Recent Wedding Articles

6 Tips from Two Mann Studios Will Challenge You to Up Your Wedding Game

Canadian wedding photography super-duo Two Mann Studios recently handed out six tips for wedding photographers that should not be ignored. In the 40-plus-minute candid video made for ShotKit, Erika and Lanny Mann give other shooters an honest, thoughtful take on their own successes and struggles as one of the most sought-after wedding studios in the world. It's well worth the time.

How I Have My Camera Set Up to Shoot Weddings

The Nikon D750 is one of the most talked about cameras in a long time. It’s a small lightweight body that packs a major feature set and has even lured Nikon D4 shooters to "upgrade." The camera is packed full of customizations, some of which can be pretty hard to understand and even difficult to find. I’m here to explain what I feel to be the best overall setup and why. This article is geared towards the Nikon D750, however the majority of the settings, if not all, are applicable to most cameras.

James Day Pulls a Wedding Day Stunt to Blow His Couple's Minds

As a photographer, there’s only so many things you can do on a wedding day to bring a little something extra for your couples. James Day was hired to shoot his sister-in-law’s wedding and in doing so, he decided he was going to push the envelope and deliver something they never imagined possible.

How to Be the Best Possible Second Shooter For Wedding Photography

It's an exciting time of the year for wedding photographers and a time of plenty of chaos. Having a great second shooter is paramount among the necessities of any wedding photographer. If you're new to the genre, second shooting can be a fantastic way to get your feet wet and learn the ropes from a seasoned professional. I've put together a list, pulled from my own experiences and with talking to other wedding photographers, of the qualities we like to see in a second shooter. The better you are as a second shooter, the happier the clients and the lead photographer are, and ultimately, that leads to you being hired again and being recommended to others.

What I Learned From Shooting My First Wedding of the Season

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.

Two Sides of the Story: Newlyweds Upset with Wedding Photographer

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.

Animated GIF Wedding Photography is a Thing and It's Beautiful

What happens when you take a technology from the early 90's and use it in your photography business in 2014? Just ask Jeffrey Bennett, a professional wedding photographer based in Detroit who in 2011 decided to start producing GIF animations for each one of his engagement sessions and wedding nights, which resulted in many happy clients, a lot of interest from potential clients and of course beautiful results he can then share online.

A Master Class in "Uncle Bob" Wedding Photography

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.

'Good Morning America' Recommends Hiring a Student For Your Wedding Photography

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.

Profoto Launches New 20-Part Web Series on Weddings

Profoto just released the first of 20 videos highlighting different aspects of a wedding as shot by wedding photographers Justin & Mary as they set out to capture a young couple's most special day. Each video reveals the story and the lighting setup behind a certain image. For instance, we get to see how the bridal couple's dance was shot and how the kiss in the church was eternalized.

How Many Steps Does it Take to Shoot a Wedding?

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.

Free Wedding Tutorial:  How To Light Wedding Reception Venues

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.

Using Photoshop To Turn A Wedding Reception In To A Police Chase

Featured last year for his "Wedding Day Zombie Apocalypse" composite, Photographer Josiah Moore is up to his old tricks again. This past fall he shot a wedding where both the Bride and Groom were car enthusiasts. He decided to make a fun chase scene out of a photo from the reception, and this video shows his process in Photoshop.

One Thing You Need To Be Doing At Wedding Receptions

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.

Bride Texts During Wedding Ceremony

Cell phones at weddings are getting really obnoxious. "Unplugged weddings" (where all cell phones are confiscated before the event) are becoming very popular these days. I've shot literally hundreds of weddings in my life and cell phones have always been a problem... with the guests. I've never seen this before though.

Wedding Photographer Scams Clients Out Of $140,000

Michael De Rubeis, AKA Michael J. Distasio Photography, never heard the timeless advice "under promise -over deliver." Or maybe he may have completely misinterpreted the saying and ran with it. Mr. De Rubeis made a living out of scamming couples on their wedding day, which is probably one of the worst things you could do to someone. The Passaic County, N.J.police department says there are at least 70 couples who paid the Walden photographer thousands of dollars for photos and albums they never received.

The Most Awkward Wedding Photography Video Ever

As photographers, many of us will do the occasional wedding or two to help supplement income and boost our careers. Wedding photography can be one of the most stressful and challenging aspects of photography, but is often considered the most important because of its purpose. However, how do you handle an awkward situation where you're asked to stop photographing all together, in the middle of a ceremony?

What I Have Learned Searching for a Wedding Photographer

I recently got engaged and have started the process of finding my wedding photographer. Something that has become very hard since I have decided to rule out the possibility of a friend shooting it, because let's face it, they need to be drinking. As a wedding photographer myself, I noticed some positives and negatives in other businesses first impressions. These are just things that have become my pet peeves while seeking a photographer, mostly website related.

Another Step in the Evolution of Wedding Photo Booths

It wasn't that many years ago when our very own Lee Morris took me on one of his wedding gigs and totally opened my eyes to what wedding photography could be. I had this idea in my head that weddings were boring, cheesy and a photographic cinch to shoot. But when Lee introduced me to the idea of setting up killer seamless white photo booths at receptions, I realized they could be

An Important Short Lesson For All Wedding Photographers

Update: The featured video has been changed per request of the photographer that was featured in it. In summary the video showed the back of a photographer standing up in the middle of the aisle next to the front two rows shooting with a 70-200mm lens aiming at the bridal party. I saw this video (video replaced with dancing dog) posted up in a Facebook group I belong to by the amazing team of videographers over at Motivity Films.

