Wedding photography

The short days and long nights of winter have finally given way and spring is in full swing. For many photographers, this means one thing: wedding season. While wedding season is great, it can also be physically and mentally exhausting. I recently shot my first wedding of the season and want to share a few tips as well as things I would do differently next time around to help you plan ahead and prepare for any events you have coming up.

May is upon us, wedding photographers. Its the beginning of the season and we need to prepare ourselves for the long haul. Sure, we could brushing up on lighting techniques, talk about new lenses, buy faster cards, or argue about presets, but what we really need to think about are the intangible must-haves. The greens socks, my friends. That's right, I said socks.

This couple took wedding photography to a whole new level when they got their wedding shots taken. They used a series of drones in order to capture their big day. The shots that they created are undoubtedly original and stand out from the crowd... for now. With the release of the new DJI Phantom 3 that we recently covered, drones could be here to stay, but are we at a stage now where we can outsource our photography to machines?

The saga continues. Remember that story we posted at the beginning of the year about the newlyweds who were suing their wedding photographer over a wedding album cover? How would you feel if we told you that the photographer has struck back with a suit of her own against the couple for damages associated with defamation of character and reputation for upwards of $1,000,000?

Let's face it; the industry is changing. Art directors and potential clients are not looking to simply hire a photographer anymore. They do not care about your lighting, your gear, or even your previous clients. So what do they care about then? Photographer John Keatley sits down with artist rep Maren Levinson at Redeye to discuss the future of photography, and there is a very good chance you are not going to like what she has to say.

As the photography industry continues to grow, so does the amount of different mediums for education. From tutorial based websites, to tutorial DVDs, to workshops and even websites like Fstoppers here, there are multiple ways you can find new techniques and grow your craft. And maybe this year, is the year you truly take advantage of them.

One of the most effective ways for wedding photographers to advertise for free is by blogging their work. There’s an old saying that goes something like “you can’t sell what you can’t show,” and it can’t be more true when it comes to our services. If we don’t blog, or show our work, how would a potential client find us? And guess what the best part is? Blogging is absolutely free!

The phrase "destination wedding photographer" never held much meaning to me, other than the rare couple who I assumed was eloping in Bora Bora. Lately that phrase is turning into something completely different and it's being referred to more as "adventure photography." It's slightly different in the fact that these people aren't necessarily having destination weddings because they're still being planned in their home states.

If you're planning on attending Lin and Jirsa's Ultimate Wedding Workshop 101 down in the Bahamas you will want to act fast. With only 6 seats left in this class, Pye and Justin will be covering proper exposure and how to shoot in manual, how to pose your couples, how to modify natural light, on and off camera flash, and much more. If you have seen the wedding work of Lin and Jirsa Weddings then you know Pye, Justin, and the rest of their team are at the pinnacle of the wedding genre. Their 101 workshop takes place May 13th through May 14th.

Often times during wedding/event photography, you'll find yourself with very small windows of opportunity to capture the best shots. In this video I'm going to show you how preparation and pre-lighting will set you up for success, especially when you only have 10 seconds of time with your couple.

Over the last week, a story unfolded about a newlywed couple in Dallas upset with the services they received from their wedding photographer, Andrea Polito. A few days ago, Polito issued an open letter to share her side of the story. This story serves as a lesson and caution to all wedding photographers to consider when handling clients and business dealings.

One of the formulas to success is to have a website that is remarkable! If you are not staying on top of design trends and continually developing your site, you will find yourself behind times and will lose business because of it. Gone are the days when we could set up a site and let it sit idle for a few years. We are marketing to the the millennial generation, a generation that has grown up with the internet, mobile devices and social media. Is your website ready to cater to them?

Through the years shooting weddings, I have found that my favorite photos always tend to be those charming candid moments that last ever so briefly. In this video and article I wanted to talk about my technique in how I set up and capture well composed and lit candid moments. Hopefully I will see you all in the Bahamas where we are going to dive into all of these subjects in complete detail in our Ultimate Wedding Photography Workshop!

