3 Stages Of Wedding Photography Preparation

3 Stages Of Wedding Photography Preparation
By: Tulsa Wedding Photographer
Jake Aldrich

The failure to prepare, is preparation to fail. – John Wooden

While this may have been applied to basketball at the time of the quote, this principle applies to many important things in life, including wedding photography.
This preparation for the wedding day can be followed in three steps. Treat them like wedding rehearsals. Let’s see how.

A Few Months Before
A few months before the actual wedding, a tulsa wedding photographer should
try and do a planning ‘run through’ with the wedding couple, and plan out the day. You may not have all the details chosen yet, but it is a good starting point to get things narrowed down. An experienced photographer can also help you with ideas that you may not have thought of, and details to consider.
Another thing to potentially plan for is a “photo-run-through” aka, engagement photos. As a photographer, you get to know the couple even further, learn about their personalities, and get them ready for feeling comfortable when posing for pictures. Besides these advantages, you get the opportunity to discuss style with the wedding couple, and inquire more intricate details they would want to incorporate in their wedding photos.
You can also use this time (either in addition to, or in place of) to do bridal portraits. Usually featuring the bride and her dress, many times at the place of the ceremony (or at another scenic location) the bridal portraits offer the bride a chance to get some beautiful shots that she and all of her family members will want to keep, and possibly more importantly, gives the bride another excuse to be the princess if the day. Getting dolled up, hair and makeup done, and donning the dress that she plans to be married in is a great run through for the big day.

One Week Before
This is ‘making sure’ rehearsal for the wedding day, in order to ensure the same situations discussed previously are still on the list.
Most important shots like pre-ceremony and post-ceremony shots of the couple or the group shots should be planned at this time. Shot sheets that feature specific family member names can also be very helpful in organizing the day, since it is difficult to off hand remember every shot you may want, especially in the whirlwind of the day.

The Night Before
Sleep well! Your big day is ahead of you, and your photos are the last thing you will need to worry about. With the preparation you have gone through for the day, everyone should be on the same page, and you are free to enjoy your big day!

By: Tulsa Wedding Photographer
Jake Aldrich
Epic Photography Tulsa

Creative Lighting tips for Photography

Panning is a great technique to use if you want to create special effects in traditional photography fashion. You can make interesting images in the camera, without digital manipulation or photoshop filters. Like previous articles on creative lighting, you will be using similar techniques and settings on your digital SLR. For starters, panning is created when you follow a moving subject with your camera, photographing with a slow shutter speed. Here’s a few tips to get you started.

When shooting for my wedding photography company, I use the panning technique mainly during the reception. This special effect is great for dancing photos, especially line or circle dances popular in many European and Middle Eastern cultures. Let’s apply this technique to a large group of people, holding hands and circling around the bride and groom in the center of the dance floor. You want to capture the crowd, as it circles the happy couple and give them motion.

Take up a position in the center so you can see the dancers facing inward. In order to give the image a feel of movement, you’ll need to use a slow shutter speed. Since 1/60 is the lowest shutter speed for stop action, you can slow things down from there. Try setting your shutter to 1/10 of a second, using an adequate f/ stop and ISO to balance your exposure. If your camera has a rear sync shutter setting, turn that on too. This will make all objects and light appear to move in its true direction. If you are inside and there is ambient light, you can add fill flash to light your subjects. Aim your camera at the dancers and follow them in the direction they are moving. When you press the shutter, continue to pan the dancers and follow through until your exposure is complete. If you pan at the same speed the dancers are moving, the background will appear blurred while the dancers are in focus. If you are using a strobe, the light will give the dancers a good “stop action” effect too.

Working as a wedding photographer gives me many opportunities to be creative. You can get some really fun and interesting images once you master this technique.