Last week I helped out at a church youth activity by documenting it for the girls and their leaders.  No matter what the project, I simplify the task by reminding myself that my goal is always to tell the story.  I like photo-journalistic shots that show real life, real relationships and real people, so this kind of thing is fun for me. This was a pretty relaxed evening for me, but I still tried to get some nice, creative views of the evening.  So, here are some images that I think start to tell the story of this event, which is about a program that my church offers for teen-aged girls to set goals and make progress.

 I try not to do too much Photoshop work on my photos, but one area that I have grown rather bold in is composite images for large groups.  I take many, many of the same pose (I should have taken more here, and I need to get a wider angle lens-uff) so the lighting and image size are the same, then I can head swap to get the greatest number of happy faces possible.  I've learned several different techniques for doing it, but my favorite is to make a selection with nice feathered edges, copy it, then blend it in with the history brush and the clone stamp.  I get better every time I do it.  This was a quick job, so if you can find the composites, I'm okay with that. I needed to get it done, but if they want a large image of it, I can go back and refine the job.

Last night and today I shot a very fun wedding. The Bride and her family are friends and that made it just great. It was raining-ALL DAY LONG-so our options for real creativity were somewhat limited, but with attractive and happy people, a lovely setting and a cheerful attitude, you can get what you need.



What I learned from this wedding:

• I love the two really great lenses that I do own. I have a 50mm f/1.4 and a 70-200mm f/2.8.  Both of them are fast, reliable and I'm very comfortable with them.  I always get photos that I'm happy with while using those lenses.
• I rented a fantastic 16-35mm f/2.8 lens and am so glad I did because now I know that I don't want to buy one. I need a bit more range. A 24-70mm or so would be more useful for weddings. I would still get the wide angle I need for large groups and landscapes, but I would not have to change lenses for more normal focal ranges. 
• I need to study how to get more consistent results from my flash and also how to really make it talk to my new, more advanced camera. I got stuck a few times and was mystified as to why the camera thought it needed a slow shutter speed even though the flash was firing. 
• Rain does not need to quash the mood of a wedding. Be willing to experiment, keep expectations realistic and include it as part of the story.