A new year and a clean state; last year’s resolution was to take wedding photography "back to basics" and capture images that truly matter to couples and their families. At the end of this year, I had the opportunity to look back on the moments of 2014; a new emotional set of images that are imperfect perfection.

It's that time of year! Lots of wedding proposals took place over Christmas and New Year's so couples are now on the hunt for a great venue and team of vendors for their special day. There are many websites and Pinterest boards that like to give advice to brides on what to look for when hiring their wedding photographer. But your decision can be really be based on one question that I wish more clients would ask but often do not.

In this next episode of Critique the Community, we'll be sitting down with Architectural Photographer, Mike Kelley. Mike is best known for his incredible light painting methods. In less than 5 years of owning a camera, he has gone from knowing very little about photography to shooting National Ad Campaigns for the Architecture industry. If you want Mike and us to consider your image for this episode, leave a link to your image within the community and we will give you our honest opinion.

Albums are a big seller for wedding photographers, and for good reason. Brides want a physical memory of their day they can pull down off the shelf for years to come. But Storytag founder Nikki McKenna believes there is room for improvement when it comes to albums. She thinks that adding a written story element can really change the power of an album.

Exactly one year ago today MagMod flash modifiers launched their first Kickstarter project and quickly became a household name in the photo community. Photographers all over the world enjoyed the slick design, ease of use and ability to modify light from their flash using the MagMod grids and gels. Today, MagMod launched a new Kickstarter project introducing their new MagSphere and MagBounce flash diffusers.

Next up to bat on the Fstoppers TogTools podcast series is our very own Sarah Williams, half of the wedding photographer team at Val & Sarah. Jess and Stephen interview Sarah about the importance of identifying a niche and how she goes about booking the type of people she would want to hang out with, the ins and outs of partnerships and connecting emotionally to her work.

The sad truth is this happens more than we would like to admit. Hearing a photographer steal another's work as their own to pull in clients is truly terrifying especially for something as precious as a wedding. ​In this video Pye talks about the occurrences that take place multiple times per month to every day photographers just like you and hopefully sheds some light on how we can help keep this from happening again.

The nice folks at TogTools are continuing their Fstoppers series with Lindsey Pantaleo! Giving new and emerging photographers the chance to hear it from the pros on all aspects of the fast growing photography industry, these podcasts are a bevy of information. In addition to Lee Morris and now Lindsey, many of the Fstoppers staff writers and contributers will be interviewed in this series by the wonderful TogTools founders Stephen and Jess Robertson over the next couple months.

We are so excited to announce that the staff writers and contributors from Fstoppers have teamed up with TogTools to give you a new series with an in-depth look behind each of our businesses. If you aren't familiar with TogTools, it is an awesome resource for new and emerging photographers to obtain industry information from some of the best pros in the industry. Founders Stephen and Jess Robertson bring you in-depth podcasts with answers to questions you have always wanted to learn from some of your favorite photographers and videographers.

We've been partnering with our pals at Viewbug to offer you guys great contests weekly, and one of those contests we run on a monthly basis gives you the chance to be featured here! The first winner of such a contest is Jeremy Vesely with his image "Three Brothers at Sunrise" which was also our photo of the day earlier this week.

As a wedding photographer I am always looking for tools that make my job easier and the experience for my clients better. For years one of my least favorite parts of my job was getting feedback and approvals on wedding albums I designed for my clients. Fortunately all that has changed since I have started to use AlbumDraft. There are a number of programs that compete with AlbumDraft as software for album proofing - I've just found theirs to be the most convenient and easy to use.

Back in 2004 I was given the Nikon D100 digital camera for Christmas and I started making money with the camera within a few months. I fell into wedding photography and within 2 years I was making almost 100% of my income shooting them. In the last 10 years I never learned how to process a RAW file (effectively) or use Lightroom until last week.

