Posts from the ‘Tuesdays With Nate’ Category

First off, It’s been FOREVER since a good ol’ Tuesdays with Nate. It’s nice to be back. I doubt this will be weekly, but hopefully once or twice a month I’ll be able to share some thoughts with you, and I KNOW I’ll have a Tuesday Top 5 for you soon, just like the good old days.

For today, I wanted to share with you a little bit about our lighting setup. We get a lot of questions about what we use for lighting and how we set it up. I’ve put a lot of time, research, and money into it, and still dont’ think we’ve got it all figured out (I hope I never “figure it out”) but this is all stuff that works for us. As always, here’s the “Nate Disclaimer”:

We like to shoot ambient light with minimal artificial light most of the time. This is not because we don’t know how to shoot with lights, but because we prefer the look of available light in our photos. We have Canon Flashes. To get to the system we have now, we tried the more expensive route and were about to throw out some big bucks for Pocket Wizards and new strobes when we decided at the last minute to try one more thing for our reception lighting and as luck would have it, it worked and we liked it. We are not, and don’t claim to be off-camera lighting experts, because that’s not really our main thing, but we know what works for us and how to use it well. If you want to know how to use 6 lights with ETTL and see lighting diagrams and learn which diffusers and modifiers to use, go to my good friend Erik Valind’s blog. If you want to see some simple lighting setups that won’t break your budget and will be modest and consistent, here you go:

Our Current Lighting Setup for Weddings

Amazon Triggers- $28.99 for a trigger and two receivers (I’d buy two, they are cheap, and made cheap)
A simple, no frills way to trigger off camera flash. They have a hotshoe built in, and work on a radio signal, so they work in daylight when infrared will not. They have good range, but are simple triggers with no metering or adjustments. You’ll need to set your flashes manually. We use them mainly with the cable that is included, attached to our camera bodies with the bracket that comes with the Sima video light (see below) Also, I’ve gotten several of these triggers and one was dead on arrival, another died shortly after. They are NOT made extremely well, but you could buy a like 5 of these for the price of one pocket wizard.

Apollo softbox – $150 for the stand and softbox, with adapter for hotshoe flash
This is a fantastic piece of gear and a great value. We use the box for our partybooth (with a powered strobe, not a speedlight), and it’s a great tool for when you only have space or time for one light source for portraits or headshots. It’s a fantastic soft light source and produces a beautiful, even light. Can’t beat if for the price.

Vivitar 285HV – $86.99 each
Our secret weapon. Amazing off camera flash. They never misfire, they’re build like tanks, and they are bright and fast. The recycle time is great. They give off a very wide light, and come with a diffuser to make it even wider, which is great for dance floor lighting. They work perfectly in the softbox and with the cheap wireless triggers. THEY ARE NOT REPLACEMENTS for your main flashes, but they ARE perfect for simple, manual, off-camera light.

Sima Video Lights – $27.57 each, buy a few because they’re handy in all kinds of situations
This is a neat little video light, it’s rechargeable and very bright. It can be a great way to backlight a portrait, or get a separation light, but it’s a little bright for normal portraits, and too bright for dance floor light. I use it most commonly for ring and detail shots, and the bracket it comes with is perfect for a wireless trigger when you need your main flash on camera. You can use them for light writing or just to see in your camera bag in the dark. We’ve even loaned one to a minister during a night wedding so he could see to read his script. ;)

Lumiquest Pocket Bouncer – $22.49 each
Not a whole lot to say here. It’s easy to put on, which is handy when we’re coming into a reception situation and haven’t had time to set up our main lights. It’s much softer than direct light, and great when there are high ceilings and you need fill flash.

So that’s our modest setup. It is a simple system that works perfectly for our needs. We know there are tons of options out there and each photographer has to figure out what will work best for the style of lighting they like to use, but we hope that for some of you that may feel lost amid the sea of options, this helps to give you a jumping off point. Or at least some inexpensive ways to dip your toes in the world of lighting. You can get this whole setup for under $500 (with 2x flashes, triggers, video lights, and pocket bounchers). Not too bad if I do say so myself. Ps. Bonus points for those of you that caught the Kanye reference in the title.

