The Reluctant Wedding Photographer

Carrigman

Posts on wedding photography always get a good response so clearly there is a lot of interest in the subject. This is a blogpost I wrote the other day on my experiences of photographing a couple of weddings:

http://carrigman.blogspot.com/2011/07/reluctant-wedding-photographer.html

Regards,

John

leche solara

Great story John. I can feel the trepidation, and you can't even dare to have a drink, much and all as you might need or love one or ten.

KarmaGarda

Have to agree. Cracking post! I think a lot of people to this day still don't realise how much work is in photographing a wedding. They think "half a days work" and you're done... I have the height of respect for any photographer with the patience to, not just carry one out, but to do so consistently with excellent results.

Borderfox

Very good John, enjoyed it a lot

spooky donkey

that was a great read john. really made me think. ive only ever done on wedding and only as a back up photographer they had a pro also.

But they Loved all my photos more so it seems than the pro, I have no idea why they were not nearly as good. Perhaps they were just being nice

jpb1974

Reluctantly did a wedding myself last April. I think you've summed up, quite
perfectly, exactly how I feel myself down to a tee.

Even down to -

And I don’t even like weddings.

The next time anyone asks me to photograph a wedding rather than tell them how I feel I'll just ask them to read your blog entry.

greeneyedspirit

Great article, and refreshingly honest about the whole wedding business!
I shot my friend's wedding in May, and, while I was bricking it beforehand, absolutely loved it. She was delighted with the photos also.
Shortly after I also shot my sister's wedding, did the album and everything, happy out. Stressful, but fun, and I still enjoyed both of these weddings immensely, to be honest, despite the 'Oh crap I'm actually the only and official photographer'.

Cianmcliam

Ah, brings back memories of my first wedding!

All very familiar sounding, I would say however that shooting a friend/family wedding is a different experience than shooting for paying clients, even if it seems more nerve wracking it is actually much easier to get into the driving seat during the event. People take suggestions and directions much better and almost seem to get swept away a little by the 'adventure' aspect of a 'pro' photo shoot, which can make for better photos with a lot less effort.

Anyway, it is certainly a love/hate thing for the first couple but if you did decide to stick with it, the satisfaction of exceeding the wedding parties expectations, and even occasionally your own, is very, very rewarding.

dmg1982

Very good post, thanks for sharing.

It's true that many photographers completely underestimate what's involved in documenting such events... and as a result don't charge nearly enough for their services.

Out of interest, have you tried using Adobe Lightroom or Apple Aperture (if you're on a Mac) for processing your RAW files? If not I'd recommend checking them out, both have free 30-day trials available to download. They ought to speed up workflow dramatically in comparison to PS alone.