I am NOT a wedding photographer, but I have several friends who are. I'll be sure to tell them to get rid of all their old DSLR equipment and buy new mirrorless because I read here that you said to do that. Yeah, sure I will.

Essentially, I am not a philosopher nor do I hold a degree in advanced business administration or corporate affairs. The goings on in international manufacturing corporations as to pre-emptive retooling is far above my pay grade.

Anyone who selects a wedding photographer, or any other specialized pro, strictly on the basis of their equipment is like making a seriously bad mistake. I can write a tome about the required skill sets and technical savvy that far supersede cameras and lenses.

Professionalism includes proper and appropriate equipment choices. A fairly current top-of-line DSLR system is far from antiquated or useless. At the end of the day, the client ends up with the resulting images, not the equipment.

The folks that are writing this approach would likely be offended or at least amused if someone was admiring their fine landscape, macro, wildlife, bird, or sports photography and saying "Gee- you must have a great camera". Actually, that is a kind of ongoing joke/gripe on this forum that applies to everything other than professional work!

A 25,000-word vocabulary and perfect grammar? Not me! Born, raised, and somewhat educated in Brooklyn, New York. College- mostly technical. If I were to write a book, I'd have to hire a professional ghost writer!

Best regards!

I was not going to respond to this thread because I sometimes experience difficulty in expressing myself in a logical, patient, gracious, and informative manner when I am angry. After reading the OP's complaint, I shut down my computer, took a drive to the dojo, and had a friendly fight with another old geezer- it was therapeutic! My bones hurt!

I have 61 years in professional photograhy and still offer wedding coverages as part of my services. Over the years I have worked with all sorts of equipment, some of which were big, bulkey, and somewhat noisy while being operated. I managed, however, to never become an invasive or annoying distraction at a wedding or any other event. It's a matter of professionalism, planning, timing, precise shootg strategies, and a sense of decorum, respect, good manners, peopl skills, and compassion.

So, why am I angry? These a sub-culture on this forum that surfaces wherever the the topic of wedding photography arises. The OP's rant is typical. Folks who are involved in other aspects of photoghay but never had the experience, pressure, and responsibility of professional wedding coverage, opine on elements of the job that they have absolutely no knowledge of. In other words, they don't know what the Devil they are talking about! Like typical "gearheads," they analyze real or imagined issues by working backward from equipment choices rather than perhaps the photographers' lack of technique or any of the aforementioned social skills.

I remember, as a kid, teasing our family doctor about his injection technique being painful. He retorted jokingly, "I can take your appendix out without taking your clothes off, and you would not feel it"! I loved that- laughed my head off and never felt the shot! My anaoligy is, I can shoot a wedding with a 4x5 press camera, a big old ugly 200-watt-second strobe and you woud hardly notice me"! A bit hyperbolic but y'all get the idea! It's all in the technique, timing, and approach.

Now let's get real. A photograher with all their equipmet can not be "invisible"- I am a big -ugly old guy with a grey beard but I move quickly and quietly. Any experienced and savvy wedding photographer knows how to operate efficiently and unobtrusively. Regardless, as a guest, you need to realize that the photographer is there on behalf of the bride and groom who expect a comprehensive coverage of their weddingg day. These photogahers are not the uninvited marauding Paparazzi- thye there are couple's bequest!

As a long-time wedding veteran, I can tell y'all that not all weddings are the same. Some are comparatively dignified, religious, and quiet affairs - perhas a string quartet or a smooth jazz group at the reception and some are noisy, raucous celebrations extending into the early morning hours. Thankfully, most are normal, fun, upbeat, and congenial events. Many venues do not have concert-hall acoustics, and DJs are usually not sound engineers or audiophiles- they just pump up the decibels to the point of hearing loss! Thank goodness most indoor venues, nowadays, prohibit smoking- one could easily be asphyxiated in the olden days.

Back to th OP's experience. Let's assume the photographers at that wedding were highly competent and experienced shooters and were just doig their job. Perhaps they would go unnoticed by non-photographers but photo-nerds, like me, might pay attention to what they were up to and become distracted. Some of the younger generations of photographers tend to "machine gun" every shot and thus the excessive mirror-slap and shutter noise. They "spray and pray", and I "gun and run"!

Wedding photograhy is a business that requre a hefty investment in gear. You can't expect, even an established photographer, to pack in a large inventory of gear just to suddenly change up to a mirrorless system. You can't expect the responsible photographer to completely abandon flash usage, especially if there is insufficient light to accommodate good exposure, adaquette depth of fied, action-stopping ability, and high IQ.

