My cousin got married up in northern california. They rented out a park, arranged for a friend who was a "pro" to take the photographs. Apparently she hurt her back the morning of and could not make it. It was a free wedding gig, so she was not able to get someone to come out in her place. My uncle let me know 5 min before the ceremony that the photographer was not coming so I ran to my car to grab my stuff. Luckily it is a beautiful location, so I had brought more than enough gear to take photos the next day (we were camping).
I am looking for harsh C&C here. I have debated posting this as I know it is not up to the FM level (hell, it is not even up to my level, to say I was flustered with the lack of notice is an understatement). I have a full time gig doing one of the few things I love more than photography (I design user interfaces / general software stuff), so I have no interest in doing this as a paid gig, but I have tons of respect for what you guys do and would like to raise my skill level and possibly do some unpaid second shooting for some of you. With that being the goal, I could use some critique/advice on how to get there.
Some lady showed up after the ceremony with a 5dmkII and acted like she was in charge so I assumed the pro felt better and had made it to the event and I let her direct the formals and got out of her hair. Unfortunately, she was not the pro and had no idea what she was doing (photos were junk)
Hopefully these are just good enough to get some feedback on. I know that I use portrait orientation and tight subject framing way too much, and am working on that. The post processing just does not feel right for me, but I cannot seem to hit the right note with these. Anything else, suggestions how to improve, etc?
Don't like the flare in #1, too dominant in the frame and distracting.
I like the viewpoint in #4, but it looks incredibly soft, even at web size.
The kids and people shots work much better when you are at their eye level.
More DoF would have been nice in some of the shots. It looks like you shot the entire wedding at your widest aperture.
I'm not a big fan of the PP, but it is in style now, and you were consistent with it, so it works reasonably well.
Overall, it looks like you got their personality and shot pretty well for 5 minutes advance notice. It sucks about the formals, but keep this in mind, you probably know many of the people, so you can focus on people and interactions a 'pro' wouldn't know about, not being familiar with the family (even though you said that the pro was a friend).
Well as far as photos they are actually fairly nice. The light is nice the framing for the most part is nice, and you have a good variety of shots and nice detail stuff.
The pictures are really small...so that makes it harder to judge as well.
I for one like #1 A LOT. It is very funky/pleasing to my eye and I also really like the fact that you got the slug in the shot.
Not sure if you plan on taking photography further but for the situation you were in these are probably way more than the bride could have ever hoped for.
If I have to critique one thing, you need to do more wider shots. Include more people on the frame so viewers understand what is going on. Why does the lady on #6 smiling and looking up? #16, what is he laughing at? 23, show the guests maybe... I think they will be happy though. Especially because it is free!
Yeah I like #1 too. These are not too shabby at all for a first go and I expect the couple would be stoked. Well done. Consistent, as others have pointed out.
I know you said you're looking for harsh c&c, but why? You say the work isn't up to your level and that you were flustered by the suddenness and surprise of it all.
In my opinion you came through in a pinch and saved the day for your cousin. Pat yourself on the back.
Great job. One thing about posting, I'd say, try to post pictures together. Like 8-13. Wider shots would be nicer but if close up shots are your thing, then thats what you go with.
But seriously, great job, and your processing is consistent. I am very sure your cousin will be extremely happy you were there to save the day.
Mitch W wrote:
I know you said you're looking for harsh c&c, but why? You say the work isn't up to your level and that you were flustered by the suddenness and surprise of it all.
In my opinion you came through in a pinch and saved the day for your cousin. Pat yourself on the back.
My sentiments as well.
As much as anything, I'm impressed that your gear was in your car and that your plan was to just enjoy the wedding.
Since you do photography for the love of it, be selfish. Like anyone who has a camera and shows talent like you do, you will be approached in the future to take photos. Many will think they are doing you a favor by presenting an opportunity to photograph their third cousin's niece's fourth birthday party. Do it if you like, but feel free to say no. There's nothing worse than feeling obliged.
Mitch W wrote:
I know you said you're looking for harsh c&c, but why? You say the work isn't up to your level and that you were flustered by the suddenness and surprise of it all.
In my opinion you came through in a pinch and saved the day for your cousin. Pat yourself on the back.
The goal is to step up my level, I really want to do better work than this. I feel like I am at a plateau and it is pissing me off that I cannot get past it.
Admittedly, I had a wedding and some work deadlines, so I have not been shooting much. Another issue is that I have started leaving my camera behind for events. I am no longer satisfied with mediocre results, and do not always want to do/act how is required to get good results (big flash/lens and such).
I feel though like I may need to take some art classes or something? I have been/acted like an engineer since I learned how to use a screwdriver at age 2 and took everything in the house apart. I have never dedicated much time to the principles of art.
Robin Usagani wrote:
If I have to critique one thing, you need to do more wider shots. Include more people on the frame so viewers understand what is going on. Why does the lady on #6 smiling and looking up? #16, what is he laughing at? 23, show the guests maybe... I think they will be happy though. Especially because it is free!
My progression has been
Does it fit in the frame -> is it exposed right -> does it isolate the correct subject
The next step as I see it is to involve the subject in the environment. Problem is that I have been stuck for a while now
Everyone who has posted C&C so far, thanks and noted. Should I swap in larger images? I did not want to overwhelm with too long of a post.
alohadave wrote:
It sucks about the formals, but keep this in mind, you probably know many of the people, so you can focus on people and interactions a 'pro' wouldn't know about, not being familiar with the family (even though you said that the pro was a friend).
