Creative Ways To Use For Your Engagment Photograpy Sessions

The proposal went off without a hitch and now your planning for your big day. You now have to convince your significant other to have pictures taken for your engagement announcement. Having your picture taken before your wedding doesn't seem like it should be part of your wedding preparation. However, it is as important as choosing your venue or picking out you cake flavor. If you are looking for a unique way of announcing your engagement to your friends and family, then having an engagement shoot is your best bet. Your engagement sessions photos are also great for sending out save the date cards. The process of deciding on where and who you want to take your engagement pictures should be your first steps.

You may or may not want to use your engagement photographer to shoot your actual wedding. However, this is a great way to make that decision. You'll get a chance to see if you have a connection with your photographer. That can be a personality connection or a creative connection. You will also get a chance to see if you like their work and if it fits the style you are looking for. It's one thing to look at their portfolio and make a decision off of that or seeing yourself in their work. There could be a benefit to selecting your photographer to shoot your wedding. Most photographers offer engagement photos as part of their wedding packages. This can often save you money that could be spent on other items for your wedding. It really depends on how certain you are that you want to go with the photographer.

You also may know ahead of time that you won't be using your engagement photographer to shoot your wedding. This would occur if you are having your engagement photos taken in an area that your wedding ceremony won't take place. You may have a place that's special to both of you that you want to have your engagement photos taken. This may be a different state or even country than you plan on getting married in. So, you would be hiring a photographer to just shoot your engagement photos. This is not uncommon and most photographers are willing to shoot you engagement photos for a single session. Ask your photographer to allow a few minutes for warm up shots. This will allow you to get comfortable of having the camera around.

Your location is either going to be a special place the two of you have picked out. This could be the first place you met or some other significant spot that signifies your relationship together. You can always leave your engagement shoot location up to your photographer. They may be more familiar with locations in their area. You can ask for several locations they may recommend and then research each one to see if it fits what you had in mind for your shoot.

You can inquire as to why they picked the specific locations that they have given you. Check to see if your photographer offers you to have multiple locations that you can take your engagement photos at. Check to see how much time you are paying for and what it includes as well. Some photographers may only be charging you for the photo shoot and may not include rights to the photos. You may have to pay separately for rights to the photos or a disk with a release letter to reprint.

Now that you have your photographer and your location it's on to the shoot itself. Now you can decide how creative you really want to be. Don't be too serious or it will show in your photos. You should focus and try to show your love during your shoot. If you stare at the camera you are not going to get great shots. Pretend the camera isn't there and just focus on each other. You may want to research other photographers and look at the engagement shoots for ideas of your own. Using a pose or prop that another couple used won't take away or show a lack of creativity on your part.

You could decide you want to have several shots with specific clothes and then have another set of clothes for other shots. You may need to let your photographer know that you want a wardrobe change though. You may want a romantic beach shot in bathing suits and then a serious formal shot in a field of flowers. Obviously, a wardrobe change would have to occur. You may want to incorporate props like the date of your wedding for your save the date cards.

You might even decide to get out of your comfort zone by having wigs or hats that show your goofy or funny side. It really is up to you how creative you are going to be in your shot. If you let you photographer help you with your posing and props. There's a chance you could be disappointed after you see your shots. It's your engagement session that should incorporate you and not what you r photographer thinks you are.

Picking the timing of when you shoot your engagement photos is very important as well. You shouldn't pick the time of day when the sun is full. You are not going to get great photos if you do because of the harsh lighting and shadows. You want to go out about an hour or so before sunset to take your engagement photos. It's also best to have your engagement photos take months in advance of your wedding. This will give your photographer time to edit the pictures and get them back to you for changes that you may want. You will also have time to pick out which shot or shots you want to add to your save the date cards.

Engagement photos are a way for you to capture a moment of your life together before you are actually married. Hopefully, you will make the most of it and look back on the pictures and relive a moment in time before you were married. Remember to have fun and enjoy your engagement shoot. There will be plenty of time to stress and worry in the coming months getting ready for your wedding day.

Chi Photography is one of the top Charleston Wedding Photographers located in Charleston, South Carolina.

