BBC: How hard is it to photograph a wedding?

[bmattock]

It is not uncommon for people to sue wedding photographers for not producing the promised goods - this is unusual in that the couple sued (and won) for not producing shots they liked.

As one commenter said, it is a "wake up call" for those who think having a camera makes them a weekend wedding photographer.

And generally good information as well, albeit brief. There's lots more to it, and for the uninformed, I've done manual labor that was less physically demanding than shooting a wedding & reception.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8292164.stm

A couple have successfully sued their wedding photographer for his shoddy coverage of their big day. Anyone can point a camera at a happy couple, but what pitfalls do the professionals face?

 

[Al Kaplan]

Always have back-up equipment with you. Use a pro lab that you can trust. You'll be on your feet carrying a bunch of heavy equipment for hours, and probably wearing suit & tie with dress shoes. You'll arrive a couple of hours before the ceremony, and the reception might go far into the night. You'll be trying to control a bunch of people who are there to have fun, not pose for photos, or even turn to face the camera. Then they might finish the evening drunk or stoned.

You need to know how to rearrange a woman's hair or fix a tie that's askew in a tactful manner. Your "people skills" are at least as important as your photo skills. It's as important to get clear sharp pictures of smiling faces as to get some "creative" shots like you see in the magazines, and don't be surprised if your soft focus dreamy images get Ooohs and Ahhs but don't get ordered for the album.

Work as an assistant on several weddings before doing one on your own. If you use direct flash, and there are probably times when you'll need to, make sure that the flash is directly above the lens so there's no side shadow. Practice operating the camera with ONE hand while holding the flash in the other. Remember that an auto flash or TTL meter might not give consistant exposures when it's reading combinations of black tux and white dress. If you're shooting film you need to be able to make FAST film changes. Et cetera. Have fun.

 

[charjohncarter]

I have never done a wedding, as I'm not a pro. But every once in a while I go to a wedding with a camera thinking; 'I can do this.' Of course the images are all garbage, I really don't think people realize just how hard that job is. Ever notice the photogaphers never talk to anybody. It is all work.

 

[dmr]

And people wonder when I say I would not touch a wedding with a 10 foot pole! 🙂

Lawsuits for this are not new. The first time I remember thinking that I would never want to do a wedding was reading an article in one of the major magazines (Popular? Modern?) ca. 1970 when I was in HS. This told the story of a couple over in Jersey who sued the photog and recovered the expenses necessary to fly the bridal party and key guests back in and re-stage the wedding with a different photog. Jeesh!

 

[space2k]

I'm known amongst my friends as a guy who knows something about music and has a large record/CD collection, therefore I've been asked to DJ a couple of weddings. HUGE MISTAKE. Based on those experiences, there's no way in hell I'd ever shoot a wedding.

 

[JohnTF]

Have no idea what a "successful" law suit is. Am kind of wondering if they had any clues during the day and from the guy's portfolio?

Am pretty much +1 with Al, though, while beginning with a manual flash, I had very good luck with auto or TTL flash, but I was shooting negative film and using a lower EI, all kinds of latitude in that direction. You also lose half the light with a high ceiling or anything beyond fifteen feet.

You are only as good as your lab, mine had the occasional bump in the road and reprinted everything. Previews looked a bit flat once.

I know people who shoot thousands of shots today, am not sure I want to dominate the day as much as that, though the percentage of guests taking photos is approaching 100%.

I can see why people use digital cameras for weddings today, but the more a camera does for you, the more it can screw up, I would think an assistant with a laptop, or a dual card camera would relax me more, and I do not think a 32GB flash drive is a good idea.

Trade craft is something you need to learn as well, both in terms of technical skills but in people skills.

Law Suit? Well, aside from screwing up, sometimes you just cannot please some people. You should have a contract with some boiler plate in it.

Could start a thread of mistakes made that only happen once?

There are a long list of precautions well beyond even one of my long posts. ;-)

Regards, John

 

[bmattock]

Have no idea what a "successful" law suit is. Am kind of wondering if they had any clues during the day and from the guy's portfolio?

At the end of the day, what they did or did not know doesn't matter. The court ruled in their favor - that would be a 'successful' lawsuit from their point of view.

Law Suit? Well, aside from screwing up, sometimes you just cannot please some people. You should have a contract with some boiler plate in it.

