My second wedding....please provide feedback

[roxysmom]

I attached a link to the album for my second wedding. I've not shared these with the bride yet so I can still make corrections if necessary. They are from this past Saturday.

This was my second wedding so I'd appreciate feedback. What you'll see is the 260 pictures I'm giving her out of the 600 I took that day! I want to create a "story" for the bride of her day by taking pictures of everything I can.

I have somethings I'm not happy about. For example the day was overcast and beautiful when I took the girls. When the guys showed up at the park we were at the sun came out and they look shiney! I'm not sure how to take out the shine in my pictures. The bride wanted to do pictures outside the reception hall because they had green space. There was green space but only one area was usable because all the other angles had things in the background. Such as a picnic shelter, swings, soccer field, building etc. Now I know to ask more questions when they say "green space." Something else I learned!

In addition some of my shots of the girls walking up the aisle are blurry. Any recos on what to do? I have a Nikon D80 and I used a 17-55mm lens. I did not use the flash during the ceremony unless I was taking pictures of things like the candle, etc. I shot in auto mode b/c I'm not comfortable with setting my own shutter speeds yet. I'm still learning!


Thank you!

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slidesh...08405.379999770505.1180020222801&conn_speed=1

 

[BigRC]

The link doesn't work for me. Anyone else having that problem?

 

[Big Mike]

The link isn't working for me.

and they look shiny! I'm not sure how to take out the shine in my pictures

If it's shiny skin, you can usually use the healing and clone tools to remove the shiny spots. Use a low opacity and take your time.

In addition some of my shots of the girls walking up the aisle are blurry. Any recos on what to do?

A faster shutter speed and/or flash.

I shot in auto mode b/c I'm not comfortable with setting my own shutter speeds yet. I'm still learning!

That's not something we should hear from someone who is shooting weddings.

 

[roxysmom]

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?mode=fromshare&Uc=u0fz8l1.4uki1vgp&U y=3jc6gx&Ux=0

Try this link....I'm not sure why the other one's not working.

 

[roxysmom]

You recommend using a flash or a faster shutter speed. Why would the flash make a difference? Also I thought it was wrong to use the flash during the wedding....or should I use it when they are coming up the aisle and not during the ceremony?

Do you feel my 17-55mm lens is the right choice? I've also been told to use a 50mm lens. What's your recommendation?

As for being in automode..........I am still learning and felt this was the best decision to give the best photos I could. Other than some of the girls walking up the aisle non of my other pictures were blurry. I don't plan on advertising myself without getting more training. The bride was not going to pay for a "professional" and had plans to just get copies from family. It was a great opportunity for me to get experience and give her a snapshot of her day.

 

[Big Mike]

That's better.

Overall, the photos look very nice...well done.

One suggestion I have (besides becoming comfortable with your camera settings) would be to use fill flash when shooting outdoors. In many of the outdoor shots, there are dark shadows in people's eye sockets. Fill flash can help with that, as well as give them nice catch lights.

There are a few color balance issues in the church...but that's par for the course.

 

[Big Mike]

You recommend using a flash or a faster shutter speed. Why would the flash make a difference?

The burst of the flash is much, much faster than the shutter...which can freeze movement...so the more light that is use from the flash, the sharper those images would be. However, the more light from the flash that is used, the less ambient (background) exposure will show up. The trick is to find a nice balance of flash and ambient...it's not always easy and it may take time and experience to figure it out...you also need to balance how much ambient you can get, while still getting sharp shots.

Also I thought it was wrong to use the flash during the wedding....or should I use it when they are coming up the aisle and not during the ceremony?

It depends...If it's OK with who ever is in charge, then it's OK. Of course, you are the photographer...so if you don't want to use flash...then that's up to you. As the photographer, you should be aware of the rules and know when and if you are allowed to use flash.

 

[roxysmom]

What do you mean by fill-flash? I have a sb600 on my camera attached to a flash bracket. Over top the flash I have a large diffuser. Maybe I had it directed at a wrong angle and it should have been more direct? I tend to keep it at 45degrees.

