My aunts Wedding HELP!

[AlexL]

i see this is a recurring theme on tpf. At least one wedding emergency a week . At least this is your aunt, but that makes the annual gathering so much more difficult...... I don't know why she believes professional wedding photographer wouldn't be better at taking wedding pictures over someone that has never done it before...... But good luck!

If the lighting is bad, you need an external flash (if they allow it) or some really good, fast lens. Lots of batteries and memory card. Tripod?

 

[AlexL]

Benlonghair: Me and my sister both have a sony-cybershot 10.1 megapixel camera.
We also have one tripod, i think i broke it though... My sister has a wide angle lens which will be needed. I have a telesopic lens but I don't think I will need to use it.

tirediron: I could make my camera develop a problem but then what about my sisters camera, it would be to obvious if both cameras broke. Im to shy to ask for equiptment but she is getting us another memory card for her wedding photos lol. If I wasn't shy my mom wouldn't allow me to anyways.

Cybershot ..... which series? This is going to be tough.

 

[dancingsphinx22]

Wow, that check list is intimidating!!

I wish you the best of luck with this if you go through with it. And I think you should. Never pass up an opportunity to learn - I know that sounds cheesy - but seriously though, if you both go and try, you might be surprised with the results.

Just do a lot of research, practice as much as possible before the big day, definitely tell your fam about your concerns before hand to cover your butt, and then go and have fun. Don't stress about it.

Like you said, you're not getting paid and since you don't have a rep to worry about yet, what have you got to lose? Actually, if you do a good job, you may get more offers/opportunities...

 

[Marissa.k1995]

AlexL-
I dont really know what series it is but this is what it says on Amazon.
Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H20/B 10.1 MP Digital Camera

 

[nchips1]

Intelligent Auto (iAuto) mode goes beyond traditional auto settings by recognizing and adjusting to scene conditions and lighting, enhancing natural skin tones, and reducing blur.

Well I don't know how helpful this is in reality but it sounds nice for a camera that isn't... top notch. Try this mode, it sounds cute.

 

[MrBarney]

You've definitely got a challenge ahead of you. Your camera looks ok for a fixed lens but it isn't going to perform as well in low light as a DSLR. If you understand ISO and shutter speed then manual mode is ok, but I suspect it is not a quick process to change shutter speed, ISO and aperture on this camera, so I might be inclined to use one of the automatic modes unless you have a lot of posed photos where you can take your time and adjust settings.

Some things I would do:

• Practice with your camera before the event. A lot. You should be able to operate it quickly and without searching around for the setting or button you want.
• Do some tests at different ISO settings and the different modes you might want to use, then review the results on your computer. Although there is a high ISO mode, is it really acceptable, even as a last resort?
• Try the same shots with and without flash. Decide in which situations the subject, background, shadows and highlights look best.
• Find a moving target and practice photographing it. A pet or sibling works well! Combine with the above.
• Study lots of wedding photos looking for how they were achieved.

• Take LOTS of photos. I was a guest at a wedding recently and was asked by the bride and groom to take some candid shots during the day and at the reception when the official photographer had left. I had owned my camera for exactly three weeks! I still racked up over 700 shots. I like about 150 of them. The amount of times there's someone with their eyes closed or a goofy expression or just moved at the critical moment is ridiculous. Of course, I goofed more than once too! If nothing else, you get the occasional lucky shot (just like I did)!
• Don't delete anything until you get home.
• Don't delete or edit anything until you have at least two copies of the original files.
• Make sure you have more than enough memory cards and batteries, and somewhere safe to store them.
• Have a backup plan in case it rains and you can't take photos outside.
• Take a checklist, and a pen (the above is great!)
• Note where the light is coming from - be it the sun, a window or artificial. Move people around if it's causing glare, making people squint or casting harsh shadows.
• Check the background for stray guests, trees coming out of peoples heads etc.
• Try shooting from different heights and directions
• Make sure every guest appears in at least one photograph
• Have fun!

And one final thing I remember: to make the Groom look larger (and the Bride smaller), position him closer to the camera than the Bride. It doesn't have to be a lot. Take any wedding car shots from his side, etc.

