Beach Wedding...and some challenges!

These are just a few of my favorites...the full gallery is here >>> http://blakecpics.com/​weddings/

So... The challenges..
1 - Shooting on the beach near sunset
2 - Shooting INTO the sun
3- Photographing dark-skinned people with a bright background shooting INTO the sun!

I thought, maybe HSS or an ND filter... but that really isn't my style of shooting AND I didn't want to kill batteries with HSS & I didn't have an ND filter. Plus, I try to use flash as little as possible so I can shoot faster. When I exposed for the sky, the shaded people were WAY too dark to recover. When I exposed for the people, the sky would be unrecoverable in post.

The solution:
So, I went somewhere in between. The sky was slightly overexposed and the shadows were slightly underexposed. I wanted to have enough shadow AND sky left to recover both! The 80D RAWs are actually great for recovering shadows and highlights. I actually ended up editing the sky and shadows separately (pretty quick with the adjustment brush).

To add to the lighting difficulties, I accidentally brought the wrong lens! I usually shoot my main with my Sigma 18-35 1.8 ART but I accidentally grabbed my backup lens (Sigma 17-50 2.8). I realized that right when I got there (I did bring other lenses but they are more specialty lenses). Now, this wedding was in Grand Haven, MI and we live in Allendale (30min away). So, I called my wife and got her to bring my 18-35. The only problem...she grabbed the wrong bag! So, again, I was stuck with my backup lens! I figured, "Screw it, I will just shoot with it. I've shot weddings with it before. It's just not as sharp as my 18-35."

ON TOP OF THAT, the bride was an hour behind! The ceremony ended up being 1 hr late and the guests were getting hangry!

Everything ended up ok in the end, but I definitely had to adapt more than usual! You can prepare as much as you want, but there will always be something that you need to adapt to. I guess that is part of what makes it fun for me! I did learn that I should grab all of my lenses next time!


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Nice job considering the conditions. Always cringe for those beach weddings. We do use the ND filters. they help a great deal.

Thanks! I really should pick up a good ND filter.

An ND with some flash would've put the attention on the couple much more than without. Maybe a C-POL for the water as well.

Don't you find the OS or the extra reach of the 17-50mm over the 18-35mm useful? It's nice to have the extra stop-and-a-bit, but not sure that it's worth that trade off.

frugivore wrote in post #18085982
An ND with some flash would've put the attention on the couple much more than without. Maybe a C-POL for the water as well.

Don't you find the OS or the extra reach of the 17-50mm over the 18-35mm useful? It's nice to have the extra stop-and-a-bit, but not sure that it's worth that trade off.

The 18-35 is MUCH sharper. Plus I have plenty of room to crop if I need too. Still the 17-50 is a great backup.

frugivore wrote in post #18085982
Don't you find the OS or the extra reach of the 17-50mm over the 18-35mm useful? It's nice to have the extra stop-and-a-bit, but not sure that it's worth that trade off.

No contest between these two lenses, especially in the corners. BUT… I can't imagine shooting the 18-35 @ f5 all day; if that were my style I would think an 18-135 or 15-85 would be great choices?

rebelsimon wrote in post #18089554
No contest between these two lenses, especially in the corners. BUT… I can't imagine shooting the 18-35 @ f5 all day; if that were my style I would think an 18-135 or 15-85 would be great choices?

Like you said, no contest.
The 18-35 compared to those 2 lenses at any fstop is no contest. I didn't buy it just for the 1.8. It's a great lens at any aperture.

The 17-50 did do really well though. Group shots could have been better, especially in the corners.

I just added the Sigma 50-100 1.8 ART too!

BlakeC wrote in post #18089560
Like you said, no contest.
The 18-35 compared to those 2 lenses at any fstop is no contest. I didn't buy it just for the 1.8. It's a great lens at any aperture.

The 17-50 did do really well though. Group shots could have been better, especially in the corners.

I just added the Sigma 50-100 1.8 ART too!

I just looked through some comparisons and you aren't exaggerating! What a big difference.

I was talking with the videographers yesterday at a wedding and the swore by all the Sigma Art lenses. I may have to look into them.

Congrats on your nice f/1.8 zoom combo! Crop body owners finally have a great pair of zooms.

frugivore wrote in post #18089621
I just looked through some comparisons and you aren't exaggerating! What a big difference.

I was talking with the videographers yesterday at a wedding and the swore by all the Sigma Art lenses. I may have to look into them.

Congrats on your nice f/1.8 zoom combo! Crop body owners finally have a great pair of zooms.

Depending on what you shoot, you should just sell all of your lenses and get these two! Or just get them and keep the others.

I contemplated going FF for a while, but now that I have seen how my 80D RAWs perform AND I have the 18-35/50-100 1.8 ART combo, it's not even a thought anymore. The 70D is no slouch either!