Rodolfo Paiz
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 p.1 #7 · New to FM how does everone like wedding photography? | |
Hi, Bryan!
First, welcome to FM. Second, you'll find that any community (this one included) develops some habits and some customs. You'll get much better results and feedback from learning the local habits. And the most important one I can suggest is that you approach critique in a more targeted way. As sbeme already suggested, pick 3-4 images that you really like, or where you're trying to achieve one specific thing, and post them here directly so that people can see them on this page. You just have to post the image's URL, and it'll show automatically.
I did take a look at your Flicker gallery. You have some nice images there, and they show that you care about trying to get a good shot. But, they also show that you have not yet embarked on a real study of photography. I'd say that you have the potential to be a great photographer, but you are taking the first steps along that path and there is a long way to go.
1. Post-processing. Love it, hate it... but get used to it. Good that you're shooting in RAW, but if you've never worked on an image in the computer to really make it the best image you can, then I say you don't yet care enough about the quality of each image. You need to care more about each one, really want to make it as good as possible. I'm not talking about retouching, or editing... just white balance, levels, cropping, color correction, sharpening.
2. Light. The changes in light are not something that I see your images optimizing or manipulating to your advantage. You are not using shadows, contrast, color of light, or the intensity of it to create an image that speaks to me. Furthermore, you need to start learning more about flash, multiple lights, and how to alter light deliberately to create the image you want. Read through Strobist and other resources to get started... and then keep working on it.
3. Review. Get into the habit of a critical review. Look at the image. Ask yourself how you could make it better. What would you change about the light, the pose, the DOF, the focus point, everything? You have a shot of your dog that I would have really loved, if the thing weren't slightly out-of-focus. At least, the eyes were... and if the eyes aren't in focus in a portrait, the whole image goes straight to the trash. If the image isn't as good as you can possibly make it, shoot it again. Such self-critique can make you a lot better, relatively quickly.
4. Your nature shots (landscapes, dogs, drop of water, etc.) are much better than your people pics at this point. I kind of like quite a few shots from your original gallery (in your first post), but the family reunion you linked to in the second post... I got through about six images and then came back here to finish the thread. Need to improve a lot on the use of light, the compositions, and making people look their best.
5. For the next 2-3 years at least, stay away from money. You can surely learn how to do professional photography, but honestly you're not even close to there yet. Especially (God forbid) a wedding, which the bride has usually been planning and dreaming of since before she ever had a boyfriend. People who pay for pictures not only expect great quality... they expect great quality delivered consistently. You'll know that you are ready to take on a wedding when you can see each shot in advance, see the light, alter it if necessary, compose the image, shoot it, edit it, and frame it, all in your head. And then make that shot a reality. Each time, every time, with very very few failures. And that's just the photography side of it! You also need to know when to step close, when to get out of the way, when to be unseen, how to shoot the ring, what kind of poses/shots/scenes they expect to see, and all the folklore that goes with whatever their particular personal religious preference is. And don't forget to meet and chat with the family so you get an idea of relationships and preferences, get the special shots that will matter to them and not just technically well-executed images that have zero emotional content. Hopefully you see my point.
Dude... seriously, just say no. What you've written here today gives the impression that you want to enjoy your photography as a hobby. Great! Do that. But do not think that this kind of interest and attitude will get you paid gigs... and if it does, believe me when I tell you that you are going to get yourself in a lot of trouble. Do you have any idea how quickly you can ruin a friendship, or get yourself sued, by screwing up a paid shoot?
And lastly... keep in mind that we're all reacting only to what you've said here. That's a weakness of the Internet: we don't know you, we only know what you write and shoot. So what we see is a beginner, who wants to get a lot better, and who thinks pro-quality work is easy. The first two are great, but the last is Just Plain Wrong [tm]. If our initial impressions are incorrect, then we'll be happy to get a different impression. Post some pics (just a few!) that you really like and that you feel are great, and we'll see what/how we can make suggestions on improvement.
You've gotten a lot of pretty negative feedback here. Hopefully you realize that everyone who posted is trying to be honest (they don't like what you said, or what you shot), and also positive (they're trying to give you good advice). And also hopefully some of these comments will be useful to you. Look around FM, on the different fora (People Photography, Weddings, Macro, and so on) and you'll see a ton of images get discussed and critiqued. You can learn a lot from those too, and feel free to post your images (in your own thread, please) at any time. You'll find tons of people here who are happy to help you learn.
Cheers. 
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patience and care are virtues, a lack thereof carries a heavy price