"Heaven Sent Love"

"Heaven Sent Love"
©David A. Ziser

Okay, the title might be a little hokey but that was the first thought that popped in my mind as I viewed this beautiful wide-angle wedding candid. This image was taken in one of my favorite sanctuary's, St. Mary's Cathedral of the Assumption, in Covington Kentucky. The magnificent interior together with the soaring pillars makes for an extremely dramatic image especially when photographed with a very wide-angle lens.

In checking with the priest, I asked permission if I could shoot from the side of the church and assured him that no flashes would be firing during my exposures. The priest was quite gracious and allowed my request.

I know the possibilities of shooting with a wide-angle lens so I pulled out the widest I had available. It was Sigma’s 12-24 mm lens.  With that lens attached to my Canon 5D, you have the widest rectilinearly corrected view possible with this camera/lens combination – about 122 degrees wide!

Do I mind that the lines are converging in this image? Not really, I’m a wedding photographer and not an architectural photographer.  I think the strong convergence of the lines adds to the dramatic impact.

Consider the subject matter. The bride and groom are kneeling as they wait quietly for the priest to finish up passing out Communion. I could've made this photograph with a long telephoto lens and it would have been an “okay” candid. But, the use of a wide-angle lens sure added a dramatic look to this otherwise ordinary wedding candid. I've mentioned many times that I'm a huge fan of wide-angle lenses. This just shows one of the reasons why.

Camera specs: Canon 5D fitted with Sigma 12-24mm lens at 12mm, F5.6 @ 1/40 second, ISO 800. Enjoy!  -David