First Digital Wedding.

[TSEE]

Ok be kind, but I thougth I'd share some of my favorite pictures from this past weekends wedding I photographed.
The actual photo taking was somewhat of a nightmare, seeing I was photographing my BIL and his fiance's wedding I had discussed with teh two of them what type photos they wanted and we had set up a timeline esp since the bride didn't want anyone to see her in her dress until she walked down the isle, that complicated things but we made it work UP UNTIL the day before the wedding. The day before was hectic as it was with us trying to set up the reception hall and the rehearsal and so on, before we leave the reception hall to go to the rehearsal I asked the bride when she was gonna get to the church to get ready. The HAIRDRESSER interupts and voices her opinion about how the bride should be the LAST one to get dressed, I tried to nicely tell the bride that she was gonna miss out on the shots we had decided on since I was the only one covering the event. The hairdresser was litterally a w*tch with a B who flew in on her broom stick, I SO regret not saying anything to her but I knew I'd regret it later and cause a scene on top of it. Anyways she was so rude and truely hurt my feelings, not only did she screw up the entire timeline we had set up to make the photographing to go smoothly but she insulted me by saying that the bride should run up to WAlmart right now and get some disposible cameras and have the bridesmaid take photos of her getting dressed so I could do other photographs and then has the nerve to say that *SHE* should have brought her camera so SHE could have taken the photos. Talking like I was totally incompetent. I'm not even gonna comment on her hair, it was awful and she was usppose to be a hairdresser, looked like she'd fell into a bucket of bleach water and only got dunked about halfway. =oP
The wedding was hectic and stressful with me running around like I had my head cut off, I can tell you I didn't have a single bite to eat nor drink between 8am to about 7pm I was so busy snapping photos. I took about 530 photos covering the whole event and by the time I was done editing, doing some photo journalist style (B&W) and some tinted ones, it landed at around 800+ photos.

I'll include a link to a online photo album to show you all. I didn't get any full length pictures of the B&G as time ran out but I have arrange to have those taken at the end of this month at 3 locations around town, I'm thrilled that I get a second shot at those.

Oh I should also mention that some of the pictures in the album was put in solely for my parents (pictures of me and my daugther and me and my family) and there's a few candids I put in there not becuz they were awesome but becuz they captured the mood of the day and the feelings.

So what do you all think, my first digital wedding. I sure got one of those live and learn experiences which I never hope to encounter ever again.
(And for those of you who dislike borders, pardon the pictures but I added those just so I'd have somewhere where my initals would be seen plus frame them without using 2 different programs. The proofs do not have the borders/frames.)

<LINK REMOVED. ALBUM RELOCATED.>

[Photonut29]

the pictures are good. I like the colorized black and white ones. I am not crazy about most of the boarders especially the musical notes. Sorry the shoot was such a nightmare. almost makes me not want to shoot the two weddings I am doing one in May and one in July

[TSEE]

Thanks. The B&W with tints are some of my favorites as well. And the originals don't have the borders I just added those for online posting. =oP I like to aggrivate people like that. LOL
Oh well live and learn right? Hopefully the next wedding I do won't be such a nightmare since all I'll have to worry about is taking photographs and nothing else (we had a few incidents with our kdis as well that day).

[Titus213]

It looks like you did a pretty good job of capturing the flavor of the wedding. Pictures are pretty good. I don't care for the border treatments either. The proof is in the acceptance of the photos by the bride - it was her day. As to the next one being easier - I doubt it. I won't do weddings except as a favor or a gift and then I recommend they hire a pro (I'm not). The anxiety they create in the photographer is beyond reason. If you are the photog and you aren't worried about how it comes out I would question your comittment....

Overall I think you did a great job.

[TSEE]

It looks like you did a pretty good job of capturing the flavor of the wedding. Pictures are pretty good. I don't care for the border treatments either. The proof is in the acceptance of the photos by the bride - it was her day. As to the next one being easier - I doubt it. I won't do weddings except as a favor or a gift and then I recommend they hire a pro (I'm not). The anxiety they create in the photographer is beyond reason. If you are the photog and you aren't worried about how it comes out I would question your comittment....

Overall I think you did a great job.

LOL thanks, but like I told the previous poster I did the borders just for the online versions, they're not on the proofs. I like to aggrivate people. ;)
I guess I have to high of expectations to hope the next one goes better, but this lady was totally out of line, and she was only a hairdresser, a bad one at that. Oh well, live and learn i guess.
Thanks tho, I appreciate the comments.

