Lessons

Lesson Info

Shoot: Group Shots

This is called event emphasizing ok we talked about this the last set segment now if they have to walk somewhere make something photographically special about them walking somewhere all right even if I'm not getting the shot I need you to see how how to do this so I'm just gonna get a wider angle ends on right now swap out guys hook arms and walk towards that we're not gonna percenter up our broad just be together and walk walk together shake it up make it sasi look back here okay perfect so you see I started going t o k that feeds the moment they see feel those clicks it's actually energy producing and then quickly I'm going to show you the easiest thing in the world how you create expression with your camera is I'm just gonna put you in the right light right now we have a lot of bright light coming on the slide you over a little bit beautiful how fast can you hug each other go go go go so cute beautiful coming in koto so you look at each other how beautiful you are look so lovely guy...

s okay that's that easy so fun to have my exposure right I did that's how you create expression okay it's about energy now that's directional light hey guys go back to the wall and go flat footed if you could it shoulder up squeeze squeeze squeeze and everybody the goofiest face you can't one two three I've actually never done that before but it was fun but look at this directional light is awesome you cannot go wrong with it, okay give me your mean face you're angry you don't have one that is not possible. Here we go. Oh, I love this here this is getting fun for the audience absolutely angry like photographer so right now I'm just playing around because it it creates the fun. All right? I want you to see her. Oh, no it's an angry group all right, it was cute. Super cute. All right, so that's directional light and I could shoot all day long with this in fact hey, let's, do a whole bridal party shot? You guys want to get in? How fast can you guys join them? Hey, boys, come right here first though, right there I'm in a scene set you into him. Alright. First beat up blue right there beat him up. Okay, walk towards the girls. Okay? Remember the bridal party shot people on the hill I shoot the the group has been coming into the next shot. So we have a lot of life but obviously blew need's to be this bride, so hug that girl, will you? How you doing? And then we're gonna shake it up we don't like we used to line up our brides like one side group other than or stagger pride groom bride, groom bride groom but you know what those those images aren't as fun as are as much fun we could still do that we could still get a really formal image uh but these are the type that cell okay and it's a simple ass get together see how everybody falls and go arms around let's do it diggin teo so and they're totally playing with the camera already because we've been joking around we've been messing around we built the energy up I was mellow in our last set for a reason and that is because it is the beginning part of the day but this is bridal party now and that is that is uh a moment where you really want to ratchet the energy up ok so they're just standing there the kind of cramp against the wall let's make a little bit room this way yeah okay joke could get in there now right and then you get in there jo ok scoot scoot jsut here we go and then what I want teo let's let's pose him a little bit all right, so perfect you guys are back to back you guys how about a double arm hug? Double arm hug notice I said double arm hug hug can sometimes be like that a double arm arm hug there's like this about communicating perfect you guys were gonna double arm hug to actually you're gonna double arm him from from behind right there and you're gonna snuggle in right there yeah yeah and you guys are gonna double arm each other into each other just get it I'd love it but here students cute in scooted perfect and then on the count three squeeze lean forward towards me one two three squeeze leave far from love it beautiful and I'm going to switch lenses I liked twenty four seventy but the seventy two hundred is a portrait lens to be considered a portrait lens it has to be eighty millimeters or larger do you guys know that you want to have no distortion let me give you uh example I don't have a sixteen million let me dio over there let me show you the problem I see with a lot of people's portrait work you guess slide a little bit this way there's some light coming in perfect thank you okay first seventy two two hundred to eight zoomed all the way out you guys ready one two three squeeze for perfect perfect and then I go adverts I did three horizontal zen avert so I have options for when I process that I can use the vertical or horizontal now this is what I see a lot of I see a lot of people using wide angle lens to do their portrait why did the lenses the outer edges of the lens are are like distort big time so let's show you and I'm doing going to the extreme I want you look at joe in this picture you're a bright lad otherwise you would have been distorted teo but okay what you guys put on eighty millimeters arm or put on eighty mills millimeters or more uh wide angle lenses are great in the vertical orientation watch this we've got some bright light coming through forgive the light we're stuck right here we're going to use this um we can use the distorting part of lens too slender rise people to slander it's really fun to all right we're gonna slender rise we're not gonna widen do that last minute did okay opposite I could even get low and I've got some bad bright light coming in here but uh I might move to flat can I get a couple volunteers so we're gonna move to flat light now, how about a couple volunteers to grab the sofa and this side table here sorry about that but you can already see what that last image I shot how it could make a really cool perspective remove the table. This