Today when it comes to the arts...
...most people in my experience do not bother to discern
between "good enough" and "the best shit ever" and the skills that a
professional wedding photographer may have to offer can go largely
unnoticed in some commercial markets. This has nothing to do with not
being good enough. The minimum skill set you need to operate a digital
camera is NOTHING like the minimum skill set to operate a film based
system (however to shoot digital well does in reality require a higher
level of accuracy and understanding of the equipment than most anyone is
willing to dedicate to learning).
I don’t mean this as any kind of judgment, just a simple statement of
fact. Therefore, if all you are looking for is "good enough" or
"whatever's cheap" a professional wedding photographer is now directly
competing with someone with a digital camera that on a good day is "good
enough" (but on a bad day, well...).
Does this mean that professional wedding photography as an industry is
in its death throws? Well, I don’t know but what I do know is that here
in southern California you cant spit without hitting a novice
“photographer” with an add in the paper or their wedding prices posted
on the net.
The Nuts and Bolts of Wedding Photography
One of the most asked questions I get is how to and what does it take
to be a wedding photographer. (also one of the most searched terms on
the internet in one form or another). The first answer to that is absolute and intimate understanding
of the equipment you are using, every button and dial on that camera
body must be operated by second nature, you will not have time to stop
to look and make adjustments.
I will typically shoot a wedding ceremony with two identical camera bodies, one with a "standard" zoom lens (Nikkor 28-70 AF-S f/2.8) and the other with a "long" zoom lens (Nikkor 80-200 AF-D f/2.8). I will also have a backup body at hand with a second standard zoom that my assistant may be shooting with. I will shoot with flash only when absolutely necessary and most commonly in outdoor daylight situations in order to overcome harsh shadows.
The pre-wedding (bride getting ready, details etc.), group shots and
romantics, I will shoot with several different prime lenses and a
standard zoom, I like to pull the newlyweds aside for a while to
photograph them alone after the wedding ceremony using a long zoom, It
gives them time to let it all sink in and also is a great opportunity to
get some "semi" candid shots.
I still use some film rather than a digital capture with my higher
priced wedding packages, it is better suited for some situations even
though the expense is high and scanning from film for retouching is a
logistical post production nightmare. Now...having said all that.
What does it really take to be a wedding Photographer
I know many highly skilled Editorial, Commercial, Photojournalist and Portrait Photographers that would run screaming from the idea of shooting a wedding.
Why?
Professional Wedding photography takes a different kind of person,
first of all you have to love weddings. A wedding photographer must be
both emotionally and psychologically flexible yet stable and have the
capability to work well under extreme amounts of pressure...without
showing it. The most important tools for photographing a wedding are:
compassion, flexibility and intuition. Oh and nerves of steel, good
balance a sense of humor...and oh, did I mention you never get to go to
the restroom?
Why hire a fulltime professional wedding photographer?
This subject really hit me when I was attending the wedding of a friend
this last March. She had hired a photographer to shoot her wedding
(later I found out that she was too embarrassed to ask me because she
could not afford my prices).
When the “photographer” showed up with a Nikon D-50 and the kit lens,
popping the little on camera flash. I said to my self: “Oh”…"No Way.”
(Actually, I said something entirely different however I’ve already been
busted here once for my use of colorful language).
...I always have some
gear in my trunk.
I asked him if it was okay if I shot and he acquiesced. Latter in the
evening he asked how I could see my shots on “that little screen”
pointing to the ISO/DX LCD on the back of my Nikon F-5... A Film Camera.
I processed the film and gave the negatives to my friend as a gift (I rarely shoot film anymore except for my own weird retro sense what real photography is, however I had the better part of (I think it was) 8 rolls, about 250 shots.
Her “wedding photographer” rendered a CD of unedited shots in basic
jpeg all for the low, low price of $995. They were all shot in Automatic
and the camera ISO was left at 800 so there was a lot of "noise" in the
images and they were severely oversaturated.
This guy is not my competitor; actually this incident has been one of
my greatest advertising coups. My friend has become a walking talking
public service announcement for professional wedding photographers in
general and Colegrove Photography in particular.
Other Articles By Daniel Colegrove: Photojournalism: Shooting Under Stress - Photography and Visual Communication - Answers to Frequent Questions Headshot Photography. - Wedding Photography.