And so, Husni [my brother, 3rd of four siblings] is now a happily married man. Doomed Destined to spend his life with the woman that stole the very heart of him. The wedding was not a grand event but it was truly a merry one, attended by beloved family members and friends, accompanied by good food. However, I’m not here to tell the story of how the couple came together and finally tied a knot bound by a diamond ring, oh no no no. As usual, this blog entry here will be talking about me. [as if you don't know that already lah]

As for me, I was the main photographer. Needless to say, the faith my brother had in me was beyond any honor I could ever hold. The wedding was my first big assignment and I am, at this point, pleasantly surprised. Well, technically, at least.

Thanks to the previous shooting run in terrible lighting conditions, I have discovered the most versatile method of shooting indoors without a tripod or an SLR. However, this can only be done with cameras that support a flashgun. Shoot in shutter priority [S mode in most PASM-able digicams, Tv mode for Canons], set speed to 1/20s, at ISO 200 and [the key ingredient] point the flash gun at approximately 90° to the ceiling.

This alows us to;
- shoot freehanded in low light without worry of camera shake effects
[1/20s is the slowest speed that lets you shoot freehanded in low light WITHOUT the blur effects. A powerful OIS helps, too.]

- absorb as much light without creating too much noise
[ISO 200 might seem ridiculous, but for most compacts and prosumers, this is just the right sensitivy in low light and minimal noise]

- shower the subject with sufficient, clean and evenly scattered light for an exposure that’s just right.
[a bright coloured ceiling will bounce the strong, harsh light of the flash in all directions, softens it, and evens it out as though it was a strong, natural-type lighting]

A sample of the result?

They were wearing white, and it was quite tricky not to overexpose them and lose details like folds in the fabric etc. However, I believe that’s just about it when it comes to technical specifics. Once you get the hang of it, shooting in poorly lit indoors or low light outdoors is just a walk in the park. What matters to me, however, is the more important important part of a wedding.

I have yet to hear this from a pro’s mouth, but I believe a wedding can be said as a conclusion to a tale of romance. A series of wedding photos should speak volumes of the love that couple shared and at least say a thing or two about their passion. Conservative or not, I believe romance and intimacy is something that should be felt when looking at a wedding photo album. This is something my shooting run at Terengganu seriously lacked. I am, of course, frustrated at this fact.

Look at this for example.

What do you see? More importantly, what do you feel? Personally, I think it looks like a pair of dolled up fellas posing around wearing silky clothes in an over-decorated bedroom.

What a beautiful young couple, you say.

Yes, that’s what they are. And that’s all the photo could ever say. It’s the only impression you could ever get from such a photo. There’s absolutely NOTHING SPECIAL about it. A wedding is supposed to be special. It’s one of the biggest days of a person’s life. So big, it might only happen once in a lifetime. It HAS to be special, yet, that photo didn’t even have the word special on it. Not even a glimpse.

It’s just a photo.

Of course, I tried to improve the situation a while later by coaxing them into different poses. The bride was a natural at this, but not the groom. I’ve known my brother all my life, and if its one thing I know about him is what a lousy model he makes. Look at this;

Of course, there were also other people with cameras in the room, but I was the only one trying desperately to make a precious shot. I tried to get them to pretend as though there were no cameras in the room, so just act selamba lah. But did you see the flaw? The major, major flaw?



Yes. My brother has this habit of looking directly at the lens and give a giant smile whenever he’s asked to pose. Ok, so I told him don’t look at me! Sure, he did that, BUT HE JUST HAD TO LOOK INTO SOMEONE ELSE’S LENS!!!! There went my attempt at creating a sense of romance. What frustration. I was conceptually pulling my hair in 10 places just to stay calm.

Of course, as usual, my better photos are ones that don’t include a human face in it. In closing, this first wedding assignment was a technical success, but I believe with more practice and experience, I’ll be able to earn a signature style that will bring me more results that I can be happy with. The photos below are my favourites, and I hope you like them, too. Laters.