[Fer]

I like the photos Sue ;)

[TSEE]

Thanks Fer.

[Claire]

Hej Sue,
Sorry about your hectic day, but the pics came out pretty good, so no harm done! And great you get to re-shoot stuff later. :)

Curious, did you shoot in RAW or JPEG and what was your equipment?

[TSEE]

Hej Sue,
Sorry about your hectic day, but the pics came out pretty good, so no harm done! And great you get to re-shoot stuff later. :)

Curious, did you shoot in RAW or JPEG and what was your equipment?

Hej!
Yeah it was hectic but I suppose any wedding would be, I just wish I didn't have to have the encounter with the hairdresser, I'm still fuming about it a week later, I suppose it will always bug me. =oP
Thanks, I hope the B&G will like them too but so far everyone I've shown them too has liked them, the groom even got to see some this past wednesday when I was working on them (its my BIL and he had an interview in our town so he spent the night) and he liked what he saw then. So I guess that's a good sign.
And I'm THRILLED I get a chance to shoot the outdoor pictures, I think they'll come out fabulous!

No I shot in JPEG as I didn't think I had enough memory to shoot RAW nor am I all that familiar with the use of RAW so i felt more comfy using JPEG for it. My equiptment was what my sig states, a 20D with external flash and a 18-55mm lens.

[Claire]

Sue,
Ok, basic equipment in short. That's cool. Kinda nice to see that one can get nice shots without a bag full of L's (although I'm sure they help a lot!).

Glad the groom liked what he saw. That's the main thing, to make the couple happy. :)

[toddb]

Please tell me you got a good shot of the hair dresser. I would hope you would include a photoshoped rendition of your view of her in the wedding album. LOL. Those were great shots considering you didn't eat anything all day...how'd you do it.

[TSEE]

Sue,
Ok, basic equipment in short. That's cool. Kinda nice to see that one can get nice shots without a bag full of L's (although I'm sure they help a lot!).

Glad the groom liked what he saw. That's the main thing, to make the couple happy. :)

Well the few pictures he saw he liked, so lets hope they like the total package. =o) I'll find out tomorrow or by Monday I'm sure, my hubby just mailed them out at lunch so with our speedy postal system they should have them tomorrow. =o)
Keep your fingers crossed!

[TSEE]

Please tell me you got a good shot of the hair dresser. I would hope you would include a photoshoped rendition of your view of her in the wedding album. LOL. Those were great shots considering you didn't eat anything all day...how'd you do it.

Well I got one but its not a good enough view to show you how awful I think the hair was. =oP Personally I would NEVER have trusted a person who looked like that to do MY hair for my wedding day, something went terribly wrong with hers obviously cuz that can not be intended for a woman of 60+! I'll incl. it here, not to be mean but you ask and you shall recieve. LOL what kind of PSed version would you like to see me do?
Thanks, I was quite pleased with them after I'd post edited them, alot better than straight from the camera. I dunno how I did it, altho I'm pretty used to it by now, I only eat two meals a day, breakfast and dinner nothing in between so to go that long wasn't that hard, I'm sure stress and all that jiggy helped to keep the hunger away. I didn't get a chance to sit pretty much through out the whole things, one brief sit down while the reception line at the church was thinning out and once to get a piece of cake while the B&G were mingling.

[Sam]

You must be very good with people. I like the way you set up your shots, the poses look fun and happy. Great job!

[berto]

sue,

you did pretty well. covered the important shots... the lighting the candles part looks okay but maybe woulda been nicer if you showed their faces. i would agree as well with the borders on some of those photos, they don't do the photo justice. otherwise you did pretty good you'll get better as time goes on.

[TSEE]

You must be very good with people. I like the way you set up your shots, the poses look fun and happy. Great job!

LOL I dunno about that, but its basically all family and we all knew each other so that made things easier to handle. =o) Plus the couple was young and so was their attendants so it was easy to get them to do fun poses since "kids" like to goof off. ;o)
Thanks.

[TSEE]

sue,

you did pretty well. covered the important shots... the lighting the candles part looks okay but maybe woulda been nicer if you showed their faces. i would agree as well with the borders on some of those photos, they don't do the photo justice. otherwise you did pretty good you'll get better as time goes on.

