Being a Guest

I have been to 5 weddings in my life, all of which have occurred in the last four years. One of these was before I discovered my interest in photography, one of them I was a bridesmaid for and two of them I photographed. Since becoming a photographer, I have only been to one wedding where I was not hired or part of the ceremony, and that wedding took place last week.

As a photographer, I hardly ever go anywhere without my camera with me. And when I travel halfway across the country to go to a wedding, you can bet that my camera is going to be by my side. It is an extension of who I am, after all, and it is what I do wherever I go. I know that sometimes it can get annoying, that sometimes I get in peoples faces, but I do try to be respectful as much as possible, and never intend to get in the way. But, when you are not the paid photographer for an event, you need to know that there are lines that you shouldn't overstep. So I thought that I would write a quite post about my experience of unofficially photographing a wedding.

• Remember that this is not your show.The bride and groom have specifically chosen a photographer that they want, whose work they like and who will have an idea of how they want to photograph the wedding. Your own view might clash with theirs, but do remember at all times that you are not the one in charge. As much as you may want to, you shouldn't interfere with anything. If the couple are posed in a particular way, do not ask them to move or look at you, even for a minute. This is something that guests with their point and shoots often do, and is something that I have experienced. And as the hired photographer, it gets very annoying. By all means, take your shots, but don't get in the way while doing so. It just means that the photographer has to spend more time trying to get the shots that he/she planned for the occasion.

 

• Be respectful.
  The photographer for the event is likely experienced and knows what he/she is doing. You may not know them, but treat them with respect and do not try to compete with them in terms of gear or experience. This is not a competition. They have been chosen and are being paid to photograph the event, you have not. They have a job to do, and you are a guest. Bear that in mind.

 

• Stand back.
It is very tempting to jump into the role of photographer on occasions like these. You want to grab the shots that you are seeing pass you by. You want to jump into the middle of the aisle when you see the bride walking down it. Don't. Once again, someone is being paid to do that. It is someone's job. You are there as a guest, and it is not  your place to be interfering with the proceedings. It will only annoy the bridal party and the hired photographer. By all means, shoot what you see. But don't interfere, don't interrupt and, especially during the ceremony, just stay in your seat. I, myself, didn't actually bring my camera into the ceremony but brought it out during the reception. Of course, I missed some of the shots from the ceremony which is disappointing, but I am sure that the bride and groom are grateful that they couldn't hear me snapping away throughout their vows.

 


• Have fun.
  This is my last piece of advice, but it is important. You are there as a guest, and you should act like one. Enjoy the food, enjoy the company, laugh, dance and just have a good time. It is something that you seldom get to do as the hired photographer, and if you have your camera on you, you will still get fun shots that show the feeling of the day, something that hired photographers often miss out on. Plus, it opens up possibilities for taking photos that you wouldn't have been able to take otherwise - seeing the wedding from a whole new perspective.

And so, I want to say thank you to Andrew and Nikita for inviting me to their amazing wedding. It was the best time that I have had in a long time, and definitely worth the trip. I hope that I stuck to my guidelines and didn't get in the way too much, and I hope that you two enjoy a most wonderful life together.

Childhood

Alexia Geldenhuys van Zyl
3
Grahamstown

I do not have any children, and at this stage of my life that is a very good thing. I am not even 24 years old and the closest thing that I have to a child is my cat, Puddims. But I do have a goddaughter, and there is little that I love more in the world than spoiling her rotten.

Yesterday was Alexia's third birthday, so Grant and I headed over to the Geldenhuys/Van Zyl house with our hands filled with the presents that we had found (and made) for her. The look on her face when we walked in was priceless as she saw the giant frog that could not be wrapped surrounded by Hello Kitty covered gifts. Not being old enough to open them herself, I had to help her by making the first tear and then watching her pull it and exclaim "BABY!" as she unwrapped each individually wrapped fluffy toy, followed by her other gifts which she was less excited about naming, but more excited about playing with. Grant and I always get Alexia fluffy toys, possibly because I want to get them but cannot possibly justify keeping them for myself, so end up giving them to someone who I know will appreciate them as much as I do. But this birthday, we decided that she was getting old enough to start learning as well. So we got building blocks with the alphabet and numbers and pictures on them so that she can start getting some learning in while she plays. We also got her bath gel that we know will cause her hours of joy and her parents hours of cleaning up - a toy that no parent would get their own child, but that others feel no guilt in buying.

Watching Alexia play with her toys always makes me feel young. She plays with such abandon, with such vigour as though this is the best thing in the whole wide world. I miss being that age, when every new toy is the best thing in the world and disappointments are short lived. It's certainly a good mindset to have, but one that we, as adults, have some trouble getting to grips with. But for now, I am more than happy to watch from the sidelines as Alexia grows and hope that I will be there for her when the frivolities of life start to fade and seriousness starts taking over.

Projects and How They Can Help!

Something to celebrate!

 I don't think I have written a blog about this subject before, and if I have, I sincerely apologise for repeating myself. The new year has begun and it is always at this time that people make resolutions - about their lives, about their photography, about anything and everything. I already posted a list of my resolutions, and you can breathe a sigh of relief that I'm not going to be talking about that today. But what I am going to be talking about is projects.

