| 1. Enjoy & Have Fun | | | | everything & anything that moves in the hope of |
| Please do not go into Wedding Photography if you | | | | getting one good image. Remember, you'll need to |
| don't enjoy weddings. You'll need to handle pressure | | | | edit & post process the images after the wedding. |
| and always remember that you only get one chance | | | | What would you rather have, 500 really good images |
| at weddings. You cannot afford to mess it up. | | | | or 3,000 average ones images? A story of a typical |
| Working to tight schedule and having good social skills | | | | wedding can easily be told in 500 images or less. |
| is very important as well. | | | | 6. Shoot in RAW |
| 2. Check Your Gear | | | | There is no need to shoot JPEGs anymore. Shooting |
| Before you leave your home or studio to go to the | | | | in RAW means you can 'future-proof' your files and |
| wedding, check & re-check you camera gear, make | | | | when using software like Aperture 3, Lightroom 3 or |
| sure all the camera batteries are fully charged and | | | | Capture NX2, you can edit them completely in a |
| the flash gun batteries as well if you are using | | | | non-destructive manner. If your camera has dual-slots |
| re-chargeable. I personally prefer re-chargeable | | | | for CF cards (Nikon D3 / D3x / D3s), then set both |
| batteries for my Nikon SB900 flashguns. | | | | the slots to RAW+RAW. This way you have instant |
| 3. Have back-ups | | | | back-up of images in camera. Gives you more peace |
| Never go to photograph a wedding with just a single | | | | of mind and I don't have any hesitation in using larger |
| camera body and a lens. You should have at least 2 | | | | cards like the 8Gb ones. If you have only one CF slot |
| bodies. Try and shoot with the same bodies. Don't | | | | in your camera, I would advise not to use cards |
| have a pro body worth $3000 and a back-up as a | | | | larger then 2Gb. So you don't put all your eggs in one |
| $400 body. You need to have a like-for-like back up | | | | basket if things go wrong. |
| body. I photograph with 2 bodies and have a 3rd one | | | | 7. Don't Delete Images In-Camera |
| as a back-up. Have a variety of lenses from wide | | | | You may miss great shots if you are constantly |
| angles, zooms and fast prime lenses. The ones I'd | | | | 'chimping' and deleting images off your CF Card. You |
| recommend for shooting a wedding with are: | | | | also use up more battery power of your camera and |
| - 24-70mm f/2.8 | | | | also risk the CF card going corrupt. |
| - 14-24mm f/2.8 | | | | 8. Use Flash Creatively |
| - 85mm f/1.4 | | | | When using flash, use it creatively by taking the flash |
| - 70-200mm f/2.8 | | | | away from the hot shoe of the camera. Lastolite |
| - 105 VR Macro | | | | produce a variety of products which are ideal for the |
| - 50mm f/1.4 | | | | small flash guns. |
| - 35mm f/2 | | | | 9. Always Be One Step Ahead Of The Game |
| 4. Insure Yourself & Your Business | | | | I always keep the following information with me at all |
| It is absolutely critical that you insure yourself. Just | | | | times: |
| like you would insure your car & your home. You | | | | - Schedule of the day: Whats happening when |
| need to have sufficient insurance should the worst | | | | - Names of the bridal party i.e parents, best man, |
| happen whether the kit is stolen, a CF card fails and | | | | ushers, bridesmaids, etc |
| gets corrupted or a hard drive failure, someone gets | | | | - Emergency Telephone Numbers |
| hurt or injured due to your negligence while you're at | | | | - Family group shot list |
| a wedding. To cover yourself, you need to have: | | | | - The address of the venues i.e where the bride is |
| - Public Liability Insurance | | | | getting ready, church, reception venue |
| - Professional Indemnity Insurance | | | | 10. The Couple Should Spend More Time...with their |
| ( if you are outside of the UK, then please check | | | | loved ones and not with the photographer. Don't |
| with your insurance company or seek legal advice) | | | | keep them away from everyone for a long time. |
| 5. Don't Shoot in Continuous Mode | | | | About 15-20 minutes to do the couple shots is more |
| You need to pick the moments and shoot. Shoot like | | | | than enough and perhaps another 15 minutes or so |
| a sniper, wait, aim and fire. Don't machine gun | | | | late in the evening. |