Original images from the camera with basic post editing.
Midsummer Wedding - Behind The Scenes
Equipment
Nikon D7000 Camera
Nikon 35mm ƒ 1:8 prime lens
Nikon 16-85mm ƒ 1:3.5-5.6
Any event where peoople gather to celebrate other people and have a good time is a great opportunity for capturing photographic moments. Of course one of the best examples are weddings. The formal ceremony itself usually followed by a chance to relax and enjoy the moment sets up lots of possibilities and depends entirely on how you want your event to be remembered. For some it may be the key moments followed by formal poses while others want more candid moments capturing when people are not deliberately posing. Whatever style or feeling you want I can help you achieve it.
For this particular series I wanted to focus on some selected images from a wedding reception in order to show a little of what goes on behind the scenes with the editing of the photos from your event.
For any event I work on It is important that I understand what you want so most boooking discussions start with a consultation where we can discuss your event in detail and go through step by step how the photography for the day will work. There are many options available and for a lot of people this can be overwhelming so I will guide you to put together the plan that is right for you and gets the results you really want.
At an event I may take over a thousand photos and then distill these down to the ones I’m going to present to you as part of your package. Some will be discarded due to technical reasons, others because something in the photo wasnt quite right. Usually I look at picking around one hundred photos. While many will come straight out of the camera and only need some very basic editing others will need more extensive retouching for me to be able to pass them onto you. At the end of the day I want you and everyone who sees the photos to happy with them.
The Edit
Editing even a hundred photos can be quite time consuming so where possible I aim for being able to use an image almost straight from the camera. Events can be fast moving though with lots to capture and there isn’t always the chance to set up the perfect pose every time or nail the exposure or colour balance however I have been photographing editting and retouching photos for over twenty years so fixing things in the edit isn’t an issue.
The main reasons a photo might need editing are a challenge with the environment or the subject. In the outdoor group shot a stray airplane makes an appearence or grandma can't get into the frame fully, inside a marque part of the roof looks messy or detracts. Someone may be looking the wrong way, the flash may make the teeth look more yellow than white, someone might have left a bag in shot. Uncle Dave might be asleep slumped over the table. There are a whole variety of common problems a simple retouch can solve. Some photos also just look better with a little enhancement.
In the above images some basic retouching enhanced the final image. The skin tones have been smoothed a little and blemishes removed, the teeth whitened and the eyes enhanced with both colour and whiteness. The overall image has been dodge and burned to enhance the contrast and the background has some extra contrast so the lines in the wood lead you into the centre with the subjects.
In this fun image I felt that the items above the bar were a little distracting and disrupting the flow so they were removed to clean up how this area looks. Some of the redness in the skin tones was toned down and the whiteness of the grooms shirt exaggerated as well as adding a bit more shine to the waistcoat. Finally the main subjects were slightly dodged and burned to improve contrast, especially in the faces. Finally the image was graded with a touch of cyan into the shadows and the wood on the bar darkened too look richer and contrast the bright colours in the guests dresses and light canopy roof.
For this centre piece image of the first dance I wanted the focus squarely on the bride and groom. With a lot going on I cropped the image tight to tthe main subject while leaving the LOVE letters intact. I removed the mic stand from the side and the speed light on the front of the stage to clean things up further. I softened the skin tones slightly and then dodged and burned to improve the contrast on the main subject. In particular the shadows in the grooms waistcoat creases have been darkened as have the folds in the brides dress to give more depth. I have added a bit more shine to give definition in the arms and enhanced the faces. I added a lens flare to give a bit more dynamic movement to the image and finally darkened slightly the area aroound the bride and groom in order to bring them out of the image a bit more and stand out further. A white vigneette has been added to the edges to soften the image and lead the eye to the happy couple.
These are just a few examples of the common retouching I can do to improve your event photos. If you would like more information about hiring me to photograph your event please message me.