> <BeginRant>
>
> I've just finished reading all the replies to the question of a list
member
> on how to shoot a wedding and I'm amazed at the insensitivity and
> thoughtlessness of you all.
>
> The person who posed the question is (from the tone of the post) pretty
> unsure of himself and the last thing he needs at this moment is a whole
host
> of "experts" telling him to run for the hills!. I thought the whole idea
of
> any community was to support and help each other, not to scare the living
> wits out of someone.
>
> Of course he's asked for advice and we shouldn't make out it's all a piece
> of cake with no worries, but come on, there are ways of saying things and
> there are ways of saying things. You should have kept the horror stories
> until after the event.
>
> </EndRant>
I agree completely. I'm sure some of this advice is just in fun, but some of
it seems to smack of elitism, or irrational fear-mongering. Shooting a
wedding for a friend/relative can be fun and doesn't have to be a disaster.
It is an opportunity to shoot something many of us wouldn't normally have a
chance to, and it can give a young couple the financial break they
oftentimes need. My experience has been that I exceeded "their" expectations
(but certainly not mine).
I think the biggest mistake for non-professionals (like myself :-)) is to
concentrate on the equipment too much, rather than on the posing and
composition. This list is of course more about equipment than wedding
photography, so I realize the advice here has to be taken it its context.
That's why my recommendations for "us amateurs" is to keep it mostly to a
body, a 50mm lens, a ttl flash, and Kodak Portra 400. Portra 400 will cover
most of your mistakes, it is very forgiving, and is what you need if you
only have smaller flashes. Put it in an Olympus Epic MJU/2.8, and you can do
a lot of the wedding that would satisfy most relatives. Take one of these
P&S as a backup, and eliminate the fears of complete failure.
I have attended many weddings, and, being a pastor, have officiated at
several. I've also taken the role of being the official photographer, though
not at the same ones I officiated at! I've seen more than one professional
photographer that I'm sure many of you here could match or beat. I'd share
some of the details, but this rant is getting too long.
This list is very gracious, and someone will commend you on most any photo,
or photographic pursuit..... except weddings. Why is that? :-)
Wayne
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