Whether you are a beginner having bought your first camera, a professional doing shoots for a profit or just someone who is on a big trip and wanting to document every moment of it, projects are your friend. As a beginner, projects help you to get to know your camera for its strengths and weaknesses and learn how to use them to your advantage. As a professional, projects can help you remember why it is that you chose photography in the first place - being on scene all day every day and dealing with difficult clients and stressful situations can often make you forget. And as a traveler, a project can help you capture the new places that you are experiencing and can help you capture them in such a way that you can look back at those photographs years later and remember a moment. Sure, other people may look at them and be like "What the hell is that?" But you will know and remember why it was that you took that specific photograph and the feeling that you felt at the time will be returned to you.

You don't have to have a good camera to do a project. You can use your point and shoot, your DSLR or even your cellphone camera if you like. But the point is that taking photos on a daily or weekly basis, taking photos according to topics that are set out in advance, can help photographers of any level with their photography.

The kind of project that you end up doing is up to you. You might want to start following a blog like the Digital Photography School and taking part in their weekly challenges. Posting a photo each week to match their challenge could be the project that you set for yourself. Some people like to do a 52 challenge - a photo a week for a year. That way they are not bound to bringing their fancy camera with them wherever they go and they have time in between to continue with their everyday lives. Others like to do a 365 challenge - a photo a day for a year. This can be the most challenging or the most relaxed of the projects depending on how you look at it. No one expects you to take amazing photos or to have amazing photo opportunities every day. It almost seems like quantity over quality. And you could see it that way. Or you could see it as a chance to look around you and take more interesting photographs. If you don't think that you have the stamina to last a full 365 and feel like 52 is a little too lax, you may want to try a 31 challenge - taking a photo a day for a month. Whatever you do though, do try to challenge yourself. Try not to become too comfortable with your camera. And by that I do not mean becoming comfortable as in knowing how to use it. What I mean is that you shouldn't become comfortable with it as a fixture in your home that never gets used. Take it out, play with it, experiment and see what comes out!

I tried to do a 365 project before and got to day 203 before failing. There were a number of reasons for this, but I am back and ready to try again. You can find the photos from it here. I figured that the new year was the best time to start. After all, it's a new year with new opportunities and I hope to be there to take advantage of them.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

500px

So I know that those who read this blog may be expecting a post about wedding photography, but I am not going to be writing that up quite yet. Instead, today I am going to write about a website that I have made use of quite a bit in the recent months. That website is 500px.com.

I heard about 500px a couple of months ago on one of the photography blogs that I follow. At the time, Google Plus had just come out, and this particular blogger (Scott Bourne) was unimpressed with their copyright policy in terms of photography. I have read a number of blogs on the subject and am still not sure where I stand on the matter, but this is not the point. The point is that Scott pointed out a photography site whose copyright policy he did approve of, and that site was 500px.

I was never one to get into the Flickr thing. I posted a few pics, but couldn't be bothered with coming back regularly to post and look up photographs of others. With 500px, on the other hand, I have been a lot more active. The theory behind the site is that people should only post their best photos. It is not a photo dump site. It is a site that allows you to display your best work, to build a portfolio and something that you can be proud of rather than just putting up photographs and never returning. You cannot save photographs from the site (which I suspect is why Scott recommended it), and while I know that there are ways around this, it is still a serious deterrent. You can also have a look at the latest pics, the best rated pics, follow specific photographers and like, dislike or fave their pics. Each picture is given a rating according to how many people have liked and disliked it, which I think is pretty handy, and any activity on your pics comes up on a feed on your own personal wall.

Reading over what I just said, I realise that this sounds all too familiar. It sounds like there is nothing that sets this site apart from Facebook or Flickr. But if you take a look at the site, you will quickly find just how different it is. This site is designed to be smart and professional. The way that photographs are displayed is clean and clear, uncomplicated and just showing the necessary basics. Even the wall is a lot cleaner and clearer than any other that I have used. Most walls on social networking sites are cluttered, and this is not the case with 500px.

In addition to a personal wall, there is also a space for each photographer to write a blog and to create a portfolio for themselves. As a regular (unpaying) member, you can create a single portfolio and are limited to about four themes for it. However, even the free themes are of impeccable quality and are perfect for creating a classy, professional looking portfolio that you can be proud of.

I should probably mention at this point that I am actually not one of the regular members. Shortly after creating my profile on the site, I found that another of the blogs that I follow was having a giveaway where the prize was an upgrade to an "Awesome" account on 500px. I entered and was one of the three winners. This means that I have access to a number of portfolio themes that were not there before and have no limit as to how many photographs I can upload in a week, in addition to other advantages that I haven't checked out quite yet. However, even before I had my Awesome account, I was incredibly pleased with the site. I am still using one of the free themes that had been available to me before the upgrade and, while I have recently been uploading a large number of photographs trying to get my portfolios off the ground, I am only doing so because I have an Awesome account and would have been happy to keep going with the regular one had I not been given this opportunity.

If there are photographers out there wanting to find a place to show their work and wanting to be professional about it, I would recommend skipping the Flickr route, forgetting Facebook and Google Plus (though possibly still posting on all of the above as well, since they are still the most popular way of having your photos noticed), but getting a 500px account. If you want to check out mine, you can find me at http://500px.com/evanescent.