WEDDING CRITIQUE OF THE WEEK 4/27/09 - AKA WEDDING PHOTO OF THE WEEK

A very pretty shot. The gown is a bit blown out. Visually, I think the composition could be a bit more appealing for a traditional formal picture. If I were setting up the shot myself, I would have put the bridesmaids on the same side as the bride, and the groomsmen on the groom’s side, making an arrangement of 3 and 3 on either side of the couple. The odd number of couples on one side of the b&g doesn't quite work in my opinion.

The background is lovely, but there is a strip of bright sunlight coming in that is distracting from the subjects. In the background, I can see there is full shade available near the wall of the chapel, which might have provided more even lighting for the picture.

Hindsight is always 20/20, and it can be a challenge setting up group shots, especially if time is limited. Overall, a nice picture, with good focus and vibrant color.

I'm so glad my image was chosen to be critiqued! I feel like I'm in art school again! I chose this picture because I feel I need to improve on my group posing. I'm more of the reportage, photojournalist style photographer, but I get requests for a lot of group shots (I'm in Ireland where tradition is important).
The dress is a bit blown out on this. I think it happened in post processing because I was trying to remove a violet cast in the white. I used a 20D and I can't remember the lens... it was either the 24mm 1.4 or the 17-55mm 2.8 Canon.
I would love to see some examples of interesting group posing if it's allowed in this post. Thanks!
MODERATOR NOTE: oops - Lisa - no posting website links in forum posts. ;-)

gorgeous gorgeous. beautiful lighting on the people. is it natural??

I might bring the people in just a bit closer so there's no gaps...and I might back up a shoot a bit longer. have the bride turn her body toward the groom a bit...have the men relax and put their weight on their back foot instead of split evenly between two feet...

The sun was setting within the hour and I used my 580EX flash. I probably used levels and curves during post processing to even out the light.
By the way, this was at a castle. Living in Ireland, I get to go to some beautiful churches and castles for weddings!

First - a little fill flash needed here or lighten in PS

Also - always watch out for backgrounds... You see a car in the background and the sky in the arch is very distracing.. Moving your camera angle is a good thing to avoid bright background areas that will always bring your eye to the brightest spot as well as screw up your metering.

I always have my assistant - or me - pick up any white thingies off the ground or dead leaves, branches etc... details are very important.

The cast is somewhat expected as the dresses will reflect onto the white dress. Again a bit of flash can tone that down.

The second bridesmaid on the left is not very happy ;-) Take a moment to loosen people up... Always ask the girls to lower their bouquets... The girl on the right has it right.

Agree with the idea to bring them closer together but I've seen some fun shots where the couples are scattered.. but not so static...

I always tell the girls to put all the weight on the back leg and bring the other let out front a little... When the one leg comes forward - the hip on one side goes up just a bit - resulting in a more relaxed look... A more relaxed body results in a more relaxed expression on faces... Really.. Try it.

Not to say you can always fix things in photoshop.. but I've fixed a few things in photo shop to simulate what I believe could have happened with flash and other details such as watching the background etc..

I'd agree with what's been said here so far, and would add that the one bridesmaid not smiling does hurt the image. I think Mary has made some good improvements, and they help pop the couples out of the dark murky background. I think the bride and groom should stand apart more from the rest of the party, perhaps being closer to the camera. I'd also shoot this with an f2.8 aperture, to blur the background during capture.

Also, if you're going to pose an assymetrical group like this (an odd number of couples) there are ways to compose it so that the third odd couple is offset to one side or the other of the bride/groom, but with the right angle, it would look fine. I like to bring a stepladder with me to get a higher angle with groups like this, because you can shoot wider and use the scenery to better benefit in your composition. You can space the couples apart more with a higher angle, and get the wed couple closer to you.

You can also shoot from the top of your stepladder, and have them all clustered in a group below you, surrounding the bride/groom, laughing, hugging, raising their bouquets, etc. Just make sure you have some pretty green grass beneath them, and not the gravel shown in this image.

Another idea is to put 3 girls on one side and 3 guys on the other side, but don't do the standard police lineup. Instead, put each person in a different pose and position, perhaps "draping" them over the scenery behind the couple in various contemporary poses. Get them all laughing and interacting with each other. Or, make it serious and introspective with more serious expressions, looking off camera, etc.

I'd prefer puttig the bride on the other side of the groom; to the grooms right side, and turn her in an angle instead on looking straight on; to balance the look of the group. Lastly, I'd meter for the background, perhaps the grass and use a bit less flash.

I'm being real picky here. This shot is really fine, just a bit under exposed, causing the faces to be a bit red. Mary did a good job with her adjustments. The faces look dead on.

In reference to a bit less flash, I'm referring to use a fill flash just enough to bring out the dark eyes. I don't think you used a flash at all.

Right Bob - Fill flash... I often use it outside or green grass, purple dresses, grey stones can reflect unwanted colors on whites and on faces. Doesn't apply with black and white however.