Wednesday: A New Twist on The Wedding Shoot: Aiming For The Stars

Good Morning Everybody,
A few people have emailed about my program at B&H this weekend. Well, I have good news and bad news. First the good news - its FREE. Now the bad news - it's booked to capacity. Hey, be optimistic - there might be a cancellation and you might still be able to get a seat. Just head on over to B&H's web site and check it out. Here is the link right here.

We wrapped late last night and just relaxed for a bit listening to some musical selections LaDawn selected at Triple Scoop Music. For those of you putting together slide shows and presentations for your client, Triple Scoops royalty free musical collection is phenomenal. The selection process is quite easy too. Anyway, we were looking for new music for another slide presentation and we found some real winners. And, it was nice just to sit and relax for a few minutes.

After that, I popped a DVD we just got from Bebb Studios, really talented wedding shooters hailing from Vancouver, Canada. The Bebb's were about the first photographers to review the Canon 5D Mark II camera and in the process were taken with it's video capabilities. Their DVD showed how they are cutting video in with still images they take at a wedding. The call their product Fusion. It's all quite beautiful, but I have to admit, it looks like a bit of a learning curve to pull it off. I thought they were quite thorough on both the DVD's - the first on how to shoot it and the second on how to edit it. You can check it out right here.

OK, how about we get on with today's "Aiming for the Stars" post. I think you will enjoy it. Here we go...

A New Twist on The Wedding Shoot: Aiming For The Stars
I really enjoy looking at what other photographers shoot on the wedding day. And, at the same time I'm kind of surprised at what gets missed. Lots of photographers are capturing lots of the action and expressions of the day, but there is still so much more to photograph. There are different ways to see and photograph the "obvious". One of the easiest ways to see and shoot differently is to just look up.

So many locations have fabulous views when we point our cameras to the stars. This can include churches, synagogues, and reception venues.

It's how we look up that's important too. My favorite gear for looking up are my wide angle lenses. I prefer the 10-22mm lens on my Canon 40D. On my Canon 5D Mark II, the Sigma 12-24mm is utterly fantastic. Both the camera lens combos give you about the widest view you will ever need.

One more lens to add to your "looking up" arsenal is the Sigma Fisheye too. What's cool with the fisheye is that when you look up, you can still see what's ahead too. The curvature of the lines in the scene just add a different perspective to the image. I'm one who happens to like the effect.

Can we include foreground elements like flowers that add to the dramatics of the scene? Adding foreground elements places the ceiling in a different visual context in the image. Although the ceiling is indeed dramatic, it's the flowers in the foreground that dominate the composition because of the wide angle optic creating a quite striking image.

LaDawn and I were in Paris a few years ago and I strolled around the Eiffel Tower with the Sigma 12-24mm lens on my 5d at the time. I loved the images I captured - quite dramatic and a view quite different to what you normally see of this fabulous Paris landmark.

So next time out on a job load your camera up with a super wide angle lens and point your camera to the stars. It's lots of fun and the unique views you'll photograph will add a nice sense of the "dramatic" to the wedding album.

Hey gang, I've got to zippity-do-da today. Clients are do to arrive momentarily and I've got to get back to my real job. See everybody tomorrow for Business Day Thursday. See ya' then. -David