Beach wedding in florida
May 18, 2012 08:36:35 #
Ok guys, I am very stressed out and would love some suggestions. A friend of mine is getting married on the beach at 6:00 in the evening and wants me to shoot her wedding. Our sand here is Very White. Looks like snow and I told her I do not do weddings and the light will be very harsh. There will be 2 of us shooting this and we are both concerned about the lighting. we would love suggestions because neither of us do weddings. Too much stress if we mess up. Told her we didn't want to do it but she has insisted........
May 18, 2012 08:38:28 #
Mommyx23 wrote:
Ok guys, I am very stressed out and would love som... (show quote)
My advice?
Don't do it. If you are stressing about the color of the sand and don't know what to do....then you don't have enough general photography experience to handle something as important as a wedding.
I'm not being cruel, I'm being realistic.
Keep your friend, go to the wedding and give a gift...but don't shoot it.
May 18, 2012 08:55:19 #
Stick to your guns. Out door weddings are tough enough I have done two of them (outdoors) went to both venues before the weddings. The first one changed the setup after my visit which changed the lighting requirements luck was with me had showed up early. The second was by the water and had an extreem high tide spent hours removing garbage from the water that showed up in the photos. I would hate to think about beach sand and its effects. Tell your friend that you value her/his friendship more than a chance to photograph their wedding
May 18, 2012 08:57:19 #
Hey, I say go for it. Go visit the beach a few times w/ your other photographer around that same time of day, bring a few friends and take a bunch of test shots of them. Play around with different settings and see what you get. Get back to your friend with the results and talk about expectations. If what you can do is what she will be happy with, you're good to go! Great way to grow and learn.
May 18, 2012 09:03:47 #
I have experiance with beach shots, but do not like the pressure of doing a wedding. The two of us both know that the harsh sun on the white sand is very dificult to shoot. The good thing is the time of day we will have some ambient light. The bride also broke her leg and is in a cast. LOL so some of the cool water shots are off the table!
May 18, 2012 09:19:10 #
donrent
Loc: Punta Gorda , Fl
Go, but don't shoot... If you do the wedding and it comes out like you are afraid of, then YOU'LL be the A-H who ruined her wedding....
May 18, 2012 09:46:42 #
donrent wrote:
Go, but don't shoot... If you do the wedding and it comes out like you are afraid of, then YOU'LL be the A-H who ruined her wedding....
We're being serious, not cruel.
Quick! Name the full f/stops as fast as you can!
What's the sunny 16 rule settings at f/2.8?
If you can't do that in your sleep, then please, rethink this idea. A wedding photog (who does pro quality work) is someone who knows their craft inside and out. Camera settings or how to expose for white sand aren't something they are wondering about....nor are any other settings or things like that.
They have it all down cold, in addition to what shots to get, how to pose people effectively, how to get people to do what they need quickly so they don't waste valuable time, and on and on it goes....
If that's not you...then give this some serious thought.
May 18, 2012 10:03:22 #
OK I don't understand why do you have to do this? I'm always amazed when I see someone post saying "a friend is getting married and ask me to take the pictures, I said no but they insisted.... " Are they holding a gun to your head? Did they take your first born and refuse to return him until you take picture of their wedding? Simply tell them you don't feel comfortable in your ablities to shot not only their wedding but any wedding. I tell people this every wedding season and I've shot over a dozen weddings as a second shooter. I know I'm not ready to take on a wedding myself.
I don't want to come off as mean but if you are stressing about the colour of the sand, the harsh lighting and don't think you can do this, then why do it? Why risk a friendship over photos? There are no do overs in wedding photography and not only can the bride turn on you if you fail but her mother and her mother-in-law will spear head the attack.
I don't want to come off as mean but if you are stressing about the colour of the sand, the harsh lighting and don't think you can do this, then why do it? Why risk a friendship over photos? There are no do overs in wedding photography and not only can the bride turn on you if you fail but her mother and her mother-in-law will spear head the attack.
May 18, 2012 10:11:39 #
If there is time, hire a pro to do it and there is your gift. Go in with the other photographer and foot the bill so the Bride gets great pics that she deserves. YOU don't need the stress!
May 18, 2012 11:23:23 #
Ditto Dasloaf.
Then if you want to shoot also fine just stay out of the pro's way. Your photos will supplement the Pro's by catching some of the candids. I won't shoot weddings due to the pressure but often provide a gift of screened and edited supplementals. I know the people and can get meaningful interactions the Pro wouldn't know to get. The pressure is off because no one is expecting anything and are over the top pleased when they get them.
Then if you want to shoot also fine just stay out of the pro's way. Your photos will supplement the Pro's by catching some of the candids. I won't shoot weddings due to the pressure but often provide a gift of screened and edited supplementals. I know the people and can get meaningful interactions the Pro wouldn't know to get. The pressure is off because no one is expecting anything and are over the top pleased when they get them.
May 18, 2012 11:36:12 #
Well we told her we do not want to shoot it, but she will not take no for an answer. They are on a tight budget and this is a second wedding for both. I know that she is not expecting spectacular pictures, just some to remember the day, but its still a lot of pressure on us. I WOULD SAY THAT I know my way around a camera, but hate posed pictures and I am not great at it. I like more natural shots. I would appreciate. A few suggestions for poses or a website to research it. Remember. The bride. Has a full cast as well. Broke her leg.
May 18, 2012 11:39:23 #
By the way no pro will be there except me and the other gal and we are middle of the road..not armatures, but not pros either
May 18, 2012 11:47:34 #
dasloaf wrote:
If there is time, hire a pro to do it and there is your gift.
That's a pretty good idea.
Then you are your friend would be free to just be on hand to shoot casual candids. (candids often end up being more popular later with the B&G then the professional portrait type pics)
It just makes me very nervous when someone comes into a beginners photo forum and asks for tips on shooting a wedding because they have never done one before, and it turns out they are THE main photographer. Yikes!
May 18, 2012 11:48:13 #
Mommyx23 wrote:
Ok guys, I am very stressed out and would love som... (show quote)
That is a difficult situation. Many times people will think that because you have a fancy camera and take nice pictures you can shoot a wedding. They don't realize the amount of experience needed. Then when the photographs don't look like what she imagined, don't look like they were done by a professional with years of experience there could be hard feelings. Add to that that you are uncomfortable about doing it, unsure of your abilities, don't want to do it, and stressed out, it's a disaster in waiting.
May 18, 2012 11:56:44 #
Mommyx23 wrote:
Well we told her we do not want to shoot it, but s... (show quote)
It sounds like you've already decided to do it and are just looking for someone to tell you not to worry, that you'll do fine and give you a crash course in wedding photography.
If you want to reply, then register here. Registration is free and your account is created instantly, so you can post right away.