Photographing a wedding is like any event photography and the key is to not let yourself believe its any more than that. If you think that this is a weddingI cant blow a single shot youll be to tense and to nervous to deliver.
The first wedding I ever shot was a hand me down job from Tiny. I was a junior in highschool and Tiny was in the photo class ahead of me. Some guy had hired Tiny for the job of shooting his wedding in a little chapel out in Rancho Calaveras, but for some reason Tiny could go, so I did. I nervously brought 10 pack of 400 ASA Kodak print filmyes the trashy stuff. The wedding was in a barely lit chapel with harsh light, so I had to use a flash on my old Model F Nikon. I was not good with a flashnot that I am good with a flash these days, but I spent most of the day spilling bright light bursts all over the inside of the small white building. At the end of the shoot I handed them the rolls of shot film like they asked and they shoved $80 in my front pocket. For highschool this was a good gig and probably a fair trade since Im sure most of the images looked likewell not like a wedding should look.
Its late 2003 and I get a call from Trish Pargett, an old friend from high school that was one year ahead of me. I also happened to go to college with her and then randomly ended up teaching high school in Portland the same year she started med-school in Portland. Trish asked if I would should her wedding May 14, 2004. After some hesitation I figured I couldnt say no to such a good friend, so went through with it. I bought a Nikon D70 camera for the wedding and ended up shooting everything in digital and slides with my old Nikon 6006. To my surprise there were some really good shotsall those years shooting for the SMC newspaper had really paid off in my ability to shoot people candidly. I also got a great excuse to go up to Portland, hang out with a bunch of people I like and get to partake in a very special moment for some one that I care aboutoverall a real positive experience, but more of something I though would just happen once in my life; help one close friend out with their wedding.
However, along comes the summer of 2004 and Im helping out Maria and Pete, two friends from Montana with their journey along the Muir trail and Pete sneaks me to the side as says hes going to ask Maria to marry him at Guitar Lake, right at the base of Whitney. Before I know it, its September 2005 and Im on a plane, a bus and then a ferry to Block Island in the Atlantic Ocean to photograph their wedding. Once again good time, good friends and I start thinkingI get to travel, I get to help people out, I get to have a good time.I could do more of this. I even got to go photograph a beautiful wedding in Brazil this year with a fantastic couple from Britain. Im lucky in that the people who ask me to shoot are usually very laid back, warm and think of weddings as a celebration for everyone and not just themselves.
So selling out isnt that bad.as long as its for a good cause.
Below are some wedding albums you can get to by clicking on the couples names next to the images:
Scott and Sara
James and Lorna (can't show these yet...orders of the bride)
Pete and Maria
Tim and Minh
Kevin and Trish
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