| Dare you take nude wedding photos? | |
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| Oct 13, 2010 02:58 | #11   |
 | Thank you very much, Gaffer. I have learnt that how difficult to be a good wedding photographer after reading your posts. Actually, I did this one time. The bride was my high school classmate. She asked me to take photos at her wedding ceremony. I was too shy and nervous to get close to the platform. And I just got a small digital camera. The photos didn’t look good. Luckily, there was another guy who took the pictures too. What do we do on the wedding day? The groom goes to the bride’s home to pick her up. But it is not easy for him to get into the bride’s house. Some strong men guard the doors to prevent the groom coming in. If the groom wants to get in, he needs to slip red envelope into the door. It is not done when the door is open. The bride’s shoes are hidden somewhere. He has to find the shoes and helps the bride wear the shoes. After that, the groom brings the bride back to their own home. Then they head to the hotel to proceed their wedding ceremony. At the wedding ceremony, they will exchange wedding rings and propose toasts to the guests. When the wedding ceremony is done, they get back to their home. Their friends might go to their home to tease the bride on wedding night. We call it “闹洞房”. Believe me, getting married is very exhausting. My friend told me that she was exhausted after the wedding ceremony. |
| Oct 13, 2010 03:06 | #12 |
| Gaffer, I will remember your advice and do my best to take photos for my friend. Thanks again! Forgot to say, there is usually a professional cameraman on the wedding day. He is paid to shoot videos to record the groom and bride’s happy day. My friend is afraid that the cameraman might miss some scenes. That’s why he asked me to take photos for him. |
| Oct 13, 2010 10:31 | #13 |
| Bu yong xie. Here are a few practical tips. Get close enough (or zoom in) to fill the frame. If people get in the way MOVE THEM, but allow others to take their photos too. On a sunny day use fill in flash to lift the shadows. Back lit (sun behind with fill in flash)looks good for portraits etc. Use a wide aperture to throw the background out of focus. If you have it, Aperture Priority is good to use. Be aware that some dress material can become semi transparent with strong flash.  Take control of the guests. They often have not seen each other for a long time and will be busy catching up with gossip instead of listening to you. Don't be afraid to give instructions, if the photos are not good there will be only you to blame. A good photographer gets his business by recommendation from previous weddings....far cheaper than advertising.  |
| Oct 13, 2010 20:53 | #14 |
| Millions Of Thanks to you, Gaffer. I used my friend's DSLR to take several wedding photos for my colleague once. Seriously, it was my second time that I had used a DSLR to take photos. Some of the photos look nice but there are some photos that are blurry. I will get my own DSLR very soon. I know that I have to practice much more. Aperture Priority is good to use. Actually, my small digital camera has aperture priority and I have taken many pictures in this mode. Be aware that some dress material can become semi transparent with strong flash. Got it. I will pay much attention when I take photos. To tell you the truth, I am very shy. However, I become different when I have my camera in hands. I love taking photos. When I have a camera in my hands, I just think that I need to do my best to take beautiful photos. If the photos are not good there will be only you to blame. I see. That’s why I asked my friend to find a pro to do this job. But he refused and required me to take photos. Anyway, I will do my best to do it. I am not a pro but I am trying to be a pro, haha. |
| Oct 13, 2010 20:58 | #15 |
| One more question: What lens do you use before to take wedding photos, prime lens or zoom lens? |
| Oct 14, 2010 03:56 | #16 |
| In my days as a photographer I used a 6x6cm medium format camera. A larger negative gives better results for clients requiring BIG prints. I used 3 lenses, 65mm Wideangle, 80mm standard, and 105mm short telephoto. The equivalent on a 35mm camera would be approximately 28mm, 50mm and 80mm. On a modern DSLR, the kit lens supplied with the camera, which is usually around 18-55 zoom, would virtually cover the range of those 3 lenses. Using a slightly longer than standard lens is more flattering for portraiture and helps decrease the depth of field (throws the background out of focus). For portraiture, if you get too close with a standard or wideangle lens it can magnify or distort anything close to the lens...usually the nose. Ladies tend not to like their noses being made bigger. For close portrait shots it might be wise to use manual focus and focus on the eyes. For photos which are pleasing to the eye rememnber to use the "rule of the thirds". |
Last edited by GAFFER: Oct 14, 2010 04:02 |
| Oct 15, 2010 02:13 | #17 |
| Thanks for answering my question, Gaffer. I understand that 50mm prime lens is good for portraiture (either on a APS or full-frame DSLR). I have also seen some guys use 85mm prime lens to take good portrait images. Due to my poor photography technique, I can not use 50mm or 85 mm prime lenses. I think that it is not a good idea to use a prime lens to shoot at the wedding ceremony. Of course some top photographers (like you) can do it. It is more convenient to use a zoom lens. You need not walk frequently to adjust your focal length. Originally, I planned to buy a Nikon 16-85 zoom lens. But it is too expensive (around 4500 RMB). Now I’ve changed my plan to buy a Tamron 17-50 f2.8 lens. It is around 3000 RMB. Do you think it can help me finish this “tough” job? |
| Oct 15, 2010 02:44 | #18 |
| Most DSLR cameras come with a kit zoom lens of around 18-55. This is perfectly adequate for wedding and general photography, and far easier than the "old days" when I had to keep changing lenses. The prime or non zoom lenses are good for specific tasks and usually have a wider aperture, hence the high price. I wider aperture gives a brighter viewfinder. Zoom lenses are a compromise design and are never as good as non zoom. The aperture also gets smaller (less bright) as you zoom out. However, unless you intend to print (on paper) very large sizes there is no need to be too concerned about the highest quality lenses or the largest pixel count. Mega pixels are simply a marketing tool by camera manufacturers. For pc use or printing up to A4 size, a 6m camera is fine. Composition and exposure are the two most important things to get right. |
| Oct 16, 2010 22:15 | #19 |
| Gaffer, thanks a lot. I have been thinking for a long time to buy a camera lens. I don't know what I want to buy. I am not a pro but I might be a pro one day, haha. Taking pictures with a camera is very interesting. |
| Nov 2, 2010 06:15 | #20 |
| These days nothing is private and your photos will eventually end up on the internet. |
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