I shot my first wedding this wknd...

[ACArmstrong]

...and really enjoyed, even if the space was small and the weather didn't really cooperate for good shots BEFORE the wedding.

Here's the results...

[Todd Patten]

Very nice work! Did you use mostly natural light or attached flash?

[natatbeach]

These are lovely...i hope I do as well this weekend for my first wedding...I'm way nervous...we'll see

anyway these are beautiful...

[ACArmstrong]

Todd - everything at the makeup counter and inside the chapel was shot with my 10D and a 420EX flash (and about a million batteries :insert rolling eyes icon here. Everything else was shot with natural light.

Thanks for the compliments - I was pretty pleased with how things turned out, but it was a humid, stormy day - during the actual wedding I made two laps around the outside of the chapel to get different angles - from then on I was sweating like a pig. Of course, I slept really well that night.

[ACArmstrong]

40+ views and only 2 people commented...I figured some of the pros and semi-pros here would at least give me a little "encouragement" or "discouragement" about this first attempt to shoot a wedding - but only two comments so far.

I would love to read some feedback on these - positive or negative doesn't matter - to be told is the only way to know - to know is to understand - to understand is to learn - and I really wanna learn how I can be a better photographer.

[opus]

well I've only shot one wedding so I don't feel qualified to answer, but I think they are very good. What I liked most was the unique shots. Loved the makeup counter mirror one.

Your shots made me go back into my archive and look at mine, and I thought, dang, mine aren't as good. Well, they're good in a different way, but I was limited in location. Yours *look* professional. Sharp, great color and saturation, nice whites and darks. Good poses too. You really captured the happiness of the occasion. They look so relaxed.

[ACArmstrong]

Thanks a lot Kelly. I'm just trying to guage where I stand with this first attempt, and your comments helped. Thanks again.

[another view]

Looks like you did a nice job. I too have only shot one wedding so I'm not really much help here - but a couple of the B&W shots look a little soft to me. Maybe that was the intention, and it's hard to be critical looking at a small image on a monitor. Batteries, batteries, batteries - remember it well! I use rechargeables, they seem to last at least twice as long as alkalines.

[Spike]

I think you did a great job capturing the joy of the occasion. Everyone looks so happy and at ease, none of those fake smile-for-the-camera smiles. You must have had a good rapport with them.

Can't give you any pro/semi-pro advice, as I'm neither.

Spike

[megan]

fantastic photos! congratulations.

megan

[ACArmstrong]

Thank you all - I used to be a corporate trainer at a Fortune 400 company (30 new folks every 2 weeks), so I don't usually have trouble connecting with people and building a rapport. The folks at this wedding were hands-down the nicest group of folks I've ever seen at a wedding, so it was really easy - and it didn't hurt that the bride is a work acquaintance.

[Todd Patten]

AC -- Did you use a soft filter or did you PS the images to give the softening appearance. Or was it just that humid

[ACArmstrong]

I did use a a soft filter on some of these in PS - but I used a lens that I knew would be somewhat soft as well.

I used an omni bounce on the 420EX to spread out the light and either bounced it off the ceiling or a piece of white foam core - that made the light a little softer as well.

[Chunk]

You could use the Critique forum when you want feedback.

I like the reactions to the flowergirl that you captured.
The first couple color shots seem yellow to me while the color on the rest is OK on my monitor.
I don't think the second B/W is on a level with the other shots - they seem almost perturbed about something - at the least it doesn't seem like a flattering shot.

[ACArmstrong]

Thanks for the comments, Chunk - I'd never looked at that BW that way - I guess you're right - they do kinda look a little pissed. It was the bride's sister and the bride and they were intently staring at some new products at the makeup session. I shot it because it shows just how much they look alike.

Also - I would've stuck this in the critique section, but historically speaking, when I post in Critique I get like one or two comments and then completely ignored - almost like I took a whiz in someone's Cheerios. It gets really frustrating when you're trying to learn. That's why I posted here.

Who knows, maybe I will try to post in the Critique section again.

Again - thanks everyone for the comments and compliments. I was hoping Hodgy would give me his 2 cents, as I think his shots are among the best wedding photos I've ever seen.

[coloradoamigo]

but if I ever shoot a wedding, I can only hope to do this good on my first try. These are great. Let's hope Hodgy sees these, he will give you some critique for sure.
Good Job Andy!!

[schrackman]

Hi Andy,

I've never shot a wedding either. although I may possibly be shooting some 'pre-wedding' shots for my sister-in-law fairly soon, but these are all fantastic! The bride and groom should be very, very pleased with them. I think for your first time you did an A+++++ job. Good work!

Now, here's a question or two for you...I'm in the market for buying a flash, so since you mentioned you have the 420EX, how do you like it? Would you say you wished you had the 550EX, or did you feel the 420EX was sufficient for the job? I'm shooting with a Canon DRebel, in case you didn't know, and am leaning towards the 550EX but would like your input anyway.

