There's so much to remember about shooting a wedding, and so many important moments to capture. Sometimes it's easy to miss a wedding detail shot. These small details are often things that were carefully chosen by the couple in the run-up to their big day.
You may also find yourself having very little time to shoot a lot of tiny details on a particularly busy wedding day. But this article is going to help.
Below, I'm going through what, when, and how to document these details. You can keep your shooting time to a minimum this way. And make sure you're thoroughly impressed with your beautiful, memory-saving images.
How to Compose Images of Wedding Details The first thing to consider when taking any wedding detail shots is how and where each one could be used.
Maybe you're going to supply the couple with a wedding album. Or maybe designing a sample for your own experience or to promote your photography.
It's important to think about the orientation (i.e. portrait and landscape) of your detailed images.
They may not end up as the main focus of any page in the album. But they can make fantastic backgrounds for layering your more people-centric shots.
If you're unsure about which type of album you might end up providing, it should only take an extra second or two to compose and shoot both the landscape and the portrait so that all the bases are covered.
Wedding Details Shot List: Must-Haves A list of special wedding details shot will help enormously. Here are 7 'must-have' image types to include, in the approximate chronological order of the wedding day.
Shoes and Accessories As soon as you get to the wedding or groom prep venue, the first thing you should do is shoot your shoes and accessories.
Yes, my bride and groom. A lot of guys are going to buy new shoes specifically for the day.
While you might think they wouldn't be interested in taking pictures of their shoes, a nice shot of the shoes in pristine condition (with a logo emblazoned box if they're an expensive brand or make) will always be appreciated.
It's a no-brainer for the bride. Take wedding jewelry shots with your shoes, along with other items like a junkie or any gifts the groom has given.
A shot of the shoes with the bride's dress hanging up is a nice touch, too.
The best lens for this would be anything with a wide enough aperture to get the background out of focus. This keeps your attention on the shoes.
I tend to use an f/1.8 35 mm. This allows me to get close and nice for maximum sharpness and detail. This also lets me get a little bit more into the frame (like part of the dress) if I back up a little bit.
If you don't have a wide-open lens, then another trick is to throw some light on your shoes and expose them to the highlights. This makes everything else in the frame dark.
There's no need for anything fancy when lighting wedding details this way. A simple desk lamp for your subject can work here.
The best lens for this would be anything with a wide enough aperture to get the background out of focus. This keeps your attention on the shoes.
I tend to use an f/1.8 35 mm. This allows me to get close and nice for maximum sharpness and detail. This also lets me get a little bit more into the frame (like part of the dress) if I back up a little bit.
If you don't have a wide-open lens, then another trick is to throw some light on your shoes and expose them to the highlights. This makes everything else in the frame dark.
There's no need for anything fancy when lighting wedding details this way. A simple desk lamp for your subject can work here.
Shoot the flowers against a clear or neutral background. Preferably with them stood up at their end (but this will depend on the bouquet).
Like shoes, some angled, off-camera light, or some diffused natural light from a window just out of sight, will make the image come alive.
You'll want to shoot the gents' buttonholes later while they're wearing them. There is no need to include the faces here. You can even make a more creative shot by excluding them, as in the shot below.
For both bouquets and buttonholes, I tend to use a longer focal length when I have a room, typically the 135-200 mm range. This is to make use of the compression offered by these longer lenses to provide a shallower depth of field.
Wedding Photographer Pro Tip Shoot the flowers with a business card, a complimentary slip or a logo. Supply these shots to them after the two of them have their images.
In fact, any time you are able to shoot and share some product shots of services provided by external vendors (hair and make-up artist, cake, DJ, Master of Ceremonies, or even the venue building itself, etc.) then you should.
This could be a great way to build working relationships. And it will encourage vendors to offer their services to any of their future clients.
Ceremony Details Of course, taking all the required full-length shots of the bride and groom at the altar is a given. But you're also going to want to look around for any personal touch that a couple have added or asked for at the ceremony venue.
Think of the floral arrangements that match the bride's bouquet, the pianist's sheet music (as the couple are likely to have requested these songs themselves), or any other creative items that represent the interests or hobbies of the couple.
All these little details matter to the couple, and you're going to impress them if they feel you've realized their importance.
You're more than likely to be forbidden to use flash during this part of the day. A wide-opening lens of any focal length will allow a lot of available light to expose your shot properly without raising your ISO too much.
Wedding Party Wedding Party Detail shots is one of the easiest tasks of the day. Usually, you can capture them by wandering around the canapés after the ceremony.
Pictures of the bride's hair brooch that belonged to her grandma, or maybe the groomsmen's novelty cuff-links are the kind of things you're looking for. Along with any part of the bridesmaids' dresses or groomsmen's suits that are unique or stand out.
The lens used for these is completely dependent on what you shoot at the time with the candid group portraits.
Getting these wedding details shots is more about keeping one eye on potential opportunities than the choice of a lens.
Spontaneous Intimate Moments These moments can happen at any point of the day because they are, well, spontaneous. Like the wedding party's detailed shots, a lot of this relies on a keen eye.
These shots could be anything from the bride giving her parents a small, personal gift before the ceremony, to the elder grandfather of the bride looking delicately at his granddaughter's ring after the ceremony. Or something as simple as the groom holding the bride's dress as she walks, showing off his wedding ring.
DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS?
FOLLOW US ON 
