# First Wedding



## Fifthphotography (Aug 24, 2010)

Ok so this was my first wedding and Im quite happy with how it came out considering it was outdoors, midday and in their backyard. But Id like some feedback where do I need to improve?

1



Bridegroom-39

2



dress-1

3



Anthony and Melissa's Wedding

4



weddingparty-74

5



Anthony and Melissa's Wedding

6



Anthony and Melissa's Wedding

The rest are here(I like them on my gallery better than flickr)
Weddings - Fifth Photography Gallery


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## Robin Usagani (Aug 24, 2010)

good job.. What is up with the sun glasses?  I would have told him to take them off .  The dress shot outside looks a little freaky.  It looks like someone is wearing it without a head LOL.  It is not very clear because the manequin (or whatever you call it) is the same color.


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## Fifthphotography (Aug 24, 2010)

Schwettylens said:


> good job.. What is up with the sun glasses?  I would have told him to take them off .  The dress shot outside looks a little freaky.  It looks like someone is wearing it without a head LOL.  It is not very clear because the manequin (or whatever you call it) is the same color.



His entire family was constantly wearing sunglasses I did get shots without them as well but it was kinda his thing. lol I wanted to hang the dress but there was nothing to hang it on so my assistant had the idea of standing behind it holding it up. I didn't think about taking the mannequin thingy out at the time wish i had though.


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## bigtwinky (Aug 24, 2010)

1- I'm not digging the composition.  I would of preferred to have their kiss more centered in the frame, this just makes the image unbalanced.  Plus, she is oddly cut on her arm, while he is fully in the frame.   A square crop might be nice here

2- Yeah...uh...no.  The light is all over the place and I find there are alot of distracting elements in the image.  The bits of flowers on the right hand side, pieces of bush/vine from the top right and alot of depth to the image, which doesnt help to showcase the subject, which is the dress.  The floating dress thing is original, but looks a bit ghostly

3- She seems overly exposed somewhat, mainly in her face.  Same comment about composition as #1, I find the image unbalanced.  There is unnecessary empty space on the left side.  With her tilting like that in the image, I would of preferred and off center composition but the other way, with him on one side putting the bride more in the center

5- Nice job, I like this one.  BW is a great choice here, well done. Maybe a bit too much vignette, but that could just be my taste.  Do you have one with the entire card in the frame?  I'm curious how that looks

6-  Interesting lighting, would of liked you to get in a bit closer on the cake to bring out those details in the icing and such.


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## Fifthphotography (Aug 25, 2010)

1. So do you not like using rule of thirds? or do you think it just doesn't work for those pictures? Generally i try not to just center everything. I think your right about the square crop at the time I didn't want to restrict them on print sizes but I think it would of made it more appealing.

2. lol yea thats what you get with a backyard wedding this was the only shaded area with a decent background on the property and i ABSOLUTELY HATED the sunspots. 

3. I see what you mean about having it the other way him lining up with the left edge and her leaning in but there was a telephone pole and other annoying things in the background i was trying to avoid.

5. This was one of their favorites. honestly I don't know why i put so much vignetting on this one im not a fan of heavy vignetting either. i believe i did but id have find it.

6. I had already got all of my cake shots early in the day this was just prepping for the cake cutting and i happened to really like the way it came out.

Thanks for the critique I was satisfied with my compositions but i see theres definitely room for  improvement hopefully my next wedding will be in a more photography friendly environment.


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## jaelsteve01 (Aug 26, 2010)

Hi there!

These are all awesome pics. Bride and Groom both are looking stunning in all pictures. I really like all of them a lot. The cake one is also good. Thanks for sharing your post.


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## SrBiscuit (Aug 28, 2010)

i agree with twinky on #1.
rule of thirds is fine, but rules are made to be broken.
the image seems more about him than them due to the fact that he is dead center.
try the square crop...i bet it'll look great!

i happen to like the sunglasses in #4 but that one poor dude doesnt have any! even if hes blind as a bat without those specs, it woulda been nice to see them all uniform with the shades.

nice set overall!


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## mmartin (Sep 2, 2010)

One thing is that the black and white images seem a little "contrasty" but not bad for your first try.


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## manaheim (Sep 2, 2010)

wow.

