Part two of my wedding blog breakdown, or deconstruction starts at the ceremony:

The Ceremony

These are some of the most important photos of the day and usually the most difficult. I have learnt over time that findingand talking to the registrars or officiators on the day, is a great way to sus out the best spot to position myself in, and also ask them if they are happy with me moving around, using flash etc. This does seem to change from wedding to wedding with some very specific as to what I can and can't photograph, such as the signing of the register and photos during the vows.

Every image at this point is key, and very easily spoilt by a multitude of factors that include and are not exclusive too, over eager audience members getting in the shots, an 'uncle dave', hanging from the rafters with his new camcorder, or the limitations that come about from my position i.e being behind where people do readings from. These are all issues that in the moment are what they are, and you just have to roll with the punches and try to get the best images possible. The main limitation that I always find however is the lack of light. This is something that seems to be almost exclusive to wedding ceremony rooms, be it a church or a civil ceremony, where the light is so poor that my ISO levels take a real battering. In this instance I was helped out by the amount of fairy lights that meant I was able to create some wonderful Bokeh, using my 35mm F/1.4 and 135mm F/2 lenses (see examples below).

Of course capturing moments like the kiss is one of the most important images of this time, so again being able to get into a good position is key. In this case the officiator was great, which allowed me a little bit of freedom to move around and get images like the ones above, with the whole audience in the background as well as the kiss moment.

During the ceremony it is always a good idea to capture images of the audience as well who are also enjoying the emotion and spectacle of the ceremony.

Key areas that are covered during the ceremony are; the vows, the giving of rings, the kiss, and the signing of the register. All happen in a fairly linear fashion, and is one constant during a normal wedding day in its order and formalness. The images above show this order, with the last couple of images posed. I will always try and get them to pretend sign the register then a posed image of the two of them followed by another posed image with the witnesses.

Once the formal pictures have been done, I reposition myself at the back of the room, ready for the newlyweds to walk down the aisle and out of the formalities of the ceremony itself. Once out of the ceremony, the guests all want to have their photo and congratulate the bride and groom, so I take this opportunity to review the images of the ceremony and get prepared for taking the bride and groom off for their photos.

The Bride & Grooms Photos

Most people (myself included), hate having their photo taken so the main thing is to get the couple relaxed, I will ask them to just chat to themselves and will try to keep as many people as possible away from us so they can totally relax and enjoy this part of their day. Luckily in this case, they both seemed relaxed and enjoyed the experience.

The venue had a whole farm in its grounds, equipped with animals, views over the countryside and even a lake. This was great for me as it meant I was able to photograph them in various places, keeping the pictures fresh and varied. This is not always the case as a lot of venues have limited or no outside space, in this case, I would try to scout out a town garden, or take the couple somewhere away from the venue to capture their individual images in maybe a local park, or wood. This would usually be discussed before hand so the couple are aware.