A question to all you wedding togs.

[theVodkaCircle]

Hi everyone. Please believe that I'm not stirring the pot or having a go at all. I'm just curious.

What do wedding togs get out of the experience?

I've shot a couple of weddings just for friends but I don't know if I could do it on a regular basis.
I know several people who shoot a lot of weddings and they rave about how great it is but honestly, I can't quite see the appeal.

Any insights would be great, thanks.

Cheers
Mark

[ameerat42]

Some non-wedding tog, non-photographic motives might be: "the food ", some big $, and...
- Hang on! - What's that? Oh! What's Love got to do with it? Yeah, the music, I guess.

But I am like you... Been to one recently, and in the dim and distant "covered" a couple of them as 2nd shooter or for friends...
Am.

[Wandapics]

I have photographed 2 weddings, with my daughter, for friends who couldn't afford to pay a wedding photographer. I have also been backup at a couple. I enjoy the challenge, catching special moments & the joy of the occasion.

[MarkChap]

hmmmmm, I love shooting weddings.
The thrill, the excitement, funnily enough, the pressure

And I just love when you create an image and show the bride on the back of the camera and she goes "WOW"

[yummymummy]

I'm with Mark. Getting that special photo of the bride and/or groom is what it's all about. It's their one day... you don't get a redo on that one day. If you miss the shot, you miss the shot. you can't stand up and go " ok, time out, I missed the kiss, can you just do that again from the I now pronounce you man and wife bit" ... I love the look on her face when you capture the look on her dads face as he's just given her away.,... the look on the grooms face when he sees the woman that he loves for the first time in a wedding dress, knowing that in a short while, they'll be man and wife. . . . The families that go are awesome too, they're all so loving. I guess that's what it's all about for me... the love in the air, it's a special time, and you can get easily lost in the moment if you're not careful. *sigh* I love weddings!!

[Cocoajam]

Hey Mark,
I just shot a wedding for friends that couldn't afford a photog, made me as nervous as hell, pobably because if they didn't like them, I would still be seeing them in the future.... Anyway, I had a blast, but still very unsure if I would do it again yet..... Maybe I just need a little more experience and maybe tag along as a second camera for awhile....
Still, yummuymummy says it all - I love weddings (although none will ever compare with my own....)!

[JM Tran]

since mid 2008 - about 74 weddings

-increase communications skills and conceptual directions with clients
-invaluable confidence and knowledge for wedding - a wedding genre is landscape, portraiture, fashion, macro, commercial etc genres of photography all rolled into one day
-business and marketing skills
-using the right lighting for the right situations - I do not take kindly to anyone saying 'I am solely an available light photographer', to seasoned photographers - it translates to I dont know much about lighting so I'll just stick to what I know best.
-running a team effectively on the day
-be more resourceful
-teamwork and initiative you cannot gain from shooting, say landscapes or macro stuff
-IMPROVISATION ON THE FLY - always have a plan B or C or D for when things do not go the way one intended to, and it will.

[ricktas]

Weddings generally occur on weekends, thus those who are starting out as semi-pro's can often keep their other job and shoot weddings on the weekends, so they are convenient, for the part time photographer (one reason they get called Weekend Warriors). Weddings can be a very lucrative area to get into. Could you charge $2000 or more to shoot a general portrait session? People pay more for wedding photographs than fairly much any other photography in their lives.

Weddings can be the 'bread and butter' that carry many a wedding photographer/photography business from being a loss making enterprise to a profitable one.

As the posts above show, the reasons for being a wedding photographer are many. Just like anything else, there are those that do it and love it, and those that hate it. Then there are those that love it till they meet Bridezilla..and then hate it

[peterking]

I did one for a friend just a few weeks ago and today handed over the DVD I've created.
First up I must say that when he asked me I refused. And refused, and refused , and refused.... you get the idea. She then rang me and still I refused. I do kitesurfers not weddings! When she rang me for the third time I relinquished.
The day was long and hot. I got some great shots and am proud of my skills as a photographer and editor.
I learnt I have to be more authoritative with directions and command people to do as I say. A challenge for me.
I learnt I must drink lots of water as I suffered bad dehydration for the next two days. Yay. Outdoors in Perth in summer.
Would I do it again. Yes. Only as a second to a professional so that I will learn.
Would I recommend everyone else to do it. Yes. It's a hell of a learning experience.

[Roosta]

I have done two for friends, makes you get to know your gear very well.

Money as Rick mentioned would be a lure I guess.

Mental note, Make sure you take the camera out of AI Servor mode before shooting - Last outing, Rugby Union. LOL. See first line of text.

[scarlet artemis]

I'm only a beginner and have been asked by my future sister in law to do their upcoming wedding - night wedding with dimly lit reception place, will be dragging a tripod everywhere. I've refused because of the responsibility and knowing my own lack of skill - a couple of nice portraits does not a wedding photographer make! They haven't booked a photographer yet and the day is less than two months away. I think I'd like to do a wedding eventually just for the love of taking beautiful photos of people and the kids. The responsibility is something I feel keenly - what if they hate their photos? My husband is a chef and says that not everyone will ever like what he cooks, and that you shrug and move on. But I think a photographer puts a little of themselves into every picture they take, and the rejection would be hard to take. As one poster said, the client consultation skills are so true - making sure everyone's expectations match. Sorry about the long post but this is a topic I've had on my mind a lot lately and would love to hear more points of view. Everything said so far has been fabulous! xo

[JM Tran]

I have done two for friends, makes you get to know your gear very well.

Money as Rick mentioned would be a lure I guess.

Mental note, Make sure you take the camera out of AI Servor mode before shooting - Last outing, Rugby Union. LOL. See first line of text.

From my experience with colleagues, those that join the wedding photography genre for money as the primary motivator dont last very long doing weddings.