How To | By Nate…

It’s crazy to think that we just recently passed our 1 year anniversary. (Boom!) It seriously feels like it was just last month that we were exploring Europe and eating our body weight in gelato and pizza. We love looking back at the photos that our photographer took for us while we were there. They are priceless! Needless to say, we know what it’s like to have to decide on something so important, not only did we go through it ourselves, but we meet with people all the time making the same decision. And since we hear, “I don’t know what to ask or where to start.” all the time… We thought we’d try to help…

If you Google “how to choose a wedding photographer”, the majority of the pages that come back to you are either outdated guides, or pieces from planning books with huge lists of seemingly random questions. (Liability insurance, RAW files, megapixels, oh my!) I wanted to share some things that I’ve been mulling over recently. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section afterward too…

First, lets get on the same page and make a few assumptions about couples looking for their photographers:

1. Obviously budget is always factor. But money aside, what’s really important in the search?
2. No matter how cautious you are, there are always a few bad eggs out there that give everyone else a bad name. By taking the time to evaluate what you want in photography and by doing your homework, you can easily avoid any potential messes. Let’s assume that you are choosing between established and reputable professionals so all the standard (do you have liability insurance, do you have backup equipment, do you shoot RAW or JPEG) type questions can be thrown out the window for now.
3. Assuming there are many talented pros to pick from, who is the right choice for you? We’ll be the first to tell you that we’re not right for everyone. This is not a ploy or an attempt at false humility. We’re really just not. Our style is not a one-size-fits-all style and neither are our personalities. But we’re okay with that, and we don’t change it on purpose because we feel that by being true to ourselves, we are better artists and people. Your job is to find the photographer who is perfect for you.
And a few other statements before I proceed:

Fact: Picking out a wedding photographer can seem daunting. You should approach it as a couple (you both need to be confident and comfortable in your decision) and you should always explore several options before making a choice.
Quasi-fact: You get what you pay for. And you get back what you put in. Take the time to be confident in your choice.
Fact: Seahorses do not have a stomach or teeth, and process food so fast that they must constantly eat to live.
Opinion: Seahorses are neat.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way. These next few principles are the three things that I think are paramount when deciding on your photographer. Let’s call them The Four C’s.

Character
If you’re a bride, you have a right and responsibility to research your vendors. Some things will be apparent right off the bat. Do you like their work? Do they post a lot of weddings that are consistently good? Are they quick and courteous in their responses to you? Photography is a service provided on your wedding day, but you don’t see the product until weeks later. You put a lot of faith in your photographer to deliver what they say they will, based on the assumption that the work they deliver will be of the same quality as what they represented before hand. They need to have a solid character that you can trust and that you mesh well with. The best way to get to know us and our character is by looking through our blog here, hanging out with us on our Facebook page, and by flipping through our info magazine.

Consistency
“Even a blind squirrel finds a nut from time to time.” Anyone can buy a website template. Anyone can buy a “pretty fancy” camera. If you take enough pictures you’ll probably get enough randomly good ones to make a decent portfolio. Sadly, there are people out there doing photography that are not exactly qualified to do so. It’s your job to weed them out.  Look at websites, blogs, full sample weddings, and pay attention to the PHOTOGRAPHY, without focusing on the manner in which it is presented. A nice website or an impressive online persona is important to any photography business, but is should not be a mask to make mediocre pictures look prettier. And if you, as a client, would like to see a full wedding of ours, just send us an email and we’ll be happy to send you a link and password to an entire wedding on our proofing site.

Compatibility
This is what we really believe makes us different, what we believe makes us unique, and a part of our business that we take exceptional pride in. We take very seriously the fact that when wedding day comes around, we will spend more time with the bride and groom than they will with each other, with their families, their wedding party, and their guests. If you don’t feel a personal connection with your photographer during your consultations, run away. This is one of the reasons we encourage every single couple to do an engagement session before their wedding, and it’s one of the reasons our engagement sessions so often turn into wine and/or dinner dates. This is also why we like to meet or at least talk with our couples before sending them a contract. That way they can get a feel for our personalities and visa versa.

Cuality and Style
Normally pronounced “quality” (but I needed a fourth “C”) this is pretty self explanatory, but is often overlooked when all of the aforementioned prerequisites are met. Spend time with your future spouse looking at several photographers images, and talk about what you both like and want when it comes to style, price, and how your images are returned (do you want albums or large art pieces, prints or digital files). Ask your friends to see pictures from their weddings. Ask your photographer to define their style, and ask for more of a description than “traditional, modern, vintage, or photojournalistic” (currently the most popular buzzwords in our industry). Make sure their description is consistent with what you talked about and saw in their portfolio.

