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Vow Renewal Shoot

Lesson 23 from: Documentary Wedding Photography: Capturing Reality

Tyler Wirken

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Lesson Info

23. Vow Renewal Shoot

Lesson Info

Vow Renewal Shoot

The other day it was just the other day we did a pre shoot with tyler he basically did a photograph a couple who was redoing their vows and we're going to see we're going to be a fly on the wall for appreciate video so we're really excited for that yeah, it was really great when when we first started talking about this ryan my producer and I and I was like, I like I love dew of live shoot I go but I can't do one with like models and you know, mock things this is not going to be work with this class and so we all came together a photographer here in seattle that I know jenny wehrli eye contact the whole bunch photographers and she got me hooked up with this couple angela heaven and we all pulled some strings I changed my flight to fly in early on thursday let six a m from kansas city on thursday and I had to shoot at three thirty had some plane delays and I got in at one thirty anyway so if this is just an awesome shoot and we you know angela and evan we're going to talk about their sto...

ry and stuff like that after because they're gonna be here too to see their images for the first time but it was it was a really, really, really fantastic day and I couldn't have asked for anything better perfect and so good but real quick okay, before we go any further I need to do a little shout out sounds great right now so my my son alex is nine years old today and I wanted to say happy birthday buddy I think he's watching I think he's at home I hope he's at home watching but I love you, buddy and I miss you guys and I'll see you soon so have a good one, buddy. All right all right. So now we're going to start the video right? Great that's exactly. So I'm not going to talk during it I'm just going perfect let people watch you know, just go for it we didn't write about movies. Yes uh here we are. We just showed up to the house where angela and evan are getting ready for their vow renewal today we're gonna walk in and see uh see what we see yeah, hard tyler yes what's up big guy going man wait for about five minutes e many family moments as they can there's some good stuff going on I miss one missed one wait help it's always weird when you walk into a situation and then just start shooting people but there's a good moments and so that's why I just had to jump on those moments when I have a chance and then if you notice I started kind of talking to him a little bit and talk into the their son because you don't want to miss the moment and so I uh it's almost like a shoot first ask questions later type of thing so I shoot first and then I then I talk to him later but and then and then if I feel like they've are sick of me I don't know what they are but I don't doubt it better not be we got a long day ahead of us right there if if they're sick of me then I kind of just like wander and give him for the space and kind of look around but typically I'm just trying to kind of give him some space that let the moments not be about me and back to normal moments so that's what you know what I wanted to watch but I love this right now because I love the er you know a huge part of this story is the kids in the family and I think I think that's a really awesome that all this is happening right now now oh my god I know you can you help a brother? You're sorry sorry all right so that's kind of a fun moment um so that three year old I don't not sure like what everybody head but it is little brother and bumped his head and got in trouble and uh those are moments that I like go after big time because this is what it's just it's emotion and it's what needs to be that's what happens with the family and the little guy didn't want me shooting it but you know what he's not gonna remember so the biggest thing is I got to make sure that I'm not making this into too much of a family shoot, so I start walking around and just seeing and what and what's interesting is you got this these details laying out here of their of their outfits? Um no, I won't I won't touch anything I won't move anything I'm just trying to look and see um, china it looks like there's some potential vows written in here um and so I'd be really easy to open that up and show what they say, but I can't do that that would be disrupting the scene can not how it was when I found, so I'm going to shoot it like this first showing their kid's shoes I like this detail because his detail has meaning it says angela and evan photography there were photographers and it has both of their kid's shoes what I think is really interesting I like the love on the wall there, but I'm not really sure you know how to make that come together, try it see if I can find peace something no reflections kind of funky I don't know if it'll come together that's certainly lining up like I wanted teo but try anyway I could sit there and I could shoot the family forever but these great moments but I wanted to make sure that I don't miss the story and the story is, uh vow renewal today some reed I'm kind of looking in this in this journal here something about no matter and says the future as long as we're together