Last year, photographer duo Dylan Howell and Sara Byrne (of Dylan and Sara Photography) posted an awesome video showing you how to create beautiful double-exposure photos in-camera, a technique popular in fine art, portrait, and wedding photography. I just stumbled across this awesome tutorial by event and wedding photographer Andrew Klokow showing you how to replicate this cool look quickly and fairly easily in Photoshop.

This week we are filming 5 days of fashion, beauty, test, and portrait looks with Michael Woloszynowicz from Vibrant Shot Photography. Michael is a Toronto based photographer and high end retoucher creating an in-depth Pro Tutorial with PRO EDU that will be available on sale in the Fstoppers store this summer.

If you're a wedding photographer then you're all to familiar with Uncle Bob photographers: people with a camera getting in your way, breathing down your neck asking about settings and gear, and otherwise making your life dificult. This parody instructional video teaches Uncle Bob how to get the best pictures he can at a wedding while also being a huge annoyance to the wedding guests and photographer.

When I met Laura Grier at WPPI this year, she showcased her latest editorial fashion shoot with a behind the scenes video. It isn't everyday you get a backstage look at the work and creativity that goes into this type of photo-shoot. Not only are the photos incredible, but the designs and creations showcased on the models are one of a kind. Truly an inspiring piece.

One of the keys to running a successful photography business is to be constantly innovating and searching for the best ways to serve your clients. A month ago I made the decision to use Pixieset for my client galleries. Here are my Top 10 reasons why I feel it is a good choice for all professional photographers.

Today on CreativeLive, Award-winning wedding photographer Jim Garner is sharing hard-won industry secrets — learned from decades of experience — and guiding viewers through the creative process that has helped make a name for himself in the industry. Jim will explore tools and strategies that will make your workflow more streamlined and your studio more profitable. Plus, during live action photo shoots, you can watch Jim’s “story shooting” philosophy in action — as he demonstrates how posing, shooting, and lighting contribute to the strength of the visual story.

Nikon today announced four new ambassadors to their rather impressive lineup of photographers who already included the likes of Dixie Dixon, Joe McNally and Corey Rich. The four additions include Fstoppers contributor and advertising photographer Blair Bunting, Bambi Cantrell, Doug Gordon, and Tamara Lackey.

UPDATE: Good Morning America has taken down the video and article.
Original Story: What are the best ways to save money on your wedding day? Good Morning America (GMA) ran a story recently in which their soon-to-be wed reporter Ginger Zee recommends contacting your local school to reach out to someone interested in photography. That by hiring a student you'll save $8000 on your wedding photos.

There seems to be a mystery around a travel and destination wedding photographer. How do you break into that market and how do you afford it? While at WPPI this year, I attended a class with Laura Grier who shed some light on her business and lifestyle.

Rain on your wedding day can be quite a downer for most brides even though many cultures see rain as good fortune, cleansing and fertility. Often brides wonder how they are going to still get good photos if it's raining. Here are some tips for photographers that I've picked up over the years having shot numerous weddings in the rain.

Donna Von Bruening’s studio was thriving: bookings of more than 50 weddings a year, a full time studio manager, associate photographers and a new studio space but she lacked one thing — quality of life. Ten years after starting her studio in Savannah, Georgia, she faced the common small business dilemma of having to turn down work due to scheduling. So she expanded and grew her business only to realize that she regretted it and missed the quality of life she had with a smaller studio.

Update: 7 seats left. Are you planning on attending Pye Jirsa's Ultimate Wedding Workshop down in the Bahamas? If so you better reserve your spot soon. Pye Jirsa of SLR Lounge will be teaching his 2 day course on all things wedding photography down at our first ever Fstoppers Workshops. If you have seen the wedding work of Lin and Jirsa Weddings then you know Pye and his team are at the pinnacle of the wedding genre.

