Several rambling thoughts here (since my name was mentioned)...
I always get a good chuckle reading everybody's war-stories when it comes
to wedding work. It's a given that something WILL fail during wedding
assignments, but the key factors are knowing your equipment and using your
brain.
I don't get suckered into friends/relatives weddings easily. I'm fortunate
that I do it for money. I'm able to say that my basic package is $800 (+/-
$200 depending on how I like the couple). And, no, I don't let them have
the negatives either--I make money on the reprints.
This summer I was shooting for a wedding photography company and totally
used their equipment and setups. My last wedding was a gut-wrenching
nightmare. The groom was this ex-Navy guy that had "Cave-Man" written all
over him. He barely drew short of dragging his bride around by the hair.
My one-year old daughter had more teeth than the entire first row. The
bride had two mothers and three fathers--all of which were completely
intoxicated prior to the ceremony. I think the bride (and her eldest
daughter) were in the midst of a month-long Meth high slightly lowered with
depressants and who knows what else. Her eyes were almost primary yellow
and I suspect that her liver and kidneys were on the verge of total
shutdown. I was the most expensive part of the entire wedding. No fancy
gowns and everything was borrowed. Somebody dropped the cake so it was
really messed up and leaned like that building in Pisa, Italy. My primary
focus at that wedding was to keep from getting decked by the groom. I've
never seen anybody go off like that guy. He was downright terrifying. If
there wasn't a contract in place, I would have hoofed it. The number one
rule in wedding photography is "DON'T EAT AT THE RECEPTION!" Believe me,
with the exception of sampling the Oreos right from the package (yes,
Oreos), I didn't venture very close to the various selections of E. Coli
and Saminella.
I have learned some valuable lessons:
1. I am now extremely picky about the weddings I'll shoot. Couples who are
shacked up together and get married are lousy wedding customers. First of
all, they don't buy any reprints (true) and they don't value the ceremony
as much. The ceremony is all about romance and commitment--both of which
are usually less important to a couple already living together. (not
always, but usually). Rarely will you find any "sparkle" in thier eyes on
the wedding day. Young couples usually have a major attitude problem, but
sometimes can be brought under control if you call their bluff. Having
already put down a $400 non-refundable deposit they will usually do what
you tell them if you rip into them. I absolutely love doing old couples
and ethnic weddings.
2. Don't be shy. When the minister says "I don't want any pictures taken
during the ceremony" you answer with "I WILL be taking pictures here, here
and here at these times." Make him understand what your expectations are
too. When a minister says that, just remember that he is just trying to
keep it from turning into a circus. Radio slaved cameras can help get some
shots here.
3. Go for faster film over less grain. Your "hit-rate" with 400 speed film
will be much greater than 160 film. Grain is so minor (even with 35mm
film) on today's wedding emulsions that I don't hesitate to use 400 speed
for everything (with a couple spare rolls of Fuji 800 in my pocket). With
the 400 speed film you will have far better flash/ambient ratios and a good
fudge factor for when the flash fails to fire.
4. Remember the Bokah. My three wedding lenses are the 24/2.8, 35-70/2.8
and 100/2.8. Do NOT use a zoom lens with a mimimum aperature of 3.5 or
higher. Fast glass is extremely important as it allows you to shoot at 5.6
under normal conditions and 2.8 for hand-held natural light shots. I
despise the shots I was taking for this company as my fastest glass was a
28-135/3.5-4.5 lens. I'm sorry, but the Bokah is aweful when you can't
shoot at any brighter than 4.5 in the telephoto range. If all you want are
snapshots and candids, then fine, stick with a nice convenient zoom, but
for beautiful portraits you need a narrower DOF than 4.5 will give you.
5. Use the biggest honkin lenshade you can find on your zoom and telephoto
lenses. They don't do anything, but they do make your little OM look like
an RZ67.
6. Use a Stroboframe. Keep that flash above the lens--period. This is the
one absolutely manditory piece of equipment now for wedding work. A
Stroboframe also gets the flash far enough above the lens to minimise
red-eye, increases contrast and throws the shadows down enough to be
pleasant. This is the one and only piece of equipment that I feel is not
optional. I have a homemade jobby that works okay, but I am definitely
getting my own before too long.
7. Don't plan on shooting too many rolls of film. The average wedding will
take four rolls of 36 exposure film. If you go with tons of film, you will
not be focusing on making really good photographs, but hoping that you get
a good one in there someplace. I would rather get the exposures right in
the first place than bracket. I verify my exposures with two camera meters
and a handheld meter. The candids that you shoot are for the couple. Let
the other attenders take their own pictures at the reception.
8. Whenever possible, try to use ambient (natural) light. During the
reception use flash exclusively, but the ceremony and closeup couple shots
are best done around windows. The formals will be with flash, but I'll
cover that in the next point.
9. Formals are a nightmare. No getting around it. Work very fast and
efficiently. Work backwards if possible--Start with the entire wedding
party and dismiss people as you go. Keep your shooting zone free of other
people and make it known where you can't have anybody standing behind you.
Try to use a strobe in a softbox or umbrella up on a tall stand just on the
left side of the center aisle. Try to position the flash in a 1+1
position. Huh? The flash-subject distance is equal to subject-background
distance. This way you get a nice -1 stop background. Looks very natural
and doesn't require any fill flash of any kind. If you have two strobes,
place them on both sides of the center aisle and pull the umbrella out a
bit farther on one of them to get a slight decrease in exposure from that
unit. If possible, stick a 100mm lens on a motorized camera and place it
on a tripod down the aisle pre-focused. Use a long shutter-release (hooked
to the winder/motordrive) and stay close to the people, but just outside of
the frame. (Make sure you use lenshades).
10. Be you. Develop your own style of photography. People hire me because
of my unique and fresh styles. Don't be stuck in a rut, but you do need to
get the 18 standard shots. It is important that you try not to be a
different type of photographer for wedding work, but apply your unique
style to wedding work. Granted, there are the standard shots that no
amount of creativity or uniqeness applies, and for those read the "how-to"
books.
11. Six months to one year after the last reprint order has been filled,
sell the negatives to the couple for a nominal amount like $50-100. With
the high divorce rates today I wouldn't wait too long, nor try to get too
much. Consider it a "bonus" and a night out with your mate. I waited too
long on one wedding I took last year and they were divorcing after nine
months.
12. Ignore the couple. They don't have a clue what they want. They are
only thinking of themselves when it comes to figuring out what pictures you
should take. Remember that in most successful wedding assignments, less
than half of the reprint income comes from the couple.
13. Keep it simple. Use one camera and keep the second in the bag. I vary
from this only in that I have a second camera that I use to ONLY take
backup pictures with. All of the really critical shots I'll get with two
cameras, but only those. (I also use medium format to get a few high
quality shots with, but keep it to a minimum).
14. Run!
Ken Norton
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