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Engagement Session Part 2

Lesson 5 from: The Wedding Project

Doug Gordon

Engagement Session Part 2

Lesson 5 from: The Wedding Project

Doug Gordon

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Lesson Info

5. Engagement Session Part 2

Lesson Info

Engagement Session Part 2

We're life real situations will wedding real engagement that's what its thoughts with so it's about understanding exactly what it is that you want to accomplish now confined to literally probably an eight foot by eight foot area by I can't control weather, but what I can control is how I make them feel during that time, so if they use the situations that god I'm going to choose to shoot in his general direction because going in the other direction there's a lot of things that I want to hide it doesn't work for me, so from this standpoint I'm able to control where they are used this opening and start to again create different things so let's not to push the envelope and give her an idea of what we're gonna do we're gonna bring her in here when I want you to do is you're gonna take a seat on here and you're gonna lay back on your right elbow going this way so your fanny slide to the middle a little bit now but your legs up this way and they on your right elbow can I bring and you're goin...

g to turn on your side for me? No return facing you gonna rotate this where you got it bring your legs up, curled him into a little bit and now you've got it laying down on your elbow can I have are handsome future groom so we're gonna bring your legs out just a little bit so bring your legs that your body down to me a little bit this way and then turn on your side on your album from right here we're going to bring that in behind her. The idea again is they want to create camera angle and work within, so you're gonna bring your hand up over his head and you're gonna win and nice and close, but notice when armed goes up, look at where we put the arm here to cover it up now what's going to be important because she's so tight on the chair here is making sure that my camera angle makes it appropriate for fixing her and I don't want to make a look larger again because I know she's going to be in a profile position I want to bring her hair back out of the profile and I want you to come down this way might bring your body here and then lean in coastal put your hand underneath her neck no the other hand one hand here they're seventy and now pull into a knife scores stretcher, chin looking at each other you don't realize it, but I have beautiful wraparound light coming through right here what I'm going to do to fill this is this is literally in a quiet room could I shoot what available light yeah, but why not use some fell so in my pocket wasn't flare I have a pocket ways and over here it's right next to the camera here bouncing off the inside of the war I have it set for two stops underneath the ambient light by doing that I'm gonna fill into her face through her body now I want to make sure that her lakes come out just a little bit working there and I want to try to make sure I'm a bit of thin air out as much as I possibly can so looking at each other leaning a nice and close obviously going to start up I'm looking here and I like the high camera angle what I don't love is obviously the tree going through his back so I'm going to try to move just a little bit to get his much out of it as I possibly can and again sometimes it doesn't work the way I want so I'm going to crop in here I may even cut into the legs a little bit spot me during an exposure locking on there I'm in the manual mode on the feet and just like that smiling nice and happy let's take a look at our image I got beautiful soft like coming into the face again two stops underneath look at what happens to the background I'm sorry sweetie the background blows out completely making it that much softer and you don't know that you're inside this little box room now look one, two, three the poses we to each other so the first one they're looking at each other the second one they're going to lean in close give her a kiss meant just like that hold it close your eyes and now look at their kiss don't move the key here with their kisses that both puckering there's nothing natural about it nobody looks good when you like so what we want to try to do is just press just press nice and natural go right in there and notice were cropping right to the base of it because if you look on the other one I left his leg in now by cropping there it makes it more natural he's in and I know that I'm going to crop for the middle of his back back now from here I'm going to leave her by herself matt you come on out we're going to make the beautiful miss rachel hop up on what we're gonna do is bring her behind the chair I'm always trying to take her and separated from the back room and if you look she automatically thanks that it's going to be a traditional shot I don't want traditional I want difference I'm gonna turn her back to me I'm gonna put her elbows on here and I want her to bring her head back away to me bring your head all the way back nice and sexy you going to turn your head away from me and now all the way back we pull the hair out of the face look at how beautiful the hair looks. You're beautiful light hitting in a profile position if I want to come from this angle year head back a little bit I know it hurts but that means it looks really good ok from there and was shooting up right there let's take a look can you spread your arms a little wider? Beautiful so you could get your head back more a little bit more on turn it to your left and now your head back more just like that and look at the beautiful light hitting a look at the spread we're meeting and again and exposing on the face just like that can you bring your left arm out a little bit on the chair accident just like the other one hanging off the side but there you go just like that head back a little bit perfect take a look from there again you could relax one second way got great light way got simplicity and look at the beautiful color the backgrounds blowing its blown out it's got a lot of depth nice and simple and easy work spectacular from here now you could stand up straight beautiful we're gonna bring on man and can I have your