Nick: Photographing a Wedding, and my new favorite lens.
April 6, 2024. Serra Plaza, San Juan Capistrano
One thing is for certain, this venue was absolutely beautiful. Being based out of Las Vegas and having to refer to images on Google, Instagram, and other forms of social media to get a general lay of the land instead of being able to walk the venue in person made it a little more challenging compared to locations we’ve been to before.
After getting our camera setups ready for the day: Nick with a Canon R5 + 28-70mm f/2, and a Canon 5D IV + 135mm f/2, Karissa with a Canon R6ii + 24-105 f/2.8. (I’m excited to talk about both of these lenses in a future post!) Our day started by talking to the bride and seeing how excited she was for her special day. The typical nerves and excitement filled the room, paired with a little bit of stress (which is completely normal!) We could tell that she was more then ready for all of the excitement ahead.
Finally getting to hit the shutter button we started on the flat lays of the stationaries, utilizing a beautiful wooden table as our base we began to assemble our detail shots, being careful to not get any fingerprints on the clear glass of the Chanel perfume bottle. When discussing the overall feel of the images we landed on a timeless vibe to encapsulate the love they have for each other. We definitely wanted to showcase the rings paired with the engagement ring, along with the simple and clean aesthetic of their vow books. We would end up with two variations of flat lay after receiving the Grooms cologne when he arrived and ended up using a marble tabletop located in the bridal suite. The pairing of the Black Phantom by Kilian - “Moments Mori” and the Chanel Chance led to us going for a cleaner approach utilizing blacks and whites to have an image that complemented the negative space and beautiful aesthetic of the marble countertop.
Shot on: Canon R5, 100mm f/2.8 EF MACRO + (2) Profoto B1x
Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography
Shot on: Canon R5, 100mm f/2.8 EF MACRO + (2) Profoto B1x
Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography
The couple Casey and Jeong Koun (JK) wanted to do a first look and personal vows, which is such a beautiful way to spend a small portion of their wedding day! It’s often talked about how quickly the wedding passes you by, especially when you’re the center of attention. But by having such a personal moment it gives you some time to truly cherish the peace and quiet before the rest of the day kicks off. After their personal vows (which are some of my favorite photos due to the sheer emotion displayed) we were able to take some couple portraits, but mainly give our beautiful couple the time to soak in the atmosphere before all of the relatives show up.
Shot on: Canon R6ii, 24-105mm f/2.8 L RF
Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Karissa Endo
Shot on: Canon 5D IV, 135mm f/2 L
Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Nicholas Endo
The biggest part of the day!
The ceremony! Throughout the years of photographing portraits and events I still get a little anxious and nervous. But I truly think that it’s a good thing as it shows that you’re dedicated and care about your craft, so you can ensure you’re getting the best possible imagery.
To ensure we had proper coverage and were getting the best angles we started off the ceremony by having myself stationed at the front of the aisle, and Karissa stationed at the back to allow for both angles of the processional. After the absolutely adorable flower girls and ring bearer walked down the aisle. The ceremony went smoothly and quickly, being able to see some of the Korean traditions (primarily the respect toward your elders) shine through in the images really helps to emphasize the level of respect and love that these families will have for each other. We really should have brushed up on our Korean we learned from K-Dramas beforehand!
Top: Shot on: Canon R6ii, 24-105mm f/2.8 L RF Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Karissa Endo
Left & Bottom: Shot on: Canon 5D IV, 135mm f/2 L Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Nicholas Endo
Post Ceremony
One of the things that I look forward to the most, and what originally got me into photography in the first place is being able to see and capture emotion in an image. Along with being able to share those images with others so they will be able to relive that moment again. The reception and dance portions of the wedding are such an amazing way to capture people having fun and creating memories with people they might not have seen in weeks, months, or even years! Thankfully the venue was able to provide an amazing open shade aesthetic for the reception so no flash was required, which led to us being able to stick to a photojournalistic fly on the wall approach. For the after dance as the sun faded we used an on camera flash (Canon 580exii) and off camera flash (Profoto B1x) to fill the area. I’m a big advocate for experimenting with new techniques and, while we wanted a timeless feel to the wedding, we also wanted to show the raw emotion and excitement of everyone on the dance floor which we were able to accomplish by dragging the shutter and having a slightly longer exposure.
Shot on: Canon R5, 28-70mm f/2 L RF Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Nicholas Endo
Shot on: Canon R5, 28-70mm f/2 L RF Creator: Nicholas Endo Photography - Credit: Nicholas Endo
A new favorite lens.
After shooting the entire wedding I have a newfound appreciation and love for the Canon 135mm f/2.0 L lens, it paired perfectly with the Canon 28-70mm f/2.0 to give a little extra range while also not being as heavy compared to the 70-200mm f/2.8. While I do think that I missed the extra range from 135-200mm I don’t feel like I lost too much in a sense that 135mm was perfect for practically every distance that the 28-70mm couldn’t handle. Being able to shoot wide open at f/2.5, f/2.8, and f/3.2 helped create some “bokehlicious” images with creamy backgrounds and sharp in focus subjects.
The next comparison will be the Canon RF 28-70mm f/2.0 and the Canon RF 24-105mm f/2.8! Check back later for my review on both of those lenses!