I'm a big fan of shows like Photo Plus, Gulf Photo Plus and WPPI Las Vegas, so when my good friend (and amazing photographer in his own right) David Kai-Piper told me about an event he's helping orchestrate in the United Kingdom this year, I thought you all would be interested to hear about it. Introducing The Photography Show, a new show and home for professional and hobbyists to come together to enjoy all things photographic.

I, Mark Wallace am joining Fstoppers and nine other photographers in the Bahamas to teach 5 days of amazing workshops. This is an event you DO NOT want to miss. Why? Well here are my top 10 reasons:

Facebook recently put out a video with the message "Why have one photographer when you can have a hundred?" The video consists of a collage of images from a wedding with the impression that they were shot by multiple people who attended. This is NOT something the wedding scene is happy about.

Right before Christmas a sale popped up for the FitBit Flex (a fitness tracker) and even though I didn't "need" it, the FitBit would help me stay in shape. So of course I bought it. Over the last couple of months I have been making a conscience effort to make sure I am active. I love seeing how different activities affect my daily step count and, well, shooting a wedding sure does.

As most wedding and portrait photographers know, the annual WPPI conference in Las Vegas is right around the corner from February 27 - March 6. While at the conference you'll see a few photographers that have a following, literally treated like rock stars filling a packed stadium of adoring fans. I remember last year I saw one photographer who had a group of about 20 people follow him all over. But what about those that do a lot for the industry, though often fly under the radar.

As wedding photographers we are hired to show up and photograph one of the most important days in the life of our clients. So what happens if you get sick, or even die, with weddings jobs under contract? Do you have a plan? This week I had an eye opening experience that made me rethink my own plan. Here's my story and some tips to help you develop a plan of your own.

Your quickest way to becoming a better photographer is real world experience from a seasoned photographer. As studio manager for a busy studio servicing the commercial advertising world we have a crew of assistants in multiple cities that we rely on heavily. All of which need to understand the following rules, mores, and tips to get you to become the best assistant in the industry.

Photographing weddings can be tough for a lot of people, and the area I find most of my assistants struggling is at the reception. Many times throughout a wedding you can rely on natural light, but what is going to make or break your reception images is your ability to master artificial lighting. In this free excerpt from the full Fstoppers wedding tutorial, we share four of our most used lighting setups so you can take the guess work out of properly lighting a wedding venue.

When it comes to marketing yourself, there’s no better time than on the job. There’s also no worse time to be slacking off and looking like you’re not working. This tip will kill two birds with one stone, giving a huge benefit to the couple and their guests, as well as bringing in great leads and spreading your name.

As the year comes to a close, I can't help but think tax season is just around the corner. Taxes are surely my least favorite things to do, even worse than a root canal in my book. We cannot avoid giving money to our loving & watchful government, but we can make some last minute buys to invest in our business before forking over the remainder. Here are my top 10 "buy it before the government takes its chunk" purchases. Spoiler, #1 is a nice trip to a tropical location.

We've featured his work on Fstoppers before, New York native photographer Omar Carter was always known for his infectious smile, warm heart and talent as an up-and-coming wedding and lifestyle photographer. The photography community is shocked to hear of his passing on December 24 2013 from meningitis.

Sometimes the one thing holding us back from bigger and better things is actually ourselves. Yes you CAN do everything, but SHOULD you? Many successful photographers have found ways that they can specialize their jobs within their own businesses so that they can do what they love and do best, and outsource the rest.

Wouldn't it be fun to see one of your photos go viral? We just never quite know when one of our photos hits a thread with the right person, they share it, and the photo is suddenly being talked about by hundreds of thousands. This evening, wedding photographer Sascha Reinking, suspected he might have seen a celebrity, Zach Braff, photobombing a wedding photo he took while on the streets of NYC and tweeted the photo to him not expecting much to happen. About an hour later the photo is being seen by hundreds of thousands of people.