Today is a Big Day for me.  I have been asked to photograph a wedding.  My first one.

A few weeks ago I was sitting at my laptop, perusing a few of the wedding photographer’s blogs that I have in my Blogroll, wondering when I might be ‘good enough’ to shoot a wedding.  And then wondering how you get to be ‘good enough’.  Practice, obviously.  But how do you practice on a wedding?  You can’t.  You’ve just got to get yourself as familiar with your camera as you possibly can and then find someone willing to take a chance on hiring a rookie.

Just as I was imagining my perfect First Wedding scenario (outdoors, late afternoon, a couple who wouldn’t otherwise be hiring a professional for whatever reason, happy to ‘take a chance’, laid back style, etc) I received a message on my mobile phone from my friend Kate, whose beautiful children have featured prominently in my portrait work lately, asking me “do you do weddings?”.  She knew somebody who was organising a wedding in just a few weeks, a super-quick engagement, and were starting to re-think their original plan to just have the wedding guests take all the pictures.  I was intrigued, so sent a message back saying that it would depend on the circumstances.  We messaged back and forth a couple of times and the bride and groom and their wedding-to-be were pretty much EXACTLY what I had hoped for.

The wedding is at 6pm this evening but I’ll be spending a few hours beforehand with the couple at the bride’s mother’s home taking pictures of the bride and her family, then later the groom and his.  Then the ceremony.  Then pre-dinner drinks in an outdoor garden setting.  They were concerned that if they relied on friends and family to take pictures that they might miss out on some important shots and also that their guests might be too busy taking pictures to enjoy the party!  They know that I have never done a wedding before and they’re OK with that.  And they’re really nice people.

Needless to say these last few weeks have felt a bit like cramming for an exam!  I have been practicing taking photographs in late afternoon sunshine.  I’ve been talking to my friend, the wonderful Beth Jennings, about wedding photography, getting some advice on the best aperture for different shots, where my ISO should be, that sort of thing (thanks, Beth!).  I have been re-reading all my photography technique books.  But most of all, I have been trying to stay relaxed and calm and look at this wonderful opportunity as a chance to learn a lot, develop my style, build my portfolio… and most of all?  Give my first bride and groom the best possible wedding photos.  I am so excited to do this for them, they are just the loveliest couple, and it’s going to be a GREAT day.

See you all on the other side.