Advanced Wedding Photojournalism Professional Techniques for Digital Photographers.pdf

W EDDING P HOTOJOURNALISM

Advanced

P RO F E S S I ONA L T E CHN I QUE S FOR D I G I TA L PHOTOGRA PHE R S

T RACY D ORR

AmherstMedia ®

PUBLISHER OF PHOTOGRAPHY BOOKS

D EDICATION

This book is dedicated to the photographer with a passionate heart and an open mind. And to Jane, Gordy, and

Bill for forming the constant foundation that gives me wings to fly.

All photographs by the author unless otherwise noted.

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

Editorial Assistance from: Sally Jarzab, John S. Loder, Carey Anne Maines

ISBN-13: 978-1-58428-994-4

Library of Congress Control Number: 200911198

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, me-

chanical, 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.

Check out Amherst Media’s blogs at: http://portrait-photographer.blogspot.com/

http://weddingphotographer-amherstmedia.blogspot.com/

T ABLE OF C ONTENTS

I NTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

Speed: Learning to Work Quickly . . . . . . . . . . . . .50

Finding the Shot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54

1. A F RESH M INDSET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Advancing Your Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

The Basic Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Working Unobserved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Designing Powerful Compositions . . . . . . . . . .11

Changing Desires Require Multiple Shooters . . . .13

Educating Clients and Inspiring Trust . . . . . . . . .16

The Constraints of Photojournalism . . . . . . . .16

The Benefits of Photojournalism . . . . . . . . . . .17

The Importance of Trust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

Equipment vs. Artistry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

5. P REPARATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56

Preparative Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56

Crowds and Distraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

6. P ATIENCE , P ATIENCE , P ATIENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

Learning to Wait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61

Practicing Patience and Preparation:

The Receiving Line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63

The Photojournalistic Portrait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65

Striking a Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68

2. E MOTIONAL R ESONANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Connecting with the Subject’s Emotion . . . . . . . .23

Capturing the Height of Emotion . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Setting Higher Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Evaluate Your Work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32

Evaluate Your Image Presentations . . . . . . . . .33

Intensify the Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

7. L OOKING AND L ISTENING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

Verbal Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69

“You Look so Beautiful!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70

“I’m So Glad You Made It!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70

“That Means So Much to Me!” . . . . . . . . . . . .70

“Oh My God!” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

Body Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73

3. R EACTION T IME VS . I NSTINCT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Reaction Time is Not Enough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Thought Becomes Instinct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

Learning to Anticipate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

4. T HE D ECISIVE M OMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

A Personal Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

Henri Cartier-Bresson: The Founding Father . . . .45

10. E QUIPMENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

The Digital Advantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

Lenses and Subject Awareness . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Natural Light . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104

Pushing the Envelope: Experimentation . . . . . . .105

11. P OSTPRODUCTION AND A RTISTRY . . . . . . . . . . .107

Monotone Images . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .107

Losing Extraneous Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .108

Special Effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .110

A Fine-Art Approach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .111

Traditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75

Subject Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77

12. I NCREASING P ROFITABILITY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116

Sell Before the Shoot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116

Timelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117

Digital Proofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117

Add-On Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118

Gallery-Priced Sales and Presentation . . . . . . . . .118

Becoming a Member of the Family . . . . . . . . . .120

8. C OVERING Y OUR B ASES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78

Genuine Moments and Natural Setups . . . . . . . . .78

The Bride Getting Ready . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82

The Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85

The Bride’s House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .86

The Ceremony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90

The Reception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

The People . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92

Available Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .93

13. A F URTHER A PPLICATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121

Children’s Photojournalism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .121

Distraction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

Interaction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

Stimulating Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .123

Customer Service and Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124

9. I MPORTANT C HARACTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95

Parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95

Children . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97

The Extended Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101

C ONCLUSION : E DUCATED I NSTINCT . . . . . . . . . . . . .125

A BOUT THE A UTHOR

Tracy Dorr, who holds a BA in English/Photography from the State University of

New York at Buffalo, has been shooting weddings in a professional capacity since

2003. She is the owner of Tracy Dorr Photography, and in 2009 won two Awards of

Excellence from WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International). For more

information, please visit www.tracydorrphotography.com.

4 ADVANCED WEDDING PHOTOJOURNALISM

I NTRODUCTION

rapher who wants to see things a little

differently and learn what I call “ed-

ucated instinct.” It is devoted to understanding how

you can be more emotionally “tuned in” to your sub-

jects in order to find and capture those decisive mo-

ments that make images memorable.

As an established wedding photographer—you un-

derstand how to handle yourself and have the expertise

that the job demands—I now invite you to take your

game to the next level. Great wedding photojournalism

is not a casual way of shooting. In most ways, photo-

journalism is more challenging than traditional photog-

raphy; it will require painstaking concentration and

patience on your part.

This quest to advance our methods begins with ask-

ing ourselves what traits a photograph possesses that ul-

timately make the sale. Are clients interested mostly in

the technical qualities, emotional impact, subject con-

tent, or finishing style of the photojournalistic image?

Or perhaps it’s something else entirely—an intangible

X-factor captured only when all of these elements come

together? Today’s clients present us with an increasingly

challenging set of high standards. They are more edu-

cated and more intrigued by nontraditional techniques

than ever before. As photographers, we need to test out

our artistic skills and embrace our creativity. Only then

can we provide a truly modern and unique product—

different than anything that’s been provided in the past.

An additional challenge is presented by the fact that

the traditional style of shooting, while no longer as lu-

crative, has not been forgotten; clients now desire both

styles (posed and photojournalistic) in their coverage.

Learning to provide a blend of these very different

styles will require some stamina on your part, but it will

also have a pleasant payoff: increased sales.

If you want to sell more, you need to learn to cap-

ture moments of real emotional resonance—to refocus

your intent on capturing moments of interplay between

people. The expression of the moment will mean every-

thing to you. We will not be settling for any old candid

moment. We will be looking for moments that demon-

strate the height of emotion and tell stories in touching

and innovative ways. We will be learning to create a

piece of art that will last a lifetime for your client—and

to increase our sales while we’re at it.

This is not a how-to book that will dictate instruc-

tions. Books that invite you to follow along step-by-step

only help you to achieve a pre-formulated result. The

results you will learn to achieve by reading this book

will be completely unique because they will be based on

your personality. This is a challenge to reinvent your

perceptions about your craft and reinvent your work.

Throw away traditional conventions. Open your mind

to a new experience and get ready to challenge your

perceptions about photographing people. We are going

to concern ourselves with rejuvenating your shooting

techniques. I urge you to accept the challenge.

INTRODUCTION 5

T his book is dedicated to the photog-

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika: