# what to say during a shoot to the others who whip out their gear and saying look here



## Bevel Heaven (Jan 2, 2008)

Hey I know you others get into the same thing........

I have a group of folks all bunched together, spacing is perfect, am trying to get em all looking at a certain spot, they are all doing it I am clicking away and some relative or friend comes over and whips out their little P&S [or whatever] and says HEY SMILE GUYS - OVER HERE 

And now half are still looking at you, the others are looking at them.,.




:er:




WHat I want to know are some KIND and NICE ways of telling the person to back the fuc& off so I can get back to shooting.

I have pissed off too many people now...  I need some help on what to say to get em to put their camera away until I get my shots etc...


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## Sideburns (Jan 2, 2008)

Nothing.  Who you talk to is the people that're taking the picture.

Before you start shooting say "ok, if anyone else comes up saying "look here"...don't do it...just wait till I'm finished please"

Then the P+S'ers will just give up.


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## Peanuts (Jan 2, 2008)

Unfortunately that method doesn't always work, because they all know Aunty Suzie's Great-grandmother's cousin's husband's dog's previous owner's brother is more likely to send them a mass email with the file so that isn't the most reliable method.  I would turn around, in my kindest tone say excuse me, I will take several and once I am done I will allow everyone else to take an image *click**click* "Ok go ahead" (wait 8 seconds) *walk into the shot and start rearranging people*


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## astrostu (Jan 2, 2008)

This is something that's usually included in wedding photo contracts - the exclusivity clause saying you're the only photographer.  So while you're covered there, I would suggest - if you're willing - to politely say, "Please don't do that, it takes me a long time to set these up and get the poses correct and you're messing it up."  That should make them go away.

If they don't go away after that, then you call over the mother of the bride and sick 'em on the interloper saying (a) it's in your contract that no one else can do photos, and (b) if that person keeps taking photos, yours won't turn out right and they'll be left with a sub-par album.

That should wrap it up "nicely."


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## Bevel Heaven (Jan 3, 2008)

Thanks for the coments, but it is ALWAYS the kids who can;t keep focused on my camera and look at whatshername with the camera standing over yonder.  No matter what I say.  SOmetimes I can get just the folks who are going to be IN each individual photo to come into a seperate room or whatever and that ends that but it also takes a bunch more time..  In an open setting it is just plain difficult.

I think the mom of the bride is usually the worst with the camera.

But that isn;t a bad idea telling her to keep all camera wielding in laws at bay...


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## astrostu (Jan 3, 2008)

Bevel Heaven said:


> But that isn;t a bad idea telling her to keep all camera wielding in laws at bay...



I didn't realize when I wrote it, but actually part of that comment comes from experience.  I've been at/in one wedding since I've had my SLR, and I was a groomsman so was there for all the photos.  While the pro was setting up, I specifically asked him if it was okay if I took pictures, too.  He said yes.  So I took photos from slightly behind and to the right of him just after his own shots.  I also took some off to the side against a stained glass window with people he wasn't using at the time.

Well, the mother of the bride eventually saw me taking photos (with my tiny built-in flash) and she blew up at me, chewing me out in front of everyone that I would mess up the photographer (I was a friend of the groom so had just met this woman a few days earlier).  I had had it up to "here" with her by that point, but I tried to calmly explain that the photographer had given me permission and that I was shooting after he had so I wasn't messing up his metering and then I turned and went back to what I was doing.

She later apologized to me (I was astounded) and I got some great shots.  But I think I'm an exception since I wasn't a, "Hey look over here" just after the photographer posed them and before they took the shot kind of person.

I guess my point was to give an example of how having the mother of the bride on your side in those matters can really help control unwanted cameras.


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## elsaspet (Jan 3, 2008)

When shooting formals, I turn around and say in a nice loud voice.

"DO NOT TAKE PHOTOS WHILE I AM TAKING PHOTOS.  YOU WILL BE GIVEN AN OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE PHOTOS AFTER I SHOOT EACH SET".

This always works.  I get the ones where everyone is looking at me, and everyone else gets the ones where people are looking here there and everywhere.


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## Big Mike (Jan 3, 2008)

This is indeed a problem faced by many wedding photographers.

I have a section in my contract where it's laid out that I am *the* hired professional photographer and that if other people are taking photos, I have the right to stop shooting and even leave. (I would never do that though).
The idea is that as the photographer, you need to have some authority over the situation.
I make this clear to the clients and I ask them to be the 'police'.  It's much easier if the bride says "Hey, put away your cameras and let the pro do his job"...than trying to do it yourself and looking like a jerk.
A big motivator is money.  You are the one getting paid to take photos...the other probably are not.  So it's in their best interest that they do their best to help you get the shot...not auntie Mable.
I explain to the clients that other cameras will distract the people in the shot, which makes for poor shots.

Of course, we want to be as nice and accommodating as we can.  So I will usually let people shoot but I ask them to wait until I have my shot, then I give them a few seconds to shoot.


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## emogirl (Jan 3, 2008)

if I am having a problem, I simply say..."i dont mind you taking pictures, please but please wait until I am finished, after all they paid me"....everyone laughs and backs off...in all my years, I only had one fella who didnt get the point and I had to stop and be very firm with him to stay out of the way.  the bride & groom are also equally appreciate of you asserting yourself with guests, as they get tired of the 'over 'here' and all the extra smiles!!!


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## Peanuts (Jan 3, 2008)

Kim brings up a good point. I will sometimes go onto bride forums where they give reviews of photographers and the most often 'complaint' is that they weren't assertive enough therefore they were "looking away from the camera in half of the formals" (truly, I think it is a 50/50 blame game between the individuals and the photographer on that one)


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## petey (Jan 3, 2008)

I've had good results with saying no smiling allowed until I say to smile.