Wedding Photography in Charleston SC

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Continuing Education In Photography

One of the hallmarks of professional photographers is that you'll find them constantly going back to school. They'll also be involved in a local guild or professional association. In fact, they'll be involved in just about any activity that gets them involved with other photographers and out shooting pictures for assignments or group projects. Besides that, you'll find them participating in and leading photo walks on their day off.

The reasons behind that are complex, but the main reason is that photography tends to be kind of a lone wolf profession. Very few shops can support paid help, other than on a contract basis, so it tends to be an isolated profession.

If you stay isolated long enough in photography your work can become stale and routine. Working by yourself there's no one to challenge you, to inspire you, or show you some new lighting technique, or new way of shooting a particular shot.

Taking a photography class is something you'll find even pros do once in a while, even though they may sit through a class or online course that lasts for days in order to glean one or two new tricks. Professionals also understand the value of reviewing the basics of framing, like the Rule of Thirds, exposure and other photography fundamentals.

The more you grow in the profession, the more you know, the more time you have to put in to gain knowledge. Doesn't seem fair, does it? But that's really true in any profession. The higher you go up the ladder, the more time you have to put into education to move up. Photography is no different in that regard.

Beyond the purely educational aspects, photography is still much like a trade in many ways. Older photographers help those coming along in their careers and most people getting into the business do so by building up their portfolio as an apprentice or second shooter for someone more experienced. In situations where a photographer can't afford an apprentice or assistant, then classes, photo walks and arranged group shoots are the only way you'll get to network with other photographers to build your portfolio.

Photography is one of those trades that takes days to learn but a lifetime to master. The only way to really master the craft is to be constantly learning. Studying the technical aspects, learning the rules, then learning to write your own rule book.

The day you stop progressing in photography, pushing forward with learning, is the day you start sliding back into mediocrity. There are very few people who can keep their edge if they're not constantly out shooting. If you lose interest in going out every weekend for a shoot and getting together with other photographers, then you may want to consider whether photography is really your best option for a career field.

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Analyzing the Effect of Composition in Photography

The only possible general conclusion concerning composition in photography is that circumstances alter cases. Rules should act not as restrictions but as guides that will assist you more often than not. If there are good enough reasons to break them, you should do so without qualms. No rule should be followed without question. You should be looking for reasons to make exceptions even while applying rules.

There are three useful ways of testing the validity of any composition. They are all based on the assumption that a picture that looks right usually is right, regardless of how far it may seem to depart from conventional standards.

1. For the first method, cut out two L-shaped pieces of gray or white cardboard (if gray on one side and white on the other, their edges can be seen clearly against any sort of picture). Face them in opposite directions, overlaid to make a frame of adjustable proportions, on top of a full-negative print. Move it around so that it frames varying parts of the image, and vary its proportions as you go. If you can make a stronger composition by cropping the image, then reprint doing so. There is nothing sacred about the proportions of standard film dimensions. You can crop a side or bottom or top any time that a given image is thereby improved. There is also nothing immutable about how you composed while looking through the viewfinder. You may well find it better to print and display only a portion of the image on any given negative.

2. The second method of analysis is better suited to guiding your future work than to saving what you have already done. If you make a picture that just does not "look right," hold a thumb over the various major or minor picture elements one at a time. If the picture looks better without that element, it should not have been included. But if the picture looks weaker by its absence, that element can be considered necessary. If such deletion does not strengthen the picture, perhaps you had no potentially successful composition to start with. Although this is a post-mortem device (to see why the picture died), it may help to prevent a similar catastrophe in the future.

3. Finally, it is beneficial to allow time to affect your judgment. Reserve some wall space for hanging your best efforts for long-term examination. See how well you can live with an image. Should you become tired of it before long, try to analyze why. Is the picture dull? Do subtle flaws become obtrusive with time? Does the image have a posterlike "grab-the-eye" quality without sufficient complexity to engage the mind more than temporarily?

There is nothing like time to give you the answer to these questions, and others that will come to you. Sometimes, in fact, pictures that you had first thought to be rather slight develop staying power to a remarkable degree. (These are the really subtle ones.) Let time pass while you keep on looking and thinking.

Find out more things about Camera Photography and Tips To Take Photos. Check out Basic Camera Photography for more information.

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