YOUR JOB IS EASY, IT’S JUST ABOUT PUSHING A BOTTON!

All you have to know about a wedding photographer

“Your job it’s easy, it’s just to push a botton”. Who has never heard or even pronounced this famous phrase? Certainly everybody! Don’t think bad, with this post my intention is certainly not to raise this profession as one of the most prestigious existing jobs ever, but simply explain the requirements to become one, which are often underestimated. I wanted to begin immediately saying that the wedding photographer has a great responsibility that is to document, acquire and store the wedding photo shoot without commit any error since that day will do not repeated ever more. Arrive prepared at the event is a must for a professional photographer and this preparation can be formed only with the years experience.

WHAT EQUIPMENT MUST BE PROVIDED A WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER?

Don’t think that is just a camera. A wedding photographer must possess at least two. Canon, Nikon or another brand doesn’t matter, one of those need to shoot and the other one need for safety in the event that arise complications on the first. Personally, I bring with me always three cameras: two of them for shoot with two different lenses, and the third one is in the backpack. We must also be provided with different lenses, preferably prime lenses without zoom, this is because the quality is totally higher. A good photographer should cover focal from 14 to 200 mm, even though I personally love working with 35 and 50 mm that I found to be the best combo in these years of work. Lens are not so low cost, indeed, the prices ranging from 500 to 2000 € for each! And even if the equipment do not a photographer, the extensive optical park played definitely to his advantage. Essential also a flash for the evening, when the daylight sets and you need an artificial lighting.

Other important things are memory cards. SD or compact flash, memory cards play a vital role for archiving of the images. More quality offer and more logically they costs, coming also 200 € for each one. Every camera that use it contains two, one for the photographs direct acquisition and one for the backup of the first so that if something should go wrong, I have always a copy in more that would avoid losing the entire Photo shoot! Last but not for this less important there is the backpack. I do I have one that acts also from trolley if I were going out of Verona or even off Italy for a “destination wedding”, ie weddings with destinations abroad. For now it’s not ever happened to work in other countries, but I hope to do so at more soon, even if honestly I would prefer to move in Italy in places like Venice, Tuscany, Lake Como or Lake Garda rather than the Amalfi Coast or Positano. In my opinion, this is one of the most beautiful sides of this job, of course is the photographer be able to stand out among many other to conquer the attention of the future spouses and be hired for weddings so exclusive! Returning to the backpack, is good thing organize it in the best possible way to avoid loss of time. I have divided mine for compartments: cameras and lenses on the one hand, coupons memory, batteries and kit cleaning the other.

HOW IS YOUR EDITING WORKFLOW?

This is definitely a topic unknown for most people. I dare say almost ‘unexpected’. A time, after a photo shoot you sent the needle to develop or proceeded with the development in a darkroom. Now, you think that is enough to download the photographs on your computer to believe that the wedding photo shoot is ready to be delivered.. but it is not so! The use of editing software to process the images is essential, and the most suitable for wedding photographer is definitely ‘Lightroom’. With this program you have the total management of the files, from the import to the final export, being able to customize “post-production” of the picture to your liking. Of course also this software has its own cost, and is sold with a monthly subscription of about 15 €. Every photographer has its own ‘presets’, which can be created by zero, or purchased through packages ad hoc on sites like VSCO, tribe archipelago, Tribe Red Leaf, to name a few among the most famous.

THERE ARE WORKSHOP FROM ATTEND TO BE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHERS?

Sure! Many workshop exists. Need but very careful in figure out which can be valid and what is not. To partecipate is definitely a good thing and helps also to compare with other people who make your same job, but I remain always the idea that the more useful workshop you can do alone, browsing the network looking articles, documents, videos and blog industry where to find tutorial and courses also free. To want means to can, and nowadays with the use of the Internet, if you want, you can. This is the best way to get a based on the world of photography, then I personally was to ‘workshop’ on topics more specific, as if you did a specialist after the University, is the same concept.

Finally, this is an explanation enough ‘generic’ requirements that wedding photographers should have, but behind there is a world in itself. Not all have or do what I wrote, and not everyone can share what I said. Anyway I believe that each of the things that I listed is fundamental to get to work in a certain way, then, however, I believe the key to differentiate themselves from competition is one thing so simple as complex: the style. Find your own style is the more difficult thing. You can’t wake up in the morning deciding to marry a certain style, but it takes over time and with the experience. Style is the result of books that you read, art that you love, as videos that you watched and even clothes that you wear. The world, what that you are around you influence, what you live while you are growing up, the things that you happen during childhood and adolescence. Everything you channels to a certain direction, is to you absorb all these energies for transform that in your personal taste.

I hope to gave you an input and gave interest to your photography’s curious! See you in next post and thank you for the attention!