back one second that and I'm using the chair again. I want matt to lean forward crossing his feet he's strong he's, powerful leaning forward looking at me here on now watch what we do. You're going to come around on this side here. Beautiful, good, actually come on the other side I'm sorry I like that a little bit better because it alike good, so we're bringing it here because this way, whatever little available that I have, I'm bringing into the face and er she's hiding behind a lean forward a little bit and you turn your head to him and lean forward in forward good and again, the hair is important on so many fronts because it allows me to create shadows and also create shadows that I don't want turn your head a little bit, looking down, stretch a chin out a little bit and leaning forward, eyes down, take a look at what we get so we want to make sure our cropping is excellent. So from there we're doing great, so I'm going to slide over just a little bit you doing wonderful just like that ice there, hold it nice and relax beautiful now looking up at me, beautiful perfect look at the way the light hits I love it nice and soft you are doing wonderful and you're smiling beautiful just like that happy come on give me a little bit more teeth chin up good excellent on all flashes filling the eyes again and two stops underneath we are just looking for a little softness now let's watch what we do here you're going to slide off one second we're going to get rid of this here on what I'm looking to create again is much of a story line is like a possibly get so let's take her bring her on the wall right over here and now when I look I see a lot of great things happening because of the light so look at what we do you're gonna open your legs a little bit beautiful you're going to kick your left like in between her legs your other left like for this one good just like that you're going to take your left hand on bringing up around his head hand here hand here now leaning out and you're gonna lean off the wall again it's all about the hair turn your head to me beautiful and you're gonna bring your nose to a cheek again turning out leaning forward and take a look so from there not a great shot but when we go over here we have a great shot if we use the war correct so we're going to use its create debt, but his hands got to cover up. So I'm gonna pull my camera from back over here and I'm gonna bring it in nice and tight again looking toe work and use the war and uses much of it as I possibly can. So right in here, eyes down, lean off the wall a little bit beautiful. Eyes down. Well, that's your right shoulder. Turn your head to your right till two top your head to him knows of good eyes down beautiful. Stay there just like that hold it right there. You were doing great leading off the wall just a little bit perfect. I'm using mostly natural light with a little bit of phil coming in and now turn your head away from her. Just a little bit more more not till the top of your head to him. Beautiful. Turn your head to your right notice we're turning into the light. Matt, tilt your head tour. Turn your head to me, matt, a little bit and your eyes are right here, guys looking straight out and you're both smiling just like that smile, unhappy teeth. Excellent. Now watch what we do we want to learn to use the war as a foreground. So you're going to come out just one second? I want to use the wall as much as I possibly can, and I want to start to pick up different textures, so what I'm going to do is bring her into the wall and here turning your head but opening our up, I'm opening her up to get the light to her again, I'm making the best out of what I can here just like that and you're leaning out lean forward looking down how faces to the light, which is coming from here and then I got extra philae coming in, I have the speed light coming into two stops underneath my ambient turn, your head beautiful just like that. But watch how I crop I'm going to go in and use the texture of the war looking down, you're doing great eyes down, wean forward a little bit I'm going to change it. I'm now at one hundred f four turn your head to your right, eyes out looking straight up come right here with your eyes nice and happy beautiful, smiling happy teeth that's fake come on, big. Yes, and look at that beautiful feel like coming in we got beautiful sort philae coming in again to stops underneath and I love how soft and perfect the light is again it's about creating something from nothing can't stress that enough come right up over here and I'm gonna ask you both to hop in do you mind standing here you scared all right climb on up be careful hold onto me tarmac it's up there please be careful matt you okay now here is construction of the body it's going to be really crucial turn your body towards me a little bit now wrap your arm around the back of his head but bringing around the front no take your on give me your hand and bring it around here now bring your hand up here and what I want you to do is kick your right leg forward tour and you kick your leg in front no keep it there for a second so I could explain when she brings this leg forward she doesn't realize it but she's gaining weight because I'm on lee going to get in her thigh and what's gonna happen by getting inner thighs that exposes it making it look wider so by kicking the front leg forward she gets a sexy tone but she's got to turn her body towards me nope the otherway turn your body this way now kick it forward now we need to look at each other sweep your hair back excellent and now lean to may just a little bit but look at each other and pull that hair out of the profile look at how beautiful that isthe again it's about creating something from nothing this is what I have this is what I deal with that's a wedding whatever is there is there you can't go and change the date you can't go and change the weather or the time so let's take a look at what we get looking at each other nice and soft matte stand up straight looking way to family good clean and close toe excellent looking chin up to a beautiful just like that you are doing terrific don't you move stay there let me get my exposure right so now I got good exposure I'm down it two hundredth I'm sorry one sixtieth four smiling good give her a kiss on the forehead just pressure