Holy Hell - What am I in for? Any advice?

[Chancey]

I have offered a friend of a friend a great deal to do her wedding. Mainly helping out because her mother just passed. Bride isn't working. Fiancee is on and off of work due to a back injury. Plus they have 3 children.

I have found out that there are 10 --- yes T E N --- bridesmaids and same amount of groomsmen. 22 people in this wedding-- not including the flower girl (s) and ring bearer (s)....

yes, I guess I am loony.


Honestly speaking - all these folks aren't a size 1 either.

Any tips or tricks or advice for that many people? Posing may pose a problem.
Anything would be greatly appreciated.
I think I should start drinking now.
The wedding is in October.
Pray for me.

[Howard Barlow]

I will never cease to be amazed by people who accept a wedding and then have to ask how to photograph it.

[brad]

No good deed goes unpunished.

[Chancey]

Originally Posted by Howard Barlow

I will never cease to be amazed by people who accept a wedding and then have to ask how to photograph it.

That was just not very nice.
I did not ask how to photograph it. I asked for tips and/or advice since there are so many people in the wedding party.

I have seen many comments where photogs cringe at the thought of more than 4-6 people and how to pose. Much less 20 plus.

[groovyone]

What does the venue look like? I shot one this weekend with 5 bridesmaids and groomsmen, but it was on a decent sized stage and I was able to set the spotlights. I used two umbrellas (43 and 45") with some hotshoe flashes as fill. I have to admit my posing was not so great, but they did pretty well.

[camera shy]

The only 'trick' I know of is to have someone go with you who has photographed large wedding parties before. Otherwise just go with what you
have available. Many experienced wedding photographers cringe at the thought of other photographers shooting weddings at 'ridiculously low' prices.

Go to this photogs site and look at weddings. He's had some large wedding parties.

http://www.daltonphoto.com/

[mercphoto]

Originally Posted by Howard Barlow

I will never cease to be amazed by people who accept a wedding and then have to ask how to photograph it.

that was uncalled for.

[Howard Barlow]

Originally Posted by Chancey

That was just not very nice.
I did not ask how to photograph it. I asked for tips and/or advice since there are so many people in the wedding party.

I have seen many comments where photogs cringe at the thought of more than 4-6 people and how to pose. Much less 20 plus.

Chancey,
It isn't meant to be mean, just true. Have you photographed weddings before? Perhaps you have many under your belt, I don't know. However, I stand by my comment.

If a person has no idea how to photograph a group of 20+, I submit that person is not ready to photograph a wedding. Such things should be expected. In addition to the wedding party, it's quite easy to have far more for family photographs.

As you said, you have seen 4-6 make people cringe. Well, if a person cringes at 4-6, I imagine 1 or 2 would flummox them, as well. You no doubt have seen what I am referring to as not being ready to photograph weddings by questions some ask. "How do I light...", "What lens should I use", etc. Wedding photography isn't rocket surgery, but it does benefit greatly when accompanied with experience and knowledge of the issue.

No offense intended, though I can see how offense was taken.

[Howard Barlow]

Originally Posted by mercphoto

that was uncalled for.

No, really it was on point. If you aren't ready to photograph such a special event, you should not, regardless of your desire to help someone in need.

[texkam]

It's all about expectations. If the B&G are expecting professional results, Howard is on point and you might have a problem. If they aren't, you'll probably do fine. Howard and many others on here need to realize that these types of clients may not have the same expectations and standards as someone who pays big bucks for top notch work. Believe it or not, some people just don't put a high priority on professional quality wedding photography and are delighted with anything a notch above snapshots. I think it's OK to make the offer with caveats and fair to ask the pros here for advice.

Find out what the expectations are. Explain your limitations. If you are then comfortable relax and trust your abilities. Tips, tricks and advice in the coming months, will certainly help, but on the wedding day do the best job you can with what you know. You are doing a nice thing. Good luck and just don't leave anybody out. : )

[WarrenG]

Originally Posted by mercphoto

that was uncalled for.

I disagree. I find the comment to be spot on...

If a professional (yes, a person paid to complete the assignment) is surprised that there will be 20 people in a bridal party, and their take is that 4-6 people in a bridal party "make people cringe" then I would venture to state that they have no business photographing a wedding for any amount of money.

We have become so watered down with "political correctness" that if any statement that even hints at negativity is made, then everyone is up in arms. The truth is, you either know how to do something, or you do not. This in and of itself is fine by me (we all started somewhere) but I find it ironic that this is a "super deal" yet it is evident that she unsure of how to do the job.

Originally Posted by Chancey

Any tips or tricks or advice for that many people? Posing may pose a problem.
Anything would be greatly appreciated.
I think I should start drinking now.
The wedding is in October.
Pray for me.

Tip 1: Don't go formal on the poses. Use relaxed informal groupings pairing the bridesmaid and groomsmen. Use angles to help slim the subjects.

Tip 2: Do not use a wide angle lens close up to the subjects, and use off camera lighting.

Tip 3: Put the pose together relatively quickly, have some ideas in advance. Scout the location and put a plan in place. Between a large bridal party and extended family formals, you will chew through your time very quickly.

Tip 4: Start practicing shooting large groups at random (events, parks, etc) it will give you great practice for having to move quickly, and making strangers relax in front of the camera.

Tip 5: When you think you got it down, practice some more - You have 4+ months till the wedding!

