 Kathy L. Pollick |
Tips for Taking Wedding Pictures This might sound like a dumb question, but to those of you that do paid weddings; do you ever use a tripod when taking the wedding pictures? We had a photographer (she's a hobby photographer, not a pro) who just did our daughter's wedding. All the shots were hand-held, and I was under the impression that if you wanted to blow any of the photos up beyond a 5x7, you should have the pix taken on a tripod for sharpness.
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Kerry L. Walker |
Yes, I use a tripod. No, I do not use it for all the shots. I mainly use a tripod for the shots taken in the church during the ceremony without a flash. I have many photos blown up to 16x20, and beyond that were not taken with a tripod and they are plenty sharp. A wedding is a fast-moving event and, for most shots, a tripod is impracticable.
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Kathy L. Pollick |
Well, I wrote Debby to see if she would be willing to tweak a few of the photos for me. The photographer does this as a hobby, not a profession. (Friend of the groom) and she does NO editing on anything. For the most part, I could have done as good. Not to say they are bad, but they just don't have that professional look to them. All I can say is, at least I have some photos to remember the day. I was trying to find one of the wedding shots to put in the local paper & I actually couldn't find ONE with them stand "cozy" together. They are all standing side by side, staring at the camera.... seemed a bit amaturish to me. No real creative poses. Most are very traditional looking. I'm hoping to convert a few to b/w & do some hand tinting (well not me, but debby).... I just wanted a couple really special looking pictures of the kids.
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Kerry L. Walker |
When I am shooting formals of the bride and groom at a wedding (and bride with Dad, etc.), I tell them to enjoy themselves while I get set up, even though I am standing there ready to shoot. They think I am doing something with my camera, so they relax and, often get quite intimate, smiling and looking lovingly at each other. I shoot THAT, then I pose them for the formals. The unposed shots are usually the best ones.
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Cyndee Wanyonyi |
Wow, Kerry. Great thing to tell the B&G and Dad/Bride. I am going to try that next time :). It seems that lack of creativity in poses is a common problem among newcomers ...
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Kerry L. Walker |
Sometimes you can say something like: "Well, Dad, your little girl is grown and married now" and you will get a tear - great shot if you can get it. When shooting a wedding, you have to be part photographer, part wedding coordinator, and part psychologist. Just interact with them a little, and direct them a little. If all you do is pose them, all you will get are posed shots. Posed shots are nice, but it is more important to capture the emotion of the event.
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Sandy D. Anton |
Hi Kathy, We shoot around 100 weddings a year. I shoot the weddings where there is a natural bond or attraction to the people, and so on and so on. I hear quite a bit that pros use a tripod, pros don't use autofocus, etc. Kathy, I have found that a good photographer will follow advice for lighting and then develop their own style. Honestly, I never touch a tripod! I have no use for it. I sell 30x40 prints from weddings, they are outstanding. Focus on creativity and lighting and you will be successful!
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Julie M. Cwik |
Hi Kathy, Don't use a tripod if you have a fast enough lens. If you don't have a 2.8 lens, then grab that tripod and bring it along just in case.
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Maria Melnyk |
Nothing wrong whatsoever with hand-held shots. Flash will stop the action and the image will be sharp regardless of the size of the enlargement. If the situation calls for a tripod, however, one should be used even if all someone will order is a wallet size. I use a tripod for altar pictures if I want to bring out the light in the beautiful altar area so the background isn't dark. I use it for available light shots when I can't hand-hold the camera due to the shutter speed I need. And I use it when I absolutely must have a perfect horizontal or vertical, where even the slightest tilt would be noticeable, like when I'm matching straight lines in a scene, such as a horizon at a beach. I use it when doing portraits if I have certain props in there, like columns. But, other than all the above, hand-held shots are fine and allow me to work faster and get more shots. (And Kathy, this is by no means a "dumb question.")
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