How To Shoot A Wedding Without Losing Your Head

When I was hired to shoot my first wedding last summer I was excited, then scared, then downright terrified...You can almost imagine the plethora of thoughts that ran through my head.. "what if I mess it all up? what if the images are only half-decent? what if I get so nervous that the 'photographer' part of my brain exits via my ears?.."
Yes, I was scared, and I think that helped me to not just survive the wedding, but create some great images that the couple are proud to have in their album and hanging on their walls.
How was being scared helpful?? It made me plan, and plan some more.. and go over my plan, and visualize the day as best as I could. I knew that if I was organized I would be successful.. which brings me to the main topic of this post;

Being unorganized for a wedding shoot is like going into a gunfight with a toothpick~

~It All Starts With Some Coffee And Conversation~

The first step in shooting a wedding is the consultation with your client, in which you'll sit down and discuss exactly what the client is looking for. This covers how they want the wedding shot (do they want anything posed, or do the want nothing but candids.. do they want the reception covered, or just the ceremony?) This gives you an idea of what you will be covering and how you'll be doing it. You will also go over 'the package' which is what you will be delivering to the client. This can and will include the album and it's design, how many prints will be in the album, larger prints and frames, CD/DVD of images, and any other deliverables that the client may like (think of a nice anniversary or thank you card to the catering and floral co's). Another big part of this conversation that should come even before you start discussing packages, style, and rates is the 'tell me about you' part. I was recently advised by Vivid Moments Weddings to let your clients do 99% of the talking, get them talking about how they met, what their interests are and so forth.. this will give you an understanding of the couple as people, not just clients, and this will help you pre-visualize how you will shoot their wedding.

~Make A Plan, Stan~

One of the first steps I took towards shooting this wedding was getting a printout of the day's schedule. We had already worked out the details for all the posed shots, so this was worked into their schedule. How did this help? Well, I knew exactly when the bride was to arrive on location, how much time I had to shoot the details such as the shoes, rings, and dress before I had to shoot her getting ready and pre-ceremony portraits. I knew that after the ceremony I had 30 minutes until the bride and groom portraits. I utilized this time to load a CF card onto my laptop, go to the washroom, and get my gear set up for those shots. Without this schedule, things would've crept up on me and hit me upside the head.. "OK! time for our portraits!".."what??!!!?? I haven't changed batteries in my flash, the softbox isn't set up, and I really gotta pee!!!
This schedule saved my life.. in tandem with another thing.

~A shot list~

A shot list helped me to keep my head on straight.. i knew which 'stuff' I had to shoot, who I had to shoot, and other details that were great to capture. Without this list, downtime could've easily been devoted to wandering around wondering what to shoot.. got 30 minutes? K, let's shoot the house, the table settings, the guestbook, and some fun shots of the guests.. The list is great, as the the day can get busy and it can be easy for you to forget something that the couple really wanted. You can look at your list and say "got that" and move on to the next thing..

~Look Into Your Crystal Ball~~

OK, OK, I don't mean get all mystical about things, but what I do mean is try to pre-visualize your shots. hopefully you've either had a chance to scout the location or have had some pics sent to you by the couple. I was lucky enough to go to the site (large, open field in the middle of the summer) at the time of day that the ceremony was taking place. This gave me an idea of where the sun was going to be, where there were shadows, and good places for setting up shots. If you don't have this luxury, try to show up early and just walk around and get some ideas.
Spend some time thinking about what you'll shoot... remember how I talked about getting to know the couple as people..not just clients?? I use this to determine the type of shots that I'm going to take. I want to showcase these people in relation to who they are, rather than what they are doing that day.
Jordan and Michelle are an amazing couple.. just truly beautiful people who are so darn interesting that it's hard to not come up with great ideas.. but of what I know of them.. They are both spiritual people who devote time almost daily to meditation. Jordan is truly in a league of his own when it comes to poetry and music, and the Dacks, (along with their friends Nicole and Evan) make a ton of home-made wine.. So I had set out to put these things into photos..

Adding these personal elements into the photos adds a greater sense of context, not just for the couple, but for the friends and family who view these photos.. I don't care how kick-ass your lighting is, if you are not placing these people in context, your photos will fail to resonate with the people who are looking at them, and that's who you have to impress, not other photographers.

~Know Thy Gear~

Now.. I don't want to get too nerdy on you, but you should know how to use your gear, and how that gear works in different environments. The last thing you want to be doing is fussing with your gear and missing moments. If it's going to be your first time shooting with bounce flash from an on camera speedlite, practice at home first, understand how much power (and aperture) it takes to get a proper exposure if you're in close, in comparison to lighting somebody who is on the other side of the room. Practice balancing your available/ambient light with your flash. Compare your camera's metering modes and see how it handles different situations. Knowing these things will help you to not just work quicker and more effectively, but more creatively. If doing something is as easy as singing 'Happy Birthday' you can really focus on getting creative, working with your subjects, and making some great pictures.

~He's Making A List, He's Checking It Twice.. (and it doesn't hurt to check it a third time either)~

Make a checklist of all your gear that you'll be bringing to the wedding. Pack your bags the night before to save yourself running around like a madman the day of. In the morning double check your gear list to make sure that you have everything.. This includes making sure all your batteries are charged, all CF cards are empty and formatted, and anything you don't need is left at home to save you the hassle. Bring extra everything!! extra batteries, cards, cables, flashes, bodies (ohh I didn't mention this.. but you need 2 bodies for the unfortunate event that your camera craps out on you) You want to ensure that there is no point of failure in your system.. if you have to, beg,borrow, or steal (OK, don't steal) everything that you could possibly need for the day.. know a friend with the same camera? ask if you can borrow a spare battery for the day...

In conclusion.. you need to know your stuff.. your photographic chops should be at a certain level if you're going to shoot weddings.. if a friend has asked you to shoot his/her wedding and you're not sure if you can do it. Don't. Politely tell them to find somebody else. You don't want to ruin a relationship, or worse, be sued, because you weren't up to the task.. But if you are capable of shooting the big day and are called upon to do it, just get organized! it will save your noodle from getting fried. I honestly believe that one major thing that sets apart wedding photographers and 'Uncle Joe' is organization...oh and skills..did I mention skills??? because I know Uncle Joe has a fancier camera than I do, but that doesn't mean that he should shoot your wedding~

~AA~