About two weeks ago I was honored to be allowed to capture the images for a long time friend of the family's wedding. Shooting a wedding I think is something most amateur photographers are both anticipating and looking forward to but are simultaneously terrified of. I wasn't an exception to this rule. It was amazing how frightened I was of just blowing it but at the same time I was so excited for the day to come.
On the day of the ceremony I arrived at the church early to get detail shots. Those are the kinds of shots that are really much like I do for my photo a day project and I really enjoy doing those kinds of things. I spent a good deal of time on the decorations of the church, for the wedding, and of the reception area. The reception was held in the basement.
From there, I moved on to the bride's home and got a few shots of her getting ready. Not as many as I had hoped. Being completely green at this stuff and being the only man in a house full of women and girls is a bit awkward so much of my time was spent just waiting. That said several of the shots that I got here I am sure will be ones that the family will love for a long time.
After the bride was ready I sped back to the church as I needed to get there before she did and she was right behind me. The ceremony was a whirlwind. It stated just moments after I arrived and I was on the move for the entire thing. I had been told not to be concerned about being in the way and to just get my shots. So that is exactly what I did. I used the 17-55 and was right up close for most of the ceremony.
After the ceremony we did a few formal captures. The bride and one of her bridesmaids were excellent here. They knew what they wanted and really helped me with the poses. I literally just had to snap the shutter with an occasional minor direction. This was the part of the day, prior to the wedding that I was most worried about.
Once this was done we went downstairs for the reception. As things were getting started I got to take a much needed break while people ate (I don't know a lot of people who like photos of themselves eating so I didn't do many of those). I got the cake cutting shots and a few gift opening shots there and a lot of candid shots of the family and children dancing.
That pretty much sums up the day. It was a lot of fun and it was a lot harder work than I expected. I can't say what I put out was even close to what an experienced professional would have been able to do. But, long before the wedding, the bride assured me that she was not going to be hiring a professional and that my photos would be what they had to remember the day and if I didn't do it all she would have is shots from guests. So it was a real win-win opportunity. She would get better photos than she would have had and I got to see what it was like to shoot a wedding.
Where do I go from here? For me photography is a hobby I am passionate about and I don't feel like I need to make money with it. That said I am not absolutely opposed to that either. I just need a lot more experience before I could make any kind of leap into doing this for money. I would really like to get hooked in with a few local photographers who wouldn't mind letting me tag along to weddings they are doing to get more experience under my belt. But we shall see what the future brings.
Here is a
link to the gallery where I have a selection of the shots (almost 90 -- I should have edited a little more). This is a subset of the shots that I gave the bride.
