I Need A Crash Course In Wedding Photography! :-O

I was asked a couple days ago by a couple cycling friends to shoot their "Very Non-Traditional" Wedding this coming November. The wedding consist or Non-traditional wedding gown, a tandem bike and a hill climb. The couple will ride their bikes to the Altar and will ride a tandem bike when they are pronounced as hubby and wifey. The wedding will be held at the out look center of Red Rock Canyon, here in Las Vegas. I'm an amateur sports photographer and I haven't shot any Weddings before.. I am honestly a little bit intimidated to shoot weddings.... I already declined two weddings because of my fear from it. Wedding photography is like the Dark Side of the force for me! LOL Honest reason is, A wedding is a very memorable moment for two people who love each other. And I think going out there and pretending that you know what you are doing would be a bad idea. I know it's a non traditional wedding. more like a cycling event with a bow tie, really. But still, I just don't want to ruin the lovely day.

But I guess right now, I need to face the fear... And I need the help from all my buddies here in Photography Talk! A few tips and tricks, advice, words of encouragement would be great! I don't want to look like an idiot with a camera out there! LOL

Any advice?

First and foremost, talk about some details with the couple! It could be that, since their wedding is so unique and resembles, as you put it, a cycling event with a bow-tie, they want some of the photos to be shot like you're covering a cycling event.

But also talk with them about other photos they want. There are the usual wedding moments that you need to capture (placing rings on fingers, the kiss, cake cutting, first dance, etc.,), so make sure you have a list of those. Then talk with them about portraits of them, the wedding party, family, etc. Find out what they want. (How comfortable/creative would you say you are with portraits? That's an important element here!)

If they have groomsmen/bridesmaids who are also into cycling, you can have a lot of fun with that in your wedding party photos. Even if other members of the wedding party aren't into cycling, it's still something cool to incorporate. It will make their wedding photos very uniquely theirs. Maybe even something goofy like a photo with no bike, but the bride and groom wearing bicycle helmets with to their tux and dress. The bride will have to be flexible about her hairdo if that's going to work though

Also, since this is apparently an outdoor wedding, shooting sports might be valuable experience. You've probably fought and learned how to deal with different outdoor lighting situations. If you aren't already familiar with it, start practicing outdoor portraits with fill flash, and see how it works out with varying levels of daylight.

As far as documenting the event, other than the must-have shots, you can accomplish that with a sports photography/photojournalistic style, which is already comfortable for you. In addition, if you can hire a second shooter who has done some weddings, that will help ensure the event is documented thoroughly.

rmeyer7 wrote: First and foremost, talk about some details with the couple! It could be that, since their wedding is so unique and resembles, as you put it, a cycling event with a bow-tie, they want some of the photos to be shot like you're covering a cycling event.

But also talk with them about other photos they want. There are the usual wedding moments that you need to capture (placing rings on fingers, the kiss, cake cutting, first dance, etc.,), so make sure you have a list of those. Then talk with them about portraits of them, the wedding party, family, etc. Find out what they want. (How comfortable/creative would you say you are with portraits? That's an important element here!)

If they have groomsmen/bridesmaids who are also into cycling, you can have a lot of fun with that in your wedding party photos. Even if other members of the wedding party aren't into cycling, it's still something cool to incorporate. It will make their wedding photos very uniquely theirs. Maybe even something goofy like a photo with no bike, but the bride and groom wearing bicycle helmets with to their tux and dress. The bride will have to be flexible about her hairdo if that's going to work though

Also, since this is apparently an outdoor wedding, shooting sports might be valuable experience. You've probably fought and learned how to deal with different outdoor lighting situations. If you aren't already familiar with it, start practicing outdoor portraits with fill flash, and see how it works out with varying levels of daylight.

As far as documenting the event, other than the must-have shots, you can accomplish that with a sports photography/photojournalistic style, which is already comfortable for you. In addition, if you can hire a second shooter who has done some weddings, that will help ensure the event is documented thoroughly.

A very comprehensive covering of the essentials rmeyer, well said looks like you have covered everything I would have advised, the only other thing I would add is dont forget to enjoy yourself Don, try to relax dont put tons of pressure on yourself.

I think you've also hit the nail on the head in that it is a memorable occasion. The reply above is fantastic but one thing I would add is let them know in advance that it will be your first wedding and that your are nervous.

The fact that they are friends does not detract from the fact that although they obviously like the shots that you are producing a wedding is a different kettle of fish, managing their expectations early may help save your bacon if things don't quite go to plan.

Good luck on the day and can't wait to see some of the photo's, it's sounds like it will be a blast

If I was going to shoot a wedding this advice would serve me well. Good luck with the shoot. I hope you have some good weather. I might add that you will want to scout the area looking for good compositions and backgrounds. Get the creative juices flowing before you are under the pressure of actually doing this shoot.

PS Ask if you can post a few of the shots here. We want to see this unique event and the creative touch you will no doubt bring to it.

(with both Chas and Nissan Man )
Very good additional advice that I hadn't even thought of. That's the beauty of having a community of people here instead of just asking a photographer friend

I've done some sports and events and my own B&W/abstracts, etc. I haven't done a wedding and wouldn't want to tackle it - it's up to you what you feel would be your best option with this request. I wonder if it would be possible to do this as some sort of shared job, having them get a wedding photographer to shoot the ceremony and you cover the more sports related part of their day (a wedding photographer might not have the expertise that you do shooting sports).

I am looking forward to seeing some of the images too. Good luck. Remember too that the couple obviously like the way you work or they wouldn't have approached you. That and the advice above should see you through.

I too feel that your friends must have a lot of confidence in your photographic skills, or else they would not have asked you to do the job, I have done 2 weddings as a back-up photographer (taking candid shots as opposed to the "official" shots: woohoo: ). The end results were deemed as great as there was no posing, no stiff smiles, etc.. and everyone was at ease.
If you follow the advice that has come before mine, you CAN'T go wrong. All members have covered all aspects I can think of, but remember to pack at least 1 spare fully-charged battery, and a spare CF card as well!!! The last thing you will want is a flat battery or full card b4 you have finished the job. Having said my piece, relax and enjoy the experience, have fun, and post some of those photos for us all to see.
Andrew