DSLR Camera Tips: Amateur Wedding Photography

It’s not as simple as hiring yourself the best digital SLR camera you can find, donning a smart suit or dress and a winning smile. Understand what you are getting yourself into.



Taking photographs for a friend’s wedding can be the undoing of the most enduring friendships. Clarify expectations by writing up a letter of agreement. This can be as wide ranging or as simple as you like, but it should at the very least make it clear that you are not a professional wedding photographer and you should not be held liable for any mishaps that occur and that you are not responsible for omitting to provide a particular shot they wanted. Remember also that your friend’s primary obligation is to their spouse so if that spouse is deeply unhappy with your shots, your friend may find themselves in a situation where they have to stand by them – against you.



So, sit down with them beforehand and plan the shots that will be taken. Agree the number of shots that will be taken, who the group shots will involve and what the locations will be. Ideally, go there beforehand, with the couple, and agree on which backgrounds you want for which shots, the perspectives of the shots and indeed as much as possible, in as much detail to avoid messy disputes on delivery of the images.



Realise that you will be spending a lot of time on this project so, if it is unpaid, think hard about how much you want to get involved. What with meetings, preparation, location reccies, the day itself and then dealing with the images afterwards you could be looking at three day’s work or more.



This may seem obvious, but decide on exactly what is required in terms of equipment and clarify who will be paying for anything additional that needs to be hired. Needless to say, if your friend thinks that your agreeing to take the pictures they need not worry about hiring tripods or paying for film then you could be in for a sticky dispute. It may make sense to agree to use a digital SLR camera.



Take backup equipment – that means an extra camera, extra lenses, more film than you think you could possibly need, more memory cards than you think you will need, a lot of spare, fully charged batteries. Remember, you must be able to shoot the entire wedding with your back up camera so beg or borrow another or, if necessary, hire. If you need photographic accessories, get them well in advance and try them out.



Consider the reprints and who will be handling them. People requesting images months after the event may not be something you’ll want to deal with.



If you are not confident, practice your exposures and lighting. If this means trawling around all the venues in advance, taking sample pictures and noting down your settings each time then do so. Make a note of which settings work best in which venue and keep them.



Agree a plan b if there is rain in the outdoor location you had planned. Perhaps the group photos can be done at the back of the church, vicar permitting, or at the reception.



Do not have your film images processed at any old place. Take it to a professional lab. If you are shooting digital, be very careful with your memory cards and back up, if you can, during the shoot. Store the back up separate to the memory cards so if one bag gets stolen, you still have copies of the images. Format all your memory cards before the wedding.



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