Back for more please...=P
Hi guys, I'm back again hoping for more C&C on a different wedding this time. This wedding was shot a week after the previously posted one (prior to getting any advice from you guys), and again, they had a professional shooting the wedding and I was just taking pictures for fun and practice. Didn't get nearly as many shots this time and didn't go anywhere near the pro for the most part. Again, shots were mostly from my seat and wandering around the place lunch was served.
Criticism and advice on how to improve would be much appreciated.
I especially need help with the indoor pictures later in the series. They all seem washed out and badly lit. Comments on how to improve this? Can it be fixed in post? How should I avoid it in the first place going forward? What should I do about the windows? They look completely blown out, but obviously I didn't want to expose for the windows since the subjects were the people...
The problem shots were taken indoors in the middle of the day with bright window lighting right next to the beach in Malibu.
As before, I'll post a link to the (much smaller than last time) gallery in case anyone has the patience and is willing to flick through to provide overall feedback, followed by a few picks for those who don't have the time.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Gallery Link: http://aldazar.smugmug.com/gallery/9219711_QbU7T/1/615545478_y3YYC
Selected Pictures:
1: I like this one because... Well because my girlfriend's in it! =P
2: A nice pensive shot of the groom to be:
3: Always love the "kiss the bride" shot:
4: Married, time for lunch!
5: Speech time!
6: Not a good photograph, but a cute moment!
Criticism and advice on how to improve would be much appreciated.
I especially need help with the indoor pictures later in the series. They all seem washed out and badly lit. Comments on how to improve this? Can it be fixed in post? How should I avoid it in the first place going forward? What should I do about the windows? They look completely blown out, but obviously I didn't want to expose for the windows since the subjects were the people...
The problem shots were taken indoors in the middle of the day with bright window lighting right next to the beach in Malibu.
As before, I'll post a link to the (much smaller than last time) gallery in case anyone has the patience and is willing to flick through to provide overall feedback, followed by a few picks for those who don't have the time.
Thanks in advance for your help!
Gallery Link: http://aldazar.smugmug.com/gallery/9219711_QbU7T/1/615545478_y3YYC
Selected Pictures:
1: I like this one because... Well because my girlfriend's in it! =P
2: A nice pensive shot of the groom to be:
3: Always love the "kiss the bride" shot:
4: Married, time for lunch!
5: Speech time!
6: Not a good photograph, but a cute moment!
0
Comments
The last two...the indoor shots...
The brightness beyond the couple....outside the window...is eating up the dynamic range of your camera. All of the highlights are behind them....leaving the couple shrouded in mid tones and shadows....and drabness.
Your profile states that you use a 50D, so I assume you were also using a Canon flash in those two shots....and using it in ETTL mode. In this case, setting the camera in manual mode to keep the highlights beyond the window under control would have been the best approach, but simply setting the flash on ETTL and at 0 FEC is not enough...as the ETTL will "see" those highlights and cut flash power to prevent blowing it out. You and I know that the flash cannot reach beyond the window....or overpower all that light, but the flash doesnt know this and cuts its power. The "fix" is to dial in some positive FEC on the flash to "force" an increase in power. This is very much like having to use positive exposure compensation without flash when shooting in the snow in a semi auto mode. You have to "force" the increase in exposure....and in this case ...that is being set by the flash and ETTL. FEC is the cure.:D
Jeff
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1. Framing with the empty chairs on the right is distracting. If you want to keep the shot, crop them out.
2. Horizon is not level. The negative space doesn't bring me back to the groom here. Maybe a tighter crop with no sky on the left side of the groom?
3. I love the emotion here. Videographer looks bad in the frame (he's probably thinking the same thing about you). The horizon line through the grooms head looks bad. Solution=get down low and shoot up at them placing their heads in the sky all by themselves.
4. Distracting background - item above grooms head, person behind bride.
5 & 6. As already said the exposure and color has some issues. Another option would have been to dial down the flash (even turn it off) and just blow out the background. It would give you some great wrap and "open up" the shot some more (but you may have to really up your iso). The advantage of doing it that was is that you will not be able to see the cars in the parking lot
As a matter of fact I don't think I had my flash out. Gotta remember to do that when subjects are strongly backlit! Gotta get used to the idea that just because it's bright out doesn't mean a flash wouldn't be useful...
Thanks for the tip on turning up FEC, I'll have to remember that one...