Despite my insecurities, I consented to take pictures for the wedding of a couple that I am friends with. They saw and liked some of my other photos, and talked me into taking them on as my first wedding assignment. As I look through the shots I captured, I really hoped I could do more for them. Much more! I created a folder to save these good ideas. But they know I am self-taught, and appear to be pleased with my efforts.
Children tend to be very easy to take pictures of, because they remain "natural" when I focus my glass on them. This handsome fella loved the attention. By the way, the colorful attire is from Sierra Leone.
The most difficult part for me was that I felt like I was competing against paparazzi. Other people clamored for the attention of my photographic subjects, and they often obstructed my view. My opinion is that the ceremony and traditions should be as free as possible from this kind of disturbance. It struck me as undignified, and I could never bring myself to act this way at a formal event. But hey, if the bride (and groom) did not get upset with the rugby huddle, it doesn't matter what I think. This is not my grudge to bear.
They took a picture like this at my own wedding. After I shot the posed pic I said, "When I count to three, drop him!" It came out a little blurry, because I was laughing as well. Oops.
At the reception, I asked my friend if I may kiss his new bride. He said no, but I gave her a peck on the cheek anyway (big grin). God bless these two and their marriage.
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9 comments:
You can definitely see the joy in the photographs Craver. Weddings do bring joy out in a special way.
Made me think of this: " “For behold, I create new heavens
and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
or come into mind.
But be glad and rejoice forever
in that which I create;
for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy,
and her people to be a gladness.
I will rejoice in Jerusalem
and be glad in my people;"-Isaiah 65
And: "Then came one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues and spoke to me, saying, “Come, I will show you the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God."-John, Rev. 21
You took fun photos! I'd be scared to death to take wedding photos. I hear a lot of brides turn into bride-zillas!
better a wedding photographer than a wedding singer,huh? looks like you got some great shots as always!
what an honor. as long as they are happy that's most important. and it did give you a good learning opportunity so i am glad for that. love the shot of the little guy. he's a cutie.
The future gladness for the redeemed is indescribable, Sandman. It's difficult to imagine that the joys we experience today will pale so much in comparison, that they "shall not be remembered or come to mind."
This bride was fantastic, CameraGirl. I tried to make sure I did not distress her by letting it show if I was concerned about anything (like the unclassy ways of our paparazzi).
Oh, I'm DEFINITELY no wedding singer, Mr. Dave. That would have been a train wreck for sure. (lol)
You raise a good point, Lime. The trust they placed in me was a great honor, and I am thankful for that. And yes, I embraced the couple's happiness as the key factor in this whole thing. Facebook responses have been good. I hope to hear face-to-face from them this weekend.
I think you did very well on your first wedding shoot. The bride looks radiant in your first photo, and the young man is adorable in the second. Great job!
Craver...I would have been soooo nervous to photograph a wedding, but you did such a GREAT job!!
I know they were thrilled with your photos. Such a good friend you are.
Smiles to you and wishes for a beautiful remainder of the week.
Hugs,
J.
Great photos that you can justly be proud of. I may post one of our 6 May 1961 wedding, taken by a good friend. Compared with your lively photos, ours seems rather too formal.
Thanks for the encouragement, George. We'll see how this works, since they'll be printing their own photos. Our arrangement is that I'm going to give them the files on a flash drive. I posted some low resolution copies to Facebook, and that has been received with great enthusiasm.
Nervous?? Jackie, I thought I was even more nervous than the bride. What if a piece of equipment doesn't work? What if I can't get a good angle? What if the wedding party doesn't cooperate? What if my focus is all off? What if I accidentally delete something? What if I get hungry, and the food line is too long? (lol)
I would love to see that, Kiwi. I actually prefer a more formal setting for weddings.
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