Wedding Photography Techniques - How To Avoid A Disaster!

As a wedding photographer, whether you're a pro or just doing it as a favor - weddings are landmines waiting to explode! Before you take on photographing a wedding, you need some solid wedding photography techniques. Here are 3...3 Wedding Photography Techniques!First: Scout the location.The bride and groom chose that particular location to host their wedding festivities for a reason! Possibly it's a particularly beautiful spot - or possibly it was the only venue they could afford, or somewhere in between those two extremes.In any event, they deserve (and expect) terrific photos!You should make a trip to the venue ahead of time so that you are sure you can find it. Plus, as photographers we know that a place can look radically different depending on the time of day, time of year and so on.By checking it out ahead of time, (at the right time of day) you can get some great shots without the stress of the wedding day. You can also find all those little hidden and out of the way nooks that will make a great backdrop for the couple. It's easy to miss these things while under the pressure of the wedding.Second: Create a shot list! You are going to be running at full speed on "the day," and it is really easy to forget some important shots. In fact, without a shot list, you can pretty much count on the fact that you WILL forget some of them. It's so easy to avoid this problem - just do it!Third: Cover your patootie! Have two complete camera systems with you! Plus have extra batteries and duplicates of all the other miscellaneous odds and ends you'll need. This may not seem like one of the  actual "wedding photography techniques" but it can literally make or break you!A broken camera or dropped lens can ruin a wedding - and get you sued. If you are shooting many weddings, sooner or later your camera WILL break down. No responsible photographer should ever arrive at a wedding without back-up equipment. As part of your back up equipment, it would be worth your while to arrange to have another photographer - one you trust and has the technical ability to shoot a wedding - on standby. You never know...the day before the wedding, you may fall and break a leg. Or, if you have a secondary photographer helping you, they may "call in sick" on the big day. Having a backup - even if you have to pay them a few bucks to be available - may seem like a bit of overkill...until you need them! It's your reputation that is on the line!As wedding photography techniques go, these three rank up there at the absolute top of the list. Interestingly, you'll never know how valuable they are until you need them - then these wedding photography techniques can save the day.