 BetterPhoto Member |
shoot wedding someday Hello... first post! Recently I have found myself staring at wedding photographs- particularly the porcelain faced brides in black and white. I have been shooting for quite a while now(alright, maybe not as long as some of you- I'm only 22) with a little success. I shoot mainly skateboarding, lifestyle, and occasionally landscape photos and I have even had a few photos published in magazines... opening a magazine to see some of my photos was one of the coolest things ever!!! However, wedding photography looks like a completly different animal and I'm not sure how to tackle it. My camera of choice is a Leica MP with a 35mm ASPH and 50mm lenses. I'm not really a big fan of digital (there's no photographer in photoshop... joking!). I can understand how my mechanical MP may not be ideal in the wedding setting, and though reluctant I know I may have to use a different camera. I am curious, because I have no experience in shooting weddings nor do I know any wedding photographers personally, how many of you would consider digital necasary for a good shoot at a wedding? For those of you that have shot both, which would you consider better when you take into conideration that digital is not film but you still need to be certain that you get enough good shots for the bride and groom? One thousand bad digital shots are free, the same can't be said for film. I would appriciate any responses, even if they highly biased. Thanks, P.S.- The guy at my local camera shop told me that Agfa is going under. I was surprised to hear this, but I was never one for staying ontop of the business world. Does anyone know if this is any truth to this?
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TERESA J. SWEET |
Hi Jon! Welcome! I'm sure you'll like it here for a lot of BP members have wonderful advice and thoughts. Photography started as a hobby of mine 10 yrs ago, and now it's a profession. I mostly focus on weddings and portraiture right now...although after photographing my 1st wedding about 5 yrs ago for a family member, I thought I'd never do it again...now I love it. lol. Anyways, shooting with both film and digital is 2 completely different experiences for me. I loved film and still do...but I find more use with my digital, both personally and professionally. Before I turned "pro", I spoke with about 20 other pros that were in the business for at least 20 yrs, and every one said that although some still use and prefer film, this is the era where in a couple years, most if not all, will be using digital. I learn new things every day with my digital and find it quite exciting (although sometimes frustrating). Most pros I spoke with in my area all recommended the Canon 20D, which is what I ended up buying...but again, that's a personal preference, for there are many great cameras out there. I do not know much about your camera but if you are interested in starting or trying out weddings, start by taking portraits at family or friend's weddings and work your way from there. You'll be amazed at some results you can achieve. CONGRATS on your published photos, for it seems like you are already onto a great start!
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Mark Feldstein |
First, the bad news: Yes, Agfa has actually folded. So far the only division to survive is chemistry. Their film division, as far as I know, hasn't been purchased by anyone although at one point Ilford was interested. For new developments (err, so-to-speak) keep an eye on Agfa's (former) website. As to your Leica MP, it's an excellent piece of equipment and your lenses, whether made in Germany or Canada, are good choices for openers and weddings especially your 35. I wouldn't go any wider than that for events including weddings. In fact, I'm a photojournalist and have two M-6's. My own preference is a 35, 85, and 135. There are different styles to shooting weddings. Some are documentary using tried and true poses, others are the more photojournalistic, unposed approach, that works well too. The object in either one is to capture the essence of what's going on with all the emotion etc. In my view, it's not the equipment, but the photographer driving it. In that respect, which equipment you use is a matter of personal preference as Teresa said. So you can and should be able to do great work with either a digital or film camera. I'm one of the pros that still prefers film and I was pretty bummed to hear about Agfa. In fact, I'll only use digital equipment when an editor insists that I use that to complete an assignment AND provides me with the camera and lenses to use as well. For websites, you ought to look at http://www.APUG.org. Sort of a haven on the net for film shooters and the "d" word isn't mentioned around there. But you'll find a lot of threads on film, processing, film cameras like Leica, Nikon, Hasselblad, among others and a lot of old-timers like moi' who still use them professionally. BTW, most film shooters I know consider film to be the cheapest commodity we have to use and tend to shoot a lot of it. For example, when I'm on an assignment, on the average day, I'll easily go through 10 rolls of 36 exposures. Sometimes more if I'm using motor drives. Doesn't matter because compared to my time and the client's expenses, film is really cheap !!! If you want to shoot weddings and aspire to wedding photographer greatness rather than mediocrity, notwitstanding whatever equipment you shoot with, practice, practice, and practice more and see if you can intern with someone or more photographers already in the biz. Also study the work of wedding photogs but develop your own particularized style. One way to get hooked into that is to join the local chapter of an association like WPA, PPof A, etc., or the assoc. I belong to, ASMP.org. While ASMP is mostly photojournalists and commercial shooters, we still have some who do weddings. If you seem more into photojournalism, take a look at National Press Photographers Assoc. Good group of folks too. Hope this helps you out and meanwhile, welcome to the party Jon. !!
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Jerry Frazier |
Mark said it all. I'd just like to add one more thing. If you want to rise to greatness, don't look, study, or even consider looking at other wedding photographers. I mean, certainly, go work under one for a few years (highly recommended - and pick one that is very high-end and that knows his/her stuff). But, look to photographers in other fields that instill aspiration. This way , you will develop a unique style and fresh look at weddings. If you study other wedding photog's, your style will look like every other wedding photographer. The way you succedd and catapult into greatness is by being different; not by copying.
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