is typical photography guys a typical wedding day I moved so much you'll be great I'm in a lot of foreign intruder today my pre planet I see wall any dues and I would remove the furniture so it's able to be used so I think I have just a few minutes left we're gonna have some champagne together instead of pictures. What do you think? My gosh, but first let me show the difference between sidelight and hard light could grab this lamp and we can wheel out that plant and we're ready to move into our next scene and I'ma shoot my way to that scene like I normally would hey, all right, ladies first right here. Just the ladies. Okay, now we're not silent. Where were this is flat light? You can't go wrong with flat light, especially with group shots. Check this out. It's gonna be beautiful with every image takes less skill to use flat light member with there's a light source you have directional on the sides and you have flat in the middle this is the flat light. Now watch this. I'm gonna I'm gonna use the distortion to slander rise them and you know what let's do a siri's I'm gonna take five shots I'm talking with my camera do whatever you want it show me your personality go, go, go! One, two come on flowers in the air woo, go with someone, spin it or love it oh, you know what, heidi, can you hit me with your dress just come on just give me the veil just put the veil right over oh it's so perfect so cute good good ok that last one was money perfect okay okay guys your turn all right girls get to come out so I notice I could use a vertical wide angle lens and sit on the ground all right first they're gonna be cool hey let's move this way just a little bit yeah noticed the girls set the tone for the guys they're forced to be fun now all right oh yeah beautiful noticed the distortion there really long lean I've got this super wide good good good yeah let's say you know what blue come out shake it up baby shake it up yeah girls how fast can you get to hug one of the many hugs hugs are get in there and be together all right slide it in perfect so cute and have some fun so good okay there's the white eagles wide angle shot and here's the tight version of that I don't have the seventy hundred so I'm just gonna move to this and here's the tide headed up because heads together close perfect one, two, three and one two, three and crank it up look at each other I love the guys instead of doing more pictures let's go drink some champagne all right, so we're gonna walk over to the bar along the way and I need to shoot that we can't for the camera so much but you know, perhaps the arm around everybody together walking to the bar, whatever it takes, I'll give you sixteen back. I'm done with that one. Yeah, okay, go for the walk. Ok. So as we're walking, I see so I'm seeing light. I'm seeing options have seen beautiful things that we can work with, like there's a new light source I just found check this out. So, guys going in cracks some one of the groomsmen. Do you mind cracking a champagne bottle? I'm definitely photographed out, but look what I could do here. I could put somebody in this light and turn him back and I get the textured shot. Look at this background. This would be a great place to photograph the whole bridal party. I've got some overhead incandescence. I'll teach you how to shoot without it's really fun, but right now I'm gonna shoot details over here. I'm definitely gonna put on a faster lens because it's darker let's shoot with e eighty five millimeter one two quick let's change my friends before you pop that can I have a picture of it? Look atyou, oh, moments I gotta go manual because okay, here we go can you test my line perfect oh my god they're so fun cute god good go for it let's see that before you poppet I wanted your hands okay I'm definitely manual settings and I'm just gonna grab details let them have their moment alright these glasses don't you everyone can I get a video you get a video okay so in this case guys the light is where it's coming from out awesome I totally missed that moment like I like ran for shelter like I told you I read french other uh okay saddle up beautiful so guys this is less than ideal obviously uh the scenarios you know it's it's staging everything we would put them in really good light or bringing light like cares bringing in right now but what's happening is right in line with what usually happens they instantly go into this state of being they're having fun you're photographing experience you're not posing them mike says does that sound fun to you okay we got some good light here tons of moments all right get with your bride right? Yeah. Cheers beautiful forget the camera guys just enjoy your champagne. What about got energy imaging? You lost the shadows well usually so carris primarily focusing on the light on the bride so she's always slightly away for me we want the light to come from a slightly different direction sidelight like we do with the window light and so she could hold it up. And as long as she's a few feet away from me, we get that modeling, which is the life coming across the face. All right, this is less than ideal right now. We have this. We've got this flat in the way. Kind of blocking equipment in the background, but you guys get the idea we would set this up in a beautiful location. Notice I've left my images in a warm how shade. I don't really care this point. We're going to color. Correct him later. Okay, brian grew just, uh, yeah. Don't get too bright. There you go. Hey, you two let's see clicks let's. See, click just you two that's. Okay. Beautiful. Uh, has together close to beautiful. Lovely. He loves you. Request a beautiful stuff. Okay, so less than ideal. But you get the idea right. What happens with the expression? The second crash not paid as people relax, and it becomes a photojournalism assignment. All right. Really fun. Hey, have you guys ever done this sort of wedding? Does anybody ever like authentically