Advice needed for wedding shoot (Page 4): I would be honest with your friends about not having much experience shooting people. Look in your archives and see how much good work you can...

DebAnn Loc: Toronto

mikec01 wrote:

I have friends whose son is getting married. They ... (show quote)

I would be honest with your friends about not having much experience shooting people. Look in your archives and see how much good work you can show them with portraits, groups of people etc. If you don't have anything good, tell them that their only wedding memories likely won't be good either. Surely they have other friends they could ask for this very important job.

nathanweddings

3 of everything!

gmadeb

Relax and enjoy the experience. I am not a pro, just a grandma that takes a lot of sport pictures of my grand children.
I have done 2 weddings and a couple anniversary-family pictures for friends and they all turned out fine. They knew ahead of time they were not getting a professional. Most people are very appreciative. I found it to be very rewarding. I shoot with a Nikon D7200 and it does what I need. Like I said, have fun with it!

mikec01 Loc: Georgia, USA

PHRubin wrote:

I agree. The 50mm for candid shots where you prefer not to use flash. The 18-150 for general purpose with flash fill.
Try not to be a distraction for the guests.

P.S. I have been the "not official photographer" at a few weddings and the official one once for a friend.

Thank you. Very useful. Thanks to all of the other respondents as well; I have taken the advice of several and will borrow another camera body to avoid changing lenses too much. I do have flash and will look at YouTube to see how best to use it out of doors.

griffzky

mikec01 wrote:

I have friends whose son is getting married. They ... (show quote)

If you are going to do this, go to the venue (church) a day early at the same time that the ceremony will occur and check the lighting. Talk to the priest or whomever is officiating to see if they have any rules like "no flash photography" which I ran into once at one of my wedding jobs.
You've been to weddings before so make a checklist of "must get" shots on a small card to put in your jacket pocket. Such as the procession down the aisle of bridesmaids and groomsmen, of course the bride and her father as he gives her away. Don't forget to turn around quickly and get the grooms expression as he sees his bride. If Dad is tearing up you'll want a tight close-up of that, and Mom also. Know where everyone is seated.
If this all seems daunting, think about bowing out of the job now, because I've only scratched the surface of "must get" shots. Whatever you do, get the kiss when the official says, "You may kiss the bride"!

ratchley

Just some suggestions. Visit the site/location before the wedding and look for places or things that might be used in the actual shoot. Remember THE BRIDE is the most important part of the wedding! The groom is just there. Start from the very beginning of the wedding where the bride is getting dressed and her makeup on. Normally the brides maids will be there also.
Photo every part of the actual ceremony possible. If you get an isle seat just prior to the bride coming down the aisle then you can get a shot of her as she comes down the isle, it’s best to get out in the isle on one knee, shoot, then get back in your seat until the bride passes. Usually using flash during the ceremony is forbidden. Adjust you stutter speed and aperture accordingly. Hope this helps.

cdayton

Ten years ago, I shot a granddaughter’s wedding with a Nikon D300 (crop frame) with an 18-200 lens and it turned out fine. They are outdoors lovers and held the wedding on an overlook at Cedar Breaks (canyon near Zion NP). I didn’t pose any shots since I hate posed photos but still produced a fine Shutterfly book of memories for them.

mikeroetex Loc: Lafayette, LA

mikec01 wrote:

I have friends whose son is getting married. They ... (show quote)

Make a shot list. My dad was a semi-pro wedding photog in the 80's. He shot my 1st wedding and forgot to get a pic of my grandma (his mother) with G&B. She didn't let him live it down until 20 years later when I remarried and it was the first shot he took!
Also, if you have Amazon prime, this book may help.
https://www.amazon.com/Digital-Wedding-Photography-Dummies-Murphy/dp/0470631465/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Digital+Wedding+Photography+For+Dummies&qid=1604418902&sr=8-1

williejoha

All I can say is “ GOOD LUCK “. I consider myself a decent advanced photographer, but doing a wedding the answer would be a resounding “NO “. Be well.
WJH

cbw60

The wedding is a one and done event. If this is your first time you will miss things. That is why you should stay away from the job. Go as a guess and share your pictures. The job requires two people, patience with the family and friends. You must also be focus on getting good shots of the wedding and guess and not enjoying the event. When they asked for you to do this job they are expecting a lot more then you may realized. Going as a guess and taking plenty of pictures is much better and easier then going as an employee.

xt2 Loc: British Columbia, Canada

mikec01 wrote:

I have friends whose son is getting married. They ... (show quote)

Just finished a wedding, successfully. Maybe you might look at a couple of things Mike. Consider renting a fast lens for indoor work such as the ever-popular Canon RF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS USM lens or faster primes, that will make life much easier for you w/o changing lenses over and over. Also, acquire (if you haven't already) a speed light. You will need that for sure as the day wanes on... W/o proper equipment and being familiar with it you are doomed. Hope it all goes well for ya!

Cheers!

xt2 Loc: British Columbia, Canada

CHG_CANON wrote:

Would you hire yourself to shoot your own wedding?

Haaaa!

xt2 Loc: British Columbia, Canada

gmadeb wrote:

Relax and enjoy the experience. I am not a pro, just a grandma that takes a lot of sport pictures of my grand children.
I have done 2 weddings and a couple anniversary-family pictures for friends and they all turned out fine. They knew ahead of time they were not getting a professional. Most people are very appreciative. I found it to be very rewarding. I shoot with a Nikon D7200 and it does what I need. Like I said, have fun with it!

Cheetah34 Loc: Virginia Beach

I am like a lot of you in that I’m a serious amateur. I have shot two weddings for friends and relatives. My advice is to do it if you are comfortable with it but make sure you have a good understanding with the bride that you are not a professional and the results will be that of an amateur. If the wedding party throughly understands that, you should be OK. You’ve gotten good advice about preparing so I say go for it. Just prepare as well as you can and especially visit the venue a couple of days before and take lots of practice shots. Good luck

via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP

If you want to keep your friends, the answer is simple...don't do it.