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The digital age of wedding photographyBy Raya Carlisle, Brooks Institute of Photography
As I'm browsing through my wedding photos - all 1,600 of them - it hits me: wedding photography has come a long way from when film was the only option. I know what you're thinking ... 1,600 photos? How much extra did that cost? Actually, it didn't. It wasn't extra, because my wedding was shot digitally and the need for buying and processing expensive rolls of film was eliminated. You may also be thinking, "Sure, but they're digital. I have a digital camera and it's great for snapshots, but for a wedding?" You bet. Professional digital cameras are giving film a run for its money.
Up until recently, the quality of digital just wasn't there compared to traditional film. But these days the only difference between film and digital cameras is how they capture the image. Like everything else, technology is seeking to make the process of photography faster, easier, less expensive and more efficient. To many commercial photographers, this is music to their ears and their financial statements. Digital photography has opened up a whole new avenue of possibilities, for wedding photographers in particular. The limits of film are gone - they no longer have to predetermine whether they're going to shoot black and white or color. They can go from a sunny outdoor ceremony to a candle lit banquet hall without changing film speed or type. Most of all, they're not concerned with how many rolls of film the couple has agreed to pay for. As a photographer myself, I know this can be tragic when you've already used the 15 rolls of film the couple agreed upon, but the ring bearer is asleep under a table and you just have to take a picture! It's happened to me before, when I was still shooting film. Of course I ran for an extra roll and started shooting, but after awhile I felt it in my pocketbook. The changing style of wedding photography has also contributed to the popularity of digital. More and more photographers are leaving the traditional poses behind in favor of a more photojournalistic style. They are there to be observers of the events going on; they tell the story through their images. Digital caters to this by allowing more photos and less down time changing film. Couples benefit by the increased number of photos to choose from at the same cost. They can decide whether they're black and white, color, sepia, bordered ... each one can be different, all with the click of a mouse. A newlywed, with the pleasure of having photographed a handful of weddings, I began my career shooting with film but made the change to digital when I saw how much more I was able to shoot without spending the extra money. I also value the instant gratification - if a photo isn't worth keeping, I just delete it and take another. I was curious how others have approached digital wedding photography and went to a pro for some insight. I spoke with local wedding photographer David Jay about his experiences with digital photography:
How do you approach skepticism from a potential client? Is there anything specific you do to show them that they will receive quality images? I hold to the phrase "seeing is believing" and offer to show them a print. I ask them the biggest size they might want to enlarge a photo and have Pictage send them a sample from one of my weddings. I have never had a couple be unhappy with the result. What is Pictage? Pictage.com is an online ordering service and digital lab. I upload my weddings to their site and they take care of everything else after that. The couple views their photos and orders prints directly from Pictage. The couple can even make their wedding photos public so that out of town guests or family can order too. Print orders used to take up a lot of my time, but now I am freed up to focus on my passion and building my business. How many images do you shoot at a wedding? At a wedding where I am with the couple all day, I usually shoot about 2,800 images. How do you insure that your images are safe in case of a computer crash, misplaced memory card, etc.? I have an assistant downloading images onto my Apple Powerbook G4 as the wedding is happening, so we immediately have two copies: one on the computer and one on the memory cards themselves. We have enough memory cards that we don't reuse them during a wedding. After the wedding we also download the images to our main computer for editing and uploading to Pictage. As we're downloading, we are also burning the images to disk so we have a total of four copies now. When the images go to Pictage, they are on their server for the couple to view online, and they keep a backup copy. So that's a total of six copies per wedding. This insures that those images are safe. How long does it take to get a wedding up online after shooting it? Our goal is to have a wedding available to the couple online in one week.
What is your favorite aspect of digital photography? Shooting digital really frees me up to be a photographer. There is the freedom to shoot however many photos I want and I have the security of knowing, for sure, that I have the shots. Our memory cards that we use are 2-gigabyte cards, which hold more than 250 images each. To get that many images on film would mean changing rolls seven times! Digital saves me loads of time and insures that I don't miss anything. I also love what you can do with digital photos. We use Adobe Photoshop and Nitorix editing software to create slideshows that we show at the reception. These programs allow us to edit quickly and the guests are wowed when the see photos that were taken just moments ago. If you are currently looking for a photographer for your upcoming nuptials, you should conduct your own interview and ask them similar questions. Here are some important ones to ask before you hire a digital wedding photographer:
What cameras do they use? Look for names like Nikon or Canon. These are the two most trusted brands of professional digital cameras. Most professional cameras are 6 megapixels or more, which allow for larger prints. Do they shoot RAW images? You will really impress them if you ask this question. Professional digital cameras capture JPEG or RAW images. RAW is the best because it keeps the most information from the picture, which gives better results when a photo is retouched, enlarged, etc. JPEG files are compressed down to a smaller file size, so some information is lost and size of the final image is limited. This is important to the quality of your pictures, especially if you think you will want 11" x 14" or larger prints. Do they have an online viewing and or ordering system? Most digital photographers subscribe to a service that allows your photos to be viewed and ordered online. Pictage.com is one of the biggest sites that provide this, but there are others. If they don't, ask them how they will present your proofs and how you will order prints. Whether the photographer you choose shoots film or digital, that shouldn't be the deciding factor. Film will always be respected for what it is and some photographers will never switch. Pictage and other digital labs also support film photographers so they can provide the same convenience of viewing and ordering online. Above all, you should choose a photographer that you trust and whose style fits yours. I can attest that my wedding was the most fun day I've ever
had and I remember some of it ... but my photos remember everything.
They bring back those memories I do have and remind me of the others
that slipped by in all the excitement. For more information:
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