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Wedding Photography

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1.94 - "Needs Work" 

Who doesn't love some good laughs on the wedding day?

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8 Comments

Capturing the moment is great, but a good photo also needs to tell a story. Yes, there's irony with the other guy wearing the bridal gown, but there's no other context here or expressions to really let someone who wasn't there know what's going on.

From an aesthetic point of view; you have way too much dead space above them. The wall does nothing for the overall image, so why shoot it vertically? Moving over slightly to the left would've given the viewer more of their expressions. Right now, I can't tell if they're smiling, or serious, or nervous. Gotta wait for the key moment, like when they're laughing or when the bride sees them. As far as I know, the guy in the back could just as well be the bride

The exposure is right on the edge of being overexposed, and the colors are pretty dull as well. I'm sure there had to be better moments than this one.

Thanks for the harsh comment!

Do you want to improve as an artist, or do you want to feel good?

Harsh, in my book, is insulting the work without offering any input on how to make the image look better. Look at it objectively instead of taking it personally. That's how we elevate our skills.

As far as it looking “dull”- what type of edit would you suggest?

Well, the first thing I would suggest is cropping tighter. Leave a little bit of room in front of the first guy's shoes and a little behind the back, bottom hem of the dress, and then crop the top down to a 4:5 ratio. It's still a vertical shot; you just reduce all the empty space around them.

Lower the exposure and increase the contrast to bring out the subtle shadows more, then warm up the white balance and increase the saturation a bit. The color on some of the stones on the wall look similar to the color of the groom's shoes, so they complement the scene.

It's not about over-saturating the colors, so avoid going to the other extreme. Better yet, try converting it to black & white. This gives it more of a photojournalistic feel.

This is so hard for me! I’m all about my wide shots. :(

Sometimes you just gotta step out of your comfort zone to see what else you're capable of creating. I spent years shooting only with natural light because I didn't like the way flash looked in images. Once I started understanding off camera flash better though, I started seeing my old photos in a different way.

Now, I let the light tell me what's best for the shot. If the sun is hitting just right, then I'll just use that. If I can enhance the image with strobes, though, then I'll use them instead.

Learning to see the world through different lenses (pun intended) opens up the creativity in your mind. Once you've mastered the camera, then you can create your own style.

Thank you for this! I do appreciate it. :)