Weddings Archives

July 7, 2009

Biz Sense, Gavin Seim, Lighting, Nature, Portrait, PPS Photography Tips, ProPhotoShow, Weddings

50+ Twitter Length Photography Tips.

by Gavin Seim. Updated 05/2012:
I enjoy quick bursts of information and chat frequently as @gavinseim on twitter. I’ve made this list of my favorite tips that I plan to update it going forward. You can add your favorite and tips in the comments with your twitter name. I might even RT them myself.

I give credit to the speaker when I can, using names in parenthesis. Many of these are my own musings from Twitter and I’ve indicated myself with an (S). If there’s no name then I probably don’t know the source. These are not always exact quotes, but ideas I’ve re-formed to fit in under 140 characters on Twitter

Random Things:

Every image needs a subject. Just one. If it has less or more, than that it’s probably time to reboot. (S)
Presentation is as much part of a photo as the image itself. An image on a disk means little to the world. A well presented wall piece does. (S)
Don’t wait for the photo establishment to show you how to stand out. Because if you do, you won’t (S)
The line between a snapshot and a quality photograph are lost when everyone is a “photographer” but have not actually learned to be one! (S)
I’m not afraid to change my opinion, but I am afraid of not having one. (S)
Competition. A powerful tool that makes you stronger. Complaints about it are often cop outs from photographers not motivated enough to excel (S)
In photography rules mean conformity, and to conform is the opposite of creativity. (Whitmire)
Be Positive. It’s not just a blood type. (S)
Each time I think I’m really good, I learn that I’m not as great as I thought. Then I actually start getting really good (S)
Always do the best you can with what you have, but always push yourself to the next level. (S)
As photographers we often overlook the power of just practicing. It’s like giving ourselves our own workshop for free. (S)
Photography is painting with light. So if light is paint, why do we spend more time pressing buttons than mixing our paint? (S)
It’s not the location you take your photos in. It’s the photos you take in your location. Anything can be a good background. (S)
Being edgy is cool until everyone is doing it. Then it’s not edgy. It’s just boring and usually annoying. (S)
Every really good photograph I manage to make is a class in making the next one. (S)

Posing n more:

Portraits. Guys tilt the head towards the low shoulder = macho. Girls tilt head towards high shoulder = pretty (Celentano)
Bridal Portraits, Hold that bouquet on the hip to look thinner. Hands (and bouquets) held in front from make the bride look bigger. (Celentano)
Group portrait. Just before the shot have everyone lift up their shoulders and lean towards the center. (Celentano)
Portrait Tip: Look for triangles in your group poses. Use bodies, sitting, head position etc to form triangles. (Celentano)
If posture pose and light is correct it does not matter where the camera sits. The pose is still set. (Gardener)
Posing tip: If it bends, bend it. Play around with joints, elbows, fingers, everything.
Posing tip: Leave some open space between those bent elbows and the waist. Helps make your subject slim n trim. (S)
Don’t over pose the subjects in your groups. Their not solders, their free people. (Whitmire)

June 2, 2009

Dennis Zerwas, Gavin Seim, PPS Photography Tips, ProPhotoShow, Weddings, Workflow

15 Tips for Wedding Photographers:

seim-wedding-caveb-photo-40-650x434 — Get the essentials: Thinking outside the box works, Just remember to get the MUST have's. Walking down the isle, standing at the alter, the first dance and many more. What's important to each couple can vary, so communication is important.

Where to start, how to get there, how to stay there. Secrets for professional and aspiring wedding photographers from Gavin & others.

by Gavin Seim: How do I handle my first wedding? How do I become a pro? I get these type of questions fairly often. Weddings aren’t for everyone but most aspiring and pro photographers will photograph a wedding sometime in their career. There’s much to be learned from what’s demanded of us at a wedding. While this article is aimed at those getting started, seasoned pro’s will get ideas too.

Today I’ll give some I’ll talk the basics of how I see and think when I photograph a wedding. Tips 1-6 will focus on getting great images. Then we’ll talk a bit about a post production and business (which is every bit as important). As we go thru them I’ll post some favorite images and share some thoughts.