lips on a forehead nice and relaxed close your eyes lean your body to make perfect stay there wonderful now watch what we do to change it just a little bit we're going to change it we're going to go for it we're gonna get a little risky okay bring your hands around him like you're hugging him good kick your left leg between his legs good can you hold on to it and what I want you to do can you lean out to me a little bit? Can you dip your head back beautiful push a pelvis in and watch your head back and you go for that love and can you lean your head out just a little bit and I want you to notice where his hand went that's where it normally would go the problem is it exposes the arm and it makes it look fake we won't want to do that we want to make it look tender head back all the way can you bring it out and you go get some neck loving head back but look at what he did we don't want to see him we want to see hard go behind head back previewing the top your bodies without falling to may god this is work here we go you're doing terrific take a look head back take that hand off the back wall matt good head back and you know what? I'm going to turn the flash off on the reason I'm turning the flash off is they don't want to cause any unnecessary shadows I just want to use what's right there so I'm going to go into program go to make it as quick as possible on a meter on the shadows and the highlights right on top of a face exposure lock and I forgot to turn off the flash hold on one second so it's going over expose it a little bit head back just like that there we go take a look look at the background blowout look at how soft it is and you get a nice, strong sexy image that I'm going to bring them down real quick be careful and watch how we finish up you be careful to find, sir. Kick your left again between you're going to have you back to me beautiful and bring your head all the way back wrap your arms around their head back all the way hold on to it bring your hands up around her shoulders just like that we're doing terrific head back go kiss her neck close your eyes turn your head to your left a little bit for me, rachel perfect and your head back a little bit more perfect because we all know we never get enough time now we got our image let's take a look. It should look a real nice we'll clean take a look so again the segment you guys could relax segments will boil down to one thing keeping it simple and soft and easy for them that's what it's all about kennedy, we have any questions, it's always. We always have questions. Susan, welcome back. Thank you so much. A couple people haven't asked and this is from damar who says, could you please explain how to set up the external flash two stops under ambien simple it's, my pocket ways, it's my pocket wizard is a unique radio trigger unit, and I have what's called in a ceased a c three zone control on it on each light because I set the lights in the variable entity so that I could control like a bee like sake. I turn it down right from the camera, the only difference between that in the line of sight that a nikon accountant flash offer is the consistency that it's going to fire all the time. So it makes a perfect the zone controller just makes everything so much easier for me. Great, yeah, I think people were getting a little bit confused as to how that work again, are you in manual? Are you in tts think whether I'm in manual a tt e o does it matter if I have the flash and manual? That means I gotta work a little bit harder because I need to know my guide numbers no, my situations and all of that. So I'm going to work off that if you're in teo and I feel like I don't want it to match gto is basically through the lands, so if I'm putting out in the lens, then I turned the flash down two stops from his own controller if I don't have a pocket was that I just turn it back. As I have the on camera flash which is my trigger I make that my main I make the others too remote and I just say a light I want down minus two and exposure compensation be like I want down ministry or one plus one whatever it may be so I'm controlling it from camera doesn't matter whether it's t t o or manual just as long as you know your settings most people are using t l I know that I wanted to stops underneath and I also have to account for all reflective lighting okay? Chuck e d asked he's from san francisco how do we get more details in the background? Well, keeping their faces properly explain well, it's very simple if I want detail in the background of making a very conscious decision, what that means is I need to expose for the background I'm going to look at the background and say ok, this background is f eleven, which means I need to shoot at whatever it is an f eleven two hundredth of a second and then if I do that I need to put f eleven a flash on them let's take a quick look of what that looks like so I'm going to do the sunny rule here which goes to two hundred eleven and I'm going to change it up so let me go here I'm going to go into manual mode I'm going to turn the flash on I'm going to set it for two hundred at f eleven because I wanted to work and get better light turn your head to your right beautiful lean your heads and close together matt lean in close store right there you are doing great looking at me turn your head a little bit more to the right beautiful just like that look at me leaning forward lights on flashes on so now what would do in his matching the light to the background smiling teeth happy matt mean forward excellent I don't think we fired their did way hold on one second let me turn it off because I've got to turn it on to sink it here we go so look at how much under exposed it is because we're exposing for the background when we add the flash the match turning head to your right beautiful smiling excellent so let's look now I matched it would flash and what happened effectively is the image becomes flatter and it becomes more boring on the reason it didn't come out wass I have the exposure compensation down I believe one more I'm sorry guys real quick let me make sure it's pointed adam I forgot to adjust the exposure compensation from one stop there hold it right there you're doing great guys looking to me turn your head steer right lean forward just like that cheeks together smiling happy excellent

