WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY : Mr. & Mrs. Querubin

I have been getting a lot of praises on my photography these days, from people who have known me for year as well as those who encounter my pictures online in my blog and my social networking sites. While I don't necessarily believe all of them, I appreciate it as an indication that my skill in photography has really improved since I acquired my Nikon dslr more than a year ago.

As a result, I get offers for photography coverage from all sides---most of which I refuse. At times, when my wallet is thin, I am sometimes forced to accept. In most cases I don't. Specially when it comes to covering life events such as birthdays or weddings. I always tell them I am not that confident yet. Reality is, I am not good at handling pressure. I get stressed with the fact that I get all these praises and so when they ask me to cover an event, people definitely have high expectations of me. Those expectations freak me out.

I remember a couple of bloggers contacting me to cover their wedding. I refused all of them, until one May evening, somebody finally convinced me......

the lovely couple Michelle and Gilbert..

Michelle is a fellow blogger who I've known online a few years ago. We regularly visit each other's blog and exchange comments. That way, we came to know each other a little each time even if we haven't seen each other in person yet. That became a very big factor why I accepted the offer to shoot for her wedding. I was hesitant at first, I told her its not about the money, it's more about my name being in the line. She believed in me and she has good convincing powers. I was too weak to resist.


This was my first ever WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY coverage and I learned a lot from it. I wanna share to you what I realized which was summed up in my favorite photography website--Digital Photography School.

HERE are some of the WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY TIPS 
you might find helpful.......


1. Create a ‘Shot List’--get the couple to think ahead about the shots that they’d like you to capture on the day and compile a list so that you can check them off. This is particularly helpful in the family shots.

2. Wedding Photography Family Photo Coordinator--Get the couple to nominate a family member (or one for each side of the family) who can be the ‘director’ of the shoot. They can round everyone up, help get them in the shot and keep things moving so that the couple can get back to the party.

3. Scout the Location--Visit the locations of the different places that you’ll be shooting before the big day.

4. In Wedding Photography Preparation is Key--So much can go wrong on the day – so you need to be well prepared. Have a backup plan (in case of bad weather), have batteries charged, memory cards blank, think about routes and time to get to places and get an itinerary of the full day so you know what’s happening next. If you can, attend the rehearsal of the ceremony where you’ll gather a lot of great information about possible positions to shoot from, the lighting, the order of the ceremony etc.

scout the location

5. Set expectations with the Couple--Show them your work/style. Find out what they are wanting to achieve, how many shots they want, what key things they want to be recorded, how the shots will be used (print etc). If you’re charging them for the event, make sure you have the agreement of price in place up front.

6. Shoot the small details--Photograph rings, backs of dresses, shoes, flowers, table settings, menus etc – these help give the end album an extra dimension. Flick through a wedding magazine in a news stand for a little inspiration.

7. Be Bold but Not Obtrusive--Timidity won’t get you ‘the shot’ – sometimes you need to be bold to capture a moment. However timing is everything and thinking ahead to get in the right position for key moments are important so as not to disrupt the event. In a ceremony I try to move around at least 4-5 times but try to time this to coincide with songs, sermons or longer readings.

8. Learn how to Use Diffused Light--The ability to bounce a flash or to diffuse it is key. You’ll find that in many churches that light is very low. If you’re allowed to use a flash (and some churches don’t allow it) think about whether bouncing the flash will work (remember if you bounce off a colored surface it will add a colored cast to the picture) or whether you might want to buy a flash diffuser to soften the light. If you can’t use a flash you’ll need to either use a fast lens at wide apertures and/or bump up the ISO.

9. Shoot in RAW--I know that many readers feel that they don’t have the time for shooting in RAW (due to extra processing) but a wedding is one time that it can be particularly useful as it gives so much more flexibility to manipulate shots after taking them. Weddings can present photographers with tricky lighting which result in the need to manipulate exposure and white balance after the fact – RAW will help with this considerably.

10. Consider Your Backgrounds--One of the challenges of weddings is that there are often people going everywhere – including the backgrounds of your shots. Particularly with the formal shots scope out the area where they’ll be taken ahead of time looking for good backgrounds. Ideally you’ll be wanting uncluttered areas and shaded spots out of direct sunlight where there’s unlikely to be a wandering great aunt wander into the back of the shot.

complete list of tips here: 

Personally,the most important TIP --is to have fun. This is what I dread the most, I have a very short attention span and my fear is that I might easily get bored in the event. When I do, I lose interest and become too lazy to shoot. That means missing on the essence of the event therefore, failure to capture the moment. That means disaster for any photographer. During Michelle and Gilbert's wedding, I was able to build instant connection with the couple and enjoyed every moment of the wedding. We were shooting and laughing as if we were on a travel tour taking fun pictures. When you are having fun, you forget the time, you don't feel the tension and you get better results because you are happy with what you are doing.

After you call it a day, it's up to you and you PC and your editing software (if you have any--which I highly suggest) to do the talking. Putting the final touches is like putting the icing on the cake--the finishing touches. That translates to sprinkling a little more love into it.

the photographer with the couple....

To Michelle and Gilbert, congratulations again and may you have a lifetime of happy life as a couple.

PS: I cried a little a few time during the wedding coz I saw me and my wife in the two of you. I know the look of true love when I see one. :D
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