an E-shoot coming up..

Foques · February 24, 2011

Hi all..

A good friend of mine has recently popped a question, and was accepted with this offering.:rofl

These two are a fantastic couple, and fit each other perfectly.. a few days they have asked if I would be willing to do an E-shoot for them..
Of course, I said yes.

That said, I do have a few questions..

1) What are the standard questions you would ask the bride and groom to be?
2) how do you chose locations?
3) what to be looking for?

Truly, and tips would be great as i've never done an E-shoot before..
I have a few ideas of the shots, and been browsing photog's sites, and multiple forums gathering ideas.. and would love to hear what you all can offer as well.

Thanks in advance.

tenoverthenose · February 24, 2011

I think you're asking these questions with the best of intentions, but I think they are far less important than you think. You need to be yourself and get the couple to relax. Treat them with genuine interest and friendship and they will pick up on that.

As far as locations go... well, you're the photographer, you know what you are looking for to create the images in your mind. I strongly believe that in taking portraits, location is highly overrated. You can bust out amazing work in a parking garage or a national park - the choice is yours. The quality of work is NOT dependent on the location.

When I do shoots like this, I love to get some dramatic images with strong composition and good emotional connection between the couple. But that's just the way I work. What works for you?

vivalaveritas · February 24, 2011

Agreed.
Be yourself and make it a fun and enjoyable experience. If you do that they will have a great time and it will make the whole shoot seem smooth and easy.
As far as location, just figure out the kind of people they are. If they are more country think country, if they have a urban style think city. But like mentioned above it really is overrated.
Mix up the shots and have fun. Don't limit yourself by taking the same shot over and over again in different locations, this will make it difficult if you later on decide to try and make an album from those images.
In the end just have fun and make sure they do as well.
Good luck

Foques · February 24, 2011

thank you very much for your advices!

The couple is very active, they are hikers, campers, canoers.. complete opposite of me

I will need to find some interesting location for that to show that off.. Hopefully, i'll have something to show here once the shoot is done.

mpriest13 · February 24, 2011

tenoverthenose wrote: »

I strongly believe that in taking portraits, location is highly overrated. You can bust out amazing work in a parking garage or a national park - the choice is yours.

Amen to that. I recently saw a blog post where the photog took the couple to local University. Literally, you couldn't tell where they were shooting. They could have been in a backyard. Unless you are doing really scenic/portrait work it is much more important you pick a place you are comfortable with or place where you can get some nice sweet natural light. Also, time of day is more important than the location.

Qarik · February 24, 2011

be aware that you may get your best shots towards the end of the session when they are fully relaxed and you are as well. getting them relaxed is probably the best thing you can do to get those nice candid shots. remember to get a variety of shots as well..up close, 1/2 body. full length, wide angle..hit them from different angles..different poses..walking, standing, sitting down, almosting kissing, laughing, etc.

ShepsMom · February 24, 2011

I generally ask my couples if they have something they enjoy doing together, if it's sports, they can bring props, or go to the stadium, etc. If they're more whimsical, take them to the fair, or somewhere with lots of colors, etc.... You need to know what they like or maybe they have an idea but don't know how to say it, or if you don't ask, they wont even think about it. Find out what their outfits going to be so you know ahead of time, will she be wearing heels or cowboy boots? There are tons of things you can do.
Here a lot of destination couples love to do beach photos, (i'm personally sick of it) and i suggest something different, in most cases we will do 2 locations, beach vs. downtown, vs. park, etc.

Good luck and let us see the pix!!

Foques · February 25, 2011

Qarik, you are very right, and thank you for reminding me to not forget about getting a variety of shots.
Definitely, will have to make sure that I get as much of them done as I can.

Marina, that's the plan.. I am planning on suggesting them to go to some sort of camping grounds.

Foques · June 21, 2011

sorry to revive this, but I figured i'm better of reviving the thread instead of creating a new one.

Are there any clothing preferences? Say, I find that white shirts may be a wee hard to shoot in harsh sunlight.. and I think that's exactly what i'll be dealing with this weekend.

FedererPhoto · June 21, 2011

Just don't have them wear matching white -- anything but that. Blech!

Also, avoid close/tight stripes or cords.

Foques · June 21, 2011

cool. thank you!

jeffreaux2 · June 22, 2011

Foques wrote: »

sorry to revive this, but I figured i'm better of reviving the thread instead of creating a new one.

Are there any clothing preferences? Say, I find that white shirts may be a wee hard to shoot in harsh sunlight.. and I think that's exactly what i'll be dealing with this weekend.

I prefer that the clothing is darker than their skin tones. I like the faces to be the brightest thing in the image.

This couple sounds like a casual outdoors shoot to me. Id choose a location that is void of man made objects. Maybe a nearby park? lake?

To second what Quarik said....get plenty variety...but....BUT.....be absolute CERTAIN that you get several nice, sharp, well lit waist up shots of them to use in the local papers for an announcement. Just look in your paper to see the type of shots that are commonly printed.

All the creatively composed artistic shots in the world wont help them if there isnt anything that they can print in the paper.

Foques · June 22, 2011

Jeff, thank you very much for the suggestions!
it is officially scheduled for this Saturday, and we are meeting at a rather nice (and BIG) park.
Seeing that i'll be shooting in the morning, I should have access to different light (10am on)and not too many people /man made items will be there.

And yes, I definitely am planning on doing the "classic" shot.

smurfy · June 22, 2011

Foques wrote: »

Jeff, thank you very much for the suggestions!
it is officially scheduled for this Saturday, and we are meeting at a rather nice (and BIG) park.
Seeing that i'll be shooting in the morning, I should have access to different light (10am on)and not too many people /man made items will be there.

And yes, I definitely am planning on doing the "classic" shot.

Shooting at 10 am is going to make getting keeper images really, really hard. If you absolutely have to do classic portraits at that time of day and it's sunny out, you might want to look for some solid shade from a big building, or perhaps a covered porch or pavilion that provides it.

As far as what to wear, I wrote up a little advice on this subject for clients recently. Here's a link if you would like to check it out.

http://godburnphotos.smugmug.com/Weddings/Engagements-and-Couples/What-to-wear/15848744_vz83C/1188401790_#1349940753_T29ptgw

Foques · June 22, 2011

^
I definitely wasn't planning on taking pictures of them int he open light. Maybe a few, but main bunch will have to be in shade.
thank you for the linky, i'll look over it.

an E-shoot coming up..

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