For the second time in 2 weeks I have been questioned by a potential client about whether film is better than digital capture for weddings. I am not sure if this is a trend, but let me say this in a way that will leave no doubt. Anyone who tells you that film is better just cannot trust themselves to actually use a camera correctly.
There, I said it.
Digital is harder, and requires more skill than film. With film we could be off on the exposure by up to 30-40% and the lab could still save the image. With digital that margin is less than 10%. So you need to be careful all the time on getting it “right at the click”. In addition you need to have the white balance set correctly to get the most out of the files, and this changes constantly during a wedding day. Outside under a tree light is green, in a church it is yellow, and you need to always watch it as it changes. Want more info? Read on…
Now, I have heard some photographers tell clients that film is better, and they scan every neg for the client so they have both. This is ridiculous. First off, scans of negs generate a second generation image, and it will never look as good as the original. Tuxes lose detail, as do white dresses, and skin picks up noise. And if the neg is off on the exposure, it will render the scan almost unusable. By the time you get to the print you are three generations from the capture (Film, scan, print), and any mistakes will be very noticeable.
In the “old days” we used negative film that is 4-5 times the size of current 35 mm film. In this case film IS better than digital, AND you can scan these huge film sheets and get great results. BUT, in those days, we only created 300 or so images, far from the 1000+ images we can now. And truly, the difference between those large negs and today’s digital capture is barely noticeable in a wedding album. The upside for couples here is huge because the artist can shoot the story and not worry about how many words are needed.
Other benefits to digital capture are also huge. Once I am home from a wedding I backup the images on 2 hard drives, before I stop for the night. The cards are never erased until a set of originals is burned off on DVD and stored in my home and studio. I learned even more ways to bulletproof my system after reading about how photographers in New Orleans lost their entire studios in the floods, leaving many clients with nothing. With film we need to have it processed, meaning it leaves our possession. The occasional stories of lazy delivery people losing shipments and labs poorly processing the film, leaving couples with no photos are eliminated by a studio that follows simple steps to duplicate their priceless files after a once in a lifetime event.
I can go on into what we can do artistically with the images to make them even more precious to our clients, but I will stop here. The bottom line is, today’s digital cameras, in the hands of the most skilled artists, can create the most beautiful images you will ever see. They will tell the story of a wedding in greater detail than ever before, in richer colors than ever before, and with less risk to the images than ever before. So the next time you hear someone say they shoot film at a wedding, tell them they need to evolve!
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I was asked to photograph all the pros at Town and Country Sports last week. They are one fit bunch, and were a lot of fun to play with. Being now into my second year of Spinning, and still addicted, it was especially cool to do the instructors that have been abusing me for so long. We did them all individually, but my plan was always to create a Nike ad-like art piece for the spinning suite. These images were painstakingly blended together, and to make it look even better, the lighting during each individual shot needed to be perfect for this result.
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On Thursday evening the girls at the Aquarium put on one cool bridal show, with an amazing group of brides coming to find professionals for their upcoming weddings. Being a part of such a great event was awesome, and Margaret, Nikki, Brent, and the staff there were absolutely perfect. I cannot wait for the next show, ladies!
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For the past few years I have had the pleasure to shoot the team photo for the Cyclones, including the year they won the championship. Many people have asked me how the session goes, so I thought I would give some details, along with some photos. The shot is done right on the ice. The trickiest parts are to not fall with cameras in my hands, and keeping the players from messing up the fresh ice too much. As you can imagine, the players are not really into the whole thing.
Once we have the light set up and tested, I climb in a lift and head higher than I would like to be to shoot the photos. It makes the image much better, but I have found that shaky knees make the bucket shake, so holding still is a challenge. Check out the photo of me on the lift, and the finished photo.
Oh, and this year I did something brand new. Normally the photos are done normally, one shot, over and over. This year I used a new process where I created 5 shots, each of a segment of the whole team. We then blend them together in post processing, creating a file basically 5 times the resolution, meaning you can clearly see each cut, bruise, and space where there used to be a tooth.
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In an earlier post I described the Ethics Diploma the Chamber has been offering high school students in their senior year. These students have been working hard, and we wanted to recognize an ambassador from each school. You can see them all here. We will be adding to the gallery for the rest of the year, so check back often. On behalf of Mansion Hill Studio I want to offer congratulations to a group of the finest our area has to offer!
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We are one of the few studios in the country that have invested in what can only be described as the coolest background system in the country, Virtual Backgrounds. Think Avatar for portraits. The system allows up to add the perfect backgrounds to our setups for a portrait, matching it’s tone, color and mood. In addition, we can make changes to each setup in seconds, giving our clients more choices than ever. In 2009 we started creating our own, custom backgrounds, meaning our clients get creativity found no where else in the world.
Here are some samples:
This giant leap in what we offer our clients has resulted in even more thrilled clients, as well as being recognized as one of the top senior studios in the country. The creator of the system we use even selected us as the photographer of the month. Here is the link to read the article, and see some more of the images we have created with Virtual Backgrounds.
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We recently were featured in the NKY Chamber Newsletter for our contribution to the 2010 Ethics degree program. Check it out!
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Yep, we are! Every winter we update our displays and web page, and we look for fun new faces to play with. Seniors, kids, newborns or families are all invited. Call today because sessions are limited!
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If we photographed your wedding before 2005 we need to hear from you. You have the chance to take ownership of your negatives, and we will even throw in a family session too. But time is limted so please call today
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Every year we work withour church to find familes that are struggling, and lend a helping hand. Our kids buy presents, we cook meals for them, whatever they might need. This year I decided to add portrait sessions. I feel strongly that portraits, while not food or shelter, still offer families priceless value. Children who grow up with no pictures of themselves have no visual history. If they have no photos of their families they cannot share them later in life with their kids, We have already done several sessions, offering the session, including clothing if necessary, and a portrait package including a cd of the images. We even have given holiday cards, including postage.
But we can do more, so if you know families in need, please contact us so we can try to connect to them and get a session set up. Thanks for your help!
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