Thanks. And about the lighting the candle, that's just one of the upclose ones, I wanted some photos that put the emphasis on the act not just their whole body. Don't worry I got shots that included their upper body/faces as well, like this one attached. And about the borders, I did it just to aggrivate people online, they're not on the proofs the B&G got, I wanted somewhere to put my initials without doing the whole old black/white border most people do.
Thanks.

[Wazza]

Why was the link removed?
Read the post, and sounds interesting, and what a (b)witch that woman was.

The couple of shots I can see, are cool.

[TSEE]

Why was the link removed?
Read the post, and sounds interesting, and what a (b)witch that woman was.

The couple of shots I can see, are cool.

I'm gonna remove the photos and add some without the borders since that seemed to aggrivate people here to death. :p .Here's the new webalbum without the borders: http://www.amazon.kodakgallery.com/I.jsp?c=53ud287.1wfcpnuz&x=0&y=leogsd

[Claire]

Ok, I keep seeing all these candle lighting pics when it comes to weddings. Think I read it's a "unity candle"? Eh, what exactly is that?? Just curious about that tradition. Can someone explain to me. :)

/Claire

[Maureen Souza]

Sue: I think you did well!! Everything came out pretty clear and you got all the important moments in nicely.

I have my wedding shoots coming up in the next two weeks.......

[TSEE]

Ok, I keep seeing all these candle lighting pics when it comes to weddings. Think I read it's a "unity candle"? Eh, what exactly is that?? Just curious about that tradition. Can someone explain to me. :)

/Claire

This is what I got from weddingNet.com.au :
Q. What is the whole story behind unity candles? Sharon, New Hartford, USA.
A. Dear Sharon,
The lighting of the ‘unity candle’ is a popular American tradition. There are actually three candles involved in the ceremony: two taper candles, which represent the couple as individuals, and the unity candle itself. The two taper candles are lit and then used to light the single, unity candle, thus symbolising the couples’ commitment to one another.

[TSEE]

Sue: I think you did well!! Everything came out pretty clear and you got all the important moments in nicely.

I have my wedding shoots coming up in the next two weeks.......

Thanks Maureen. There's some of the action shots that came out blurry and the group shots could have been better but overall I'm happy myself with them, I'm about to find out today or tomorrow what the B&G thinks I mailed them the "proofs" Friday. I'm anxiously waiting.
Oh and I wasn't happy that things didn't go well according to the plans we had made and I missed out on a lot of B&G pictures with just the two of them, so I was happy when me and the Bride agreed to do another photo session outside at the end of the month, we've already got 3 places picked out for them, a covered bridge about 15 mins from my house, an arch that reminds me of the famous arch they've got in Paris France (can't remember the english name for it now) and a rose garden both which are in the next big town over (about 30min drive from my house). I'm thrilled to get some nice outdoor shots of them as well.

[smittymike19]

sue , i have been a part of about 8 or so weddings (groomsman, best man etc..) and i can tell you that the way you handled the hairdresser was the best way. I often do the same thing as far as thinking about the situation after the fact and think "wow i should have done this, or that". you have to understnd something. this was not your wedding, so if you had said something and casued a huge argument, it would have made you look bad to the bride as she was going through enough stress that day, without watching her helpers break out into a huge argument. Obviously this lady was a caddy little "B", so saying ANYTHING could have quickly escalated. im sure your bride appreciated the fact that there wasnt a huge fight, and to that you should be happy. great job on handling the sitaution and the pictures :)

[Andy_T]

Sue,

nice pictures from what I could see.

'From what I could see' means that the Kodak site sucks so much that I could not wait for a single of the pictures in high :confused: resolution to load.

