>>my sister in law asked me to be the photographer on her wedding. <<
Pat Warnshuis responded:
>DON'T DO IT!!! Volunteer to take pictures at the wedding but DO NOT take
on the >responsibility of being THE wedding photog. This is a specialty
field and, trust me, >you are going to fail their expectations in some way.
There are scores of horror >stories of relationships destroyed by false and
un-negotiated expectations on both >sides. I urge you to have them hire an
official photographer and offer to take some >personal, amateur shots on
your own.
I truly have to agree with Pat on all of his points. Leave it to a Pro or
at the very least someone with a very thick skin that can accept massive
amounts of criticism. It's not worth the hassle. I've done about 4 weddings
in the past, and only because they had no other choice. I was very
fortunate, all of mine turned out well. I have no personal horror stories
but believe me I have several friends who could tell you some.
>From a personal point of view however I did do a wedding for 2 close
friends about 10 years ago. I had known both of these people for close 10
yrs. Both of these people were the most laid back and easy going people
you'll ever meet. BUT, on that wedding day they both changed immensely,
whether it was the stress or the excitement of the day, but they were very
difficult to work with. I was lucky, I was able to tell them to take a deep
breath, relax and let me do my job. It went well fortunately and I was able
to give them what they wanted. But I have to tell you it was very tense for
a couple of hours. They apologized over and over again the next day at the
gift opening (where I also told them I'd take some photos) for their
actions. It could have ruined a very good relationship, fortunately it
didn't.
Think carefully about doing the wedding!!!
Terry
