Need Suggestion on Bride issue

[Breezy]

I shot a very small intimate wedding a couple of weeks ago. Not sure what I did wrong but the only shots iwth the bride and her MOH are Back focused. What do I give her? I can't believe that they are all that way. I wasn't allowed to use flash in the church at all etc..
Any tips?

[janetg]

hmmm just tell her you had a camera malfunction? and offer to do something for them is all i can think of

[Dawn U]

I'm not a professional, but I'd say, unless they're really really really badly OOF, let her see them. It may be something you (and the rest of us) would notice, but she may not. Or it may be something that doesn't bother her. Have a few suggestions of things you would be willing to do for her to make it right if it is a problem for her.

[dtscds]

How bad is the oof issue?
Is it close enough that you could add a glow in PS and make it look intentional?
Is there any way they could get dressed up again and you re-shoot?

[Ahh!]

I would call the client and explain the situation. Its not my usual work, and I know it, whether the client does or not. If I would not pay for it, I offer to reshoot it at my expense. The equipment and I would need to come to terms before I do the reshoot, too.

But that's just me. But I bet I'm not alone. And I suspect you were asking for a reason. Does this sound like what you would want to do?

[groovyone]

Is it obvious in 4x6 or 5x7 sizes? It may be obvious on screen but not in print.

[CaptainTom]

post up a couple here and maybe some pixel peepers will have remedy

[kronos2818]

Breezy,
How badly out of focus are they? Try this, get a sample of them reduce them to 4x5 or the average size in your wedding package then sharpen them in photoshop, to the point that you think they look over sharpened. After that print them as 4x6 prints, and judge the prints, you may find that they may look better as prints then they do on your computer monitor.

Or what I do if I find a great photo that is "off focus" but a great shot. Is I creatively use the "off focus" and turn it into an artisttic 'off focus" photo.

Hope this helps.

[HotHolly]

If its bad enough you posted, Im assuming its bad enough you feel uncomfy showing them to the bride. I personally, would NOT show them. If they are substandard, she is going to be upset. And you cannot fix them. Anything that isnt up to par, gets tossed.

Make sure you dont guarantee shots. You never know what is going to happen at a wedding (from flashers, to nose pickers, you so never know). Back focusing is a common newB issue though. You should be able to make sure that doesnt happen again. Periodically it is equipment malfunction, but then the whole wedding should have been crappy with that lens. If its only certain shots, you can control that so it doesnt happen again.

[Breezy]

Thanks all for the advice.
I was honest with her. And she was totally understanding.
Holly what are your tips on avoiding in the future. I have the issue all the time with my 50mm but this was the new 17-55mm 2.8 lens. I should have played with it more but between my grandmas 2 surgeries, dds surgery, issues with dh and the command, and processing images, I just haven't had much time :(. But I have pleanty of OPLOVE sessions this weekend, so that should be pleanty of "playing" lol.

[dbphotos]

Originally Posted by Breezy

Thanks all for the advice.
I was honest with her. And she was totally understanding.
Holly what are your tips on avoiding in the future. I have the issue all the time with my 50mm but this was the new 17-55mm 2.8 lens. I should have played with it more but between my grandmas 2 surgeries, dds surgery, issues with dh and the command, and processing images, I just haven't had much time :(. But I have pleanty of OPLOVE sessions this weekend, so that should be pleanty of "playing" lol.

Manual focus. The subjects aren't moving so you should have time to do everything manually. Just a thought.

And, as already mentioned, post up a couple here and a few of the PS gurus might be able to help you out.

[Breezy]

Thanks David, I just didn't do manual focus cause of the low light. Guess I will give it a shot next time.
Not sure when I will have time to post them, but if I get a chance I will.
They are BAD :(

[ngoduyviet]

Originally Posted by Breezy

Thanks David, I just didn't do manual focus cause of the low light. Guess I will give it a shot next time.
Not sure when I will have time to post them, but if I get a chance I will.
They are BAD :(

This is why when I start the formal process, the very first shot I always tell them that I'm doing a test shot and zoom all the way up on my LCD to double check, then shoot away with confident. This serves as a double purpose, I can check for exposure & anything else that might be wrong, ie. white balance, back / front focus etc. But then again, all my lens were tested thoroughly even before I use them on any event. Make sure you do that for all your lenses.

Also, a side note, I've met a few "professionals" whom still used multi-points auto focus selection option. Make sure you set it to allow you to use a specific focus point that you can control. Auto-selected focus points will always back / front focus where you do not want them.

[HotHolly]

This usually happens in low light when you choose an auto focus point that has little contrast. The camera cant tell what you are looking at.

How shallow was your DOF? The shallower it is the more likely you are to back focus in low light.

Pick and area of high contrast and make sure its big enough. Focusing on an eye from far away with a 50mm lens is hard. Close ups, I will focus on the eyes or lips, depending on the DOF, for contrast. The cheek in low light is too even and usually wont be sharp on auto focus.

Some people focus on the neck - that only works at the neckline (assuming they have on anything but a nude colored shirt). Again, you need contrast. But it also pushes back your DOF to not align with the face if you are shooting too shallow - that is the most common cause of back focusing that I have seen.

The other is using focus lock. You use focus lock, and then shift to recompose and your finger didnt hold the lock. Then you loose the focus. You have to make sure that you hold the shutter 1/2 down to maintain the lock.

Think about what you focused on. See how shallow you were shooting. Its an entirely correctable problem. Hope that helps a little bit.

[Breezy]

thanks for the tips I don't have time to chat but it was wide open 2.8 and the shots before and after are fine just those, Maybe cause they were so close to the floor which was RED!?!? and they were very pale, With a table with purple in the background.
Thank you both for the tips, I will try to read them again more thorough in a bit have more photos to delivery, food to buy, checks to cash etc...
Thanks again, I will try to check back in later today.
Breezy