Jenn M
Veteran
Sep 12, 2006, 12:40 PM
Post #7 of 19
(1081 views)
Shortcut
|
|
Re: [szerangue] Engagement shots - our first attempt!
[In reply to]
|
Can't Post
|
|
Hi Shane,
It was sooo much fun - I had a blast. I love being able to interact with them. You have so much more control. But it does take some practice. A few times at recent weddings, I had a split second to snap off 2 or 3 shots for a DVD cover, and I rushed, so they didn't come out very good. You do have to train yourself to take your time and to evaluate the image before you snap the shutter, making the proper adjustments, not only with settings, but with posture and positioning. That was where I went wrong before, also. I didn't give them any instruction (at those previous weddings) and as a result, the still image suffered for it (hunched shoulders or scrunched faces). I have to remind myself that I am allowed to speak and interject some direction, which I did more of yesterday at the engagement shoot, and it paid off.
The centered shot - yeah, I know what you mean, but it would probably work well as a square print. In that case, that was one of those spontaneous moments that I quickly snapped the shutter to capture the emotion, obviously paying less attention to framing. But I was just happy to get some genuine reactions. Something I've always noticed with video - often times the subjects with have the genuine reaction or emotion AFTER the photographer lowers his/her camera. That was the case here, my camera was on the way down - I quickly pulled it up and snapped that off. I now understand better why it's nice to have 2 photogs - one to be the principal photographer, directing and posing; the other to caputre more genuine spontaneous stuff, like with video.
Like I said earlier, it was a little nervewracking knowing I had people waiting for me, so I didn't want to screw around with settings too long b/c I didn't want their attention or enthusiasm to wane, so I tried to work quickly and efficiently and that will come more with practice and experience. For example, in front of the tavern, (which was where the couple met) it took me a little longer to get the look I wanted, compensating the flash, making sure I had less DOF to keep the couple and the words on the building in focus, etc. The groom-to-be started getting a little anxious. He felt 'stupid' with people driving by looking at them, people in the window looking out at them, and then some pain in the arse had to walk by and make a stupid comment about papparazzi. So it pays to learn appropriate settings, which again comes from practice, so you can work quickly and efficiently and not 'lose' your subject.
Christine, the bride-to-be, did ask what they should wear. I told her to wear whatever they felt comfortable in, but it's better if they don't clash - such as to wear the same color in different shades or whatever. Or, if they wanted to wear black shirts with denim jeans - something like that. But she chose green since that is going to be the color for her wedding, and I like that. Incorporating those personal elements - I always enjoyed that with video, so I hope to continue it with the photo. Like asking how they met - she told me it was at that Tavern, which happened to be right up the street from the park, so I suggested we go there. Whoo-hoo!
About posing them - I again had to remind myself that it was 'okay' for them to look at me. With video, I've never been a huge fan with the subjects looking into the camera. It just felt 'odd,' but with photography, obviously, that's the norm. Most of the shots I took have them looking at each other, chatting or whatever. I do tend to prefer that look b/c as you said, it's more natural, less posed, which I hope will become our 'style.' But still, I'm aware, people DO expect those standard shots, so like I said, I have to remind myself to tell them to look at me.
Similiarly, I have to remind myself to shoot wide. I, too, prefer the extreme close-ups, BUT especially with weddings, brides want to see their gown! I JUST had a bride pick up her video, and as always, I asked about her photos. One of her 'complaints' was that the photographer didn't get any full length shots during their first dance, and very few full length formals. Ah-ha! That's why I remind myself to do it. After all, you can always crop the image if you need to (though you lose a little quality). But variety is key. Tight, medium, wide. I did take an extreme closeup of the ring, as well (which I didn't post here) so I did my best to vary shots.
Wow, I guess I rambled long enough. Hopefully some of this will help. It is a lot to think about. I shot everything in manual as I prefer that and find I like the control (big surprise - me, the control freak). The tricky thing is learning how your camera reacts to different lighting situations (again, something that comes with practice) and adjusting accordingly. I used fill flash on nearly every shot, since I just read the PlanetNeil info on flash - (thanks for the link, guys!). Brian shot without flash. Both yeilded nice results.
I still have to keep practicing so this all becomes second nature! It much nicer to be able to pay attention to the composition and content and just know the settings I want to use to achieve a certain look.
|
