Should I shoot this wedding?

[wyatt_spalding]

Hello, today I was offered to shoot a wedding for a friend, she offered good money and the money would help out my photography a lot. Im 14 and have been taking photos since i was 12. I understand aperture, shutter speed, iso, wb etc.... Right now i'm shooting with my t3i and a 50mm 1.8 and a few other wide angles and zooms. I would love to shoot the wedding and think i could do it but I want to know how bug of a responsibility it is, i'm pretty responsible, but do you think it would be to big of a job for me? Thanks,
-Wyatt

 

[jowensphoto]

First reaction? No.

Second reaction? Let's see your work thus far.

 

[o hey tyler]

What constitutes "good money" to a fourteen year old? Also my second question would be how will money make you better at photography?

 

[pixmedic]

I moved this thread to the aspiring professionals section.

weddings can be very difficult to shoot. Add in the fact that a friendship is involved, and it can complicate things even further.
If they are willing to spend good money, then they should hire an experienced wedding photographer for such a "one time" event.
depending on the weddings location, you can have a lot of changing lighting conditions, and distances from which you have to shoot.
weddings are not really the kind of thing that is good to just "jump in" and start shooting.
typically, wedding photographers bring TWO camera bodies, and several "fast" lenses ranging from wide angle, to tele-zoom so they can get their shots from as close up or as far back as needed. on and off camera flashes are also a must have.

If you are lacking any of these things, or the knowledge on how to properly utilize them, I would recommend not shooting your friends wedding.
do you have any experience with people photography or event photography?
weddings can be very fast paced, and it doesn't take but a few moments to miss an important shot.
If you are interested in shooting weddings, you should look into finding a local wedding photographer that will let you "second shoot" with them to learn before doing it on your own.

 

[DougGrigg]

Money, Friendships & Age

Moneywise, Great But I'd suggest if they are your friend as due to being so young, offer to do it for free, then the weight is off your shoulders on how well you perform, giving them money to hire a professional to accompany you and help you achieve everything you desire.

Friendship, doing jobs for friends can be really cumbersome on weddings, I wouldn't take a job for a friend even being a professional unless I had two deckhands with me I'd want the safe of mind that I wasn't jeopardizing my friendships over a couple of grand.

Age-Wise, Do you feel comfortable being so young & taking photos for the wedding? at the end of the day you must think, its a job if i was at my friends wedding so young I would rather be enjoying the day/night rather than work!

Also, I'd love to see examples of work just to clarify you're ready for such job

 

[gsgary]

Shoot it, at 14 you shouldn't have a care in the world i would have jumped at it, charge them as much as you think you can get away with

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[runnah]

How old is your friend that is getting married?

 

[Steve5D]

If the happy couple is asking a 14 year old to shoot their wedding, I'm going to guess that the photography budget is little more than a passing thought. As such, I doubt they're expecting the results they would get from a seasoned shooter.

This isn't said to disparage the OP at all, but context is also important...

 

[ronlane]

I too would like to see some of your work, but be sure to get them to sign a contract if you decide to do it. Oh wait, contracts with a minor are binding anyway. Never mind.

 

[canonbraden]

Have them hire a professional and ask if it's okay if you come along as a second shooter.

 

[tirediron]

Okay folks, let's keep in mind that we're in the ASPIRING Professionals forum. Please, by all means, answer the OPs question as you feel appropriate, but lets try and keep the vitriol and sarcasm to a minimum shall we?

Thanks!

 

[manicmike]

Maybe it's just because I don't care anymore, but I say why not?

I'd offer an engagement shoot beforehand, just so they can be sure what they're getting. I'd decline the money though. Is that bad advice? Probably.

 

[DougGrigg]

Shoot it, at 14 you shouldn't have a care in the world i would have jumped at it, charge them as much as you think you can get away with

And get a lawsuit if the standard is not up to how much money is invested? deary me.

 

[texkam]

As long as both parties understand what they are getting (or may not be getting), go for it. As far as being too big, as mentioned, if they are asking a 14 y o then they have to understand you may not be able to pull it off as well as a seasoned pro. High School age kids are capable of some amazing stuff. When I was 14, I had a picture running on the front page of the sports section of a major newspaper and some of my friends were shooting stuff that would still hold up today. Yep, let's see your work.

 

[gsgary]

Shoot it, at 14 you shouldn't have a care in the world i would have jumped at it, charge them as much as you think you can get away with

And get a lawsuit if the standard is not up to how much money is invested? deary me.

Bull**** only a moron would try and sue a 14 year old


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