Digital Wedding Photography Free Tutorials

Shoot Your Digital Wedding Photos Like A Pro

Digital Wedding Photography Complementary

You’ve heard the saying ‘What can go wrong, will go wrong’ so be prepared for the day, and expect anything! Now I don’t want to be a killjoy, but the word ‘wedding’ evokes all sorts of tensions when we want everything to go smoothly on the day … The best way of looking at it is ‘go with the flow’ , accept what happens throughout the day, but set out to enjoy it no matter what … And you know, you’ll probably have a great day. For your digital wedding photography let’s get going with a few tips for the day in question …

Digital Photography Tips – Get Prepared

Check batteries are fully charged (carry a spare), supply of blank memory cards (carry spares … you can never have too many … it’s too late if you’ve filled your last card and wished you had brought a couple of extras … those memories you could have caught will be gone forever!

Digital Photography Tutorial…

Check your camera lens is clean – use an optic lens cloth (you can pick one up from an opticians)
Bear in mind the day’s itinerary – get to know the routes, and allow yourself enough time to get to and from each venue. If possible, attend the wedding rehearsal, this will help you with some good ideas for shooting positions and lighting.

Get Organised

Ask the couple for a list of shots they would like you to take on their special day. This way you won’t miss anybody out. If you can also organise that a family member be nominated to help round-up family groups for shooting (not literally!), this will help speed things up too.

Be Creative and Candid

Be creative and don’t be afraid to take shots including: rings, flowers, dress detail, shoes, ornamentals … you can pick up ideas by browsing wedding magazines. Alter your shooting perspective in addition to your formal shots, take shots from down low and up high. Take some candid shots of the bride, groom and guests showing their spirit … enjoy yourself and join in the fun … this way you’ll be capturing an all-round feel to the day, and for the couple … it will bring back that special day’s feeling.

Beware Backgrounds

When taking formal shots of groups, be sure to choose uncluttered backgrounds with shaded areas, away from direct sunlight. I remember seeing a friend’s wedding pictures and they looked bleached of colour and flat because the photos had been taken in direct sunlight. Watch out for any wandering guests … lots of people will be milling around while photos are being taken, so beware … you can imagine it – a posed group shot – you click the shutter when on walks a leg from some guest! Oops!!

Poses and Continuous Shooting

If you know the bride and groom personally, then they will probably feel more comfortable in your presence, but if not, try to be casual with the couple and make them feel more relaxed … the more relaxed they are, the more successful shooting session you will have.

If your digital camera sports a continuous shooting mode this is great for weddings – you could capture that perfect in-between shot in the movement of poses.

Light and Fill Flash

Use a little fill flash outside but don’t overdo it as you don’t want blown-out photos. Maybe knock back the dial a little. For backlit or midday shooting conditions there can be a great deal of shadow, so definitely use fill flash to give a more light-balanced photo at this time.

Lighting Techniques For Still Photography…

If the wedding is in summer time, and because most weddings take place from mid-morning to late afternoon, this is the worst time as the natural lighting can be harsh, causing bleaching or washing-out and hard shadows forming under eyes, chin etc … look for softer-lighted areas e.g. under trees, or natural-lit interiors etc.

If the day is ‘overcast’ don’t worry – I got married on a day like this and the depth of colour and detail in the photos came out beautifully … in other words you will have perfect natural lighting on a day like this.

Don’t discard those average shots or even mistakes!

If you take some average shots or mistakes, don’t discard them. Images can be cropped, manipulated for an ‘art’ effect, or you can even change colour to black and white to add contrast and variety to the wedding album photos.

Ending on an edible note – don’t forget to take a selection of shots of the cake, before guests arrive and ‘cutting the cake’.

This is just a basic digital wedding photography complementary guide to preparing and getting things in order for you taking those special pictures, but remember, be yourself and have fun in doing it and you will enjoy it all the more!

Author: Yvonne Grubb

Yvonne owns Digital Photo Tutorial which offers people information on digital photography tips

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Yvonne_Grubb

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