everything is everything will be okay I love you I look forward to the residence oh yeah these are these are vows the problem is I can't I got to find the words in there that are going to tell that story best I love you is what I need right there now I'm gonna try and do is I'm gonna try and get a detail that matters with the dress you okay? So that was amazing amazing moment the way that came together tried to compose it with the love on one side and the wedding dress on their side and um you're always thinking how do I make one photo that illustrates this story that potentially could be it depends on how it all came together, but it was pretty awesome intimate moment I also shifted my motor drive to silent mode even though she knew I was there standing right in front of her but I think that shutter being quieter can help with an intimate moment like that what I'm doing now is planning my attack and watching and see how this all comes the other before I start shooting okay good light in there so I saw this light when I was walking back up on the night so I knew that I needed to expose for it while they were walking down so I just quickly made an exposure as opposed tio I would have missed that moment and it's not like an amazing moment but it's kind of cool because it's the picture of them holding hands with him and then g or grandma holding hands walking down it's kind of a cool accomplish with great light hitting them they didn't have to really meet her ford it has had to kinda you know x you get the exposure like I needed with the turning my dad into the rightto under expose that knew that I need the light was so bright that it might have worked might have don't know what I'm doing is I'm deciding that I needed to kind of you know when it's kid that's easier to get in there with the moments but when it's um when it's uh it's adults it's kind of harder so I'm letting evan get ready lit himself great moment with grandma I'm missing a couple moments here and here and there but I've got so many already that time but I'm trying to just pace myself mentally and just kind of watch and slow down a little bit get myself back on track yeah a lot it's fine this is this is really great because everything's kind of lining up address him getting ready friends three e maybe you feel like it tonight son this's starting to get me closer to telling the story of how he was acting today so I'm just kind of hoping that uh and nobody around he'll show me a moment that kind of shows with this whole story was that even though he's reacting to me I can't help that so I'm just going to keep shooting down that paying attention to him I'm hoping there's good light interesting composition right now waiting for frustration wait for him to turn towards the light we used back but focus I could just focus just shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot shoot I can look at my exposures could change it if I need teo I got to think about my next stage plan my attack um so I need to probably go into the car and get some of my gear that I might need cause I'm riding with angela so you think if I rolled up scratched stick I think you are lady even doubles wait yeah e get this moment I might seem insignificant to most but this is actually pretty funny you're probably going to remember this for years to come remember when I had to tape your boobs so now we're going to leave so I start to kind of plan my attack I think you tell a story and you like a transition picture so I wanna have assuming they go out the front door since it's hoping so what I'll do is like it out here and I'll get ready for that photo and I'll think because you know not every photo of a story is a home runner not everybody you shoot is a home run but you need it you might need a transition photo to show what's going on so I'm going to start getting ready get my exposure ready so that way when they come out of the door in my composition set except my focus exposures too dark but set my focus and then and she just walked into the bathroom so I might get a frame with her walking out if I were up to the doorway but the picture of her leaving the house with the kid and the dress and her friends and you know it might not be something meaningful but you know what down the road they're gonna move from here this won't in this this house this will be their first house and it was a photo that has the house in it you just never know nine thousand can these images aren't that great but you know what? We're trying hopefully these all line up kenny's going down it's open for the two two girls on the steps and angela behind him but I don't think that's gonna happen way that's what I wanted to thank you get excited all right? I'm gonna go uh try and show the plan to get some blueberry footage hasn't walking I'm trying to figure out where it's going to be I'm not sure right now but uh we'll figure it out that's boring foreign born born kids have more fun nobody was doing that so I'm always looking back to check on okay she's breast feeding again in the car right before her way and it's awesome it's awesome no yeah okay e great moment with him walking I gotta wait for them to come into the light that exposed for the highlights too much well, crap is gonna be hard they're in shadow go down here if I stayed in the position I was staying and then