Best regards,
Andy

[Skip Souza]

Sue, I think you did a fine job on the wedding. I am glad that you will get some more B&G time without the haidresser.
Speaking of witch, is that wildebeast in the two-tone mullet the hairdresser? Sheesh.
I agree with Smitty that you handeled the whole affair with aplomb and class. Remember you will soon get over being ticked off, while she will still be ugly. ;-) ;-) ;-)

[TSEE]

sue , i have been a part of about 8 or so weddings (groomsman, best man etc..) and i can tell you that the way you handled the hairdresser was the best way. I often do the same thing as far as thinking about the situation after the fact and think "wow i should have done this, or that". you have to understnd something. this was not your wedding, so if you had said something and casued a huge argument, it would have made you look bad to the bride as she was going through enough stress that day, without watching her helpers break out into a huge argument. Obviously this lady was a caddy little "B", so saying ANYTHING could have quickly escalated. im sure your bride appreciated the fact that there wasnt a huge fight, and to that you should be happy. great job on handling the sitaution and the pictures :)

THanks. I know it was probably for the better to keep my mouth shut but it really has bothered me. And the fac that the MOB tried to blame things on me when things were running behind on the wedding day didn't make me feel better. I didn't hear that but my MIL did and she stood up for me and said what needed to be said and the MOB just shrugged her shoulders after that. Oh well, I guess its water under the bridge now, nothing I can do about it. I guess its all a learning experience and this was just one to add to the list.
Thanks again for your words. =o)

[TSEE]

Sue,

nice pictures from what I could see.

'From what I could see' means that the Kodak site sucks so much that I could not wait for a single of the pictures in high :confused: resolution to load.

Best regards,
Andy

Thanks Andy.
And yes I know the kodak site can be aggrivating but the easiest way to share pictures when there's a lot who want to see them. =o)
Hopefully next time you can see it on my website, if I can ever get it designed and uploaded!

[TSEE]

Sue, I think you did a fine job on the wedding. I am glad that you will get some more B&G time without the haidresser.
Speaking of witch, is that wildebeast in the two-tone mullet the hairdresser? Sheesh.
I agree with Smitty that you handeled the whole affair with aplomb and class. Remember you will soon get over being ticked off, while she will still be ugly. ;-) ;-) ;-)

LOL Thanks Skip. =o)
Thank you. And I'm thrilled I get some more phototime with the B&G, the really deserves some nice pictures that aren't ruled by the clock or the surroundings.
Yeah the two-toned mullet in the tourquis shirt is the hairdresser, see why I wouldn't have trusted her as MY hairdresser????
THanks again for your kind words, nice to know I at least handled the situation good. =o)

[Claire]

Btw, that pic of the hairdressers...LMAO Hilarious. And yes, I know what you mean about not wanting them to fix your hair... Somehow when I think about it, a lot of hairdressers have weird hair themselves. Hmmm.....

[TSEE]

Yeah the hairdresser wasn't all that nice looking herself, at least not her hair. I would have backed out of the door screaming if she wanted to do mine. Funny you say that tho, my MIL said the same thing that a lot of hairdressers have funky hairdo's that usually fail on themselves but make others look good. I guess a rule of thumb in that proffession should be that "don't color or cut your OWN hair". HUH?

[TSEE]

TSEE,

As they say in my part of the world,"Ya done good."

I know the wedding, though. When I see your photos, it is almost as if it is one of my weddings. I feel like I've been there.

Re: the hairdresser from hell. I wish i could say that your story is unbelievable, but it is thoroughly believable. It's strange how some folks assume positions of authority and others go along with it. I had a bride who hired a makeup artist who commandeered the bridal photography session, and then after the wedding, he tried to do the same for the formal altar returns.

Then there was the caterer who decided that she hated me and that i was thoroughly incompetent. When she finished chewing me out for the last time, she walked away, and i took a picture of her big fat butt and put it in the back of the proof book. Smart move. She was the MOB's sister! The MOB thought that it was funny and said that she was sorry that her sister was such a witch.

Worse, a two months after I shot that wedding, I had another wedding reception in the same place. Then i found out that the MOB's sister was also the manager of the place reception hall! Hoo boy!

I don't see a link to the pic of the HFH. (Hairdresser from Heck).


THanks! I appreciate that.
I got a call from the Bride last night saying her proof CD's didn't work at home, we checked them on our computer before we sent them off and they worked fine, well she checked at work and they work there just fine too, so who knows. But she was THRILLED with the photos. Her mom had gotten one CD with photos and already wants them ALL printed. LOL MOB's tend to go overboard don't they?

I've read horror stories and didn't think I was gonna encounter one I guess I was wrong, the hairdresser certainly was from H***!!! The pic of the hairdresser is half way down the page on the first post page (does that make sense?)....she's the one with the two toned mullet in a turquis shirt, the other woman adjusting the veil is the MOB.

[Claire]

Sue,
Happy to hear the bride and mom were thrilled with the photos! Yaaay for you. :) Good work.

