Aug 2, 2008 Beach Wedding

Scott_Quier

Here's some from a wedding my son and I shot a couple of weeks a go (finally got the PP finished and the set on-line:D)

The groom first contacted me via e-mail, announcing that "I have set a date for my wedding to the beautiful Lauren Last-Name this summer..." When I got that I just had to meet the man with that kind of romantic touch. They turned out to be a wonderful couple to work for - just so much fun and laughing all the time - almost like they were excited to get married!

1. I saw her laughing all the time, at all the meetings we had, at the wedding, the reception, all the time!


2. It was beach wedding, shoes optional


3. I guess he was happy. That red shirt in front of the front row of chairs - there was nothing I could do about him...


4. Like I said, it was a beach wedding. If you look real close, you can find me in there somewhere (my son took this one), but I'm only going acknowledge correct locations.


5. One of the guys


6. Just a happy walk on the beach


7. This was the videographer (also a guest) who just loved to be the center of attention. As for the photo - I'm not going to say that it was an accidential exposure, but the lights were dialed in for f/4 to f/5.6 and this was taken at f/9.5:dunno But this image turned out so well, that I figured I could make some lemonaide from the lemons.


8. Probably my favorite from the entire day - a real celebration:

Swartzy

Great variety here Scott. These are great. I love the conversions and how cool is that to make lemonaide out of a lemon........great save!

#1 is crisp and clear.....love how you captured the moment!

#2 & 3....fun detail shots....for what it's worth, maybe burning in the edges and possibly radicallizing (new word..) the overall exposure would really give these some pop

#5...nice comp. Just thinking a bit of dodge/burn would make this more dynamic

#6 just plain spells FUN

#8 is a super shot.....nicely done!

very nice set. They'll love em.

cj99si

Great stuff! nice style

jeffreaux2

Scott it looks like you did a great job with these. I'd be curious in knowing your approach here technically. I recently shot what will probably be my first and last beach wedding( we are 5 hours away), but you never know what the future holds.

...and...

How did it feel shooting low ISO and motion freezing shutter speeds?:D (rather than making do like a CAVEman..

One nit...
The conversions on #5 and #8 need a bit more ooomph!

Scott_Quier

Swartzy wrote:

Great variety here Scott. These are great. I love the conversions and how cool is that to make lemonaide out of a lemon........great save!

#1 is crisp and clear.....love how you captured the moment!

#2 & 3....fun detail shots....for what it's worth, maybe burning in the edges and possibly radicallizing (new word..) the overall exposure would really give these some pop

#5...nice comp. Just thinking a bit of dodge/burn would make this more dynamic

#6 just plain spells FUN

#8 is a super shot.....nicely done!

very nice set. They'll love em.

Thanks for the comments. I did some more work on #5 and replaced it. Now I don't have the original for y'all to compare it against. But, the burn&dodge work did improve it quite a bit. Thanks.

As for the radicallizing thing - you might be right but it's beyond my ken at the moment. Sometime, I may find the time to work on alternative processing ideas. I probably should

jeffreaux2

#5 is better now.

White shirts are tough in BW. Their brightness leaves skin tones as mid tones, and can make processing a little tougher than a color photo with people in white shirts.

the extra in the blacks helped!

Scott_Quier

jeffreaux2 wrote:

One nit...
The conversions on #5 and #8 need a bit more ooomph!

I talked it over with my art director (my loving and adorable wife - no, she's not standing over my shoulder as I write this ) and she agrees with you. So, I also replaced #8. In my opinion, it looks much better now. Thanks for the comment.

evoryware

Scott_Quier wrote:

4. Like I said, it was a beach wedding. If you look real close, you can find me in there somewhere (my son took this one), but I'm only going acknowledge correct locations.

I guess it's nice to have your son as a second photog so you can find time to play guitar.

Looks like you are in the back next to the guy with the blue shirt.



Nice shots. Looks like it turned out well and the sun wasn't too harsh.

Scott_Quier

evoryware wrote:

I guess it's nice to have your son as a second photog so you can find time to play guitar.

Looks like you are in the back next to the guy with the blue shirt.



Nice shots. Looks like it turned out well and the sun wasn't too harsh.

Nope my hairs not that gray - besides I don't know a 1/2 note from a $.50 piece.

The light was sweet part of the time, and the rest of the time it was a real skin burner (take a close look a the groom's neck).

But, yes, I was in the back next to the videographer (the guy in the blue shirt with the ear buds in his ears).

Scott_Quier

jeffreaux2 wrote:

Scott it looks like you did a great job with these. I'd be curious in knowing your approach here technically. I recently shot what will probably be my first and last beach wedding( we are 5 hours away), but you never know what the future holds.

...and...

How did it feel shooting low ISO and motion freezing shutter speeds?:D (rather than making do like a CAVEman..

One nit...
The conversions on #5 and #8 need a bit more ooomph!

