Two interesting questions came up in the Tangents FB group - both posted by Matthew Ciscart, one of the regulars: The first question was whether a client had ever asked for a specific lighting? Such, hard light, soft light, natural, or ocf? The other question was whether any of the photographers had a specific go-to style of using lighting. That one thing they do. My reply to this, relating it to lighting styles in wedding photography, was I haven't had a client ask for any specific lighting.
However, I do believe my website shows a Read more inside...
Wedding photography lighting - Shooting in partial sunlight & shade
I strongly believe that when you have the ability to control a photo session, that you pick your battles. You don't have to try and make everything work. Set up portrait shots in light that favors you. Of course, off-camera flash really helps you in being able to pick where you want that light that favors you.
Solid advice that I adhere to, is to not have a person or a group of people half in the sun, half in shade. It's a recipe for disaster, or a tough battle to fight, lighting wise. But then, slightly Read more inside...
In photographing groups with weddings, I have a preference to keep the light soft and even. This makes posing a large group easier, since you don't have to worry about odd shadows. A big light source, just off to my side, is the simplest way of lighting this. Previous articles described how to do this with speedlights and an umbrella. (Check links at the bottom of the article.) Often enough though, you'll find yourself in a scenario where one or two speedlights just don't have enough juice, and then you need to bring out something bigger and Read more inside...
Wedding photography - Adapting the use of light & flash photography
When I posted the photographs of a recent wedding in an album on FB, there were a lot of questions regarding my lighting. The answer is an easy one - I change it up as needed, throughout the day. Whatever is needed to give me the best results the fastest. It's rarely just one thing. So with Alesha and Patrick's wedding, I used on-camera flash, off-camera flash (with a soft box), Profoto on-location lighting kit, and of course, if it worked, then I just used the available light. The one only lighting option that I Read more inside...
Wedding photography - Lighting large groups with a large light
Relating to the article positioning your flash for the wedding formals, where the family portraits and groups where photographed with a single umbrella and two speedlights, the question then inevitably comes up - what do you do when you need to photograph a large group of people.
The obvious answer is - you need a lot more juice! You either need to add more flashguns, or use a more powerful unit.
As a wedding photographer of Indian weddings, I know that I will be dealing with huge groups of people. And that means a Read more inside...
A simple lighting setup for photographing the wedding formals
Photographing a wedding can be pretty hectic at times, especially as it so often becomes the photographer's de facto responsibility to keep everything on track. The formal photo session specifically is a part of the day that many photographers find challenging. The other challenging part of the wedding day is photographing the wedding processional. You have a narrow margin to get things just right. No second chance.
When photographing the family portraits, you can really help yourself by nailing your lighting. Get it Read more inside...