1. Processing is a little harsh, but otherwise not overly offensive.  just kinda meh.
2. Honestly my reaction was "wow, looks like an animated torso of a bride coming to get me."  Creepy and weird.
3. Very harsh and he looks ridiculous in the shades, but you said they insisted.
4. Is this a wedding or a high school garage band?  Sorry- likely not  your fault, but between the shades and the dorky poses in some park or whatever... wow.
5. Fine, I guess.  The cutoff bothers me, but whatever.
6. Dark and creepy.

Sorry, harsh I know, but the "good job!" responses really kill me, and frankly I find these to be pretty ... well ... bad.


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## SageMark (Sep 2, 2010)

manaheim said:


> wow.
> 
> 6. Dark and creepy.
> 
> Sorry, harsh I know, but the "good job!" responses really kill me, and frankly I find these to be pretty ... well ... bad.


 

I agree with the captain. I further with they all seem to be on one end of the spectrum or the other. However, I agree that rules are made to be broken when it calls for it,....as a general rule of thumb.


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## Fifthphotography (Sep 5, 2010)

lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.


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## iAstonish (Sep 5, 2010)

Fifthphotography said:


> lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.



I think you should respect the critiques both good and bad.

I like number 1 and number 5, but I think it could have been framed 5 better. There is too much open space on the top, yet the bottom is cut off. You should have used that open space fit it accordingly.

That said, good try for your first, but I have to agree that other than photo number 5. these mostly look like snapshots. Your framing needs work along with your composition. Plus photo number 4 is out of focus.

What lens were you using?


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## Robin Usagani (Sep 5, 2010)

I said good job for your first try.  It didnt WOW me like some wedding photographers here (i.e. dzfoto).  I assume this is a low budget wedding?  But if these 6 were your best shots, then you may have a problem.


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## manaheim (Sep 5, 2010)

Fifthphotography said:


> lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.


 
Some things to consider...

There are a lot of people on this (and many) forums that tend to give positive feedback to almost any attempt.  Some people just aren't critical... some people just want to be supportive... some people are really totally clueless.  It varies.

Just because a person specializes in X or Y doesn't mean they won't have useful things to say about Z or Q.  It varies.

There are plenty of people on this forum who really aren't that great at photography.  There are some who are amazing.  Check out their stuff and see if you think it's any good and weigh that into how you take their critique... but watch out...

...there are some people on this forum who are AWESOME at critique... but suck at photography. 

I'm not saying any of these things about any of the people on this thread.  I don't know them.  Most of them don't have enough posts here for me to recognize them.  I'm just suggesting that you keep it all in mind.


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## Robin Usagani (Sep 5, 2010)

I dont want to know which category I am in  :lmao:



manaheim said:


> Fifthphotography said:
> 
> 
> > lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.
> ...


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## manaheim (Sep 5, 2010)

Read the last paragraph in my post.


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## bigtwinky (Sep 5, 2010)

Fifthphotography said:


> lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.



It is up to you to take the crit as you see fit...or dont take it at all. 

If a wedding photographer likes your stuff, then great.  its his opinion.  If you want to just listen to take and move on, great.

But remember that no matter who the critiquer is, we all see things a different way and everyone may have something valid to say.

Count yourself lucky you get variety... most CC here are drones who just tell you "nice job" and think that if they make nice nice with everyone, this will make them a better photographer


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## mwcfarms (Sep 5, 2010)

bigtwinky said:


> Fifthphotography said:
> 
> 
> > lol so I get a "awesome pics" from one wedding photographer, a "nice overall" from a model photographer and a "not bad" from another wedding photographer. But then I get a "bad" from a architectural photographer and some guy. I don't really know what to make of that but thanks for all the input.
> ...



+1

So Pierre how did yesterdays wedding go? Wheres the shots so I can make nicey nicey with you.  

Sorry about the hijack. Most people have already commented anything above what I would have said.


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## bigtwinky (Sep 5, 2010)

lol... 1500 pictures will take some time to go through.  If you find my thread here about the shoot, I did post up one there =


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## Fifthphotography (Sep 7, 2010)

manaheim said:


> wow.
> 
> 1. Processing is a little harsh, but otherwise not overly offensive.  just kinda meh.
> 2. Honestly my reaction was "wow, looks like an animated torso of a bride coming to get me."  Creepy and weird.
> ...