And lastly…

Once you’ve made your decision, give yourself the freedom to be proud of it and be confident in it. Nothing kills a photographer’s creativity like being micromanaged by a couple that doesn’t really trust that they’ll do a good job. You know what it feels like when you can tell that someone doesn’t truly trust you and it isn’t that great of a feeling. You chose the person you did for a reason. And, since you are brilliant, stylish, and completely on top of your wedding planning game, they are probably pretty darn fabulous.

Till next time,

Nate

I mentioned on my Twitter account that I wanted to do a post about our gear today, so I asked people to submit some questions for me to answer, and here they are!  If you have more questions, head to our formspring page.  Next week I’ll be doing a full fledged description of all of our gear and bags, what we use, and why… and testing out a solution for foggy lenses.  Enjoy.

my Spider Holster, two cameras, and favorite sling bag by Kata

Q: What gear are you taking on your trip to NYC? What about on your trip to Europe?

A: This is a tender subject.  I obviously want to bring it all.  Hopefully, while in NYC we’ll be able to stop by B&H and Adorama, and maybe pick up some new toys.  But as far as what we travel with, Becka will bring her 5DmkII and her 50 1.2 and 24 1.4, I’ll bring my 7D with my Tokina 11-16  and my 35 1.4. In Europe, I may bring along the 24-105 as a walkaround option.

Q: I recently got a Nikon FG, and I’ve gotten my first roll back (film = awesome). Do you have any recommendations or personal preferences for types of film to use?

A: Film is very personal.  For my medium format camera I’ve been using the FujiColor Pro400H.  Try Try Try…. get your hands on a lot of different films, and find a good local lab to develop them.  I made the mistake of converting everything to digital first, which is very expensive, but lately I’ve been making regular prints, and if I have picture I really like, I can always take the negatives back. If you live in Central Florida you can take your film to our favorite place, Colonial Photo and Hobby, to be developed.

Q: If you could only use the SX-70 or one of your regular vintage film cameras, which one would you choose? (And why :) )

A: As much as I love the tone and simplicity of the SX-70, It’s just not practical for regular shooting and the film is expensive. (The two SX-70′s that we have in our collection are actually Becka’s cameras and she adores them and probably prefers them to everything except our twin lens.) I’ve got an Olympus OM-1 that would be my first choice, simply because of the light meter and ability to shoot a normal size roll of film.

Q: Which would you recommend? The Canon 50mm 1.4 or the Canon 28mm 1.8 on a 40D.

A: Considering the crop factor on the 40D, the 28mm (or 44mm after crop) isn’t a bad focal length, but I think the 50mm will be more practical and more useful for most applications.  28mm really isn’t wide enough to give you the dynamic look you want. That being said, I’ve only ever used the 50 and not the 28.

What 2 lenses would you take if you could only take 2 to a wedding?

This is actually not as difficult of a question as Becka thought it would be for me.  A few months ago, I dropped my Tokina 11-16 during a wedding, and for the next couple of months I shot almost entirely with my 35mm F/1.4 and 85mm F/1.2.  It pushed me a lot to not rely on my wide angle and start shooting a lot tighter, and I was really happy with the results.  Sometimes when heading to a shoot, trying to decide what to bring, I will only grab one lens to try and force myself to see things a little differently.  It’s helpful, but also more convenient for someone that has someone else shooting in case I don’t get what I was looking for. To answer on Becka’s behalf, she’d pick the 50 1.2 and 24 1.4 and with those two she could probably be happy for the rest of her life.

Q: Nate, I don’t think this went through with my others, but I wanted to ask, how about a post on the gear you use to carry your camera? Do you use a Spider Holster? Or the Black Rapid straps? Or do you use just the plain old strap that comes with it?

A: I know a lot of photographers like the strap that comes with their camera. I think they are crazy.  All of my bags are from Kata, as are my straps.  The exceptions are Becka’s ShootSac, her brand new Kelly Moore Bag, and I have one neckstrap from CPS (Canon Professional Services).  We also both have Spider Holsters, but mainly reserve them specifically for really long weddings where we bring pretty much all of our toys. They are definitely one of the best inventions and investments we’ve made.  They are truly brilliant.  The Kata Neckstraps are very soft, have quick releases on both sides, small storage for CF Cards, and are the only straps I’ve found that are long enough for someone that is 6’2″.  Same goes for the sling bag I use, it has a very long strap, room for 2 lenses and a flash, and three small pouches for small things like lens cloths, spare batteries, lens caps, and filters.