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70-200 outing

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 8:37 pm
by nito
This is the first serious outing with the 70-200 VR. Its heavy and was quite intimidating to use during the wedding. I nearly knocked a wedding guest on the head with the lens.

The shots are a wedding gift to the bride and groom. It will be a after wedding suprise. Stubbsy intro me to momento and I cant stop making books. Photography is expensive, first the camera, then the flash, lens and now books! But it is all worth the expense. :D

It was a great cultural experience and a lot of fun.

Critiques are welcomed. Dont blame the lens but the photographer. :wink:

Inside cover
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nice candid of girls dancing during the reception
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double page pano of the wedding cake
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Double page spread of the dancing
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Pano of the grooms men waiting for the bride and groom to enter.
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church decor during the ceremony
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Front cover
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Innocent girl during church service
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Bridal waltz
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PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 8:43 pm
by Willy wombat
There are some real gems in this collection. Lovely work. Is the double pano of the cake spread over two pages in the book?

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 8:44 pm
by nito
Willy wombat wrote:There are some real gems in this collection. Lovely work. Is the double pano of the cake spread over two pages in the book?


Yes it is with a sequence of them cutting the cake as a right photo margin

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 8:59 pm
by owen
Great shots here, the only thing I've got to say is that your front cover of the couple kissing seems to be lacking in contrast compared to the other shots, I think if you cranked it up a notch or two it would stand out moreso.

Cheers,
Owen.

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 10:10 pm
by Hutchy
Some really nice captures of happy moments at the wedding. In my opinion, the front cover shot needs to be cropped. The wedding party in the background distracts from what is an intimate moment for the bride and groom and as a front cover needs visual impact of that moment (especially when the guy on the left is not clapping).

I'd also crop the cake (very symmetrical subject - off centre table) and the candid girls (chair on right). There are also a few colour correction issues that might need to be fixed before print but maybe Momento has that service available.

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 10:27 pm
by nito
thanks owen and hutchy for the suggestions. I'll work on the contrast issue before sending it to momento. Totally agree that the chair has to go in the dancing girl shot and a off centre front cover would be cool since the left guy aint clapping. I was also thinking of correcting the green shirt on the right but my PS skill are not great.

Any step by step directions for this?

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 10:47 pm
by Matt. K
Nito
They are beautiful! You have wrought the quality out of the 70-210. A comment on the third last image...it is too yellow and needs to be coloured corrected. (I'm presuming our monitors are OK).

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 11:06 pm
by the foto fanatic
Yes, there are some lovely pix here, well done. :)
I know from personal experience how demanding wedding photography can be.
Just a couple of tips, if I may:
- check your focus before you shoot (#2)
- if you can, check depth of field is appropriate for the shot you are envisaging (#6)
- before you squeeze the shutter, run your eye around the perimeter of your viewfinder. Is everything you want to be included visible in the frame? Is there anything in the frame that should not be included in the shot? (#8; row of people with no heads)
These pointers are intended to be constructive. Think about them and accept the ones that you feel are valid, reject the ones that aren't.

PostPosted: Fri Feb 17, 2006 11:12 pm
by nito
cricketfan wrote:Yes, there are some lovely pix here, well done. :)
I know from personal experience how demanding wedding photography can be.
Just a couple of tips, if I may:
- check your focus before you shoot (#2)
- if you can, check depth of field is appropriate for the shot you are envisaging (#6)
- before you squeeze the shutter, run your eye around the perimeter of your viewfinder. Is everything you want to be included visible in the frame? Is there anything in the frame that should not be included in the shot? (#8; row of people with no heads)
These pointers are intended to be constructive. Think about them and accept the ones that you feel are valid, reject the ones that aren't.


Thanks for the comment cricketfan.

I agree 100%, but kids are so hard to shot when moving. Its a perfect excuse for a camera upgrade. I was planning a smaller print to hide the focus imperfection.

#8 I was think of cropping it as a narrow pano. But I like the shirt repeats. I am in two worlds over that, but do appreciate the comments. :D

Matt, I thought it was too magenta and corrected to yellow. I really need a monitor calibrator. My boss gave me one as a bonus for my work, but I feel guilty purchasing the equipment because we are a non-profite org. Although it would be helpful for our print publications in getting the clinical shots right.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 6:33 am
by birddog114
nito,
Nice series and beautiful works from your 70-200.
The couple will be very happy with all your efforts.
Yes, another set of beautiful wedding photo from a non- wedding photographer.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 8:47 am
by gstark
Nice images, all.

For the one with the row of shirts, if you're thinking of using it on the cover, I'd be vignetting, rather than cropping, it. Use an oval just around the couple, and either then just crop it at that simple shot of the couple, or else semi-vignette it, having just very dark fade of he rest of the image opening up into an oval vignette that focusses on the couple.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 8:56 am
by LostDingo
Some good images here Nito..........the 70-200vr is made for this type of work in my opinion, low light, no flash etc but of course the size of the lens does seem to intimidate people

Imagine Birdys 200-400VR :twisted:

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 9:06 am
by nito
Thanks Gary and Birddog for the comments. Judging from the responses I have modified the front cover. I like the vignetting idea, but I am not sure if its done right. Still new at PS.

Anyway tell me what you think.

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PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 9:16 am
by the foto fanatic
I think the tighter crop works far better than the original.

The vignette also has possibilities, but once again, I think the oval needs to be a bit tighter around the couple's heads. You could also try some gaussian blur to make the happy couple stand out from the background.

Well done.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 9:32 am
by gstark
Getting better.

I'd soften the vignette's edges quite a lot, so that the image just fades into the black of the vignette.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 9:47 am
by gstark
Sometyhing along these lines.

This is very quick and dirty, but it may help ...

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Then crop as you need to.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 10:51 am
by nito
gary, that is really nice. With a black cover as it would be ideal.

Darn need to improve my PS skills. :D

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 11:18 am
by gstark
As I said, it's very rough, but it should be enough to give you a feel for what I have in mind.

Elongate the vignette effect just a little along the height, or perhaps narrow its width, to help bring the focus in to the couple a bit more, and I think it would be pretty close to nailed.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 12:33 pm
by Alex
Nice work, Nito. I really like the last one in the series.

Regards,
Alex

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 1:53 pm
by stubbsy
Nghia

An excellent selection of images that show the great qualities of both the lens AND the photograper. I'm certain this will make for a wonferful gift for the happy couple. I like the vignetting Gary has proposed, although witha slightly softer gradation to black.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 2:50 pm
by nito
Thanks for all the comments. It will make the present that much more special.

Peter and Alex, I really had a excellent time at the wedding. It was the only wedding I have been to were the bride and groom enters with 4 drummers bashing away at the drums. Then the bridal party and grooms men started dancing.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 3:54 pm
by gstark
What sort of drummers?

Did a bass solo follow? :)

Only one of these questions is serious.

PostPosted: Sat Feb 18, 2006 4:39 pm
by nito
gstark wrote:What sort of drummers?

Did a bass solo follow? :)

Only one of these questions is serious.


Better still I can show you.

The two of the four drummers

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The groom's men came in with flashy hats :shock:

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