This was taken on Saturday when I photographed Daniel and Catherine's wedding in Kendal with my good mate Craig. It was a very relaxed day: we started shooting at the hairdresser's at around 11am (where this shot of one of Catherine's two bridesmaids was taken), then moved back to the hotel for the ceremony, meal and reception. We finished up at around 10pm then headed back to Blackpool to copy our CF cards, have a first run through the images, and drink a few beers. We got some great shots and I'll be posting a few more over the next week or so.
I'll post some more thoughts about wedding photography in a day or so, but right now I need to dash out the door and get down to our office in Blackpool. I have a 1-2-1 training session to deliver tomorrow, and a to-do list that's as long as my arm :)
Update: the version that's tom live is less extreme than the one I posted earlier, i.e. there's more detail in her skin in this version.
captured camera lens focal length aperture shutter speed shooting mode exposure bias metering mode ISO flash image quality RAW converter plugins (etc) cropped?
comment by Oli at 09:02 AM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Great shot, but perhaps the skin smoothing is a little OTT?
I love the 'show the original' feature of your layout - I'd've preferred a finished result somewhere around a quarter of the way from original to final version.
comment bydjn1 at 09:08 AM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Oli: most of the skin smoothing is the result of adding a duplicate layer, blurring it, then changing the blend mode to Soft Light. It does produce a very dreamy, soft result, but in this instance I thought it suited the image. Oh, and I should add that the skin detail hasn't been eradicated, but it's not especially noticeable at this resolution.
comment bydjib at 09:47 AM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Very nice portrait. I love the point of view, the moment is well capture, and as always, your processing is great.
comment byManuelaR at 10:41 AM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Wonderful capture of a precious moment.
comment by marcus at 01:00 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
I've always enjoyed your photography, but with the "show the original" feature, I appreciate it even more.
Also, I think you might sell even more tutorial subscriptions if you listed what techniques you've applied to each image and which of your tutorials cover that technique.
comment by Daniel at 03:52 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Great picture David. I can't wait to see the rest.
Thanks for helping towards our great day.
comment byCarlos Garcia at 04:24 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Great capture and the processing brings so much to life in her eyes. Nice.
comment byDan Kaufman at 06:00 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
very well done. ...and I appreciate the tip on the skin smoothing. I'll "try" to remember that.
comment byRonald at 09:39 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2010
Great shot David.
comment by Tim Abramowitz at 02:57 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2010
This is fantastic David. I'd love to see a mini PSD of this one. Loving Bokeh 2. Thanks for turning me on to this.
comment byTom at 04:03 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2010
I did see the first version, and I do prefer this second version where you can see slightly more of her skin.
It's interesting - I think the 'show the original' feature is great, but in this case seeing the original hasn't done anything for my appreciation of what you've achieved in post with this photo. For example, I saw the blog post and initially thought it looked great - proper fairytale picture of a girl on her perfect day. Then I saw the original and it detracted from that image. The reality kinda intruded on the fairytale, if that makes sense.
comment bydjn1 at 06:05 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2010
Tom: yes, it does make sense, and I agree - it can alter the way you perceive the final image.
comment byMQPhoto at 08:34 AM (GMT) on 17 September, 2010
Really love this one. Love the eyes details and the sharpness and softness. I hope I see this one as mini psd file soon. Dave as always, superb shot
comment byJames Howe at 12:17 AM (GMT) on 24 September, 2010
Terrific job with this image. I really like the post processing on it. It's a great shot to begin with, but the processing really takes it up further. The processing really draws your view into the eyes.
This was taken on Saturday when I photographed Daniel and Catherine's wedding in Kendal with my good mate Craig. It was a very relaxed day: we started shooting at the hairdresser's at around 11am (where this shot of one of Catherine's two bridesmaids was taken), then moved back to the hotel for the ceremony, meal and reception. We finished up at around 10pm then headed back to Blackpool to copy our CF cards, have a first run through the images, and drink a few beers. We got some great shots and I'll be posting a few more over the next week or so.
I'll post some more thoughts about wedding photography in a day or so, but right now I need to dash out the door and get down to our office in Blackpool. I have a 1-2-1 training session to deliver tomorrow, and a to-do list that's as long as my arm :)
Update: the version that's tom live is less extreme than the one I posted earlier, i.e. there's more detail in her skin in this version.
camera
lens
focal length
aperture
shutter speed
shooting mode
exposure bias
metering mode
ISO
flash
image quality
RAW converter
plugins (etc)
cropped?
Canon 5D Mark II
EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM
125mm
f/2.8
1/200
aperture priority
+2/3
evaluative
100
no
RAW
ACR
Bokeh 2
no
Great shot, but perhaps the skin smoothing is a little OTT?
I love the 'show the original' feature of your layout - I'd've preferred a finished result somewhere around a quarter of the way from original to final version.
Oli: most of the skin smoothing is the result of adding a duplicate layer, blurring it, then changing the blend mode to Soft Light. It does produce a very dreamy, soft result, but in this instance I thought it suited the image. Oh, and I should add that the skin detail hasn't been eradicated, but it's not especially noticeable at this resolution.
Very nice portrait. I love the point of view, the moment is well capture, and as always, your processing is great.
Wonderful capture of a precious moment.
I've always enjoyed your photography, but with the "show the original" feature, I appreciate it even more.
Also, I think you might sell even more tutorial subscriptions if you listed what techniques you've applied to each image and which of your tutorials cover that technique.
Great picture David. I can't wait to see the rest.
Thanks for helping towards our great day.
Great capture and the processing brings so much to life in her eyes. Nice.
very well done. ...and I appreciate the tip on the skin smoothing. I'll "try" to remember that.
Great shot David.
This is fantastic David. I'd love to see a mini PSD of this one. Loving Bokeh 2. Thanks for turning me on to this.
I did see the first version, and I do prefer this second version where you can see slightly more of her skin.
It's interesting - I think the 'show the original' feature is great, but in this case seeing the original hasn't done anything for my appreciation of what you've achieved in post with this photo. For example, I saw the blog post and initially thought it looked great - proper fairytale picture of a girl on her perfect day. Then I saw the original and it detracted from that image. The reality kinda intruded on the fairytale, if that makes sense.
Tom: yes, it does make sense, and I agree - it can alter the way you perceive the final image.
Really love this one. Love the eyes details and the sharpness and softness. I hope I see this one as mini psd file soon. Dave as always, superb shot
Terrific job with this image. I really like the post processing on it. It's a great shot to begin with, but the processing really takes it up further. The processing really draws your view into the eyes.