JD's wedding
 

This is my buddy JD, she will be getting married soon and I thought I might take the opportunity to get some photos of her in her wedding dress.

I first ask her where she was going to be married so that I might check it out before our photo shoot. She gave me the name of a little out of the way "chapel for rent." When I arrived it looked like one of those chapels connected to the we-no-tell-motel. There was nothing there that I felt would enhance the image.

So I left, trying to think outside the bun, trying to come up with a suitable alternative. You can't just walk into any church and start taking photographs. They kinda want you to be connected somehow.

So the thought came to mind ... why not a hotel lobby? So I went to the local Double Tree Hotel and asked the manager if I could use his lobby for a few photos. These are not going to be wedding photos per se, so why not (talking to myself now)?

Here are a few of the photos we came up with. The first is my favorite, I'll post a close up of it as well.

close up ...

This one was in the fancy restaurant ...

When you've got this much dress, sooner or later you're going to have to spread it all out. I had another gal off to the side with a white foam board bouncing some light back onto JD. There was some window light coming from her back plus all kind of other lights to contend with.

JD is so, so pale. She is almost the color of her dress. In retrospect I wish I had used a warming filter.

Mike:

I agree. The first photo could be a striking painting. The negative spaces, overall light and dark pattern, the subtle colors of that chair, all are wonderful elements. Regarding the negative space created by her right arm, did you touch that up in Photo Shop to remove those blue vases? It's better like that.

Painting the pale dress without it dominating the picture will be a supreme challenge. She has such an intriguing expression; it would be a pity to lose it in white fabric. I wish I saw something of her left hand even if it were just a few fingers explaining how she

Great idea to do a photo shoot in a nice hotel lobby. I once had a client here from out of town who ended up doing the photo shoot on my porch --since we couldn't think of any place else to do it. A hotel lobby would have been much nicer!

Regarding these photos, I have to disagree with Scott and say that I don't like her facial expression in any of them. It looks like she's being forced to marry against her will. Either that or she just found out that the frog isn't going to turn into a prince after all.

Scott,

I did stitch out those vases behind her. And, I agree that adding some indication of a hand on her left side would be a plus. What would you say to eliminating the far right chair and placing a vase at the right end of the sideboard?

Michele,

I liked the hotel lobby, they were very accomodating. You do have to deal with the passers by, but we managed. When you must include so much of the model (or multiple models) in the frame, trying to include a good part of that dress, you have to have a volume of space to accept it. Very few homes will have this kind of volume, and churches don't give up their space for nothing.

As for her expression, this close up expression doesn't bother me that much. I took two rolls of 36 Fuji pro film and I would say that the close up above is the only expression that comes close to being worthy. She really didn't relate to the camera that well. If you had asked me before hand I would have thought the opposite. I still can't predict these things.

I do like the first image and she will like them all so it was all worth while. I like to practice on these matters when there is no real pressure to make it perfect.

Here is another one of those "big" shots ...

Hi Mike,

The first photo - oh, yes. I love the hint of an attitude that happens with this pose. It has a little of that Boldini sassiness that I like in big, elegant-woman paintings. (To me, the test is, does it look like I could sit next to this person during a long dinner party? Would she capture my interest?)

A woman could be as dull as dishwater but she would never want to appear that way in a painting. You're already off to a good start.

I agree with Scott, though, it would be good to see how, exactly, she is leaning her torso back to the desk.

By the way, I hope you're planning on working BIG scale with this one.

Linda,

A dinner party? Maybe. A Moon pie and an RC cola? Sure. A car trip to Cleveland? I'm out.

If I figure right, you could do a 48 high and have the head a little over seven inches. I think this would be the minimum. I'll be keeping this image (the only one I think from this shoot) in my "someday" file.

I went to a fair amount of trouble for one pretty good image. I still think it was well worth the effort. What's the value of one good image (rhetorically speaking)?

Mike,

Your photo choice is my favorite, too. Can I ask you what lighting you used in these big spaces? Did you bring in big expensive lighting? I am very curious because I live in an apartment building which used to be a hotel and has a beautiful grand lobby, maybe I should practice some photography in my lobby. But it has one west window and I haven't a clue as to what to do about artificial lighting.

Pat

Patricia,

Every photo shown above was taken with available light, no flash at all. The only one with assistance is the full dress profile. In this shot I had an assistant holding a white foam board to bounce light onto her face.

In the main lobby area there was a very large window (south) light source which ran maybe 80-100 feet, along with all the other artificial lamps, chandeliers and ceiling can lights. In the first photo this large window light was coming at the subject almost head on from aproximately fifty feet away. The presence of this large natural light source drew my interest and made the job easier.

The one at the piano (off the lobby in a restaurant) was also using only available light.

These large full figure dress photos were taken mainly for her benefit and not mine. I'm not interested in painting something like that for a portfolio piece, it would take a huge canvas. If my goal was to paint one of them it would be essential to get close up shots of many aspects of the subject, dress top, dress train, face, hands, etc. I think it could be tricky to keep the same camera prospective while getting these close-ups for such a large piece.

If the Governor were to ask me to paint a portrait of his daughter in her wedding dress, I think I would get information about the dress and determine the scope of the pose. I would then dress my daughter (or model) as closely as I could. I would then take her to the location (marking the time of day) and take at least two rolls of film. After analyzing the results (taking sufficient notes) I might do it one more time trying to nail down at least three poses. I would then make the appointment for that exact time of day and give that a go. I might even hire a photographer.

If the Governor wanted the bride and groom, I would talk him out of it. The groom only serves to muck up the image, in my only slightly humble opinion.

As to your lobby, it sounds like something you should take advantange of. Don't worry too much about which way the window is faceing. By the time the light gets to Cleveland it's pretty much spent anyway. Grab a friend and take some shots.