Nervous as heck...

[Demers18]

Well, I survived. Right now all the pictures look blurry. Hopefully, they won't be as blurry when I sober up.

Just kidding. Everything went fine. Formals sucked because there was literally not one possible background that wasn't distracting. Everything else was pretty much fine. Now for the fun part...actually processing an entire wedding. Wish me luck.

That's really good to hear. Have fun processing and looking forward to seeing the results.

 

[pgriz]

Never mind the money - seems like you have some serious karma points coming your way. I'm sure your work will be very well appreciated.

 

[Kerbouchard]

Well, just got done reviewing them. I'm seriously disappointed with the formals. They are lit perfectly, posed well, in focus, etc, etc. with a Craptacular background. Like seriously, worst ever. It's hard to even call these 'formals'.

 

[Demers18]

Well, just got done reviewing them. I'm seriously disappointed with the formals. They are lit perfectly, posed well, in focus, etc, etc. with a Craptacular background. Like seriously, worst ever. It's hard to even call these 'formals'.

They can't be that bad... You should post a few.

 

[jamesbjenkins]

Looking forward to seeing these. You've done a good job of building my anticipation!

 

[Sw1tchFX]

ProTip: Shoot RAW

 

[Sw1tchFX]

< ProTip for self: Read the entire thread before posting

 

[Kerbouchard]

Well, just got done reviewing them. I'm seriously disappointed with the formals. They are lit perfectly, posed well, in focus, etc, etc. with a Craptacular background. Like seriously, worst ever. It's hard to even call these 'formals'.

They can't be that bad... You should post a few.

They are that bad. So, she didn't want formals right after the wedding. Instead, she wanted to eat first, do the cake cutting, and open the dance floor. Well, DJ idiot with his inconsiderate wife, out of control kids, and devil lights that look horrible were in full swing by the time the formals started. Yes, I do mean to say that I was doing formals while the DJ's lighting was on, while people were dancing, and while the DJ's wife was sitting on the stage eating cake.

So, basically, I have two options, I can face away from the DJ and live with splotches of light on every couple, or I can put them in between me and the DJ, over power his lighting, and live with the background(not that there was an alternative in the first place.) Couldn't go outside, couldn't go into another room...Heck, I might as well have not taken the shots in the first place.

So, basically, I have DJ lighting gear(which is on), pitch black room, can barely see the people I am taking shots of because the DJ's lighting is blinding me, a woman eating cake, a DJ booth, and people and kids running in out of every photo.

Here is a pull back example just for fun...Obviously, I didn't frame the actual shot like this, but it's a good example of what was there...

Yes, it can be fixed and I know the alternative couldn't(both because of the splotches and the fact people would be squinting into his obnoxious lights, but it still annoys me and it's going to be a lot of work. Everything else is fine...even with the cake falling over, decoration issues, etc.

FWIW, yes, I did ask the lady to move. She moved to get some cake and sat back down. I also asked the DJ to turn off his lights. I also asked if I could move a few tables and just use a blank wall. I also asked if I could move the baloons. Heck, I even asked if we could do it another room. No to all accounts.

Honestly, I am sort of debating about whether or not I am even going to bother to fix them.

Like I said, everything else went great. Getting ready shots are great. Detail shots are great. Dancing, cake cutting, ceremony, kiss, etc...all fine. Formals, on the other hand...different story.

 

[Derrel]

Those are "documentary formals", designed to "capture the true ambiance of the event"...don't sweat it man...you think those festive mylar balloons and DJ lights make an ugly background? Hah! A few years ago my wife did a similar "freebie wedding for a poor client"...this woman kept pestering her to shoot the wedding,and finally she gave in and agreed...well, it was held at some type of "converted hall" with a low, dark wood-beamed ceiling, with maybe 18-inch deep beams descending down from the ceilings every 10 feet or so, preventing bounce flash. The entire room was paneled in DARK wood, and I mean old, DARK wood paneling that sucked light up like a sponge. Built maybe circa 1910 or so...wood beams like that are not used any more...

And, the walls? Well, they were adorned with mounted deer, elk, antelope, and bear heads, as well as stuffed pheasants, ducks, and geese..and tacky signs with "sayings" on them. And as she said, "the bride's family had one full set of teeth amongst the whole group, and not one of them wanted to be there." She described the decor as "Hillbilly Hell, with taxidermy". Soooo, your wedding background actually looks "okay" to me!!! Yeah, the background is, uh, less than optimal--but seriously--I have actually SEEN worse!!!

 

[tirediron]

... it was held at some type of "converted hall" with a low, dark wood-beamed ceiling, with maybe 18-inch deep beams descending down from the ceilings every 10 feet or so, preventing bounce flash. The entire room was paneled in DARK wood, and I mean old, DARK wood paneling that sucked light up like a sponge. Built maybe circa 1910 or so...wood beams like that are not used any more...

And, the walls? Well, they were adorned with mounted deer, elk, antelope, and bear heads, as well as stuffed pheasants, ducks, and geese..and tacky signs with "sayings" on them. And as she said, "the bride's family had one full set of teeth amongst the whole group, and not one of them wanted to be there." She described the decor as "Hillbilly Hell, with taxidermy". Soooo, your wedding background actually looks "okay" to me!!! Yeah, the background is, uh, less than optimal--but seriously--I have actually SEEN worse!!!

Yep! See and shot worse! I did one a few years back, held in the Empress Hotel (For those familiar, an old CPR hotel in Victoria). The hotel messed up and double-booked the room that the formals were to be shot in. All that was available was the the landing on a dark paneled stair-way with VERY highly polished walls and my speedlight siezed up and the head wouldn't swivel properly! I feel your pain!

 

[Robin Usagani]

Well.. that's how it is sometimes, you will have part of the wedding where you feel it did not turn out great. Just hope the other stuff is good to compensate. To me this is an automatic shoot wide open shots with DJ light behind you with bounced flash.

 

[Kerbouchard]

If I shot wide open with the DJ lights behind me, there would have been colored splotches on peoples clothing and faces. To me, that would have been worse and harder to edit. I had never understood why some photos would bring a background to a wedding. Now I know.

 

[Robin Usagani]

I think it would work since they are behind them... but then you can always shoot it wide open with the DJ lights off. I thought thats why we all buy expensive glasses?

 

[Kerbouchard]

I think it would work since they are behind them... but then you can always shoot it wide open with the DJ lights off. I thought thats why we all buy expensive glasses?

I must not be explaining myself well. The DJ would not turn his lights off. They are the strobe +revolving color devil lights that throw splotches on everything.

If I would have turned them the other way, aside from having TV's and dirty tables in the backgrounds, the splotches would have been on their front and their face.

In any case, that room was just about pitch dark. I was staring/squinting directly into the lights from the DJ and could barely see the people in the formals in the first place.

If I would have shot wide open, the DJ's lights would have overpowered everything. I used the settings I did to make it look like the DJ lights weren't on in the first place. I'm not sure why you would ever shoot formals wide open or why you would want something like a DJ strobe showing up in your shots.

Honestly, I think you are having trouble understanding this because you can't comprehend somebody trying to take formals in the middle of the dance floor, in a dark room, with people dancing around you, and the DJ's lights on...Because that would be asinine...and you would be right. Unfortunately, it was my reality.

 

[Robin Usagani]

Well.. good luck with the edit. You have given them a huge favor and they were not cooperating. Personally I would just process it and dont even attempt fixing the background. It sounded like they dont expect much from photography because they put it last on the list.