The first wedding is daunting. Let me say that I won’t be talking about extreme photography basics in this article. If you’re at that stage there’s no shame in it, but you should gain some experience before tacking a wedding on your own. It’s a one time event and if you get it wrong you will be, at best, a sore spot in the eyes of your client. That’s not good for getting new clients and both you and your client deserve better.

If you can, second shoot aside an experienced photographer it’s a great way to learn, gain better portfolio and get more confidence. In my case that never happened. Though got serious about photography at age 12, my first wedding was cold turkey. I photographed for fun at a wedding and the couple loved them. That pushed me forward and my first paid wedding came awhile after. The rest is… Well the rest is below.

seim-wedding-caveb-photo-46-650x434 — Try new things: This shot is the result of the first time I used off camera wireless flash (with Radio Poppers) at a wedding. I was just learning them, but made the choice to push myself to get great light in this scene. It paid off and my final image has a neat cinematic feel that fits my style.

Before my first wedding I absorbed the information in at least three wedding photography books. That helped me get a feel for what should happen. Without that study I would have missed a lot of important things. Resources like this are great (I wish I had had them) but a book can help you get perspective and have a reference to review. I’ll list few good books to get you rolling at the bottom of this post.

My first paid gig was back in the film days. I was about eighteen. Armed with my Canon EOS3, a cheap flash, a cheap zoom lens and an old monolight strobe handed down from Doug Miller, a real local pro, I became a wedding photographer. Was I good? No, but I was enthusiastic.

March 14, 2009

Gavin Seim, ProPhotoShow, Review, Software, Weddings

In Design CS4 Photographers Look. The Lightroom Of Album Design

by Gavin Seim Updated 11/09:

Images stuffed into mat pages, then an album covers is becoming less and less attractive to clients. If you’re designing wedding, event, or portrait albums you’ve probably played with making layouts in Photoshop or another program to then have printed as flush mount albums like Kiss or Asa Books, You might have also used press books like the ones from WHCC. Once you have a good design there’s loads of choices, but it’s the design that’s the challenge.

As many people know the service and support of Adobe has gone in the toilet in recent times and while they need some competition to slap them back on track, their software is still great. Today I want to talk about In Design CS4 and how it relates to album deisgn. I’ve tried various tools for album design, some of which worked really well. When it comes to crunch time however, I’m finding In Design is the king.

I learned the basics about using ID for albums from a video that Kevin Swan made. And now gives free on the Kiss books site. Not required but it was sure a great crash course and I use it often to hone up my knowledge. The bottom line is that it’s fast, easy and powerful. Once you get the hang of it.

In Design was not actually designed for photographers to make albums. Rather it’s the industry standard for designers doing layouts on magazines and other published material. It turns out however that it works a treat for doing albums. Bear in mind it’s not a photo editor. What ID rocks at, is laying out pages and doing it fast.

I cringe when I think of doing individual pages in Photoshop. It’s not a page design tool and it’s tedious to do layouts with. What I love about ID is that the entire project is contained in a single file. All images on the pages are referenced to the original files on your computer similar to when one makes a web page. You can edit and change you design in one place and when it’s finished just export the final file as a PDF of JPEG’s. Kinda like the way we use Lightroom.

January 21, 2009

Dennis Zerwas, Wedding Tip Wens, Weddings

Wedding Tip Wednesday #10: Review Your Business Literature

As I mentioned in last week’s tip, the slower winter months are a great time to get the different aspects of your business in good order for the upcoming wedding season. This week’s tip is to make sure the literature for your business is accurate and up to date. I would not only include brochures, business cards, pamphlets, contracts, and postcards in this category, but also the wording on your website or blog as well. Here are some important things to look for when looking over your materials:

January 21, 2009

Biz Sense, Gavin Seim, PPS Photography Tips, ProPhotoShow, Weddings

The Bridal Show:

by Gavin Seim: This weekend I had a booth at the Wenatchee Bridal Show. The confession I have to make is this. While I was happy with my setup and received great feedback, I ran into my typical problem. I was not a good enough salesman.

Now those of you that listen to Pro Photo Show know that I’m not a shy person. It’s as if like I sit in my booth making weird sounds as I flick my lip with an index finger making that interesting “buh buh buh” sound. Nope, I do fine interacting with people and being professional. Until it’s time to seal the sale that is.

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