoto.com/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=5994) if you want.

[adam75south]

that's very very close to what i had in mind....just with more pedals. that's cool man.

[cwphoto]

Great set of images Adam, love the one of them walking into the reception where you've nailed her emotion. :)

[adam75south]

well good news people....got some good feedback from ademar, the groom.

ademar(9:27:00 AM): hey man awesome job on the pictures
adam75south (9:43:12 AM): hey whenever you get this. did you get any feedback on me at all? i know you said your family was wanting me to stay back a little bit. but other than that??? i try to get the shots, but i also try not to distract from anything going on. it's a tough balance i guess.
ademar (9:43:42 AM): NO man you did an awesome job everyone loves the pictures
ademar (9:44:04 AM): i was very very very impressed by what you did and your style you shot

all through AIM and his screenname is hidden for his protection from you maniacs.

[jamison55]

Definitely some nice captures there! Lots of great emotion. I especially like the father daughter dance.

I have to ask about the reception dancing shots. You appeared to be using a very slow shutter speed and picked up quite a bit of motion blur in a lot of them. Was this an artistic decision? Not judging all all here - if you chose to shoot that way, than that can totally be your thing. It's really a stylistic thing, and I have a lot of friends that are great photographers that like to introduce blur into their photos. Usually when that happens to me, however, it's because I made a mistake. It's just not my thing.



but i will say i'm definitely intrusive. especially during the ceremony. i just keep walking around and sometimes will get RIGHT over the preacher's shoulder...they(two preachers) were taller than me though so i just peaked around them when needed. i'll walk in the middle of the isle and take a shot, i'll walk to the back of the isle. i just keep moving. and i'm sure it gets distracting, but as long as i do my job i don't really care.

I have to address this one, though, because it is behavior like this that causes photography to be severely restricted (and sometimes banned) in some churches. I move around a bit too, but NEVER onto the altar, NEVER over the priests' shoulders. Never in a way that causes the attention to shift from the ceremony onto me. To me that, and your "I don't care" attitude about it is just disrespectful. If your disrespect didn't effect me, than I would say, go for it. But I have to go to a church the week after a disrespectful photographer has hung upside down from the baptismal, and I have to deal with a minister who now thinks that all photographers are disrespectful. I then have to abide by the new church rules that say the photographer can only stand in one spot back in the corner and not move from it.

We all want to get cool angles, but in the church, please, please, please show some respect and stay off of the altar unless invited by the minister! My personal rule of thumb is to stay 3-4 rows back when in the aisle, and against the walls when shooting from the side of the church.

[adam75south]

you know...at first i take this as a personal attack...being called disrespectful. but then i think how you don't know me....and how if you did you wouldn't say that. at the same time it's easy to read things the wrong way on an internet forum. i never blatantly disrespected anyone...and if i knew it wasn't allowed, i would never have done it. when i say i don't care, i mean i don't care if i'm a little distracting....i DO, however, care if what i'm doing is considered disrespectful.

this was my first wedding in an actual church. i was never told by anyone the rules of shooting inside a church. i've never been a 2nd shooter or assisted anyone. i've never read on this forum where you aren't allowed on stage, i've never had anyone explain anything to me about what is right/wrong as far as wedding photography etiquette. i asked the groom can i move around where i want? he said yes. I said, can i use flash? he said no. as far as rules go...that's ALL that was explained to me. i'm NOT an established guy and i was unaware of these "rules". this is probably number 6 or 7 as far as weddings are concerned for me. i shot a chapel, but apparently this is different. yesterday as i dropped off the photos the groom asked me if i knew i wasn't supposed to be on stage...as a personal friend of mine i said exactly what i wanted to say to him, i was like NO...you mighta told me that when we talked about the things i could/couldn't do. and that whole "can i move around wherever i want?" question woulda been a great time to address that. he said he didn't care and was glad i got all those shots...but said the priest mentioned it to him.

regardless, it's a lesson learned the hard way...seems to be the only way i learn them these days...and from now on i'll be having a quick talk with whoever is marrying the couple before the ceremony.

thanks for your personal rules though. like i said, i have no one to teach me anything. everything i learn is either from these forums or from personal experience.

and yes, the motion blur was on purpose, it's a personal thing i guess...you can see in two of them where i played with zoom blur as well. did quite a bit of experimenting.

