My First Post... I need your help!!!

qtfsniper wrote in post #6101181
for outside shots, with a straight horizon, use a graduated neutral density filter!. It should help very much if the difference between the sky and the ground is a huge f/stop apart.

But only if you are shooting landscapes. Utterly useless for weddings.

michaelgreen78 wrote in post #6101309
But only if you are shooting landscapes. Utterly useless for weddings.

Especially tough on a pretty white wedding dress.

Given they gave enough advice...SCAN THROUGH THE WEDDING FORUM!!! Study shots, poses, etc and do this every night till then.

It's not your fault but here's the problem with people and owning DSLR's. Family and everyone else thinks you're a pro not so they come to you for everything thinking all will be fine till after the fact. Good luck! No pressure.

A note regarding the above. Never face your subjects into the sun. They will be squinting. If the wedding is in a gazebo or you will be doing any indoor shooting, you are going to have to have flash. Really...you need it for fill when you shoot formals in the shade.
The key is being prepared. Pack your gear the day before. Have an extra camera even if it is a p&s. Charge all your batteries the day before the shoot, both camera and flash. Make sure you have plenty of memory. Shoot RAW. Practice ahead of time. Make a list of the formals you will be doing and enlist a bride's maid to help you round up people when you shoot them. Think about the process of the ceremony and where you will be at what time. Talk to the official and ask if they have any concerns. Don't use your reflectors during the ceremony. Choose your background carefully always. Do a search here to find a list of normal required shots.

_aravena wrote in post #6101430
It's not your fault but here's the problem with people and owning DSLR's. Family and everyone else thinks you're a pro not so they come to you for everything thinking all will be fine...

I think the problems only really surface when the DSLR owners in question do nothing to quell such beliefs! There's nothing more dangerous than not knowing what you don't know...

OP: I can't help but feel a little uneasy about all of this. No amount of equipment is going to help if you're truely as green as you make out.

If the B&G are truely happy with 'snapshots' rather than anything approaching 'pro shots', then I suppose this is a chance to chalk up your first wedding...but I'd get the 'snapshots' agreement in writing, as has been previously recommended.

If I was in your shoes, I would seriously consider backing out (but give the B&G plenty of notice). I'd cite camera troubles or something...

If you absolutely can't back out, make sure you read Tim's Wedding FAQ; http://www.mrwild.co.n​z …/Wedding-FAQ-Pt1-beta.htm

Let us know what transpires...

Yeah, be the backup if you can. Let them hire someone and if they'd like, they can tell the photographer there will be a family member shooting but THEY WILL STAY OUT OF THE WAY. Very key, not yelling, just key. I did that at my wedding although my stupid cousin still was in the way. So pissed at her...

Always another thought. But your GREEN exclamations are a bit frightening. I can tell you this, if the B&G were reading this, what do you think they would be feeling right now?

If you do end up being the back up shooter and the paid shooter makes money on print sales, do not give the bride and groom a disc of your images. I would even hold off on a print for a month or two. It is unkind to dilute the sales of the wedding photog. There ought to be a law....mutter...mutter​....

Why? We used a lot of shots from people just shooting. Some of theirs actually got things neither photographer did. The fun of everyone owning a digital camera these days.

Note that I said "the paid shooter makes money on print sales". Most people are paying extra now for a disc, a slide show or a book. Or all three. If they are buying a disc from the photog, then the photog makes their bucks and all is well.