so i was shooting a wedding this weekend...

Actually I wasn't even addressing your statement tim. I agree with you on both counts. Taking control doesn't necessarily equal bullying.

bloody snokin!!

I AM that overzealous rookie! At least, for Las Vegas weddings.

For my sister's wedding about a year and a half ago, the paid photographer had the right attitude about working with the other people with cameras instead of against them. He made it clear for the formals that he would set up the shot, take his shots that he needed for the pose then he would give time for anyone else to take a picture of the pose before moving on. This allowed everyone (myself included) that wanted a picture to get it while having everyone stay out of his way. It worked out great and the photographer had no problems with people getting out of his way when he needed it. He even took a little bit of time at the reception to give me a few wedding photography pointers and his card.

cdifoto wrote in post #5834814
Yep and when Uncle Joe's up your ass, you talk shop with him a little bit, show him some pointers, etc.

I haven't had anyone disrespect me or be a total dick to me thus far. Maybe I'm just lucky.

No, you are not lucky...you are a true professional. To me what separates a professional from the rest is how they handle themselves in all types of situations. Getting upset and bullying people around shows to me a lack of professionalism. Good for you for showing the rest the right way.

First of all, i am not pro. Haven't done any ( payed ) weddigns.

But this thread is pissing me off. I know that you're professionals, i know that you must be left alone to do your job, and i do agree that going in front of you and harrassing you is bad and should be dealt with some how.

Still, you're the paid photographer but the event is not yours, it's for the b&g and For the guests. If i were attending for example my brothers wedding and was taking pictures from the sidelines with my DSLR + flash and the paid photog would give me **** for using a flash i would be very annoid. If my flash is preventing him to do his job, i guess his in the wrong business.

The best photographers i've seen at weddings get along with the guests and try not to harrass the event.

Formal shots are of course different, but restricting the guests from photographing the dancing or cutting the cake is so selfish behavour that i couldn't stand some photog bullying guests like that in my own wedding. And starting to threat the buyer... i don't even wan't to comment on that.
Guests like to take photos, i myself like to have and look at photos that i've taken myself, saying that "you can buy prints from my site" is just lame.

And one more point.

I have seen many b&g's who were not happy with the shots from the payed photog, and they come to me and ask to see what i've shoot "for fun" at the event. Every time they've found some pics that they want.

So is it really such a good idea to raise yourself as the payed photog to a such pedastole that others aren't allowed to shoot? Or use a flas?

I would like to state that when I shoot a reception (not the wedding itself, that's a totally different thing - can't do a reshoot at any time) I actually love it when people bring their cameras and take pictures as long as they see me standing somewhere and don't jump in front of me. I always let others shoot as I can't avoid it being at Asian weddings where everyone, including the 5 year old nephew has a P&S. And it's possible that someone will catch an angle, a moment I can't and that is valuable to the B&G and a treasure for the shooter for life. Some of my own favorite wedding shots were from friends. And I love to talk about cameras and people do come up to me to see what I am shooting with. I don't mind sharing. It's the one or two individuals who disrespect the pro, putting their needs before the B&G that may cause problems. And that has happened. It's human nature to be ticked, but it's a pro that diffuses it. I knew I'd get photography in to the answer.

johnz wrote in post #5840348
First of all, i am not pro. Haven't done any ( payed ) weddigns.

But this thread is pissing me off. I know that you're professionals, i know that you must be left alone to do your job, and i do agree that going in front of you and harrassing you is bad and should be dealt with some how.

Still, you're the paid photographer but the event is not yours, it's for the b&g and For the guests. If i were attending for example my brothers wedding and was taking pictures from the sidelines with my DSLR + flash and the paid photog would give me **** for using a flash i would be very annoid. If my flash is preventing him to do his job, i guess his in the wrong business.

The best photographers i've seen at weddings get along with the guests and try not to harrass the event.

