"The Dance of a Lifetime!”

"The Dance of a Lifetime!”
©David A. Ziser

I just love this kind of wedding image and I rarely show them here at DPT.  To me, it’s this kind of image that clearly captures the essence of the day, the evening, the moment – it’s all there - the excitement and spontaneity of that moment!

It was getting late in the evening and the band had cranked up the tempo of the music a bit and the bride and groom were resonating with the up-tempo beat. You can see from this image that they were both having a great time. But look beyond the bride and groom – look at the guests looking on.  I love the expression on the bride’s sister’s face, her hands clasped almost as though she is enjoying the moment along with her sister.

But you know, as a wedding photographer, you have to be ready to capture that moment – you can’t let it slip by.  Your timing , your lighting, and your focus must be perfect.  I think this image nails the shot! 

Light was was coming in from three directions.  My assistant was across the room – camera left – supplying o lot of the backlighting on the scene.  I also had a “room” light set up behind me and to my right with supplied most of the fill.  The rich, red ambient light together with my slow shutter speed supplied the overall extra warmth to the scene.

Notice too how much more striking this image resonates with the excitement of the moment with the addition of the other two strobes – no flat, 2 dimensional lighting showing up in this image – never!  It was a great wedding to photograph – full of energy, excitement, laughter, and fun and we caught it all!

Camera specs:  Canon 5D Mark III fitted with 12-24mm Sigma lens at 24mm, F6.3 @ 1/40 second, ISO 1600.  Enjoy!  -David