had had had your photographer take care of your experience in this way during a wedding day? It's unique isn't it concerning the self adding extra time in the day and making sure that you're properly taken care of having champagne purchase for you perhaps that would be something you'd want to do more than ever taking photos right except we're taking photos right now that's the cool part your images are being captured about an experience not a photo shoot that's the idea behind this so once this is the need part we've got a broader party taken care of now we can work with some of the different light sources around so I wanted to get the bride and groom you guys ready? We're gonna bring you right over here. You have to bring the drinks operator okay let's cross walk them across this background carry your lighter so yeah, maybe flower that yeah working just shot champagne it whatever. So hey blue it's backed up all the way to here right about here blue you're gonna tell your bride there's symbolism involved with telling your broad it before the wedding I like to have the groom told the bride after the wedding the bride's towing the groom it's true though so you're gonna just be infront I just wanna walk you guys into the next scene and I don't tell him that I just go hey guys cross in front of this thing hold hands and I got to tow him pull on him okay and then I'm going to switch lenses we could get to the right settings first I would be a way across the room normally so it's compressing them against this backdrop but I can't for the cameras so I put on the seventy twenty four to seventy I'll take a test shot quickly you can a little dark there I'm gonna open it up one hundred one hundred two to eight cara's providing cross light and you get his walk directly across and again I can't compress into the into the background too much so I'm just we're gonna work with us ok tell your bride will you go slow go slow so no hugs I'm stuck right there beautiful a little dip for just going to go get you come on arms around your man arms around beautiful all right so we just crossed walked into this next scene okay good job that's really pretty beautiful I could close the shot with a k you hear me say this a lot closing the shot that means a different angle different approach at the same background all right so let's do that um and we even have reflection we could work with here so uh do me a favor heidi king of shoulders right against that and care were going to rim like this k I'm gonna be over here okay you're gonna foreheads together right there yeah I'll tell you what I know if I rim light if I pass light through a veil it's a very pretty it's a beautiful look so here arms around your bride. Okay? Foreheads touchy. Okay, this is an eighty five millimeter one two shot. This is a different perspective from the same blue blue screen background and here we go. Okay, two brides. So I'm gonna go up to three hundred twentieth of a second that's pretty. That is pretty weii go carrot, go higher with lytton it's. Still wet. Beautiful, easy. Very beautiful. Easy shot. One more. So this is a stylized milner, right? I brought an external lighting cara's creating this texture like I'm rim lied him. They know there's light on them, but they are it's, not energy killing because we have ratcheted to the point where the bridal parties now drinking champion energy is high. Is it not true by the party? How about it? So this's exit maybe is exactly how it's done exactly how it's done. Okay, so let's walk him into a new scene. Do I have another five minutes or so? Okay, let's, walk you guys into a new seed. You could wear the veil, brother. Ok, I just want to show you how the even the ugliest locations, the worst locations a bad setting can still create a beautiful image, so all right let's just photograph you heidi uh put you back on the wall face your feet towards me k notice I'm steering her feet away from the light source which is the window through this closet okay and now yeah even more good and then yeah I want you to know I'm going to set the veil down it'd give her a reason to look towards her veil ok and then even more perfect even more shoulders that feed that way yeah, you know what I can do I could have you face your feet all the way towards me good crowd that door children here good shin that way now look right towards that light switch hands you're gonna go yeah just bring your flowers up slide ever so slightly perfect okay and now very pretty shot here going we're gonna bring in blue where does blue go? The direction her face is going right we steered her delight now blue needs to come in yeah it's going you're so awesome and give you a hug big boy come here thank you for your help today I really appreciate all right you're going in blue just come in I don't want to block the light right it does okay let's tear the door off a little bit alright perfect that'll work blue put your back right here against the wall their shoulders right there yeah, even like this, but my brother, yeah, grab hard behind her back, perfect. All right, now I'm gonna let him do what they do because the light's perfect, perfect and you're getting maybe kiss your shoulder over your arm and you could do whatever you want. Beautiful, good whispered here one more time. So the pose just happened because they started whispering and that became the shot. Notice the foreground element, the out of focus areas, the wall on the left side of the image and on the right side my beautiful couple and they were doing was natural to them. I just steered them into it. I seen setting them into that moment. Okay, let's, do one more. I want a big, wide shot of this whole setting one more time. Guys think it's so pretty let's. Switch with the the flowers and hold his hand, and that gives blew an opportunity. Kiss that hand, one more shot. I'm very pleased that I'll make a gorgeous single image multiple image spread if we want.