i shot this wedding in may in north florida. they're friends and everything would've been great, except i showed up with only my 10-20mm wide angle...and had no way of going back for my other equipment (nor having anyone bring it to me). so i was sweating pretty badly. also because it was insanely hot.

anyhow, here are some shots from the day. i tried to vary the use of the wide angle as much as possible...



























any thoughts/comments/feedback/jokes/whatever are more than welcome, as i'm still new at the whole wedding thing, i feel really uncomfortable when i do it and i've never studied under anyone and feel like i always miss out on stuff (mostly detail shots). so anything you guys have to offer would be great!

i took some vertical shots...but the lens distorts things more obviously when i do...so i ended up going with a horizontal orientation most of the time.

and there's a couple more shots on the blog...

I think the shots here are really quite good. My question is, ...... why would you start photographing weddings without learning how to do it from another pro. Study under someone. This is not meant to be harsh ....... find someones style that you like and learn from them.

Are you worried that the B&G will be dissappointed with all the distortion?

If you didn't have a backup lens, did you have a back up camera?

i agree...you'd think that would make sense 9studying under someone). i shot the wedding of this groom's sister last year. she's one of my best friends, and has seen me progress in my photography from a beginner to now. she trusted me, and couldn't afford a professional photographer, so as my gift, i shot her wedding. her brother and his fiance liked the images so much, they asked me to shoot their wedding. so i just kind of found myself doing it again. i'd like to study under someone, but feel i would eventually become their competition.and i feel bad about learning from them, and then going off on my own. so, how do i do that? anyone in north florida wznt to take me on as their apprentice?and thank you for saying you think the shots are good...really...that is a major confidence booster.

i'm not too worried really...i think they will really enjoy the shots. i hope at least...and there isn't much i can do about it now...so i'm just not going to worry.and no, at the time i didn't have a back-up camera. i do now, though it really belongs to my news/journalism office and it's a nikon...and i use canon...but it's better than nothing. so yes, i shot a wedding with one camera and one lens. and only 8 gigs of memory cards which i had to dump onto my external hardrive while the band took a break, and then went back and filled them up again. clearly i was out of league and completely unprepared. i'm learning though...which is good.

well, I appreciate your honesty, and for what you had to work with, you did well. I won't even ask how you forgot the other lenses. So, it sounds like they wouldn't have had any pics other than what you volunteered to take, but yikes, one camera AND one lens, that makes me nauseous just thinking about it. Hopefully you'll 2nd shoot a bit, load up on memory, buy another camera body, some more fast lenses (I have a few dirt cheap canon 50mm 1.8 just in case anything weird ever happened to any of my other lenses), at least one or 2 flash units, and then give it a go again.

I can't speak for others here, but I know every single one of my assistants are assisting to learn and eventually be my competition ....... it's fine and most other photographers know that's just how we learn. The trick is once you have the skills, develop your own style rather than copy blindly. All the early master painters learnt by copying ....... it's a place to start your own journey. Good luck - I'd hire you but am in DC

I'll ask.


How?


I can barely sleep before a wedding even if I've cleaned, charged, formatted, and organized everything, and have it set neatly in a pile waiting...



Considering you shot that whole thing with a 10-20, those aren't bad pictures. I'd be curious to see some more at the Ceremony. I'm sure you got at least a few pretty awesome ones there.

Allow me to point you to a post to read and internalize before you photograph another wedding.

Yeah I agree above, I am surprised that I even sleep at all before a wedding because I get up every few hours to make sure I have checked and rechecked.

You really lucked out on the few you posted but I would be curious to see what the rest looked like. Even a regular bride and Groom can notice if there is no variation in your shots.

Words of wisdom, really take in account of what your responsibility is to your client. It is a big opportunity that many photographers work hard to book. Even when you are staring out, you can't afford mistakes, weddings are a one time shot and they are counting on you, even if they did not pay you that much. On the other side of that, we live in a very litigious society and trust me, you do not want to be caught in that predicament!

Mac may have flown a little close to the radar for this gig, but for those who have seen his stuff know that he didn't luck out. He's modest, but he's very good behind the lens.

I agree but from looking at his Blog I would say that he likes his 10-20 alot. It might be a good idea to experiment with other lens to switch it up a bit.

We are all just making an observation that he might want to double check next time, would hate for him to get into a sticky situation. The great thing about these forums and that hopefully some of the people that have been doing this for 15 years can offer advice to those starting out so they don't go through the crap we did;)

I think you made the most of what you had. The 10-22 is one my favorite lenses, so it's interesting to see how you used it during each section of the wedding.

