Always a common topic when I mention to fellow photographers that I'm a professional wedding photographer, is "So I've been asked to shoot my friend/sisters/brothers/mothers/cousins/roomates/etc wedding, what tips can you offer me"

Although my answers usually vary depending on what that person knows about said wedding... This little resource can help the budding wedding photographer out.

http://johnlind.tripod.com/wedding/

Extract from site:


and hopefully some of you will be able to see the benefit in this and perhaps grab some good snaps at the same time

Matt

and following on with this a few general styles of shot I try to capture at all my clients weddings:

Have a wedding this Saturday and thought this checklist might be handy for people who may be shooting weddings in future.

At the bride's home

Bride full length
Bride head & shoulders
Bride & parents
Bride with mother
Bride with father
Family group with brothers & sisters
Bride with bridesmaids - full and 3/4 length
Bridesmaids individually
Parents together
Shoes & Dress
Bride preparing - makeup/styling bridesmaids fussing about.
Flower girl/s page boys - Relaxed atmosphere
Brides Bouquet - Can be used later for add-ins to other images.
Brides veil - Detail shot
Bride getting into car and in car.




Prior to and during ceremony

Groom
Groom and best man
Groom, best man and ushers
Groom with his parents
Groom with brothers & sisters
Groom's parents
Arrival of bride's mother and bridesmaids
Arrival of Bride in car with father
Group photo of bride, father and bridesmaids
Wedding location setup (church / outdoor setup)
Signing register
Bride & Groom walking up the aisle
Bride & Groom framed in doorway looking back into church



Outside Church

Bridal party
Bride & Groom with Bride's parents
Bride & Groom with Groom's parents
Bride & Groom with Bride's immediate family
Bride & Groom with Groom's immediate family
Bride & Groom with Groom's relations
Bride & Groom with Bride's relations
Candid shots of guests
Candid, non-posed shots of wedding party.

Prior To and During ceremony

Guests waiting at ceremony.
Candid reactions of Bride, Groom and guests during ceremony.
Exchange of rings.
Marriage certificate.
The Minister or celebrant for inclusion into the album.


At the reception

Posed cake cutting
General view of venue/tables
Shots of speeches & guests reactions
Bride & Groom first dance
Preparing the wedding car
Bride & Groom leaving reception
Pre-shoot the cake before proposed cutting of cake
Close-ups of flowers and other decorations - can be used as add-ins to compiled images.

Other tips I can offer

Find out as much as you can about the couple and their friends/relations before hand.

Double check the location prior to the wedding day at about the same time as the wedding will be. This will ensure you are familiar with light patterns and possible lighting & location problems before the day.

On the day, change lens often (or have multiple cameras each with different lens) to gain different impressions of the wedding.

Keep an eye out for the unexpected action or reaction from any attending the wedding. They make a difference when the married couple view and select the images for their album.

Never use an on-board flash unless you absolutely can not afford or borrow even the most basic speedlight or analog unit.

Caution Notes
A lot of photographers' camera and gear goes missing at weddings - make sure it is not yours.
Have ample cards, batteries to cover the wedding or an assistant to copy cards down to a portable drive.
General Rule of thumb is 1 camera battery pack per 300 shots (most cameras can do this nowadays easy, with my battery grip I can shoot about 1000 shots without a rechard)
1 set of flash batteries per hour of flash photography - for me that's usually 2-3 sets of 4xAA batteries (usually 2 is enough)


This "checklist" can be used to order the day into a structure, I usually distribute this out before the day and have the bride and groom (usually bride only) determine what type of shots would be important to her

Generally a vast majority of my clients insist on doing everything as Candid as possible... This has positives and negatives, in my mind more negatives, being that usually on wedding day you'll find people walking around wanting to hug & kiss, talk to the bridge/groom and block your shots, and you end up with a limited oppurtunity for those 'special' shots... some candids are fine, but I generally always lean and can convince the couple to setup shots, meaning you can control lighting proplerly, ensure the right people are in the photos and make sure all bases are covered in terms of coverage.

Anyways... this is my speil... it turned into more of an essay then a quick guide

Thanks Mattson..

3 weeks ago i did what i could at my sisters wedding and a friends wedding the later the same day.

I immediately thought about this thread so i come back for a read and copied your check lists. (Hope you dont mind)

Which ended up very lucky cause The pro photographer at my mates wedding was using a film camera and messed up pretty much every shot. Which in his wifes eyes was an absalute disaster.

Me being the only other person there with a higher end camera (Canon EOS 30D) managed to get most important shots for their photo album..

I was quite impressed with the way my shots come out as were they. I was always curious about shooting weddings but nervous at the same time incase i messed up, as most people only getting married once

Now i'm in talks with a mate about starting our own little thing with him being right into filming and editing and me being into still shots we thought it might be a good little weekend buisness venture for us, for couple's who want film and stills of their special day.

good work mate - no i don't mind, that's why I posted it here

it is a real shame when 'pro photographers' go around ruining peoples special day with terrible results.

I've seen it a few times now, with wedding industry pros, and with people good at taking pics of other things thinking they can do weddings just as easily and all producing just rubbish results.

anyways... good work again.

Matt

Greetings...

Shooting a wedding is a big responsibility. The list photos to get in the above post is good... follow it.

To cover everything that needs to be done, how to 'handle' your bridal party, keep things moving, etc, etc....we would fill quite a few pages on the post..... if there was one single tip I would give a starter, it is...

Keep the subjects head at the top o the frame, generally speaking. So many 'family friends' shots have the subjects head in the middle of the frame.

This is our work....
www.thatsmephotography.com.au

Check out the gallerys for some ideas if you like....

Leigh