Court Rules Against New Mexico Wedding Photographer for Same-Sex Discrimination

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Yesterday, wedding photographer Elaine Huguenin of Elane Photography, LLC was ruled against by the New Mexico Supreme Court stating that she cannot discriminate against same-sex couples. This is a direct result of Vanessa Willock of Albuquerque filling a complaint on December 20, 2006 against Elaine. After inquiring to Elaine about photography for her September 21, 2006 wedding day, Vanessa received an email response back for her same-sex wedding that she was not what she expected.

The "First Look": To Do or Not To Do?

What is a first look? Guest writer and wedding photographer, Susan Stripling shares exactly what a first look is, her personal opinion, why this trend is so popular, as well as the pros and the cons.

Same-Day Slideshows and How PASS Makes Them Even Better!

At first, the idea of marketing to people at a wedding seems tacky and unprofessional. After all, you're being hired by the Bride + Groom to photograph their wedding, not to try to drum up more business for yourself. That is why "intent" is so important when marketing at a wedding. You should be doing everything possible to ensure your Bride & Groom enjoy their day and feel great about themselves, and in turn, about you!

 Enter to Win a Spot at a Wedding Workshop in Venice, Montreal or Toronto

Today at creativeLIVE, award winning wedding photographer Yervant is teaching how to shoot your weddings with an album design in mind. This is such a necessary skill to learn as you go professional. Even though we live in a fast paced digital world, your clients still want something tangible to look back at in 20 years. It's your job as a wedding photographer to take and create their story.

Learn Wedding Photography For Free

Along with our recent release of How to Become A Professional Commercial Wedding Photographer, we've featured several behind the scenes videos on how other photographs prepare for and shoot weddings. It's always worth a look to investigate what other wedding photographers outside of your area are doing differently. Rest assured, Doug Gordon will keep you entertained in his upcoming workshop on creativeLIVE.

"Unplugged Weddings":  Preventing Guests From Destroying Your Photographs

As any wedding photographer knows, one of the most nerve-wracking events is when a guest completely destroys the picture perfect moment you've been hired to capture. Whether they stand up in the aisle during the first kiss, take photos with their ipad in front of your camera, or inadvertently cause half the family to look off to the side during posed family portraits, wedding photo bombs can be a real headache. Wedding photographer Corey Ann's suggestion is having an "Unplugged Wedding".

Wedding Tutorial: How To Photograph Engagement Sessions

If you've been hired to photograph a wedding, there's a very good chance your clients will also want you to take engagement photos. Recently we released our 14 hour long wedding tutorial How to Become a Professional Commercial Wedding Photographer which covers everything about how to start a wedding business. Lee Morris previously released a sample called How To Light Posed Photos In a Church but today I wanted to share a free excerpt on making the most out of your client's engagement session.

5 Things Brides Wish Their Wedding Photographers Knew

Guest Writer's and Dale and Jill Lempa of Lempa Creative are a husband and wife team of photographers from Cary, NC who specialize in wedding and engagement photography. If you're a wedding photographer, then you can understand how stressful or hectic weddings are. Sometimes it might not occur that the bride is just as, if not more stressed out than we are. Dale and Jill have taken the time to share these helpful insights in just what the bride is thinking and how you as the photographer can help!

Photographer Clashes with Weddings Unveiled Magazine Over Same-Sex Marriage Ad

At Fstoppers, we do our best to stay away from topics that are strictly political in nature. Generally speaking, it's not our place. We are a blog for creative professionals, not any number of sites that poke at hot button issues for the sake of sensationalism. However, once in a while, a situation arises that directly affects photographers and their decisions. One such situation occurred when Weddings Unveiled Magazine rejected a photographer's paid advertisement.

The Underwater World of Nick Pugay

Living in the desert, I don’t see a lot of water. And while I lived on coastline, I never really played with water for shoots other than the occasional beach photo. This is why I became fascinated by Nick Pugay’s work when I first saw it. That’s because Nick Pugay takes your wedding photos and engagement photos, underwater.

Lawsuit Filed Against Videography Company For Swindling Newlyweds

Earlier this week Mass. Attorney General, Martha Coakley, filed a consumer fraud lawsuit against a Millbury, Massachusetts videography studio for allegedly scamming several newlyweds out nearly $75,000 worth of wedding videography services and precious memories. The company, Sure Shot Videography is accused of taking newlyweds' deposits and either not showing up to the wedding or for never delivering the final product videos.

What is Really Behind WeddingWire's Bride's Choice Award?

My Facebook news feed is being littered with photographers today announcing from their soap box that they won the 2012 Bride’s Choice Award thereby putting them in the Top 5% of their industry. Some may call it an award, I call it a deceptive marketing scheme.

Free Online Wedding Workshop: 
Location, Posing, Execution

People often ask me "what is the most difficult part of shooting weddings?" One challenge I face at every wedding is having to pose the bride and groom in less than flattering sunlight or in a less than perfect location. Wedding photographer Roberto Valenzuela is tackling this very issue during his creativeLIVE workshop. Robert's free-to-watch workshop will air September 6-8th and you can ask him anything live through webchat.

Shooting A Wedding? Don't Eat On Camera

Shooting a wedding will wear anyone out and of course we all need food and water to keep going. Make sure that when you do grab something to eat, you don't walk behind someone giving a toast... and being filmed. Also, you may want to wear a shirt with a collar.

[Video] Same Day Wedding Videos By Antonio Domingo

Hi there F(stop)'ers! Today I am posting from the AFP Photo Expo in Caldas, Portugal. I must say this is the most fun and unique expo I've yet to experience. Last night during the Gala event, I sat across from wedding videographer, Antonio Domingo. During conversation he mentioned that upon his client's requests he sometimes shoot, edits and delivers the newly weds their wedding video the night of their wedding! more in the full post