Wedding photography tips

Quiet days, I take a look at my archive…
A lot of picture, faces and people.
To many weddings…
Well we could start with some useful tips for people that are approaching wedding photography and want to be professionals.

Tip 1
Have a backup gear.
Remember: never ever ever shoot a wedding without backup gear.
Weddings are unique event no way to have a second chance.

Tip 2
Go digital.
The film day for commercial wedding are gone. Pay attention digital photography needs a lot of knowledge, is non so easy as you may think.

Tip 3
Choose brand professional camera (Nikon, Canon or Leica) and remember that you will carry 2 bodies for more or less 8/10 hours. D200, D80 or Eos 400D, Eos 5D are exactly what you need for professional wedding.
Lenses I use on Nikon Body: 12-24mm f4, 17-50mm f2, 50mm f1.4, 70-200mm f2.8.
I also have may SB -600 flash and manfrotto tripod.

Tip 4
Hold enough memories (8 to 12 giga) and batteries (at least 3) for your cameras

Tip 5
Start with a pro working as assistant also for free and prepare your book

Tip 6
Learn a workflow that make you save time (and money)

Tip 7
Shoot everything.
I shoot:

• the bride preparing

• the groom preparing

• the decorations

• the church interior and exterior

• the formal group shots

• the guests arriving

• the ceremony

• the congratulations to the couple

• the exit

• the arrival at the reception

• the hall interior and exterior

• the decorations,

• the cake

• the guests

• the couple mingling

• the couple dancing,

• the guests dancing

• the musicians

• the food

• the bouquet toss

• the first dance

Shoot everything. Shoot it well.
After a day of shooting you will be exhausted.

Tip 8
Edit your work.
Go through millions of images you’ve taken and throw out the bad, be super critical.

Tip 9
Build a story

Tip 10
A little bit of Photoshop helps.

Tip 11
Develop your vision. The ‘vision’ is really what separates a good photographer from a great photographer. A lot of photographers place too emphasis on technical aspects of taking pictures and don’t remember that it is their ‘vision’ that sells and not just the fact that they know how to use their equipment.