I would screw myself because I don't have as many options when she passes me so at least this way maybe I can make it an image of them coming coming down to me this is really good exercise for you know okay, so I'm just trying to pay them so I'm trying to make my decision I don't know if I'm gonna let you shoot tight or wide I think in this situation I need to go for it and see if I can show us the scene or what's going on cool thing is that there's a the hill right here so I should be what to expose for the highlights go for both my exposure ready mom okay that's nice there you go mama family and friends of the carlisle's my name's casey and on behalf of angela heaven selves to each other again way rejoice with and for you before rhea out aloud what you have written for each other I want you to think about three important values strength, devotion and being adorable in a way that just make you although I'm not sure which is more adorable between evan inspired so I don't always express its joys and its sorrow hidden from your eyes it is with a great tribute to your belief in each other kiss your mother huh wait money wait wait yeah wait wait really one thirty five right now on a cross camera so it's given me quite a bit which is perfect compression its good moments get the people in the background so it just doesn't look like some mom and son keep shooting as I focus and recomposed check my exposure looking good that's kind of fun it's a real simple quick thing I don't know I'm not going to know what the deal is going to stand there he's telling me to stand the good lightest it was very difficult good in some places bad in others but you just got tio figure out how to go for it and work it embrace it there was there there some good stuff I like what I have light like that because then it makes me think harder and find the picture and really decide where my exposure's going to be and stuff like that um and I may not get everything, but I'm going to do with the ones that I'm hopefully getting her kind of dynamic and the light and shadow and all that guy's that's going to be really, really fantastic, so I'm hoping I'm hoping I missed the actual kiss um could I was swinging for the fences and going for a layered shot within the baby blocked the kiss, but in my opinion at the better kisses when the two brothers kiss and that that to me means more than the actual kiss but we'll see what happens that's for sure it was really good, though it was a great little ceremony amazing light out here but trying to tell this story I didn't want to tell the wedding because to me the story is all about the kids in the family and where they're at in this time of their lives and so I think I made some okay stuff so way shall see what happens and I gotta keep I got to keep moving now I'm gonna watch as they walk through this light and they're going to walk through this shaft of light here, make sure I get my closure pre focus, and I'm gonna hope I hope that their light is getting a amusing that dark area behind behind the goats. Drop that arm, kid. I need that profile, that rim right in his face. But if you shoot up, he shoot up against that, that that bright background, you're not going to see the great light great that's, great let's get stuff right there. You want todo? I'm glad he wasn't like him at school. Lift your great moment here with grandma pictures, but you never know. Never know it's gonna mean to somebody so I shoot it. This is interesting she's really upset about the fact that they're not coming and all these people here and it's just it all comes down to the curiosity of what was going on so I couldn't find her. So I walked over and she's sitting on that bench by herself and then her husband came over just it's. Interesting. I don't know what that's the picture it's gonna be worth anything. But you know what, you never know like I tell the story.

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Ratings and Reviews

a Creativelive Student
 

Tyler calls 'em like he sees'em. He gets it: capture the emotion, the expression, the feelings of a wedding without preoccupation with perfect posing, perfect lighting, perfect camera settings. An image of a father's expression seeing is daughter in her dress for the first time is far more important than trying to get it framed just right. Anticipate. Watch. Don't interrupt a moment. This is a great series to refocus on the true meaning of why we shoot weddings.

Chethan Kumar
 

Tyler is not just an awesome wedding Photographer but a very good human being. Love the way he speaks, teaches and respect students and their work. I enjoyed each and every bit of this learning and learnt a lot. Thanks creative live and Tyler. Regards, Chethan Cks Photolab Melbourne|Australia

a Creativelive Student
 

Recommend but with one big caveat. This class is useful in terms of his approach and mindset. I found it really inspiring in that respect. It's worth watching if you want to broaden your mind and make your wedding photography more interesting. Don't bother with this class if you are looking to improve technically, Tyler isn't a great technician and most of the info he provides in that respect is garbage and outdated. He also comes across as very arrogant at times and he's not a great instructor.

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