Tip 6: Forget prayers, be confident in what you do, lest your "lack of experience" be noticed by the client.

Good luck.

W

[Phisch]

Originally Posted by Chancey

I have offered a friend of a friend a great deal to do her wedding. Mainly helping out because her mother just passed. Bride isn't working. Fiancee is on and off of work due to a back injury. Plus they have 3 children.

I have found out that there are 10 --- yes T E N --- bridesmaids and same amount of groomsmen. 22 people in this wedding-- not including the flower girl (s) and ring bearer (s)....

yes, I guess I am loony.


Honestly speaking - all these folks aren't a size 1 either.

Any tips or tricks or advice for that many people? Posing may pose a problem.
Anything would be greatly appreciated.
I think I should start drinking now.
The wedding is in October.
Pray for me.

One: pray first. And don't do the drinking part it won't clear anything up for you. /end soapbox ;)

I've never had to shoot a party that big, maybe half that was the biggest. Most parties aren't quite so large so I can appreciate your apprehension. But just off the top of my head:

You have until October to figure out how to arrange such a large party for group photos. Lots of time = lots of research opportunity. Someone already pointed you to someone who's done lots of large group shots.

Will you have a second shooter? You will want them to help you corral everyone and you might want to let that second avoid shooting until after you are done. Incentive: the better they are at helping, the faster things should go, the better their chances at getting to shoot. No second shooter? Make sure you have someone the bride and groom trust to help you get everyone together. But don't do without a second or an assistant if you can at all help it.

Scope out the place where you'll take the group shots. See if there are things like steps to help you "tier" people.

Make sure the bride and groom will give you enough time to shoot the group shot (plus the individual ones if they ask for them).

Pre-plan the posing and share your plans with the bride and groom. If they're aware of them from the beginning and they share it with the rest of the party, it should help things go more quickly. It should. If it doesn't you can always threaten to post on FB. j/k!

There are rules, but don't be scared to break them. Making an error is not life or death in this case. Make sure you do bursts of shots because not everyone will be looking at you on the first try. Or maybe even the fifth.

It wasn't that long ago that I read a post by Seth Godin on doing something for free and doing it with everything you've got in you, to your liking (I'm paraphrasing heavily). It's not an idea that everyone will agree with, but if you and your clients see eye-to-eye on that, then you can take it as a great opportunity to hone your personal style and vision. If you do your job well, kudos to you, it will have your mark and you should attract the kinds of clients you are after with the work you did.

I hope you have a great time! I think not stressing from the get-go will be a great help. Harder to do that it is to say, though.

[SCone]

Think the OP is more amazed that there are so many people in the wedding party with all the turmoil in the couple's life.

[Chancey]

Originally Posted by WarrenG

I disagree. I find the comment to be spot on...

If a professional (yes, a person paid to complete the assignment) is surprised that there will be 20 people in a bridal party, and their take is that 4-6 people in a bridal party "make people cringe" then I would venture to state that they have no business photographing a wedding for any amount of money.

I am sorry that it appeared that I meant 4-6 in a wedding party. I meant in general. The largest wedding I have shot was 11 people total. Forgive me that I am not up to 'professional' standards in others eyes.
11 for me was fine. I did great... there were more that that in the family that were photographed as well.
So in the upcoming wedding there will be at least 24 in the wedding itself. Yes, that can cause some havoc on my nerves. Am I up to the challenge? you betcha. Can I do it? Absolutely. Will it be perfect? I can only hope so.

Originally Posted by WarrenG

We have become so watered down with "political correctness" that if any statement that even hints at negativity is made, then everyone is up in arms. The truth is, you either know how to do something, or you do not. This in and of itself is fine by me (we all started somewhere) but I find it ironic that this is a "super deal" yet it is evident that she unsure of how to do the job.

There is a way to handle something or say something without being so harsh or just plain mean. And Super Deal doesn't mean for free. Not by any means. There were no words stating I was unsure. I am nervous. I didn't think that was such a bad thing. Am I wrong?

If I weren't confident in my abilities in the first place to produce quality images, then I wouldn't have quoted her at all. We all hope that we only have ONE wedding - ONE marriage - so photos are a one time deal. They can't be screwed up.

Originally Posted by WarrenG

Tip 1: Don't go formal on the poses. Use relaxed informal groupings pairing the bridesmaid and groomsmen. Use angles to help slim the subjects.

Tip 2: Do not use a wide angle lens close up to the subjects, and use off camera lighting.

Tip 3: Put the pose together relatively quickly, have some ideas in advance. Scout the location and put a plan in place. Between a large bridal party and extended family formals, you will chew through your time very quickly.

Tip 4: Start practicing shooting large groups at random (events, parks, etc) it will give you great practice for having to move quickly, and making strangers relax in front of the camera.

Tip 5: When you think you got it down, practice some more - You have 4+ months till the wedding!

Tip 6: Forget prayers, be confident in what you do, lest your "lack of experience" be noticed by the client.

Good luck.

W

Thank you for the tips. they are appreciated.

But overall, one shouldn't take nerves as a lack of experience. I may not have 1000 weddings under my belt. But I do have plenty of sports/action/family photos under there. That is where my strengths lie. I don't focus on weddings - even though I would like to do more.

[mercphoto]

Originally Posted by WarrenG

We have become so watered down with "political correctness" that if any statement that even hints at negativity is made, then everyone is up in arms.

I hate political correctness. But I don't use that as an excuse for me to go around being rude. There is a difference.