Weddingbee PRO

I'm back! After a longer than planned absence due to a very unfortunate reaction to a tetanus shot - the things I do for trips to Africa!! - I'm back and ready to sit down and answer all of your questions! If any question is not listed below, it's because the answer was addressed. And yes, that's right - ALL of your questions!!

Kim Kaylin asked:

I would love to know your preference of lenses during the ceremony, and any positioning tips you may have of where to locate yourself for certain parts of the ceremony. Also, any advice you have on difficult lighting situations, especially during the ceremony, would be greatly appreciated. any tips on how to direct more traffic to your site / blog, or just more business in general.

At the moment, I'm trying to get my lenses down to a simpler science. Currently I employ the works of my 50mm 1.2 - MY MOST FAVORITE LENS!!, the 24mm 1.4, the 135mm 2.0, and the 45mm 2.8 t/s. I shoot with all of them during the ceremony, each for a different purpose. I use the 50 the absolute most; it's the sharpest lens I've ever worked with and it's just the right working distance for me. Images from this lens are so saturated and yummy and lovely, were it not for small rooms and crazy dance floors I would consider shooting only with the lens, and no other. I LOVE IT!

I use the 24mm to shoot more photojournalistic shots throughout the whole day, and for the ceremony, too. I also use it for wide sweeping shots of everything that I can fit into the frame that moves me. I use the 135 for close ups of the groom watching his bride come down the aisle, the bride's face as she makes her vows, etc. And yes, I stand right smack dab in the middle of the aisle - only for a moment long enough to grab those shots and quietly and quickly move out of the way so as not to disturb the moment.

Here's the thing - and it's something I gleaned from my own experience as a person, walking down an aisle towards the man I love most in this world - there really wasn't much that could distract me from that purpose. My mother said our photographer was running all over the place, but I didn't notice her for a second. Within that notion I work within what I feel is appropriate. I am getting paid the big bucks to get the shot - and it's more important to me to get the shot, than it is to nurse my discomfort of being in the way at any point in time. Just be quick and nimble! Get in, get out, get it right! I'm everywhere - behind the officiant - unless otherwise directed not to be - in front of the groomsmen and bridesmaids, standing, squatting, sitting, lying down (all in a dress, folks!), in the aisle, in the balcony, on the stairs - and also respectful of my surroundings. I'm moving guests out of the way, especially the ones with cameras who try to get in my way. Uh uh. No way. I'm the professional here, and I always get first dibs!

Difficult lighting… I have to say recently I've been very inspired to say there are only difficult lighting conditions if I try to work against the light, or the capabilities of my equipment. I just got a video light that I use for dark time portraits, and for the reception, I'm using a one off camera sunpak flash with a pocket wizard, combined with the bounce flash from my camera, OR just a bounce flash. It depends on where I am. I bring everything with me, so I'm ready for anything, but sometimes the Sunpak just doesn't make it out of my bag. But at the end of the day - if it's yellow dark light - let it be yellow and dark. That’s what it looks like. If I just let light look like what it looks like, then it's not difficult anymore.

Traffic… BLOGGING!!! Blogging is an amazing and powerful force. Network with other wedding blogs - get your work and your name out there! Read those wedding blogs, and decide where you want to be. Then submit your work (always send a link first)! The more you look at wedding blogs, the more you will understand what you are looking for. Here are the five most influential blogs/sites in my business:

weddingbee.com

snippetandink.blogspot.com

stylemepretty.com

bklynbrideonline.com

projectwedding.com

With the help of these blogs and sites that featured my work last year, my blog stats jumped from 1600 a month to 5000 a month, and then in November jumped from 5,000 a month to almost 10,000, and I'm still on the way up! And I've never spent any money on advertising unless it was in support of a blog that I really loved, and I always forget to carry my business cards (not on purpose!). Blogging made my business happen. Blogging made me book 30 weddings in the first four months I was ever a photographer across the country and abroad. I am sometimes a little late but NEVER behind on blogging and reading other amazing blogs that I love.

To be continued…