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## amandakifer (Jan 3, 2008)

Yeah I would never tell people they are not allowed to take pictures of my posed stuff... my cousin's photographer, when I was growing up, at my cousin's wedding used film. Well the photographer would not allow any one else to take photos or 'she would leave' and after the wedding she lost ALL of the posed photographs. The only posed portraits my cousin has is the stuff my father took with the photographer yelling at him. 

Before I start I let everyone know that I will take the first couple of shots and let them know when they can take theirs.

I'm not sure I agree with astrostu with including a clause in a contract saying you are the only photograper.  It is the bride's day... if she wants to hire an army of photographers she should be able to do it.  Last year I participated in a couple of weddings where I was hired after another photographer was also hired because they either felt that photographer may not have capable skills but already paid them (that wedding we worked together as a team... it worked great) or a couple had a huge wedding and wanted two different photographers to get two different perspectives.  That is just my thoughts on the matter though.  I understand why some want to maintain being the only photographer.


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## astrostu (Jan 4, 2008)

amandakifer said:


> I'm not sure I agree with astrostu with including a clause in a contract saying you are the only photograper.  It is the bride's day... if she wants to hire an army of photographers she should be able to do it.  Last year I participated in a couple of weddings where I was hired after another photographer was also hired because they either felt that photographer may not have capable skills but already paid them (that wedding we worked together as a team... it worked great) or a couple had a huge wedding and wanted two different photographers to get two different perspectives.  That is just my thoughts on the matter though.  I understand why some want to maintain being the only photographer.



I'm not necessarily advocating including this, I'm just saying that I've seen it in sample contracts and you can include it if it's important to you.


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## emogirl (Jan 4, 2008)

Yup, pretty standard clause to be the only photographer...(not including the guests with point & shoots)...you are there to make money and if you are among 2-3 hired togs, the re sells are spread out amongst them!!


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## amandakifer (Jan 4, 2008)

Yeah I know it is.... I just don't agree with it. In those cases I charge enough for my time that I don't need to make money off the prints. Usually those brides have lots of money... both cases they bought the largest albums I've ever sold and lots of prints. So it ended well for me. I just don't feel I should be demanding what vendors a bride can have at her wedding.


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## amandakifer (Jan 4, 2008)

well what I guess I'm trying to say is that I don't want to have that clause becaue I've had the opportunity to meet other great photographers that way.  I may never have met them.  If anyone is approach to do something like that just know you have to speak with the other photographer before hand and go into it with a different mind set.  

If I got nothing else but meeting some new photographers then it was worth it for me.


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## Big Mike (Jan 4, 2008)

Things are shifting (or have shifted) in the wedding photography business.  It used to be the prevailing standard that you would shoot the wedding and make most or all of your income from print sales, reprints & albums etc.  It's certainly understandable that a photographer would want to protect their livelihood.  
These days (and especially with digital), it's more common to charge for the service of shooting the wedding and the print sales are either non-existent or a bonus.  

It's great that you have had some good experiences and met some great photographers...but it could easily be a bad situation if you want to do things one way and another 'hired' photographer wants to do it another way.  It could easily compromise the product of one or both photographers.

Either way, it's something that I have in my contract as a precaution but it's not a big deal for me.


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

I would assume we're talking about weddings you're shooting at.  What I like to do is tell everyone else who is taking pictures (I call them the paparazzi) that I will take the first pictures in a pose and then I will give them a chance after I have gotten the pictures I need.  I tell them that my flashes will probably ruin their pictures so that usually scares em off for a bit.


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## Big Mike (Jan 4, 2008)

> I tell them that my flashes will probably ruin their pictures so that usually scares em off for a bit.


I've heard of photographers who put up a slave flash with optical trigger, pointed back at the 'paparazzi'...so that their flash actually does ruin their photos.


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## hyakuhei (Jan 4, 2008)

astrostu said:


> I took photos from slightly behind and to the right of him just after his own shots



I know it was Ok'd with the photographer but I hate it when people do that when I'm shooting. For me, photography is all about getting yourself and your subjects into the right position,pose and lighting. After that just about any camera will do (you know what I mean...)... Maybe its just a pet peve but I really get annoyed when people "steal" my shots like that, it almost as bad as copying my work and calling it your own.

(ok, so that was a rant and not at all directed at astrostu) Does this annoy anyone else ?


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

Big Mike said:


> I've heard of photographers who put up a slave flash with optical trigger, pointed back at the 'paparazzi'...so that their flash actually does ruin their photos.



Big Mike, 

That is just mean, awesome, but mean.  I may have to try that once...hilarious!


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

If you really wanted to, you could probably tell people that you are the only photographer during formal shots.  If they want shots...they can buy them from you (easiest if you proof off a website).


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## hyakuhei (Jan 4, 2008)

nicfargo said:


> Big Mike,
> 
> That is just mean, awesome, but mean.  I may have to try that once...hilarious!



Note to self: When shooting over someones shoulder, second-sync the flash 

I'm guessing that I'll have my shot done before the optical slave fires .... ? Am I right ?


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## Sideburns (Jan 4, 2008)

hyakuhei said:


> Note to self: When shooting over someones shoulder, second-sync the flash
> 
> I'm guessing that I'll have my shot done before the optical slave fires .... ? Am I right ?



Sure...but it's still gonna fire and either wash out your picture, or leave a huge glowing ball in it.


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## hyakuhei (Jan 4, 2008)

Heh, better than syncing on the first curtain though I guess :-D Just an idle thought at any rate...


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## Big Mike (Jan 4, 2008)

> I'm guessing that I'll have my shot done before the optical slave fires .... ? Am I right ?


Probably not...after all, light does travel at the speed of light  

Although, a pre-flash would probably avoid it...but also screw up your metering.


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