I've got two little sisters getting married over the next six months!!!

I've got two little sisters getting marriedover the next six months and have been drafted (I learned long ago in the Corps not to volunteer) into photog duty!Both will be small intimate mostly family weddings. The first will be outdoors in about a month.The other in a church this fall.


Mykit includesan XSi, Tamron 17-50mm f/2.8, 50mm f1.8 II, 3-430EXs and aST-E2. After two attempts at one from Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 L USMfrom XSi on hand that belongs to one of my sisters. I'm hoping I can plan well enough to not to screw this up too badly.


Everyone is welcome to throw out random advice orrecommend books/websites on Wedding Photography with aparticular emphasis on posing. Posing is something I've got to really work on...kinda sweating here!

The books are great, but they can get pretty pricey if you need more than one. What I would suggest is going on the websites for professional wedding photographers. They always have some of their portfolio on display for advertising purposes. When you see a shot that catches your eye, make a note of what made it good. I do this for modeling photography quite often. I may spend an hour cruising the net, but I will come out with 15-20 solid poses that I feel comfortable using.

I can't help you with posing...but, may I ask, will you be able to recruit an assistant to help you?

Well, everyone is going to tell you not to shoot these weddings, because they can be very challenging. I'll skip that advice, becuase you're probably going to be doing it no mattter what.


I see several positive items on your list inlcuding: two identical bodies and two lenses that will serve you well. I use the EF 70-200mm f/2.8 at almost every wedding. I also love to have a wide angle on one of my bodies. You also have the ability to throw a lot of flash at things with all those 430's. Your equipment will probably be enough to get the job done, just make sure you have batteries and cards to cover the duration.


Now here's the actual advice...You probably won' get every pose right or be able to shoot every shot that a two person professional team would get. Don't let that stop you from getting something spectacular. One great photo hanging over the mantle may be what the bride really wants. Focus your efforts on the bride and groom and take a lot of pictures from the wedding march to the kiss. Even if you aren't able to use flash during the ceremony, get that 70-200 on a tripod in the back and shoot the bride and groom and shoot and shoot. The wide angle shots from near the floor can also be spectacular, especially look for items in the background (like a cross) that might add to the compsoition. Don't have candle sticking out of the top of the brideshead!!!


I also think you can get a lot of ideas from a site like photo.net. Go to the galleries and pull up the wedding category and look at the top photos for the last year. If it helps, print them out and stick them in a binder that you can reference as you need. I have a four page shot list that I actually fold up in my pocket at weddings. I don't want to forget to shootrings, cakes or bouquets.

You might consider asking to borrow that XSi plenty early, just so you can make sure it'll be reliable for the event. I'd also consider renting a 24/1.4 or 35/1.4, and an 85/1.2 for the events, especially the church one.

I understand your worries. My in-law's had family friends getting married a month or so ago and they wanted me to photograph the wedding. It was very small and relaxed and not a huge deal to them, but I was (and still am) brand new to dslr photography. I just got my 50D in November. Luckily for me, I was already scheduled to be out of town for work. I say luckily in the sense that I didn't have to photograph it, not in the sense that I missed the wedding all together.


The more I learn, the more I realize that I didn't know. Experience is the biggest learning tool for me. Shooting something as important as a family members wedding is big. Depending on the area you live in, you may want to call some local wedding photographers and see if you can take part and/or observe them in action. I've never done that, so you may get nothing but negative responses if they think you are extra competition. But seeing what they do and how they do it would probably help quite a bit.

For the church one, take some of the guests as well as the bride and groom at some point, and shoot some portraits outside in some nice shade. Or get some light modifiers like umbrellas to soften your light indoors.

Here is a site that a friend does. He has shot a fair number of weddings and I really enjoy looking at his work. You will have to skip around some since he also does senior and child portraits. Keep in mind this is a two person team working here and that he has a lot of professional equipment to work with. He also has done this for a while so there is plenty to learn from him.


http://pitmanphotography.squarespace.com/


One thing I really like and he seems to do at every event is a macro shot of the rings. These shots are always creative and are really pretty.


Hope this helps some,


Samuel

Thanks all!!!

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Originally Posted by Sean Setters

...but, may I ask, will you be able to recruit an assistant to help you?
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<p style="CLEAR: both"]Doutful, for the first (outdoor) one as my most likely candidate would be my wife and she is a bridesmaid. She will be helping on the second (church) one.

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Originally Posted by Dallasphotog

...I'll skip that advice, becuase you're probably going to be doing it no mattter what.

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Yea I'm really on the hook. The good news is the guy that did my wedding and everyone elses in the particular region of Nowhere Mississippi, hasn't set the bar too high.

I've been shooting as second-hand with this fine photographer. I really admire the style of the albums she delivers to her clients.
The pictures on this websitehttp://wedding.johannathomsen.com/#home have been edited and setup for a storybook.
Here is a example of a whole storybook: http://wedding.johannathomsen.com/#29.17In this album we where two photographers. I was following the groom and she was following the bride.
Remember to look at the pages in fullscreen mode.
The website isn't in english, but I think you guys will get the idea anyway :)

Regarding equipment we have had 350D and 400D with 24-70 F/2,8; 70-200 F/2,8 and 2x 430 flashes. Recently we have upgraded our bodies to 40D and 5DMark II and a couple of prime lenses.
Regarding inspiration goto your local library and search for weddingbooks or styles of shooting weddings. Or search amazon.com for wedding (styels) books and try to loan them from your local library.
Regarding the practical issues when shooting weddings.
1) Know your equipment. You need to know when a particular lens is razor sharp, because some of the motives you aren't going to get a second chance. And to know what kind of shutterspeed you can hold steady.
2) Know your creative side. WhenI began shooting second hand, I imagined amotive and I tried to described it in writing what I would try to show in this imagined picture. How I would get the bride/groom to pose. How they should have there hands, angle of headetc etc. The angle on the camera (frogg VS bird perspective), what aperature and how I would use/point my flash