first wedding

quickphotography78 · Jan 25, 2011

I will be the photographer for my cousins wedding in a couple of months any suggestions of how to get the perfect shot?

I am doing the photos for free since it will be the first time I have taken photos of a wedding alone. I don't want to screw things up

Marc-Etienne · Jan 25, 2011

Can't give you any advice because I've never done it and I'm not planning doing such thing in a near future. However, I can suggest you to search for "wedding" in the search engine of this forum. You will find TONS of threads on the subject and you won't have to wait on answers.
Best of luck and don't forget to show us your perfect shot

Destin · Jan 25, 2011

Marc-Etienne · Jan 25, 2011

Destin said:

Please, we won't have to go back there

... please! It rarely ends well :lol:

Destin · Jan 25, 2011

Marc-Etienne said:
Destin said:

Click to expand...

Please, we won't have to go back there... please! It rarely ends well

As much as I would like to see this train stay on the tracks, we both know where it's going :lmao:

Marc-Etienne · Jan 25, 2011

That is why I recommended a search to avoid the OP getting run over by that train

We shall see.... Should be entertaining! :lol:

Marc-Etienne · Jan 25, 2011

Well, let see what came in the "Active topics" Hot tips for photography
Should answer your question!

Robin Usagani · Jan 25, 2011

You made it seems like you have done 2nd shooting at weddings. If you have, then you should know what to do and what you need.

3bayjunkie · Jan 25, 2011

read scott kelbys book "the digital photography book vol 1, 2, and 3. i reference it all the time.

quickphotography78 · Jan 26, 2011

I think I love getting bashed on by you guys why, why , why. No I haven't been a second shooter this is a small intimate wedding nothing fancy or blown out. I was just wanting tips if they were out there. I'm doing this all free as I have no experience at a wedding except taking photos as a guest. Even though the last wedding I did my son was in and I got some candid shots that were loved more then the posed shots. Don't worry I will post photos to get bashed some more I think I like to suffer

Robin Usagani · Jan 26, 2011

Dont do it alone!

Destin · Jan 26, 2011

quickphotography78 said:
I think I love getting bashed on by you guys why, why , why. No I haven't been a second shooter this is a small intimate wedding nothing fancy or blown out. I was just wanting tips if they were out there. I'm doing this all free as I have no experience at a wedding except taking photos as a guest. Even though the last wedding I did my son was in and I got some candid shots that were loved more then the posed shots. Don't worry I will post photos to get bashed some more I think I like to suffer

Alright man, the bashing wasn't called for entirely. We just have 4 threads like this a day on here, and we get a little angry when people can't use the search function to find them (as suggested above).

That being said, what camera do you have? lenses? flash units?

I ask because weddings generally equal low light, which means you need a camera with good high iso performance. Generally only more expensive cameras do this well. Even they can't pull enough light sometimes, so you'll need a flash unit for sure. And the kit lenses that come with most dslrs aren't going to help much, because they simply aren't fast enough. They don't let enough light in.

And that's just the equipment end of things. How about you? How much experience do you have in photography? Ever shot portraits before? (you'll need to shoot posed shots at a wedding) Do you shoot in auto mode, or do you have understanding of manual settings and concepts (shutter speed, aperture, iso, depth of field, etc)

Answer these questions, and we'll be able to give you some more appropriate answers. But if you say that you are using a low end dslr, and shoot in auto mode, I can already tell you that everyone is going to tell you that you should tell them they need to hire a professional, because trust me: a wedding is one of the most stressful things you can shoot... You only get one chance at the shots, and the bride will kill you if you miss them or screw them up. Do you wanna risk your friendship with the bride?

gsgary · Jan 26, 2011

I'm keeping quiet

waynegz1 · Jan 26, 2011

Destin said:
quickphotography78 said:

I think I love getting bashed on by you guys why, why , why. No I haven't been a second shooter this is a small intimate wedding nothing fancy or blown out. I was just wanting tips if they were out there. I'm doing this all free as I have no experience at a wedding except taking photos as a guest. Even though the last wedding I did my son was in and I got some candid shots that were loved more then the posed shots. Don't worry I will post photos to get bashed some more I think I like to suffer

Click to expand...

Alright man, the bashing wasn't called for entirely. We just have 4 threads like this a day on here, and we get a little angry when people can't use the search function to find them (as suggested above).

That being said, what camera do you have? lenses? flash units?

I ask because weddings generally equal low light, which means you need a camera with good high iso performance. Generally only more expensive cameras do this well. Even they can't pull enough light sometimes, so you'll need a flash unit for sure. And the kit lenses that come with most dslrs aren't going to help much, because they simply aren't fast enough. They don't let enough light in.

And that's just the equipment end of things. How about you? How much experience do you have in photography? Ever shot portraits before? (you'll need to shoot posed shots at a wedding) Do you shoot in auto mode, or do you have understanding of manual settings and concepts (shutter speed, aperture, iso, depth of field, etc)

Answer these questions, and we'll be able to give you some more appropriate answers. But if you say that you are using a low end dslr, and shoot in auto mode, I can already tell you that everyone is going to tell you that you should tell them they need to hire a professional, because trust me: a wedding is one of the most stressful things you can shoot... You only get one chance at the shots, and the bride will kill you if you miss them or screw them up. Do you wanna risk your friendship with the bride?

Amen.

quickphotography78 · Jan 26, 2011

thanks this is not a blow out wedding just something simple home wedding type of thing. Other wise I would of said no after reading about others experiences I would feel to pressured. I do this for a hobby but I want to get better with my shots. I do get asked to do photos for people that is why I want input . So thanks to everyone!!!