Digital or Film for Wedding Photography

When selecting your wedding photographer you will inevitably have to decide whether you want your images captured using film or digital cameras. Both are capable of wonderful results, but the debate rages on as to which is "better", which will last longer and finally, would you even be able to tell the difference. There are many factors which come into play and I'll try to go over some of the most common misconceptions about digital wedding coverage and why I made the transition to all-digital wedding coverage three years ago.

Many falsehoods are circulated on various wedding chatboards where one person blurts out an unsubstantiated opinion and somehow this becomes "chatboard gospel". One of my favorites is: "digital photographs aren't as crisp and vibrant as those made with a film camera". This can certainly be true, if the photograph was made with a two megapixel point and shoot camera and the image printed out on an inexpensive desktop inkjet printer. However, a qualified professional will most likely be using what's known as a digital single-lens reflex camera, or DSLR, with an average of 8 megapixels and perhaps even more. These cameras, manufactured by such well-known companies as Canon and Nikon are more than capable of producing wonderfully crisp enlargements of sixteen by twenty inches and beyond. While inkjet prints may be fine for family vacation shots, I much prefer to have digital album photographs printed by a professional processing lab. The digital printer used by a pro lab is an extremely expensive and specialized piece of equipment. The prints are made on actual photographic paper and should enjoy a long fade-free life given proper care. Ask your photographer to show you some samples. You won't be disappointed.

Digital wedding photos are becoming much more prevalant due to quickly evolving technology and advancements in image storage capability. Film has been around for more than 100 years but is rapidly fading in popularity. I was reluctant to provide full digital coverage for my clients until I was confident that the finished product could meet or exceed that which I could deliver using film. I've seen the wonderful results from my digital gear and nothing could convince me to go back to film. Other market factors influenced my decision, such as long-time medium format camera manufacturer Bronica discontinuing US availability for a number of products and Canon's recent announcement indicating that they may halt future development of their film camera line.

There are many advantages for the Bride and Groom when they choose an all-digital photographer. Some of these include the ability for online posting of their wedding photos, conversion of images from color to black and white or antique sepia tones and the ability to have the photos placed on a CD or DVD for easy storage. From your photographer's perspective, starting with a digital file allows for superior image retouching and corrections when necessary. Additionally, the larger storage capabilities of a digital camera allow the photographer to shoot more images, giving the client a greater selection when it comes time to assemble the wedding album.


About the author:
Andy Heller is the owner/operator of Heller Photography Boston wedding photographers specializes in Boston Wedding Photography and social events throughout Massachusetts since 1987. He can be reached at 508-668-4277 or by email: andy@hellerphoto.com

Photographing Your Wedding Formals

Whether you choose to do you your formal photographs prior to the ceremony or immediately afterwards, you'll find that these formal group photographs will become some of your most treasured memories in years to come. How your photographer organizes these groupings will have a great effect on the outcome of these photographs. There are a number of different philosophies when it comes to photographing families, bridesmaids and ushers and the biggest obstacle facing you and your photographer are the time constraints which are an unfortunate part of the wedding day.

This is where having a gameplan will be of great benefit. It has been my experience that a "formals" session will typically last anywhere between forty minutes and one hour. Clock-watching becomes a necessity because everyone involved in your wedding day has a job to do, and running late is never a good idea. Your function director will generally have a pretty tight timeline regarding seating your guests and getting dinner on the table. Timely completion of your formal photography session may prevent the burning of 250 plates of Chicken Cordon Bleu, and there's nothing worse than dry, overdone chicken!

I like to start a photography session with the largest groups first. If you have a sizable wedding party they'll appreciate the fact that you've completed their photographs and now they can go enjoy a cocktail and some hor's doerves. Next I like to photograph the bride's family and the groom's, followed by any aunts, uncles, cousins and special requests. Finally, I can concentrate on the Bride and Groom and give them the attention they deserve without worrying about the "next" shot we'll need to take. At this point everyone is ready to be introduced into the reception hall, with nothing but free-flowing candid coverage for the remainder of the day.

If formal photographs are important to you, (and why wouldn't they be) I strongly suggest that you create a list of the formal groupings that you wouldn't want to miss. On such a busy and exciting day you're likely to forget a grouping or two, and you certainly can't hold your photographer responsible for missing a family photo if you never told him to take it! My photography assistant plays the role of "second-string quarterback", holding the clipboard containing the shot list and checking them off as we go. Another tip is to let those folks who you'd like involved in photographs know in advance that they'll be needed. Remember, you may have less than one hour to get this done. You don't have time to track people down and get them to the photography area.

Another possibility which works for some couples is to complete the formal photographs prior to the ceremony. I know some of you are cringing at the thought of breaking with tradition, but if you analyze the advantages you may find that this is an option worth considering. Obviously, a pre-ceremony photo session isn't possible in all cases, but works particularly well when the ceremony and reception are taking place at the same venue. I'll simply have the key parties arrive about one and a half hours prior to the start of the ceremony and then go through the groupings in much the same way as described above. The advantages here are obvious: Time restrictions have been eliminated, cocktail hour can now be enjoyed by everyone, including the bride and groom and best of all, no burnt chicken!

About the author:
Andy Heller is the owner/operator of Heller Photography, http://www.hellerphoto.com specializing in Boston Wedding Photography and social events throughout Massachusetts since 1987. He can be reached at 508-668-4277 or by email: andy@hellerphoto.com