Formal shots are of course different, but restricting the guests from photographing the dancing or cutting the cake is so selfish behavour that i couldn't stand some photog bullying guests like that in my own wedding. And starting to threat the buyer... i don't even wan't to comment on that.
Guests like to take photos, i myself like to have and look at photos that i've taken myself, saying that "you can buy prints from my site" is just lame.

johnz wrote in post #5840376
And one more point.

I have seen many b&g's who were not happy with the shots from the payed photog, and they come to me and ask to see what i've shoot "for fun" at the event. Every time they've found some pics that they want.

So is it really such a good idea to raise yourself as the payed photog to a such pedastole that others aren't allowed to shoot? Or use a flas?

I mostly agree with you - I am a pro, and I photograph many weddings (i've lost count). As professionals we have a responsibility to get the shots we're paid a heck of a lot of money for, and no matter what happens we have to get the shot. We also have to do it in a way that keeps everyone happy - the B&G, other people with cameras, parents, etc. It's in your best interest to keep everyone happy anyway, happy people = better photos. I've picked up at least a dozen weddings from people who've seen me work at weddings, then seen the resulting photos.

Just about everyone at a wedding has a camera, most with a P&S but some will have a 1Ds3. So what, we deal with it. The only time I restrict anyone taking photos is when they're spoiling my photos, in that case I quickly and quietly have a word with them and explain the situation. People ALWAYS co-operate when treated politely and with respect.

"i know that you must be left alone to do your job" - not really, we work best when there are happy people around us

"If i were attending for example my brothers wedding and was taking pictures from the sidelines with my DSLR + flash and the paid photog would give me **** for using a flash i would be very annoid. If my flash is preventing him to do his job, i guess his in the wrong business" - that would be the sign of a bad photographer.

"The best photographers i've seen at weddings get along with the guests and try not to harrass the event. " - agree 110%

"restricting the guests from photographing the dancing or cutting the cake is so selfish behavour that i couldn't stand some photog bullying guests like that in my own wedding" - I didn't know we could restrict that sort of thing. Do some photogs try?

tim wrote in post #5840512
"i know that you must be left alone to do your job" - not really, we work best when there are happy people around us

I was actually referring to "Some photographers" and also about the formal part of the job.

I am not usually the one who let's the pro's be by them selfs, atleast at some point during the evening i am going to engage some serious cameratalk, especially if i can see some L's

tim,

i could careless if people use the P & S, DSLR's, disposables, whatever....that wasn't the point. Everybody thinks they're a pro photographer! LOL!

The point was, there was an overzealous photojournalism major who freelanced at the local newspaper that wanted to "get the shots."

Did i work around her? sure did, i even stepped in front of her a few times. Was she annoying? Very much so. Could she have been more considerate? Yes.

bigcountry wrote in post #5841206
tim,

i could careless if people use the P & S, DSLR's, disposables, whatever....that wasn't the point. Everybody thinks they're a pro photographer! LOL!

The point was, there was an overzealous photojournalism major who freelanced at the local newspaper that wanted to "get the shots."

Did i work around her? sure did, i even stepped in front of her a few times. Was she annoying? Very much so. Could she have been more considerate? Yes.

I think there is a point when things just go too far. And this probably has been one of those moments, then you just have to act accordingly and make sure you get your job done. Even if you have to be a bit rude, it's ok in my opinion.

What i was referring to earlier, was a more general limiting of others to take photos, that would just suck.

But of course, if there is someone who thinks he's a pro ( don't we all ) and thinks he/she can get in your way as much as he want's, that does require some reactions indeed. I think tazers were already mentioned ..Tear gas might also get u the space you want, maybe a little too much though Seriously the good ways have already been mentioned, politeness to the guests and to the B&G coupl, in my opinion should be considered alot.

Me, me, me.... that's the attitude today, far too often.

Hello! As a guest, you are there at the invitation of the B&G, to support, congratulate the B&G and share the joy of their big day... Not to screw up the photos they are paying good money to have shot professionally.