[Gopher]

It's nice that you're sharing on forums. It can be a learning experience.

Jamison's a wonderful source and as non-condescending as they come. Criticism can be tough to take sometimes.

Try visiting the DWF (DigitalWeddingForum.com); they have an amateur section that's a free signup. They've got a ton of top seasoned pros as members in their "strictly Pros-Only" section; but some, like Jamison, make regular visits to help mentor the aspiring free-membership folk.

There's also a few fantastic books on the subject of introducing one to Wedding Photography. One is "Digital Wedding Photography: Capturing Beautiful Memories". Very easy read and chalk full of technical and business advice.

[cdifoto]

Adam, I gotta go with Jamie on the ceremony part. You really can't be that aggressive (or even at all) during the ceremony. People don't really expect mind blowing images from the ceremony itself anyway, so there's no real need to be up on the altar/stage, pushing the priests out of the way (that's seriously a wtf!?!?) and getting between people and all that. You can go nuts for the rest of the day but you really should try to be a church mouse during the ceremony. That's not to say you should stay in one place....by all means move around a bit, but try to stay behind everyone and/or way off to the side.

[adam75south]

Adam, I gotta go with Jamie on the ceremony part. You really can't be that aggressive (or even at all) during the ceremony. People don't really expect mind blowing images from the ceremony itself anyway, so there's no real need to be up on the altar/stage, pushing the priests out of the way (that's seriously a wtf!?!?) and getting between people and all that. You can go nuts for the rest of the day but you really should try to be a church mouse during the ceremony. That's not to say you should stay in one place....by all means move around a bit, but try to stay behind everyone and/or way off to the side.

hey i'm not arguing. it never felt right getting on stage anyway. this is just what i thought all photographers did and something i had to do if i wanted to be one. if i'd known it was wrong or considered disrespectful i would never have done it. i don't appreciate being called disrespectful though. to me, disrespect...and just not knowing what is customary...is two different things. you can blame what i've done here on a lack of education. maybe i wasn't ready to shoot weddings on my own. maybe i shoulda read some wedding books. call me ignorant, sure i'll take that, but not disrespectful.

[michaelb]

...call me ignorant, sure i'll take that, but not disrespectful.
I might travel to another country and unknowingly do something disrepectful and its still disprespectful. Whether you do it with knowledge or without is immaterial; disrepectful is disrespectful.

I would agree with the others and I'm not a wedding photog. At the reception, be as aggressive as you like, but in the church its just not cool.

But hey, that's how you learn, right?

[Gopher]

One valuable trait of a Wedding Photographer is a thick skin.

In my few experiences, I've had brides and mother-of-bride start handing out "advice" and "constructive criticism", a minister "strongly suggest" what a good background would be, a father lambaste me for not taking enough formal shots after the bride restricted me to 10 minutes, the list goes on .... You're getting awfully bent and defensive over an earnest and IMO gentle attempt to help you out. It's not always so easy to take things in stride, but it sure keeps things running smooth if you can.

Seems taking etiquette advice from the groom can be a hazard too; :eek:

No worries - you covered it well and another lesson learned.

[jamison55]

I didn't mean to start an "everyone jump on Adam" conversation :D. But you are right, man, we only know each other by what we write here, and all I saw was the "as long as I am doing my job I don't care" comment.

But I can totally relate to the going it on your own, and learning from experience, so I'll share a hard lesson of my own. I too just started shooting without anyone showing me the ropes. So about the 4th wedding I photographed was in a really dark church. I had a good friend along as a 2nd shooter, and he had even less experience than me. Since the church was so dark, we were popping away with our flashes from the front row...pow, pow, pow...oblivious to what's going on. The priest (who was on the receiving end of all of the flashes), stops the ceremony, turns to us, and asks us to stop taking photos! Right from the altar, publicly, so that the bride and groom and everyone in the church was a witness to it, and watched us as we made our way to the back. Embarrassing as heck, but it sure made me careful about being as unobtrusive as possible in church!

So I learned the lesson the hard way (and I'm glad you didn't have to!)

[cdifoto]

Hey Jamie I can relate. Mickey Mouse called me out over the P.A. for that very reason on a ride at Disney Land.