I actually just went off and hung out with the wife and my cousin + her new boyfriend, haha
One more note. Another reason for the request for harsh C&C is that I really want to do some second shooting.
Good stuff Joe. It's in focus, well lit, and there are some nice expressions here.
Does it fit in the frame -> is it exposed right -> does it isolate the correct subject
This shows through. I think that most of us started with this mentality. We all valued (maybe rightly so) getting a clean shot of everything and making sure everything is recorded over the actual artistic side of things. When you get flustered, it's important to take a deep breath, and think about the photo you're about to take. Even after doing a decent amount of weddings, sometimes I still get caught up in "oh I need a shot of the entrance! Focus, fire away!!!!" when I should be taking my time and thinking about my composition, angle, and the moment I'd like to capture.
Most relatively inexperienced wedding photographers seem to think that weddings move at light speed and they MUST get a shot - any shot, to capture the moment. In reality, most weddings move pretty slow and you have more time to concentrate on creating a photo than you think. This is especially true once you've shot a few and become more comfortable with the flow of a wedding and can begin to anticipate events.
Basically, what I'm saying is just slow down. You (personally) are technically proficient enough where you won't miss the shot, just breathe for a minute and focus on composition.
My next critique would be that you seem to be relying on your Siggy 85's bokehliciousness a little too much. And let's be honest, that's an easy mistake to make While photos 7-13 are all great portraits in their own right, they get a bit repetitive in context of a wedding. I think you need to shoot wide a little more. For one, it will challenge you to think more about your composition and how place your subject in its surroundings (rather than just nuking the background). You'll have to get closer and pay attention to your framing more. It will also help tell the story a little better. Here you are shooting a wedding IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WOODS, yet we only have a vague feel for the actual site.
We all know an 85 can make great bokeh, now move along and show us something different
mikethevilla wrote:
Most relatively inexperienced wedding photographers seem to think that weddings move at light speed and they MUST get a shot - any shot, to capture the moment. In reality, most weddings move pretty slow and you have more time to concentrate on creating a photo than you think. This is especially true once you've shot a few and become more comfortable with the flow of a wedding and can begin to anticipate events.
From the time I got the notice till the end of the ceremony, around 10-15minutes passed I think. haha
I have the flow of a normal wedding pieced together in my head, but in this one, the bride and groom just walked down the stairs with no notice/music/procession/anything. Nothing was as you would expect. (the wife and I have attended/been part of ~20 weddings in the last 2 or so years). The biggest piece that I am not used to is being able to MOVE during the normal wedding time, so I often do like I do with motorsports and settle into a spot. This, umm, doesn't work so well for weddings.
I like your set, important thing is that you've captured this not so formal, casual character of this ceremony. I stuggle with tight framing myself, so I see your point here.
While 10-15 minutes is a pretty short ceremony, it's still a lot of time. I wasn't necessarily saying the wedding itself is slow, just that the individual moments you often need to capture usually go by at a pretty calm manner. Yes you may not get a lot of prep time before the bride walks down the aisle, but 9/10 times walking down the aisle takes anywhere from 30-60 seconds (although I have had one bride that was absolutely FLYING down the aisle. A little too excited ). You only really need one great shot of it, so in terms of photography 30-60 seconds (not to mention any time you have to anticipate it) is a pretty good length of time to sit down and compose one shot.
mikethevilla wrote:
While 10-15 minutes is a pretty short ceremony, it's still a lot of time. I wasn't necessarily saying the wedding itself is slow, just that the individual moments you often need to capture usually go by at a pretty calm manner. Yes you may not get a lot of prep time before the bride walks down the aisle, but 9/10 times walking down the aisle takes anywhere from 30-60 seconds (although I have had one bride that was absolutely FLYING down the aisle. A little too excited ). You only really need one great shot of it, so in terms of photography 30-60 seconds (not to mention any time you have to anticipate it) is a pretty good length of time to sit down and compose one shot....Show more →
Ahh, now I get what you were trying to say. Yes, my mind works backwards from that. I am more proficient in situations where getting the shot at all is difficult, and there will be another car/another cyclist coming by in a minute. I am not very good when I have time. I do not even know where to begin, and honestly I feel like I am becoming less and less able to "see" what shots are there.
In a wedding situation, you are dead right, I do not even realize that that is what I need to think about and I skip the step I need to improve and go straight to making sure I get something. (I have a ton of shots with close enough to make no difference the same poor framing/angle)
I can track a car handheld/cross track with a 600mm lens though, that should come in handy at weddings haha.
SloPhoto wrote:
From the time I got the notice till the end of the ceremony, around 10-15minutes passed I think. haha
I have the flow of a normal wedding pieced together in my head, but in this one, the bride and groom just walked down the stairs with no notice/music/procession/anything. Nothing was as you would expect. (the wife and I have attended/been part of ~20 weddings in the last 2 or so years). The biggest piece that I am not used to is being able to MOVE during the normal wedding time, so I often do like I do with motorsports and settle into a spot. This, umm, doesn't work so well for weddings.