 

[BigRC]

These look really nice. Good job.

There's a few stock photography sites that have wedding images on them. I like to study the wedding photos there to get ideas of what to photograph, and how to pose people. My first few weddings I did for free. Then I started charging 1/4 of what other wedding photographers in the area charge. I then started charging 1/3, and now I'm up to 1/2. Pretty soon gonna raise the prices again.

 

[Big Mike]

What do you mean by fill-flash? I have a sb600 on my camera attached to a flash bracket. Over top the flash I have a large diffuser. Maybe I had it directed at a wrong angle and it should have been more direct? I tend to keep it at 45degrees.

Fill flash is the term used when you use your flash to 'fill in' the shadows but it's not the main source of light.

What kind/type of diffuser do you have? When outdoors (in bright light), I would suggest using direct flash because a diffuser will rob power and won't really make a difference in the quality of light. The types of diffusers/accesories that are used with the flash tilted, are usually meant to be used in combination with bounce flash (the light is bounced off the ceiling and the accessory puts some light forward). If however, you are outdoors or in a place with a very high ceiling...then you can't bounce the light...so putting the flash at 45 degrees is just wasting light/power.

 

[roxysmom]

What kind/type of diffuser do you have?

I don't know the specific product name but it velcos onto my shoe flash and is wire with a white/black covering over it. Very flexible & soft. It is about 6x5 in size.

I like your suggestion on being outside and not using a flash. I need to practice with that!

I do understand bounce flash and the 45degree angle worked well in the reception hall because the ceiling was low enough for me to bounce it off of.

 

[woodsac]

The most noticeable things on the critique level are:

No fill flash...You really need fill flash. There are pretty heavy shadows around the eyes and chin.

DOF...Most of these could have used a much shallower dof. The backgrounds are just too busy.

Tilt...Almost every shot indoors has a very noticeable tilt to the right.

Crops...Too many loose crops for my personal taste. I know it's hard to compose for every shot to be printed at 4x6...but at least try and be creative for the web. There's nothing that says that you can't do a sqare crop.

For me, these shots lack emotion. They all seem so posed, no free moments. I understand you're just starting, but weddings are tough! They not only require you to understand the settings of your camera, but you have to have a working knowledge of weddings. You need to know where to be and when. Interaction and communication between the b/g and guests is paramount! Good people skills is a must.

I would say to keep trying, but not on your own. Personally, I would rather have these shots, than no shots at all. But, I would be very upset if I had paid professional fees $$$.

 

[JIP]

As far as flash goes I have almost never been restricted from using flash during the proessional. Even the most restrictive churches will allow you to use flash while they are coming up the aisle. When it come to lenses I would seriously consider using the 50 you say you have for the processional with this you can pre-focus for distance and while using the correct aperture you wont have to worry about focusing on moving subjects. As far as your pictures go I would say you did a very good job I can see where some would suggest fill-flash because some of your subjects do have some shadow problems on their faces but all in all you did a very good job. I think your slide show moves way too slow for me I only got around to looking at your preliminaries you should post a summary of some of your images directly on the page.

 

[schumionbike]

I think you did a good job and these are much more than snapshot. The only thing is you have to open up your aperture more to blurr the background. Good luck.

 

[Christie Photo]

I think you're off to a wonderful start!

What I found most troubling was the outdoor shot of the groom and his guys. I suggest either full shade, or (if you have too), full sun. The blotchy mixture just isn't good.

I thought you had a good mix of posed and candids. You need some work with posing though. If I had to offer only one bit of advice on this, I suggest you have the girls hold their bouquet with just one hand... and hold the bouquet a bit lower.

It's perfectly fine to use flash in the church after the ceremony. I, personally, never use flash during a religious ceremony... permitted or not.

You certainly had a great bunch to work with... good looking and fun loving.

Pete


PS. Oh... don't forget to turn the camera for vertical subjects. I see you did this some of the time, but could have done this much more often.