Photographing a wedding can be very scary whether you are a professional photographer or not. Verily, there are a couple of things that you are supposed to know to achieve the best on this goal. You need to be careful to capture every moment of this special occasion for your client. Additionally, in a wedding there’s nothing like ‘’wait, can we do that again?’’ Today, we want to make sure you have a list of six best tips that will make your wedding photo shoot easy and perfect especially if you are a documentary wedding photographer.
1. The Groom and the Brides should be involved
As the client, the best wedding photo shoot starts with you. At first, you should start by looking for the best photographer out there. This starts by researching depending on your location and the services you need. For example, if you live in Ireland, you can research for the best wedding photographer Ireland.
After that, make sure you are completely involved days before the shoot and on the D-day. You can preplan with the photographer for the best spots where you will get photographed. After that, you can organize the whole thing to make sure the photos are clear and the schedule is followed.
2. Research and visit the location a day earlier
This is the first tip that you are supposed to consider. It prepares you in advance on what you are likely to expect at the D-day. For that reason, you should make sure you have visited the location at least a day before the wedding day.
According to pawelbebenca.com, documentary wedding photographer should have prior ideas about the best locations for group shots and portraits. As a specialist, you should start imagining where you want to position your subjects and the best place to stand for the best shots.
Before you move on, consider the time of the day you will be taking these photos and eventually the type of light that will be available throughout the reception and the ceremony. For those that cannot make to visit the reception a day before, you can log in to their website and try to research about the same. It’s also a good opinion to ask the bride and the groom to share some of their photos about the wedding location. With those tangible photos, you can preplan your moves.
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3. Be versed with the wedding schedule in advance
To get the best wedding photos, it’s always a good thing to discuss the schedule with your clients in advance. The clients will be expecting you to capture all the movements. That means they will count on you to be at different places at the right time. With that in mind, make sure you have the schedule in your fingertips. This will help you to plan in advance to capture the best moment s. It all starts from being with them as they both get ready for the reception. The cutting of cake should be clearly captured and the first dances should be all clear.
As the photographer, you need to be on the right place at the right time. With that in mind, you now have to know the schedule. The best way to do this is to sit down with the clients prior to the D-day and talk about the schedule. They have to tell you where they will be getting ready and also where they are going to end the celebrations.
4. Create a shot list
You must also discuss this with the brides and the groom. They have to guide you on all the events they want you to cover very well. They also have to tell you about the best guests that they want you to cover very well. After that, you should create a shot list of all the things you have to cover. As a matter of fact, you should capture according to their needs. Capture all the beautiful flowers, rings, the vow exchanges, relatives and those moves. Take home all the things that your client wanted.
5. Carry extra equipment
As a photographer, you must understand all the equipment that you will need in this process and carry extra. During the occasion, you will not have a chance to figure out what you are missing and what you should do about that. For this reason, start by checking your list of all the equipment you need along the way. If possible, ensure you carry them in doubles. You also should set the cameras and everything else in advance. Also make sure you know where every button is at the right time. This makes sure you can correct any mistake as it happens.
For some photographers, they usually have an assistant that will help them set the cameras and all the equipment you need when the time come. In case of any issue, they can set the camera and other things as you utilize the rest. It’s also a good idea to carry extra equipment just in case one of them fails you.
6. Take control
Sometimes you have to take control to capture some of the weirdest moments in the wedding. What this means is that you shouldn’t be afraid to take control. As a matter of fact, you are here to make the day memorable. Again these special moves will not be repeated. This means you should at all cost make sure you have caught all the steps.
If something was not clear, take control and ask anything from the groom and the bride and even their guests and relatives. You can actually call the bride and the family together and get a good shot, do the same with the groom and eventually all the guests.
That is not all; you have to make sure no move passes unrecorded. This starts with being very observant. If possible, cover everything and you will eventually edit or filter the best photos for your client.