Folks should realize that contracts do not stop people from suing you. You can both sign an agreement that says "I agree not to sue the photographer no matter what" and then the guy turns around and sues you. You may be able to prevail in court based on the agreement - but you absolutely cannot stop them from suing you. The common belief that "you can't sue me, we have a contract" is nonsense. Anyone can sue anyone.

Defending against lawsuits can be as (or more) expensive than losing the lawsuit. Legal costs can exceed the potential judgment. Business can and have been bankrupted simply by legal costs of defending themselves, even when they are in the right.

Contracts are important, of course. But contracts do not prevent you from being sued - they may serve to dissuade some from filing a lawsuit based on advice they may get from their own attorney. Also important is liability insurance.

I think many people see the wedding photography business as wedding PHOTOGRAPHY business, when actually it is wedding photography BUSINESS. If you don't understand business, you are going to get hurt, probably badly.

 

[sojournerphoto]

I've done it and it's very hard work. Start at 8 or 9 am and the carry a 1Ds3 and 5D until say 10 or 11 pm and watch the guests get prgressively more drunk and uncooperative, whilst persuading them to bahave in a manner conducive to making pictures for the bride's mum. You need to be able to deliver big group shots with drunk people, initimate couple portraiture with a pair who would rather be elsewhere and do candid/street in difficult low light situations. All must be done quickly, flawlessly and without causing offence.

When you get home you need a big glass of malt and a bath, but you've got a weeks worth of post processing to do to get the first cut online before they jet off to somewhere sunny. Of course you're very expensive compared to the 30k wedding and 20k honeymoon.

I don't shoot weddings now🙂

Mike

 

[mfunnell]

I have taken photos at friends' weddings. I've even taken good photos at friends' weddings.

I've been told that they liked my photos better than they liked the pro's. If you ever get told that, do not believe a word of it. Firstly, they're likely to be "being nice" to you. Secondly, even if it is true, they would not want to be without the photos the pro took, and which you most likely would not have.

And, thirdly, the ones they really do like best (that is, when they're not just blowing smoke up you're whatever) are likely to be the ones that will not be going into the "official album" - the ones where you caught Uncle Barry groping Aunty Jean (not his wife) or Aunty Ivy talking to Aunty Molly (though they swear they've been "not talking" for 30 years). Good fun, but not necessarily fit for public consumption (and which the poor pro wouldn't even know were funny).

...Mike

 

[kshapero]

Here is what I now do:

In the past few years I have stopped doing albums for events. Too much pressure and it stopped being fun. So now I tell folks to hire someone to do the "pro" shots and I will prowl around and just shot what I want. The result is that they get a nice album of their wedding, etc. and usually I give them a CD of 800 X 600 watermarked photos that they can choose from. When they do I charge them $140 a shot and give them a Pro lab 11 x 14 print and a 6 meg scan. Seems to be working. I usually end up selling about 3 per event.

 

[craygc]

My youngest sister is getting married early next year. She loves my work and asked if I would photograph her wedding. I told her point blank I don't do weddings. Its your day and you get one change at it, and its just not my style and I dont intend to mess it up for you. Suggested I would happily do some candid shots for her but no way do I want to be the principle photographer.

 

[mfunnell]

My youngest sister is getting married early next year. She loves my work and asked if I would photograph her wedding. I told her point blank I don't do weddings. Its your day and you get one change at it, and its just not my style and I dont intend to mess it up for you. Suggested I would happily do some candid shots for her but no way do I want to be the principle photographer.

Very smart move. For her, and for you. And anyway, I'm sure you want to enjoy her wedding.

...Mike

 

[Pablito]

Photojournalistic style wedding photography is all the mode now, which works out well for so many of the photojournalists being laid off by the failing newspaper industry. Some of my friends make 10K per day at this but I won't go near it.

 

[Paul T.]

The photographer did make a bad mistake. If you're going to cut off heads or photograph car hubcaps, you need to do it in grainy black and white.

 

[dcsang]

I really believe that the advent of affordable digital SLR cameras makes a lot of folks believe that they can do this sort of work. In the days of "film only" (which, really, wasn't THAT long ago) you would have to know something about proper framing, exposure, flash (because you're going to need it regardless of what time of year the wedding's being held), and customer service (very important). All of those things are just as essential now with DSLRS but many people, for one reason or other, believe that they can just get away with putting the camera on "P" mode (or using one of those little "scene" icons) and they'll do just as well as a professional would.