[TSEE]

Yeah I'm thrilled that they're so happy with teh photos, made me feel so much better. I mean I had my favorites but its not what I nor other people think about the photos, its all about what the B&G thinks and they loved them. Phew!
Thanks!
When's your wedding coming up again?

[mackb]

Claire,

Before the wedding ceremony, a single Unity Candle and two slimmer tapers are placed in holders and arranged in the area where the wedding ceremony will be performed.
During the wedding ceremony, after the exchange of vows and rings, the bride and groom move to the area where the candles have been readied, aware of their position in relation to the congregation's view of the candles. Two honored participants, one representing each side of the family (usually the bride's mother and the groom's mother), light the individual tapers for their children. (Contrarily, the single tapers may have been lit prior to the ceremony or when other candles are lit before the ceremony.)
The bride takes her lighted taper; the groom does likewise.
Simultaneously, the bride and groom use their individual tapers to light the large Unity Candle between them.
The bride and groom extinguish their tapers and place them back in their holders.

The lighting of the single candle symbolically represents two individuals joining as one, and the extinguishing of the individual tapers shows the bride's and groom's intent to sublimate their individual


And by the way Sue, I think you did a great job

[Claire]

Claire,

Before the wedding ceremony, a single Unity Candle and two slimmer tapers are placed in holders and arranged in the area where the wedding ceremony will be performed.
During the wedding ceremony, after the exchange of vows and rings, the bride and groom move to the area where the candles have been readied, aware of their position in relation to the congregation's view of the candles. Two honored participants, one representing each side of the family (usually the bride's mother and the groom's mother), light the individual tapers for their children. (Contrarily, the single tapers may have been lit prior to the ceremony or when other candles are lit before the ceremony.)
The bride takes her lighted taper; the groom does likewise.
Simultaneously, the bride and groom use their individual tapers to light the large Unity Candle between them.
The bride and groom extinguish their tapers and place them back in their holders.

The lighting of the single candle symbolically represents two individuals joining as one, and the extinguishing of the individual tapers shows the bride's and groom's intent to sublimate their individual



Thanks mackb for the explanation. I've never heard of/seen this until I began surfing American wedding sites. Is it a very American thing? Is it an Christian/Catholic thing?

/Claire

[Maureen Souza]

Sue: Glad to hear the B&G loved the photos and the MOB wants them all!!! Good publicity brings good business.
The wedding that I am shooting on April 30th will be a night time, outdoor affair and that will be a first for me. I am going to have to use my flash for the whole event..... and no walls or ceiling for bouncing. The couple asked that I do mostly unposed pictures of the wedding party and guests as a photojournalistic approach although there will be a few posed of the B&G and Wedding Party.
I did this couple's photos last Dec. which they used for their engagement announcement, then they asked me to do the wedding.
Hope mine come out as good as yours!!!!!

[TSEE]

Yeah I'm relieve and thrilled they thought they were that good. =o)
Just another good reference to put on my list, huh? I really need to get my website finished so my SIL can print me some business cards (she works in the printing industry so she can cut me a deal). I'm thinking of starting in a small scale since I will still have to stay at home with my kids for another few years (well Eli until next fall and Emily's 2-3 years after that approx).
Gosh the night time wedding sounds beautiful but sounds like a headache to photograph. I personally like the photojournalist style myself, its so natural and more of a document style thing than posed, you can only have so many of the posed before you get tired of them. I made some of this couples into B&W since they couldn't make up their mind, so they'd have a choice.
I can't wait to see the results of yours! I'm shooting this same B&G's extra bridal portraits the same day you're shooting your wedding, I'll post my portraits the following week, I really hope they turn out as good as I'm thinking they will. I just pray for good weather! LOL

[Claire]

Maureen,
A night time and outdoors wedding? Wow, that sounds like a really big challenge! Wish you the best of luck, I'm sure you'll do fine.

[tim]

Nice job, well done :)

[Maureen Souza]

Maureen,
A night time and outdoors wedding? Wow, that sounds like a really big challenge! Wish you the best of luck, I'm sure you'll do fine.

Thanks Claire!! I am actually looking very forward to it. While the wedding horror stories abound here on the forum, I like doing weddings and have been quite successful so far. I have a few booked over the next couple of months and then I am high-tailing it to my time share in Hawaii for break! :)