Class Materials

bonus material with purchase

Bride Alone Photo Editing Video-HD.mov
Bride her family and BP Photo Editing Video-HD.mov
Doug_Gorden_Wedding_Album.pdf
Doug_Gordon_Posing_Guide.pdf
Full Family and BP Photo Editing Video-HD.mov
Groom his family BP and the Ceremony Photo Editing Video HD.mov
Doug Gordon Creative Live Shot list.pdf

Ratings and Reviews

a Creativelive Student
 

Doug is one of those teachers who combines the right blend of humor with knowledge to keep the learning process inviting. Doug's heart is what draws me in...his passion for photography as an industry not to mention his personal desire to see those around him excel in their new-found skills. I have witnessed first-hand Doug's ability to transform an ordinary environment into an extra-ordinary work of art. Don't miss an opportunity to learn from someone who studied with the great Monty Zucker and who offers a system for integrating posing with an understanding of classical lighting. Don't miss a wonderful opportunity to learn from one of the best!

a Creativelive Student
 

Highly recommend to any wedding photographer, be you experienced or new. Although based in the Uk, most of what doug taught is relevant and has helped boost my confidence when posing and making adjustments to peoples pose. amazing depth to the way an image is created and lovely to see the images then used in an album to tie everything up from start to finish.

Sherry Callahan
 

Loved and bought Dougs first Creative live workshop and learned so much from it that I intend to watch and learn from this one as well! Just from watching the first creative live workshop I can see a big improvement in my work, so I am looking forward to this workshop and learning more from Doug. This one looks very interesting and more real to what us as wedding photographer encounter in real life. Cant wait!

Student Work

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