Anything going wrong- please inform us immediately.
Check that the card is empty. If not, ensure that the data has been transferred before deleting. Before starting, ensure the number of shots /data that can be recorded. If the camera was used on any other brand /type of camera the images may not show.
change the battery half way through rather than changing, when it is completely exhausted. Batteries generally charge quite fast so put it on charging at the earliest.
SD cards are very sensitive at the contact points and also very delicate. Keep them in their storage cases only and not loose.
Always, keep the lens caps etc in the bag or pockets and never on the location -tables etc. For example, if you are removing the flash, keep it straight in the bag, your jacket but never keep it on the chair /table next to you, You may forget it there.
If you are replacing a Photographer for a short period of time, do not change the settings of the original photographer who is going to come back and resume the job.
Ensure that the lens is clean. Do not keep the lens in the camera bag without the cover.
Try not to be in the frame of the other fellow photographers. Avoid the umbrellas at least.
Dress code - Please wear Black as much as possible. If not Black keep it dark- Greys, Blues are also fine as long as they are towards black. Strictly avoid bright colours. Ideally wear "Together we rock" deep Blue Jackets / T-shirts.
You may wear smart comfortable casuals or formals but keep it towards blacks only.Strictly Avoid wearing whites.
Please understand the equipment well before hand and do not drastically change the settings.
Keep all your extra lenses, batteries etc with you so that you are self dependant and do not need another person to assist you with your immediate requirements, like changing the battery or the lens.
Concentrate on the composition, angles and expressions. Do not leave too much space on top of the head.
Do not tilt the camera
Use focus lock if needed. If people are on the side and not in the centre, Focus on one of them and recompose the frame without lifting the finger.
Keep the camera parallel to the subject. This will help avoid distortion. The distortion does not happen just by using a wide angle but by using it too close or by tilting the camera / by keeping one part of your subject too close to the camera
Do not take photos of people eating food. take long shots. or take photos when they are not actually putting food in the mouth. Holding the plate / glass is fine. or posing with the plate on the table is fine but strictly not while putting food in the mouth.
Do not Physically touch the Bride /Groom. Communicate through directions. Also, when you come physically closer, you come in the frame of other fellow photographers who are shooting candid and natural photos.
APERTURE : its good to have an out of focus background but its very important to keep everyone in focus as well. Especially with more than one person in the frame do close down the aperture to cover everyone with depth of field. 5.6 / 6.3/ 7.5 work well.
Don't just judge your photos from the camera LCD. Due to small size they appear to be sharp but they may not be so close down the aperture for safety.
Go to the higher ISO only if you are unable to get a good exposure otherwise.
FORMAT- Shoot on RAW - the largest file size of your camera. You may also opt to shoot RAW + jpeg (small)
For the interviews, lets avoid the flash. So, while interview is going on do not shoot stills. But this may not be always avoidable.
Also take some Close up and detail shots but not at the expense of missing the main action.
No Hard shadows. Use Bounced flash /off camera / soft box /reflector etc.
Framing tight is not a bad idea as it excludes the unwanted elements but Do not frame too tight and cut the frame at the wrong places. If an extra face is included, let it show completely....
During dance, shoot at the peak moment.
Movement and trails in Dance shots. use the highest synch speed of your camera instead of 60th of sec. However, during other times its better to use 60th of a sec as it helps in recording the background /ambient light better, without having to increase the ISO.
VIDEO-
SOUND is just as important to us as the visual, Be careful when speaking. Pay attention to the conversation of your subjects as well. And do not switch off in between.
Do coordinate visually in terms of the angle of view with your fellow videographers so that both are shooting differently. If one is wide the other one can mostly stay tele/close. However do not include the other partner in the frame. so do not shoot in opposite directions but at different angles and with different focal lengths.
Lets try to place the light sideways somehow, instead of placing it on the hotshoe unless unavoidable. Warm light is better.
White balance - let's keep all cameras on the same white balance.
Time. Let's match the time of all the video cameras. This helps in faster editing. All our cameras are time matched.
For couple portraits, Posed photos made for the still camera are not important but for the video, get them to do some action and record that. Let's say, walking from opposite directions and then hugging each other and striking a pose.....just an example. So include a lot of movement in your recordings rather than recording the stationery posed couple.
On the stage, pan the camera while shooting posed group shots. Rather, for video, its more important to shoot the people as they greet the couple or as they are in the process of posing....the intention again is to include movement rather than shooting people stationery. And in that case, the camera may be given movement.
Interview -sound recording - Do not use the autofocus lens as the sound of the focusing gets recorded as well.
During performances, use one camera on tripod, if we are shooting with multiple cameras.