I completely agree!!

All that hater-ade!!

Joking!!!

Ok- devil's advocate here- some great photographers have done more with a lot less... not the tool but the artist...

please don't jump on me, lol.

For sure, but those photos better knock you over if so! The tools of the trade are just that tools, if he had shot everything with an 85 or the 70-200, yes, but you can only warp the face so much before someone is over it. I agree the shots he got were good, I don't think that was really the arguement, it was more watchin your ass so you don't get pissed off clients on your tail..cause that would really suck! Nuff said...

Agreed Nicole

Great job! You did the best with what you had and that's what matters. PLEASE let us know what the couple thinks of their photos.

Great job with these!! If you are ever on the west side of florida and don't have somthing there are a TON of us so just get on here and I am sure you will get what you need.

wow

wow, Mac, that's my worst nightmare right there!! And that lens, probably the worst in my lineup for me to be stuck with! I think I'm least comfortable with that lens. You did an amazing job on it, and honestly looking through the photos here, there isn't much distortion, GREAT job


(now make sure you have a backup always in the car, and pleanty of cards, so this never happens again )

Life happens, and in this case it happened rather well.

thank you to everyone offering words of wisdom and advice. i know all of you are right, and your "stern" tone is appreciated, as it helps drive home how much i have to learn and how much more i need to think ahead and really triple check everything going into an event like this.

thanks for checking out the photos and offering your thoughts and opinions. i honestly really do appreciate everyone's input, support and encouragement. this truly is a great community. thanks again.

and taka...i really, really appreciate what you said...and i want you to know that i have your back whenever you need it. knife fight, light saber duel, impromptu rap battle...i'm there for you boss.

I'm glad to see the tone has changed in this thread a bit because frankly I was shaking my head yesterday reading some of the responses here. I bet if he hadn't mentioned anything about only having one lens and had just posted the pictures w/o commentary that the comments would have been a lot more positive. For all we know, he may not have even been the primary photographer, his post says she was shooting a friends wedding. Maybe he was there in guest mode, not photographer mode. Everybody seemed to jumped on the guy when we didn't know the whole story.

Even if he was paid for this gig and for some crazy reason left half of his stuff at home, what he did with what he had on hand was great. This is where skill comes into to play, not luck. The difference between a good photographer and Uncle Bob, is that the former can take good photos with whatever tools and limitations he has. I can take a damn fine picture with a consumer grade point-and-shoot, because I know what I'm doing. Would I take it to a wedding? Not when I have better tools that give me more flexibility. But if the "real" photographer was kidnapped by gypsies 5 minutes before the ceremony, I bet I could get some workable images using my itty bitty point-and-shoot.

+1000
You pulled it off Mac!! Nice work!

... One body... one lens.... jeez you're right why get a little upset about it




And here I have to lightheartedly disagree. He did EFFING AMAZING. (Seriously I would have gone into the bathroom and thrown up about six times if that somehow happened to me, it's like a worst nightmare of mine.) His caliber of shooting is solid and consistent and he even has his own style already which puts him in a great starting position.

He's got photography savvy in spades, but business savvy still needs work, and if he wants to make a career out of this (which with respect to talent he sure as heck could manage) that sort of thing needs to be drilled upon. It's the same thing with always drilling in "Printing Release" versus "Copyright Release" and "Never let a client change your contract." That sort of thing. No where did anyone who spoke sternly accuse him on not taking killer pictures. Because, quite frankly, that'd be a hell of a lie. I do applaud his honesty and his taking of the instant criticism of his admission very well.

I say different strokes for different folks. Yeah, definitely it would have been much more advantageous for him to have another, or a couple other lenses with him, but if someone gravitates to one lens it's not a bad thing- it's a style preferance. I shoot the majority of my weddings with a 50mm, switching it up with a 28mm when I need to.
Yes I have other lenses, yes I do use them on occassion, but for the most part- this is what I like. It gives you a more distinct style. In Vegas I heard John Mireles say he shot most of his stuff with a 28mm. I have a friend who shoots mostly with an 85mm. You tend to stick with what you like.

I think he did a fantastic job, and I'm sure his clients will love the photos!

I'm digging all of those images - you totally made the most with what you had (whatever the circumstances may have been!)

The fact you didn't flip out at being short-handed and, instead, pulled off some pretty rad images makes me believe you definitely have a career in this industry. And I'm gonna guess the bride and groom won't even think much of the distortion if you don't say anything about it first!