Scared to just go for it...

ThomasDidymus wrote in post #17949585
I feel like I need a lot more time on camera and need to get out of my comfort zone a lot more.

To be honest, unless you've been shooting every day all day for that year, I'll be surprised if you've got the experience or skills to be a professional. The fact you feel you need to 'read more books ' on how to use the camera or compose a shot tells it's own story. However, you've obviously got the right attitude, you want to be better, and fair play for wanting to make a go of it, I haven't got the guts for sure, a mortgage and family and making me very risk adverse, bit I think a lump more experience is needed to support your ambition.

I might disagree with the no auto mode on some occasions. My son and I shoot always in M but a few times either he or myself could not make a wedding and took my wife who has some minor experience (shot film camera's in college). Knows her stuff with posing which is very key but not that well to just shoot in various modes. We put the camera, 5D III, on auto for her and let her click away knowing he or I need to probably try to do more then the norm and capture everything for fear of her not getting the shot. 2/3rd to 3/4 of her shots come back fine, some minor post processing required, but they are keepers. Nothing wrong with throwing into auto if you go into a panic and do not know the camera as well as you eventually will. Better to get some good shots then none at all with a setting screw up.

memoriesoftomorrow wrote in post #17949721
It is perfectly feasible to use P, AV and S (TV) modes and get results... HOWEVER... you have to understand what the camera is doing when you use them and that their limitations are. What the quirks are etc.

For example I shoot receptions almost exclusively on AV mode on my Canons. I shoot them 95% of the time with on camera flash with the flash using ETTL with FEC using spot metering and exposure lock. I.e. I know the limitations of the camera and know how to manage them to get the desired results.

Test shots beforehand with weddings are largely pointless unless the environment is almost fully controllable.

If you were a Canon user I'd suggest my Liveview method for getting to grips with things. But I don't know how LV works on the Nikons.

I am curious about your live view method?

https://photography-on-the.net …showthread.php?​p=16978114

How I've shot for years. Other togs keep trying to tell me it is too slow or will never work etc. Results speak to the contrary.

gonzogolf wrote in post #17949603
There is a balance between relying on the camera and using the manual settings. There are ways to use the auto setings, but controlling the parameters so that you get results you want. What I mean is you still need to make decisions about iso so that you control the balanceof flash to ambient, even while you allow ettl to make some decisions.

Also you want to get paid, not payed.

HAHA...Yea Differently Paid and not payed....Gosh even spell checker can't fix my bad grammar.


And yea. I have been shooting with my D3300 for while now and know that camera well. My new D610 I have had for only two months and was overwhelmed with the amount of stuff I can make it do. I just feel like in that case, in that situation I should have went to P-mode and let the camera do some of the work...Or use the camera I know better for the speed shots during the ceremony rather than Using my D610 just because it is full frame.

Your shots are good. Remember it's an art practice makes perfect. Keep at it and the more you do it the better and easier it gets!!!

gonzogolf wrote in post #17949603
Also you want to get paid, not payed.

Oh, lordy.....don't even start correcting the grammar and spelling in this thread.

your learning. Getting critiqued is very important. Taking that critique and learning from it is more important. Best you can do is keep shooting. With the todays technology, youtube is great with other pro;s explaining and teaching. Ive been out of it for a few years, only because life got busy. But getting back in.

The landscape pic: Not sure what the focus is. Washed out colors.
The bird pic: everything is out of focus.

This all comes with time. Keep shooting, shooting, shooting!

I'm not going to beat the dead horse here, but yes, some are overexposed others are underexposed. The thing that bothered me moreso is the inconsistency of your editing. It looks like you were playing with the clarity slider -- leave that thing alone for now.

Do many wedding photographers rely on auto modes? I do use Av mode quite a bit for outdoor portrait sessions when I'm pressed for time and quickly changing positions, but when I'm indoors anywhere under controlled lighting, I don't see the point. Once I've taken a shot or two and gotten the flash/exposure balance right, I have way more faith in my ability to make minor adjustments in M mode than the camera's ability to judge the situation. EDIT: I do occasionally use TTL metering with my on-camera flash, which is relying on some auto-functionality, however.

ThomasDidymus wrote in post #17946555
I feel like I am just being to cautious and not putting myself out there for payed work..

I believe the responses you received here are appropriate, although they are harsh to read. People expect professional photos for paid work. I just don't know how you would expect to charge money for photography you just started I'm assuming as a hobby, a year ago.

This is how you get better though. You take pictures, edit them, and then see where you can get better. I just sold a lens to a young girl who said as she was walking out the door... This will help me this summer, as I am now doing weddings and already have two booked. She had a newer rebel series camera, so people are out there doing it with little experience, and the gear to go with it. I don't think it is the recommended approach however.

You want to learn about blown highlights? Print out the photo where your bride and groom are walking away, for your own use. You will see that there will be literally nothing printed in some places on the photo. You will have color and then bang, nothing. One quarter of the photo will be missing. I am betting you will never blow another highlight again.

Brad999 wrote in post #17951558
I believe the responses you received here are appropriate, although they are harsh to read. People expect professional photos for paid work. I just don't know how you would expect to charge money for photography you just started I'm assuming as a hobby, a year ago.

This is how you get better though. You take pictures, edit them, and then see where you can get better. I just sold a lens to a young girl who said as she was walking out the door... This will help me this summer, as I am now doing weddings and already have two booked. She had a newer rebel series camera, so people are out there doing it with little experience, and the gear to go with it. I don't think it is the recommended approach however.

Have you seen her work? She may be quite good.

And the equipment......in capable hands, it makes little difference.

I never said anything about her work. I said people are out there doing what the OP wants to do with non professional equipment and little experience.

Brad999 wrote in post #17951572
I never said anything about her work. I said people are out there doing what the OP wants to do with non professional equipment and little experience.

I understood what you said.

You have insinuated that because someone has 'non professional equipment and little experience' they cannot do a good job at shooting a wedding.

My point is simply that may not necessarily be the case. I'm quite sure there a great number of people in this world shooting excellent weddings and events without using 'professional' equipment and don't have years of experience.

Conversely as my brother in law found out, there are people out there with professional equipment and years of experience who can't take good photo's as well. They were that bad, he didn't buy a single photo off them, charged a fortune too.........

Of course you can get into paid gigs but you need a lot of learning/practice before that. (as it stands now)
Having good photography skills is a pre-requisite for charging, especially for weddings.
However, even after you have the skills, good marketing strategy is going to become the deciding factor in weather you will go somewhere.

P.S. On a side note, another small problem I noticed with these pictures that has not been mentioned so far I found the pictures to be soft and not sharp enough. Could be because of the lens, or maybe just focusing and stability techniques.