This weekend, I’m in Columbia, Missouri for my nephew’s wedding. While they hired a local photographer for the day of the wedding (which is actually today!), I’m going to bring some of my gear to the event for sure! Yesterday was the rehearsal of the ceremony which will be taking place outside.
The site is a vineyard along the bluffs overlooking the Missouri River, as you can see in some of these shots. There is a nice spot set up for weddings with paving stones for the walkway and the area for the bridal party. Here is a shot looking down toward this spot from the main building.
Katie and her dad are marching down the aisle. Weather is always a factor for outdoor ceremonies. With our recent heat and humidity in Rochester, I was wondering what we’d have here in Missouri. The temps were about 10 degrees higher than Rochester with as much or more humidity. The rehearsal was what I’d call sweltering. But the entire wedding party seemed to take it in stride.
I seem to be taking a lot of photos outside in the middle of the day lately. And, as I’ve mentioned too many times, the light is just not great for photography. But Lightroom helps me even things out a bit, and the noise performance of the 5D MkII helps, too. I’ve been using my 24-105 EF-L f/4 lens a lot since I bought it, and I’m liking it. It helps having such a photogenic couple, too!
During the rehearsal, I saw a photo of the couple standing with the river gently framing them. So, I asked Toby if I could take some shots after the rehearsal was done. I let them cool off inside first. Most everyone was dripping with sweat – except Katie, for some reason! I brought a portable round diffuser which we used to tone down the sunlight, and captured the top photo above of the couple. This shot is Toby and his big sister, and I loved their expressions. What great kids! Kids – yeah.
The building overlooking the ceremony site has a couple stories with walls of windows. They provide some nice light inside, but they’re mirrored and block a lot of the sunshine. Still, there were some moments and willing (or more than willing) photo subjects. A youngster in some soft lighting is always a shot worth taking. A nice expression, head cocked to the side, and who couldn’t take a great photo?
We all stopped for lunch after we were done at the vineyard. This shot involved a mix of ambient light and flash. Shooting the flash back off the upper wall behind me produced a pleasing butterfly lighting pattern which works well on such a young face. These brothers love having their pictures taken and want to see the result on the LCD. I, in turn, love practicing my craft with such willing subjects.
Sometimes, you get the shot you have in your head. That’s a feeling that’s hard to beat.