I guess I see this of more of a comment than a critique. Its not constructive or helpful its just a statement of your opinion. And by your comment of number four I don't think you know much about wedding photography. Now obviously number four isn't some masterpiece but it captures who the groom is. He's a real goof ball and he goofed off the entire wedding. So his wedding photos should capture that personality that is his. which this does. and ill agree that technically this isn't a great photo but once again this is in his backyard mid-day. While id love for every picture to be perfect wedding photography is very situational. sometimes your situation sucks and you have bad lighting and a bad setting and there isn't a darn thing you can do about it. That was this wedding in a nutshell. now for number six there was a crowd of people and white folding chairs behind the cake that I didn't want in the shot. so once again theres not much else I could of done. And while anyone can have good input, generally I'm looking for critique from fellow wedding or at last people photographers. Just like a heart surgeon is going to want a second opinion from another heart surgeon. Sure the pediatrician might have some input but thats not his specialty so your not going to second guess yourself based on his opinion. So I need to work on my composition. I was going to school for graphic design before photography and thats where I learned about composition first. I think thats whats messing me up. I like to anchor things to the frame(the wedding invitation for example)
and I stick to the rule of thirds too much.


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## manaheim (Sep 7, 2010)

Really?

First of all, everyone's statements here are a matter of opinion... unless you'd like me to break out all the boring "rules".

I don't think someone needs to be an architectural photographer to tell me that the processing is harsh, or that the building looks kind of flat, or that perspective correction might be a good idea.

Nor do I expect I need to be a wedding photographer to tell you that your cake in the darkness is a little peculiar, or that the wedding dress hanging somewhat randomly under a tree without any visible suspension looks a little strange, or that the processing on an image is a little harsh.

You are well within your rights to completely ignore my critique if it doesn't suit you... and yes, they are critique... but I think your attempt to discredit my comments because I don't fit your personal rule set is a bit presumptuous.

When you get right down to it, you didn't like what you heard from me so you bristled and lashed back.  If you were confident in your work, you'd simply say "Well, I don't agree, but I appreciate your comments" or perhaps "Well, that's interesting... can I ask why you say that?"

My suggestion to you would be to toughen up a bit, but I imagine you'll get all ticked off at that too.

*shrug*


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## Fifthphotography (Sep 8, 2010)

manaheim said:


> Really?
> 
> First of all, everyone's statements here are a matter of opinion... unless you'd like me to break out all the boring "rules".
> 
> ...


 
Lashed back? Really? Thats what you got from that? And I'm the one that needs to toughen up. Your right anyone can critique the technical aspects (Which is why I made no mention of that in my "back lashing") but there are other aspects that not everyone understands. You think a photo is bad because it looks like high school garage band instead of a classic wedding portrait. While I (and my client mind you) see it as a photo that captures their personality. And this is all what I said in my last post. So yes I don't think you have a good grip on wedding photography. But I think your right about the technical stuff. These photos are five months old and I have no idea why I processed them the way I did. I certainly wouldn't do the same now. As for the dress and the cake, I've seen other photographers get the same shot. And there was nothing to hang the dress on so it had to float. Is a ghostly hanging dress really that much different than a standing dress? Are you creeped out by the dresses that stand on mannequin at a store? Anyways I think just about covers it. And adding the 





> but the "good job!" responses really kill me, and frankly I find these to be pretty ... well ... bad.


 Is a pretty good way to put someone on the defensive. You come across as a hater and all your "critique" goes out the window. In the future try just sticking to the critiquing and leave the judging to the clients. The thing that annoys me the most is were taking the time to write all this and its not even something productive. What a waste of our time.


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## bigtwinky (Sep 8, 2010)

*<-----* that is me hoping for more constructive posts


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## manaheim (Sep 8, 2010)

I did say (perhaps not clearly enough) that while I didn't agree with the glasses thing I understood that the client wanted it.  So my comments were essentially acknowledging but ignoring that.

Anyway, I'm tired of forum foolishness so I'm probably not tempering my remarks even as much as I usually do and I'm certainly not being as articulate on these points as I could or should be, so my apologies for coming across snarkier than intended.


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## videochicke (Sep 12, 2010)

I think pictures are the best when they reflect the personality of the couple. If sunglasses are his thing, a shot with them is him. The kind of thing not so likely to end up in the album, but more on his Facebook page to share with his friends. And that can be a good thing!


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