The Best of WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY Third Edition Amherst Media® PUBLISHER OF PHOTOGRAPHY BOOKS BILL HURTER ABOUT THE AUTHOR Bill Hurter started out in photography in 1972 in Washington, DC, where he was a news photographer. He even cov- ered the political scene—including the Watergate hearings. After graduating with a BA in literature from American Uni- versity in 1972, he completed training at the Brooks Institute of Photography in 1975. Going on to work at Petersen’s PhotoGraphic magazine, he held practically every job except art director. He has been the owner of his own creative agency, shot stock, and worked assignments (including a year or so with the L.A. Dodgers). He has been directly in- volved in photography for the last thirty years and has seen the revolution in technology. In 1988, Bill was awarded an honorary Masters of Science degree from the Brooks Institute. He has written more than a dozen instructional books for professional photographers and is currently the editor of Rangefinder magazine. Copyright © 2007 by Bill Hurter. All rights reserved. Front cover photograph by Tibor Imley. Back cover photography by Dennis Orchard. Published by: Amherst Media, Inc. P.O. Box 586 Buffalo, N.Y. 14226 Fax: 716-874-4508 www.AmherstMedia.com Publisher: Craig Alesse Senior Editor/Production Manager: Michelle Perkins Assistant Editor: Barbara A. Lynch-Johnt ISBN-13: 978-1-58428-208-2 Library of Congress Control Number: 2006937281 Printed in Korea. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopied, recorded or otherwise, without prior written consent from the publisher. Notice of Disclaimer: The information contained in this book is based on the author’s experience and opinions. The author and publisher will not be held liable for the use or misuse of the information in this book. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION . .5 4. CAMERA TECHNIQUE . .38 Focal Length and Perspective . .38 1. THE EVOLUTION OF Depth of Field . .40 WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY . .7 Depth of Focus . .41 Traditional Wedding Photography . .7 Camera Back Parallel to the Subject . .41 Wedding Photojournalism . .8 Shifting the Focus Field . .41 Wedding Photojournalism: A Modified Approach . .10 The Right Shutter Speed . .42 Traditionalists Fight Back . .12 Exposure . .43 The Return of Group Portraits . .13 White Balance . .44 Digital Capture Takes Over . .13 Sharpening and Contrast . .45 File Format . .45 2. THE WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER’S File Maintenance . .46 MINDSET . .14 Demands of Wedding Photography . .14 5. POSING BASICS . .47 Greatness . .18 Giving Directions . .47 Proactive vs. Reactive . .19 Subject Comfort . .47 Powers of Observation . .19 Head-and-Shoulders Axis . .47 Preparation . .20 The Arms . .48 Peak of Action . .21 Hands . .48 Storytellers . .22 Weight on the Back Foot . .50 Reaction Time . .22 Joints . .50 The Emotion of the Day . .22 Face Positions . .51 Uniqueness . .23 The Eyes . .51 Style . .23 The Smile . .52 People Skills . .23 Camera Height . .53 The “Hopeless Romantic” . .24 Eyeglasses . .53 Portrait Lengths . .54 3. EQUIPMENT . .25 Group Portraits . .55 Advantages of Digital Capture . .25 The DSLR . .27 6. STUDIO LIGHTING . .59 Lenses . .29 The Five Lights . .60 Media . .33 Broad and Short Light . .61 Flashmeter . .33 Basic Lighting Setups . .61 Remote Triggering Devices . .34 Avoid Overlighting . .65 Flash . .34 Lighting Ratios . .65 Reflectors . .36 Studio Lighting on Location . .67 Backup and Emergency Equipment . .37 Spare Batteries . .37 TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 7. OUTDOOR AND MIXED LIGHTING . .68 Speeding Up Your Groups . .104 Available Light . .68 The Train . .105 Main Light . .72 The Veil . .105 Fill Light . .77 Guest Pictures . .105 Area Lighting . .81 11. PROOFING AND PRINTING . .106 8. PREPARATION AND PLANNING . .83 Proofs . .106 Pre-Wedding Preparations . .83 Printing . .107 Creating a Master Schedule . .85 The Other Vendors . .88 12. WEDDING ALBUMS . .109 Assistants . .88 Album Types . .109 Design Principles . .111 9. THE KEY SHOTS . .89 Design Templates . .113 Engagement Portrait . .89 Charles Maring: The Digital Album . .114 At the Bride’s House . .89 David Anthony Williams: A Majestic Approach . .117 Before the Wedding . .90 The Ceremony . .90 CONCLUSION . .119 Formals . .92 The Bride and Groom . .93 THE PHOTOGRAPHERS . .120 The Bride . .93 The Wedding Party . .93 INDEX . .124 Leaving the Church . .94 Room Setup . .94 The Reception . .94 Rings . .95 The Cake Cutting . .96 The First Dance . .96 The Bouquet Toss . .96 Table Shots . .97 Little Ones . .97 10. HELPFUL TIPS . .98 Big Groups . .98 The Bouquet . .98 The Bride Should be Closest . .101 A Case of the.