Ray

[ACArmstrong]

Ray - I guess that's kinda like waving $20 in one hand and $50 in the other and asking the guy which one he'd rather have. ;)

I've been very happy with the performance of the 420EX, but I don't really have anything to compare it to. I've not used the 550EX. I guess the thing to remember is that the 420EX has no way to control it manually. It's controlled completely by the camera (no LCD). I got the 420EX, because I HAD to have an external flash system and I knew my wife would KILL ME if I spent another $350 on this camera system right now. It was well worth it and performs nicely.

Would I like the 550EX? Do people in jail want out? hehehe

[Hodgy]

Well, I'm just checkin in (out of town doing some work for another studio).

These images are great! First wedding huh? Wow. Your clients should be more than happy with these. It looks like you were using available light and flash fill, maybe try a reflector to see what kind of results you will get. Again, all of these are excellent..............and your presentation is top notch (white pinstripe, black matte).

Keep it up, shoot shoot shoot.

[ACArmstrong]

Thanks a million, Hodgy. That means a lot coming from you - your wedding photos are fantastic.

I just got off the phone with Gretta - she's the gal in the third pic getting her lips painted. She'll be over to my home studio for a photo shoot friday night. She has a very unique look and I think we can make some really nice fashion/fine art portraits. I'll be sure to share.

[Todd Patten]

Thanks a million, Hodgy. That means a lot coming from you - your wedding photos are fantastic.

I just got off the phone with Gretta - she's the gal in the third pic getting her lips painted. She'll be over to my home studio for a photo shoot friday night. She has a very unique look and I think we can make some really nice fashion/fine art portraits. I'll be sure to share.

OK. I'm going to slip into my "I'm a guy so live with it" mode. If you can get her to do some nice, tasteful nudes, then DAMN YOU ARE A LUCKY MAN! And I assume not married

Now, the photgraper in me says, "Nice subject. Good lines. Should be a very productive shoot."

[schrackman]

Ray - I guess that's kinda like waving $20 in one hand and $50 in the other and asking the guy which one he'd rather have. ;)

I've been very happy with the performance of the 420EX, but I don't really have anything to compare it to. I've not used the 550EX. I guess the thing to remember is that the 420EX has no way to control it manually. It's controlled completely by the camera (no LCD). I got the 420EX, because I HAD to have an external flash system and I knew my wife would KILL ME if I spent another $350 on this camera system right now. It was well worth it and performs nicely.

Would I like the 550EX? Do people in jail want out? hehehe

Yeah, I get your drift. Well, the wife is not against my spending the money, so I suppose I should go for the gusto while she's still amicable to the idea, hehe. Actually, we generally allow each other to get the things we both want when we have the money, so it's not a big deal financially whether I get the 420EX or 550EX. I've been looking at the 550EX for quite some time, so as I said I am leaning that way and will probably get it in the near future.

Thanks for the response.

Ray

[ACArmstrong]

OK. I'm going to slip into my "I'm a guy so live with it" mode. If you can get her to do some nice, tasteful nudes, then DAMN YOU ARE A LUCKY MAN! And I assume not married

Now, the photgraper in me says, "Nice subject. Good lines. Should be a very productive shoot."

ROFLMAO

I doubt there'll be nudity, but sexy shots - I'm sure of it. I am married, but I'm a pretty lucky man. My wife would be right there going, "Wow, you're a beautiful girl - maybe you should unbutton your shirt a little more." - Sometimes she's worse than me about pointing out hot women.

Ray:

My wife and I are good about letting each other get what we want when we want it, but my setup that I bought last month (10D - 3 lenses and the flash) cost more than my first car. I'll hold off for a bit on the 550EX.

[Speed]

And I don't play one on TV. ;-)

I've shot six weddings so far, so I have limited experience. But here's my two cents worth.

YOU DID GREAT!

Sorry if that was too verbose for you.

I really like the bride and bridesmaids getting ready shots. They are very nice. The shots with people joking, laughing and having a good time always are nice. It conveys a great feeling for the whole affair.

I'm not a big fan of black and white, but the mix of color and black and white really works well here IMHO.

Now that you have one (wedding) under your belt, you'll be much more confident the next time around. Congratulations on a job well done.

BTW, how many "frames" did you shoot?

[ACArmstrong]

Thanks, Speed - how many frames?

I shot from about 3:30pm (makeup counter) - 9pm (bride/groom's exit) and ended up with about 500 total photos, from that I widdled them down to about 150 photos for the bride & groom to pick from.

BTW, I carried the Apacer Disc Steno with me - it's a stand-alone CD burner for those of you who haven't heard of it. It worked fantastic. As soon as I burned up a CF card, I handed it off to my wife (who played the role of assistant that day), and she burned the photos to CD. It takes about 11 minutes for secure burning (every file is checked against itself after burning) and it was SO easy.

This little thing has a rechargeable battery and plugs into an AC outlet. It has a remote control and hooks to any TV or VCR via RCA jack - and besides being able to look at JPG images in slideshow format, it allows you to play DVD's and MP3's through your television (handy on vacation). I know I sound like a commercial, but this thing was well worth the $279 I spent on it at B&H.