Episode 5!

Question #1 (Shawn): High ISO on shoots instead of flash?

Dave: You’ve got to visualize the outcome you want, and if you want the available light being used, then I’d say you use ISO.

Taylor: Just the depth that high ISO gives you – for more photojournalistic –type stuff, I far prefer cranking the ISO with a little bit of grain.  And I’ve never heard my clients say they hate a photo because “it’s a little bit grainy”.

Dave: Charlotte and I crank up the ISO – like during receptions, we shoot 25, 3200 or something like that and bounce the flash through the room.  We use reflective light, so that means using the light bounced off backs of chairs or walls.

Taylor: I was just listening to someone who said when they shoot with flash they try to bounce the light off the side of the face that’s not facing them.  So instead of lighting the face you can see, you try to throw the light behind them and do it that way so it hides the flash.

Dave: The rule is if you’re going to light with one light someone’s face, you want to light the short side of their face.  Meaning if somebody’s nose is turned to your left – camera left – you’re going to light from the left.  And that way the longer side of their face isn’t lit and they look slimmer.  And that’s classic painting technique, anyway.

But I’m not opposed to flash.  We love to edit everything in colour, and we don’t do a lot of black and white as a brand so we try to balance our flash with the [text?] around the room, which we do with gels – and if you don’t know what a gel is, just Google it.

Taylor: It just makes your flash the same colour as the light around it in theory.

Dave: And so you’re putting yellow light out of your flash instead of blue light relative to the yellow light in the room.  And it means when you colour code that out, you can have your camera on the [ . . . ] setting, and you’re good to go.

Taylor: I ordered the Strobus gel pack and it was about $2.99 off Ebay, and it comes with little straps of Velcro, so if I need to use a flash, I have almost every available gel colour right there.

Dave: It depends on what you’re shooting, but if you want clean skin tones, you’ll want to use flash as opposed to ISO – like portraits.

Question #2 (Jenn): How many assistants do you use?  Or do you use any assistants?

Dave: Well I ask Jenn a question: what for?  It really depends.  For engagement shoots, Charlotte or I go out – we don’t usually shoot together for those – but for weddings, I think two of us is a good number.

Taylor: I’m 100% happy and capable on my own, but usually even if they didn’t hire a second photographer, I’ll usually bring someone to tag along and hang out with for the day.  It’s just fun to have someone around – I mean, if you’re going to work every Saturday, you might as well pay your friends to hang out with you.

Dave: I used to shoot alone, but I was always worried about something happening.

Taylor: I worry about cars, so if I do have someone with me, I have them bring their own car just in case something happens to mine.

Question #3: Do you do your own editing or do you outsource?

Dave: Great question.  I’m a proponent of “I’m a photographer, not a graphic designer”.  I used to be a graphic designer, but I don’t want to be at the computer for three or four days a week because I spent one day shooting so I outsource.  So I make my selections with my hard drive and mail them down to my editor who’s based in the St. Catherine’s area, and she turns them around in three to four business days.  So I have my jpegs posted online two weeks after the wedding without two to three days of editing.

Taylor: I think the volume of weddings we’re shooting this year are far too extreme to even attempt to think about editing yourself, and even when I try to sit down and edit, I notice I get distracted.  I’m an advocate of shipping something out whenever you can and focusing on your business – you’re getting paid to shoot.

Dave: I think too often photographers think they can only shoot a certain amount of weddings because they can only edit a certain amount of photos – which I think is pretty backwards.  I think if you can shoot twice as much and edit less as much, do it.

Question #4 (Luke): How many images do you give to clients or do you provide full editing or just the light room adjustments?

Taylor: I let them know at the start that files that end up in the album will be fully retouched, but beyond that, everything’s 97% on the way there – though it’s still definitely printable.  But everything ordered for canvas or a large print definitely gets retouched.

Dave: Sometimes clients want their high-res. images immediately after the wedding, and I explain to them that after we’re done everyone’s prints and we deliver the album, that’s when we give them the high res. files.  It’s just easier that way.

Taylor: I’m a little old school where the first thing they see is the album pre-design, and right after that I mail them the disk and tell them to let me know if there’s any other image numbers they need.  I also give them the gallery number the same day I mail them out the disk.  It’s a little more expensive, but it’s a trade-off because I still have my time.  I also have an order cart for parents, but it’s not a main sales piece – that’s the wedding day.

Question #5 (Sam): On the fly portraits, do you prefer speed lights or something bigger like a softbox?

Dave: Good question.  It really is different for every photographer.  So on the fly portraits – I guess we’re assuming formals or band stuff – I really like available light, so I’ll be getting more on softboxes this year.  So I think using a softbox is a great idea, but you’ll definitely need an assistant – and use open shade.

Taylor: If it’s just people or weddings, I use available light and a speed light on a stand with an umbrella if the day calls for it.

Dave: Do you prefer sunlight or overcast?

Taylor: I like backlight when the sun’s coming down for about 30 minutes, but if I could trade that 30 minutes for an entire day of shade, that would be awesome.

Dave: Personally, I prefer sunlight any day of the year.  You have to learn how to use it, but if you’re struggling, look at someone like John Michael Cooper who knows how to work with harsh light.  Take a workshop, subscribe to a forum, whatever.

Taylor: And shoot with those examples in mind.  Some of the pre-thought that goes into some of those shots is insane.

Question #6: What are the guidelines for a complete newbie to create their own style?

Dave: The best way is to find yourself as a photographer – and not by what other photographers are doing, but by what you love.  I think the photographers who have really made have done it early in their career because they’ve created their own style.

Taylor: This year, I’m shooting with couples I really connect with this year, and I think it’s because the promo video I shot – because right away, they know if they want to work me and if they like my style.  And it makes it much more fun and enjoyable for all of us.

Dave: The way I’ve defined my visual style is by taking a one-day workshop and shooting a wedding later that night – and doing it completely differently.  Not that I copied his style, but he encouraged me to have fun and take risks with my couples, and right away, things changed.

Taylor: I’ve done the same thing – now, I find myself directing more and getting better reactions out of people as a result.  But at the same time, I also have the supporting images of the photojournalistic day.

Dave: And it’s really important to communicate with your couples, too – in order to get the best possible reactions from them in their wedding and engagement photos.