As Ron and other photographers who did wedding photography alluded to, the success in this kind of work is in planning and communicating. The photograher has to consult with the wedding couple in advance and ascertain what their expectations are as to coverage and then inform them as to the photographer's visibility and participation in the day's events. Good photographers network with clergy, officiators, caterers, wedding planners, DJs or musicians, florists and decorators, and other folks who perform service at weddings, to ensure smooth cooperation.

The attached image is my imaginary built-in oscilloscope readout at an average wedding reception. I have always said that wedding photography is not for the impatient or faint of heart. As for guests- some may requre dark glasses and earplugs!

As a photographer, I admire, respect and appreciate most photographers. I have a request to many of you.

I attended a beautiful wedding last weekend. As you probably recognize, most people do not know how to use a microphone and the sound engineers do not teach the bride groom, officiators or other speakers how to speak into the mic, or adjust the sound so people can hear the ceremony. Being an auctioneer, I know how, but most people do not.

To make matters worse, there was a photographer standing behind me (and many others, continuously clicking away with a DSLR. The sound of the shutter was very distracting and annoying.

Having both mirrorless and DSLR cameras I know how silent the mirrorless can be and a much better choice for weddings and other events that require quiet photography. If you are a professional photographer and are hired to do these events, please use mirrorless cameras. People around you will be much happier.

You can also differentiate yourselves when selling your services by letting your prospective clients know that you are using state of the art quiet cameras that will not detract from the ceremony.

If you are searching for an event photographer, ask the question, what equipment will you be using.

Needed to share. Rant over.

You did not offer it as an opinion poll. You specifically offered a direction to replace DSLRs with mirrorless ones. And you stated it was a rant. And in your response to my comment you pass judgement on me as liking to hear the sound of my camera because it makes me feel self important. I actually wasn't angry before that comment. I agree with the guy who said the issue isn't one of Equipment but one of technique. Maybe the reason I haven't heard this complaint before is that people were too polite to say something. But more likely it's because I am very aware of guests. I do my best to make sure I don't block their view and I am very aware of the potential for the sound of my equipment to be annoying and try to position myself so that doesn't happen. Perhaps you can find some new condescending comment about this, but I really hope not

Exactly! We try to stay out of people's line of sight. Aside from that, there are a few "magic words" that help if we inadvertently or momentarily get in the way or just need a bit of cooperation, They are "excuse me, please, thank you, may I...etc". Believe it or not, most folks are nice, friendly, and accommodating, especially at a happy family event. Oftentimes at these events, a guest will compliment me and my crew and say things like "You guys are really on it and I like the way you work" kind of thing. If you are kind and courteous, people will respond in kind- it's encouraging!

The way some folks talk about wedding photography one word think it's mortal combat between the clients, the guests, and the othere professionals who work there- some kind of adversarial relationship- not so! It's had work but it's good work and folks appreciate it.

As a photographer, I admire, respect and appreciate most photographers. I have a request to many of you.

I attended a beautiful wedding last weekend. As you probably recognize, most people do not know how to use a microphone and the sound engineers do not teach the bride groom, officiators or other speakers how to speak into the mic, or adjust the sound so people can hear the ceremony. Being an auctioneer, I know how, but most people do not.

To make matters worse, there was a photographer standing behind me (and many others, continuously clicking away with a DSLR. The sound of the shutter was very distracting and annoying.

Having both mirrorless and DSLR cameras I know how silent the mirrorless can be and a much better choice for weddings and other events that require quiet photography. If you are a professional photographer and are hired to do these events, please use mirrorless cameras. People around you will be much happier.

You can also differentiate yourselves when selling your services by letting your prospective clients know that you are using state of the art quiet cameras that will not detract from the ceremony.

If you are searching for an event photographer, ask the question, what equipment will you be using.

Needed to share. Rant over.

Essentially, I am not a philosopher nor do I hold a degree in advanced business administration or corporate affairs. The goings on in international manufacturing corporations as to pre-emptive retooling is far above my pay grade.

Anyone who selects a wedding photographer, or any other specialized pro, strictly on the basis of their equipment is like making a seriously bad mistake. I can write a tome about the required skill sets and technical savvy that far supersede cameras and lenses.

Professionalism includes proper and appropriate equipment choices. A fairly current top-of-line DSLR system is far from antiquated or useless. At the end of the day, the client ends up with the resulting images, not the equipment.

The folks that are writing this approach would likely be offended or at least amused if someone was admiring their fine landscape, macro, wildlife, bird, or sports photography and saying "Gee- you must have a great camera". Actually, that is a kind of ongoing joke/gripe on this forum that applies to everything other than professional work!

A 25,000-word vocabulary and perfect grammar? Not me! Born, raised, and somewhat educated in Brooklyn, New York. College- mostly technical. If I were to write a book, I'd have to hire a professional ghost writer!

Best regards!