If the pro doesn't get the shots, then I wonder if they really are a pro, or just a wannabe hired off Craigslist for $500. That's a separate issue and doesn't excuse any guest who makes a nuisance of themselves.

Now, a pro usually doesn't need to get nasty about it, or involve bridezilla (who has enough on her mind), or the MOB. A quiet, polite request is usually enough. But, when it isn't it can be very frustrating and escalate quickly.

Not a wedding but I was at another event recently with my location lighting set up to take some shots. An overly zealous amateur was right over my shoulder popping away with her kit camera with its built-in flash every time a nice pose showed up (I was working with multiple live animals and people, so getting a good pose took some serious work and timing)... Each and every time she fired her flash, all my slave lights popped in response, leaving only my main light to fire when I took a shot. I had a whole bunch of bad exposures, thanks to her. If it had just been one or two, that would have been no big deal... but it wasn't, she was screwing up the entire series and making it next to impossible for me to get even one proper exposure. I let her know what was happening, hoping she'd quit. But she kept it up and I finally had to ask her to please stop. She did, but if the hadn't, I would have had to take it up a notch. I had a job to do and she was making it impossible.

(Note: In a separate incident, I had to chase off another amateur who was trying to use my location lights at that event, while I was elsewhere. I caught them trying to turn them on and plug in! I just told them that the trigger voltage of the lights would probably fry their camera. That worked.)

I've had problem shots as a result of someone else's flash too many times, so I don't think it's unreasonable for a pro to ask someone to tone it down and back off a bit so they can fulfill the commitment to their customer. Besides, often it's the venue, such as the church, that asks that flash photography be limited or curtailed. The pro gets this info in advance, while the amateur might not. The pro speaking to the amateur about it might just be passing along the instructions they were given, not actually confronting the individual who is using the flash for their own purposes.

It can be inconsiderate of the other guests, too, constant or too many flashes going off. Presumably a pro will know when to limit using flash, while some over zealous amateurs just don't know when to quit or what angles to avoid. At some other events other than weddings, it's even an important safety consideration.

It's really okay with me if someone else is grabbing a snap here and there, so long as they aren't repeatedly stepping in front of me to do it, triggering my slave lights or blasting their flash into the edge of my images. And, it's a bit cheeky to shoot over my shoulder constantly, copying every pose I set up verbatim.

Heck, at some weddings I shot years ago, I'd buy a bunch of disposable cameras, enough to put one on every table at the reception, and actually encouraged everyone to take some snaps. I even had the B&G call everyone's attention to the cameras and ask them to use them. Even so, a lot weren't fully used and we paid for processing anyway.

So, go figure, some guests bring their own camera and take more shots than the pro, getting in the way and being a perfect nuisance to the pro shooter, all the other guests and the wedding party. Others won't even pick up a free P&S and take a few candid shots when asked.

Besides, at weddings there are plenty of problem guests even without cameras. Almost invariably, there's someone who has had a bit too much punch and wants to chat with me about all the great shots he got with his Polaroid SX70 on his cruise to Alaska in 1987.

Gotta say, this thread's pretty much captured the reasons I turn down most wedding gigs!

In a lot of ways, the photographer ends up being the choreographer and director on the wedding day. That's just the way it is and part of the job. Diplomacy and tact can be used to deal with most situations, but on occasion you have to call in the "big guns" to enforce things, or call aside the person causing the problems to make them understand the issue.

I had to get back up off the floor, after reading the "rolling ninja" photographer description! Might have worked well to have gone ahead and stepped on her "Oops! Sorry! My eye was to my viewfinder." (Okay, not really, wink wink).

I'd full power the flash gun/strobe and fire a few their way. That might send the right message.

Woogie wrote in post #5843359
I'd full power the flash gun/strobe and fire a few their way. That might send the right message.

I this this is a great way to get them out of the way.