 

[gsgary]

If they want you to shoot it, shoot it what can they do if your shots are not perfect put you on the naughty step for a week

 

[ghpham]

Thank god my sister never asked me to be the photographer at her wedding.

I wish you luck. You will need lots of it....

 

[anthonymichael]

changing the white balance should help with the yellow tint you are getting. If you have it set to auto and are getting the yellow tint, go back to the venue and play around with the other settings until you find one that works. You can also set it manually if you know how to do that.

 

[Dartellan]

I missed the kiss at my very first wedding! Right when they kissed, a guest got up and put their head RIGHT in front of my camera! (Not an excuse, I know, but it was very literally my very first wedding)

Here's what I did - when they wanted the pic with the minister, I just had him stand up on the frist step behind them for the formal pic, (almost like how they were during the ceremony) and then I said "Why don't you give her a little kiss?" and boom! Pic re-enacted, and no one was any the wiser. (With your sister shooting as well, surely one of you will get it!)

Don't worry! Previous poster was correct - relax! Your first wedding is scary, but just keep your eyes open, and shoot lots! When you go home and look at the pics you will be pleasantly surprised.

Edited to add - Smile! When you are smiling and look like you are truly enjoying the event, the couple and guests will feel more comfortable with you, and you will blend in better. Thus you will have photos with relaxed, happy expressions.

 

[Whootsinator]

Sounds like your stuck between a rock and a crazy family.

Do the best you can do with what you have and have no regrets! If they don't want to pay for a professional photographer, they must not care THAT much about capturing the moment in great detail.

 

[GregR]

Personally I still think it would be a great way to get some good gear It doesn't have to be the latest and greatest but you might be able to pick up a decent camera body and one or 2 decent lenses... you will never know if you won't ask!

Of course if they hook you up with gear you may lose that as an excuse!!

 

[Whootsinator]

Greg, if paying for a professional photographer for one event was too much money, I doubt extorting a whole new camera out of them is an option.

 

[Derrel]

My aunt Emma is having her wedding in a few days. Apparently she thinks two 14 year old girls who just got into photography this Christmas can be the photographers for her wedding. Our mom somehow thinks we are better than a professional wedding photographer at taking pictures. I am freaking out right now, because our aunt expects us to get good photos. I am totally just a beginner and I really don’t know how I’m going to do this. Our cameras aren’t bad but they are definitely not good enough to do weddings. I have already told our aunt that we can’t do this but she insists. Our mom is going to help with pictures too but she has only been interested in photography for a few months. She has a better camera then us but she doesn't really know how to use it. She says she is going to put it on auto; I am going to put mine on manual.

I visited where they are having the reception, but the lighting is horrid. Every picture I took in there was yellow and kind of blurry. I’m not as worried about taking the outside photos because our cameras are good in natural light. I’m really scared I’m not going to get the kiss, which I probably will miss. She probably won’t get a nice photo of her walking down the aisle or her wedding dance thing. Her fiancé also has really bad yellow teeth from smoking. I will need help editing them. Our aunt is also taller than him. She is also more masculine but not in a bad way. So I don’t want her to look like a giant in the photos.

Does anyone have any advice on poses or anything? We have to do this wedding no matter what because her fiancé doesn't work anymore for some reason, and they don’t have enough money for a photographer. If I was Emma I would figure out a way to hire a professional photographer. I will post her wedding pictures up after, if she lets me. Then maybe someone can help me edit them to make them look better.

Thanks in advance.

I can't wait to see how this situation works itself out...

 

[GregR]

Greg, if paying for a professional photographer for one event was too much money, I doubt extorting a whole new camera out of them is an option.

Actually they never said they couldn't afford it - just that her aunt had faith in them and that they were too shy to ask.

I also do not recommend "extorting" but saying something like "Hey, you know it would be so much easier to do this for you if we had "X" instead of the cameras we have"

Without knowing the whole situation it's hard to say, but like I said - it doesn't hurt to ask (nicely).