Tip #5 part B : Never drink any alcohol at all if you are the hired photographer at a wedding/reception. It's just like an auto accident, you will be blamed if anything goes wrong with the photos, even if its not your fault whatsoever if you were seen drinking any alcohol at all during the event. jco
-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Stan Halpin Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2007 10:43 PM To: Pentax-Discuss Mail List Subject: Re: Asked to do a wedding. Like Amita and others, I have shot around the edges of weddings (informal shots to supplement the pro's product) but haven't taken the full load. I've had good feedback on what I've done (but what can you expect? They got more than their money's worth from me! And besides, I had the advantage of knowing which people were important and which weren't.) I don't think I would take on the official job, primarily because my flash skills are minimal. And my sense is that the lighting control is the most difficult technical aspect of the job. High contrast, huge color range (black tuxedos, white dresses...), low light conditions in the church or hall, wide angle shots of family groups (that exceed normal flash dispersion). Etc. If I were to take on such a job, I would: 1. Read some good books, like j said; 2. Go to a wedding or two and study the work of someone who, hopefully, knows what he/she is doing; 3. Look at some wedding photographers' web sites. tv, for example, does stunning work. 4. Before the wedding, go through some alternative checklists with the customer and find out for sure what their expectations are. 5. Buy or borrow backups to everything you plan to use. Practice changing batteries in the flash. Practice using all the gear. 6. Buy a big bottle of fine whiskey for after the party. stan On Jan 24, 2007, at 3:20 AM, J and K Messervy wrote: > I have been asked whether I'd be interested in photographing the > wedding of > the brother of an acquaintance. > > Now, I'm a very keen amateur and have been really into photography for > about > 15 months. I'm really thrilled to have been asked (the request was > based on > my work in my online gallery), but also more than a little hesitant to > commit to doing it. The wedding isn't until October, so there's lots > of > time to prepare. > > I've never been responsible for taking photos for any important event, > I > just take them for myself. I know the technical side and use the > K10D's > various manual functions, etc and I know I'm a reasonably good > photographer. > I'm not sure that I'm good enough to do a wedding though, it's more > than a > little scary. > > I know there are people with pro experience on here, so I'm looking > for advice, tips, etc. > > I reckon if I do it, I'll want another flash (360 to go with my 540), > a fast > normal range zoom, lots of SD cards, etc. What else should I be > thinking > about? I will have plenty of time to prepare and the venue is here in > Canberra, so i can scout it out and try shooting my family there, etc. > > Should I back myself, trust my skills and jump in? It could lead to a > lucrative sideline and would certainly boost my experience and > confidence if successful. It would also be a real sense of > accomplishment if I did a good > job. What pitfalls are there? > > I don't even know what I should charge. I reckon I'd have to spend a > bit on > gear to be ready, but I can't factor that into my fee. > > Any and all tips, tricks and advice would be greatly appreciated! > > Thanks > > James > > > -- > PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List > [email protected] > http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net > -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