[michaelb]

...The priest (who was on the receiving end of all of the flashes), stops the ceremony, turns to us, and asks us to stop taking photos! Right from the altar, publicly, so that the bride and groom and everyone in the church was a witness to it, and watched us as we made our way to the back. Embarrassing as heck, but it sure made me careful about being as unobtrusive as possible in church!....
Wow, that's harsh Jamie. I think I'll stick to landscapes. :D

[adam75south]

it's funny you say that because since i learned you're not allowed on the altar...all i've been thinking about is what if they did stop the ceremony and called me out in front of everyone. woulda definitely been embarrassing.

look i'm glad i know now. coulda been a really embarrassing moment in my future if not.

and i'm definitely thick skinned, it's just not easy to read it in text if you know what i mean gopher. i just don't want people assuming i INTENTIONALLY disrespected the ceremony.

so jamisson, do you set up on the altar for shots of them coming down the isle then move back? or do you stay back even at the beginning? also if they do the unity candle do you just use the big zooms and hit em from behind?

this is all so new to me. the last wedding i was in the wedding photog would actually make the b&g stop and look as they were doing things during the ceremony..like the candle, holding their kiss, stuff like that. and he was set up not even 10ft from them(with tripod). yea i thought it was strange, but just thought it was accepted. so you can imagine my confusion.

[jamison55]

so jamisson, do you set up on the altar for shots of them coming down the isle then move back? or do you stay back even at the beginning? also if they do the unity candle do you just use the big zooms and hit em from behind?

I usually get to the church about 20 mins before the ceremony. By this time some of the guests are already seated. So I look for a row about 2/3 up the aisle with an empty seat at the end. Usually I look for one where there's a guest sitting directly behind it. I then ask the guest to save the seat for me. When the processional starts, I step into the aisle to shoot the bridesmaids as they approach, and step back into the seat to let them pass. Same for the bride, except as soon as she passes, I step back into the aisle to shoot her from behind.

Unity candles, typically the officiant has them face the audience as they light them. If not, I shoot them from behind.

Don't get me wrong, I move about quite a bit during the ceremony. But usually no closer than a few rows back in the aisle, and never up on the stage, unless there is a side door that lets me do so without being seen. And I wear rubber soled shoes, so as not to make too much noise.



this is all so new to me. the last wedding i was in the wedding photog would actually make the b&g stop and look as they were doing things during the ceremony..like the candle, holding their kiss, stuff like that. and he was set up not even 10ft from them(with tripod). yea i thought it was strange, but just thought it was accepted. so you can imagine my confusion.

Now that you mention it, I have been to a wedding or two like that myself, and the videographer is usually pretty close with a tripod. Hmmmm.

[Mark_48]

I had one wedding where no shooting was allowed during the actual ceremony and had to stage the important shots afterwards. It worked, but I had to be careful not to include the empty pews. Other than the processional aisle shots, I try to stay to the left or right walls of the church with a little longer of a lens and if I do move to the front a bit, I'll crouch down so as not to block the view of any guests.

If I think of it beforehand, I try to get the bride to find out from the presiding minister what's acceptable during the ceremony. A call to the church may get you the information as well.

[D Thompson]

Adam - you're not the only one that's done this, but now you know. Like others have said - try to blend into the background. Ask the priest/pastor before hand about the use of flash and then you'll know the protocol. Still, try to limit the use of flash during the actual ceremony - think about the guests and if you were sitting there would you want to be blasted by a flash every few seconds? Me either. Up the ISO and shot existing light for a few.

This reminds me of a couple of years ago. Another photog (A) and I agreed to help a friend (B) out doing his first wedding. For the service I went up to the balcony to shoot from there. (A) shot the bridesmaids and bride coming down the aisle, sort of like Jamie does, on one side and (B) was on the other side with the groomsmen & groom. After the bride's shot (A) came up to the balcony with me. (B) did not and walked around the entire ceremony. At one point I think he laid on the floor between the first row & the altar. I just wish I'd gotten that one :eek::eek:. We were both amazed that the pastor didn't stop the ceremony and say something. We never dreamed he would do that much movement. Anyway, here is one.

Chalk it up to experience and be thankful the pastor didn't call you out! :o