Seriously, people believe that they really don't need to know proper exposure, proper flash techniques, proper post processing/printing. or proper customer service skills. It's ridiculous.

Others may think that wedding work is "whoring" oneself out. I don't know about that one though. It's not an "easy" job but it is, imho, a rewarding one (personally) if it's done properly.

I would agree with Al's initial comment for anyone wanting to get into the business and with Bill's comment RE: Lawsuits - have a contract in place but also have your skill set (both technical and interpersonal) down pat before going anywhere near doing this sort of stuff on your own.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[charjohncarter]

The photographer did make a bad mistake. If you're going to cut off heads or photograph car hubcaps, you need to do it in grainy black and white.

Very droll.

 

[Muggins]

Funnily enough - and anyone who has seen my flickr will know why this is funny - some friends who were familiar with my photography (mostly as part of a youth group, if you took photos for the records it got you out of being volunteered for things you didn't fancy...) asked me to do their wedding as a favour. And stupidly I said yes.

I'll second all the comments about stress (the moment when I could finally grab a beer was a very very sweet one), but in the end they were largely happy with the not-very-special pics I produced from my OM10s, and when I visited them a year or so later one I'd shot with a box brownie was the first one on display in their hallway - so I must have done OK! Certainly I don't think I produced anything as poor as the chap in the article did - or, if I did, I didn't try to sell it to them!

Which begs the question... If a muppet like me can make less of a mess than a "pro", how the hell did he ever get into the business?

By the way, this is about the best pic I've eve taken at a wedding - so you know the (low) level I was aspiring to! http://www.flickr.com/photos/gray1720/2610923431/in/set-72157605813549700/

Would I do it again? Probably not - and certainly not if anyone offered to pay!

Adrian

 

[JohnTF]

At the end of the day, what they did or did not know doesn't matter. The court ruled in their favor - that would be a 'successful' lawsuit from their point of view.


A contract cannot stop someone from suing you, however, it may establish an expectation and assumption of risk and performance, especially from the failure of third parties.

Probably not a great place to get legal advice is from me, but I was curious as to the specific damages awarded in this case. --"successful" from the viewpoint of the photographer, I would think in this case, would simply to have to refund the prices he charged-- and he would be very lucky.


Best to have something as a guideline, and best to know and take all reasonable precautions.

The only law suit I saw in the papers here was a guy who sued his repair shop as they serviced a lens, but the sync did not function.

He won, and they paid to repose the service, however, one of the first things I learned was to check sync the day of the event before you load film, and I felt it was he shared responsibility.

Today, I can certainly understand chimping at a wedding, and as I mentioned a camera with two flash drives, or back up to another medium. With new technology, come new concerns. ;-) When I started to shoot 35mm and TTL, I used to shoot a roll at the local CVS, and hand it to the mini lab-- as I took their pictures, they did not charge me, but kept the snaps. I tried to set the camera wrong, and fortunately, the module and camera were smarter than I and were communicating correctly, nothing like a test.


Thank god normally our equipment is more reliable than we are. ;-)

I got the impression from the article that this guy was somewhat of a lug nut though. I was at a friend's wedding, did not bring my camera, the guy was an artist and insisted on shooting the reception in a basement hall with no flash, I printed them on Agfa No. 5?

Some strange technical things happen at weddings, cars break down, cameras break, cords break, people "adjust your equipment" -- a friend left his camera at the table when he went to get dinner, and someone switched his sync to M, it was a Rollei and needed someone to pull up the switch and shift it. I did not think it a accident, he then glued his sync switch to X with super glue.

Studio bought photos from people there to make up an album.

J

 

[JohnTF]

Very smart move. For her, and for you. And anyway, I'm sure you want to enjoy her wedding.

...Mike

Besides, you are doing a great service, meaningful candids of the friends and relatives are the hardest for the pro to do, as he does not know the people.

Regards, John

 

[JohnTF]

The photographer did make a bad mistake. If you're going to cut off heads or photograph car hubcaps, you need to do it in grainy black and white.

This is the best comment for sure, now is there a PS plug in for this, or is it entirely done in camera?

Don't forget to copyright the poses as well and document with a huge watermark. ;-)