I've taken some time to think about this, trying to understand the question you are asking. Still not sure I do.

Beach photography is murder. There's no shade so all you have is bright light and deep shadows. However, I got lucky this this one. The wedding was scheduled to start at 6:00PM, about 1.5 hour before sunset. So, I didn't have to worry too much about the noon day sun!

Aside from that bit of grace, the rest was constantly adjusting for the changing light - we had storm clouds come and go all day - and watching the histogram. Shooting on the beach you have to keep the exposure right up against the right side or you will end up with under-exposed shots (and I had a few of those that I had the rescue).

Shoot in a a cave or on the beach? Hmmmmm .... that's a tough question. There are pluses and minuses for each.

urbanaries

I remember you mentioning that romantic groom and I am so excited you ended up shooting the gig!!!

Love #1, I am a sucker for laughing photos and this one doesn't disappoint. Great perspective here, gotta love beach "sanctuaries" for the freedom of movement!

Definitely like #2 over 3 of the shoes. Maybe something with a lower perspective and very selective focus/thin DOF would have made this more interesting, but it's definitely cute as-is.

#3....hmmm...do I see a vertical 10:4 pano?? Awesome capture! Gotta love people that are THAT excited to get married. Beautiful exposure here. Maybe the sky needs Angie-ized?

4- FTR, I got it right the first time!

5. Wow, Scott, you are just killing these group shots. Way to go. Love the varied textures. Monotone was great choice, albeit a tough conversion as Jeff mentioned. Nice work!

6. You just can't direct that kind of joy. I'm so happy for you!!! Great for the pf. Your bridal party shots have come SO far. Rock on!!!! Again, lower perspective might have mitigated the distracting bg (but probably would have introduced some distortion). Either way, this is a real winner.

But this image turned out so well, that I figured I could make some lemonaide from the lemons.

Hey, sounds like my overall philosophy! Really great PJ image. The flash of the P&S really makes this shot! Lovin it!

#8 is awesome!


Overall a really gorgeous set in tough conditions. You are definitely flexing that creative muscle and it's paying off!

Scott_Quier

urbanaries wrote:

I remember you mentioning that romantic groom and I am so excited you ended up shooting the gig!!!

Love #1, I am a sucker for laughing photos and this one doesn't disappoint. Great perspective here, gotta love beach "sanctuaries" for the freedom of movement!

Definitely like #2 over 3 of the shoes. Maybe something with a lower perspective and very selective focus/thin DOF would have made this more interesting, but it's definitely cute as-is.

#3....hmmm...do I see a vertical 10:4 pano?? Awesome capture! Gotta love people that are THAT excited to get married. Beautiful exposure here. Maybe the sky needs Angie-ized?

4- FTR, I got it right the first time!

5. Wow, Scott, you are just killing these group shots. Way to go. Love the varied textures. Monotone was great choice, albeit a tough conversion as Jeff mentioned. Nice work!

6. You just can't direct that kind of joy. I'm so happy for you!!! Great for the pf. Your bridal party shots have come SO far. Rock on!!!! Again, lower perspective might have mitigated the distracting bg (but probably would have introduced some distortion). Either way, this is a real winner.

Hey, sounds like my overall philosophy! Really great PJ image. The flash of the P&S really makes this shot! Lovin it!

#8 is awesome!


Overall a really gorgeous set in tough conditions. You are definitely flexing that creative muscle and it's paying off!

That is the sky, improved. It was slate flat, nothing there, not even water vapor.

#4 - you and everyware - pixel peeping peeps! I wasn't really expecting people to download the image, load it up in PS and then zoom in 400% in their attempt to find me. But, there you go - don't throw down the glove unless you are prepared for people to take up the challenge and use whatever tools they have available to them. Well done!

I don't know if I'm flexing creative muscle - at the time it feels more like a "hail Mary desperation throw!" But, sometimes it's better to be lucky than good - that's my story and I'm sticking with it.

Thanks so much for looking and commenting.

Agnieszka

Nice shots Scott! Did you take any posed shots of just the couple, would love to see them!

#1, got to be my favorite, very cute!
#2, haha .... well spotted
#3 also very cool shot ... would do a tighter crop, or at least take the shadow / flower out of the left bottom corner
#4, nice! Where was this taken from? A balcony?
#5, a classic .... would ad some drama to the sky ...
#6, nice casual photo & good light ... but too bad you can see the rad in the background ... I would have them walk from the water towards you ...
#7, haha, GREAT!
#8, AWESOME! ... I would maybe darken the floor a bit (the lower edge), so the eye focuses a bit more on the crowd ... but great shot

Agnieszka

urbanaries wrote:

#3....Maybe the sky needs Angie-ized?

Haha ... didn't see that comment until now ... guess it would be a tough cookie with no clouds + the sky over the water it looks a bit hazy ... but I would def. Angie-size the sky in #5