This past weekend I attended a wedding as a guest for once.  One of my wife’s good friends had a wedding down in Los Angeles so we made the trek down to share in their celebration.  I must say that I had to debate in my mind what I was going to do in terms of what camera I was going to bring.  I of course feel a little naked at a wedding without my full on rig but then again I wanted to enjoy myself and it is sometimes awkward for the hired photographer if there are too many people trying to shoot pictures.  As it ends up I took my Leica manual 35mm film camera “Art Camera” and my little Sony NEX 7.  I did feel a little strange without the 5D Mk III but then again it was also very freeing.  I would have had a little more fun though if I had not forgotten most of my film since I had placed it in the hotel refrigerator since I was worried that it would get damaged since we were driving around in the hot LA weather for a couple days prior to the wedding.  As it was though I snapped off a roll or so and then just took some candid stuff with the Sony.

For all you avid photographers out there.  My advice would be remember you are there to have a good time and celebrate.  By all means go ahead and take some pictures but please have courtesy for the hired photographer as it is their job to capture the day, not yours.  You might grab a few really nice shots that you can share with the couple but often you might just be ruining the shots the professionals are trying to take.  There is room for everyone to take pictures so the best thing is to be mindful of the hired photographers and not copy what they are trying to do or be in their way.  The couple does not need a shot that is similar to what their photographer is taking, what might be nicer is to get all the other little things that are going on since no photographer can be everywhere.

Remember a wedding is a celebration, not a photo competition.  Hope that everyone is having a good week.