My first paid job

[trudslev]

A couple of weekends ago, I went to a civil war reenactment and they saw the pictures and were so happy with them that I was invited to take pictures at their annual ball.

As I have never done anything like this before I'd like to get some ideas for what and how I should do and plan for.

If anyone had any experience with this sort of thing, can you give me some pointers on what I should be planning for?


Regards,

Sune

[Jim Poor]

Are they going to be in period attire for the ball?

What do THEY expect from you? Candids, portraits, something else?

Do you have a space, booth, janitor's closet to work in/from?

[trudslev]

Yes, they will be in period attire.

I don't think they have any specielt expectations. They told me they had a guy last year, that didn't really give them anything nice to remember it by.

I don't know if I have a space. I will have to ask about that. Is that common to ask for that?

[Jim Poor]

That really depends on expectations.

If you are just covering the event and taking candids, then you don't need a space.

If the folks in attendance want portraits or some such, you'll need a space.

It's probably a good idea to get with the person who booked you and find out what they really want. Maybe you could even suggest portraits if you're comfortable with it.

[trudslev]

Well, I had a chat with the woman who booked me.

About 35 people in period clothes will be attending. There will be about 1 hour and 15 minutes at the beginning of the evening set off to taking portraits (not 1 on 1, but groups). Does that seem like a realistic amout of time to do that? What kind of lighting is realistic to bring to this sort of situation?

It is possible for them to bring som period appropriate furniture, to pose with. It is set in a contemporary party room, so what will I do about the background for authenticity?

After the portraits, the dinner will be served and I will cover that. That shouldn't be too difficult, since I know how to do that.

At the end of the evening there will be dancing. I have no clue how to do that. I guess I will scout out the location before the party starts to get som ideas about what it possible.

[Jim Poor]

That really depends on how big the groups are, how hard they are to organize, etc.

Will the place be decorated? You could try to find a spot there for a BG if you're lucky.

Otherwise, a neutral BG would work.

When I do a mass charity portrait event, I plan on five mini-sittings per hour. Some go over, some go under the time limit, but it all seems to work out. Mind you, these are dogs or dogs & people. Usually, the sittings that include people are the harder ones, but if you can take control without being a jerk about it, you should be able to move folks through pretty quickly.

Lighting? Do you have access to electric? Do you have portable options?
Do you know what you're doing with lighting?

The most forgiving light source is the BIGGEST light source. I've got an 86-inch umbrella that I use in situations where I want nice, even light with no shadows. I can't use that with a single speed light, but a studio strobe does nicely with it.

[Jim Poor]

Oh, big question. How long do you have to prep for this?

[trudslev]

I'll have to ask about the decoration. It's possible.

There should be access to electric. Currently I only own a speedlite flash, but I might be able to rent something, but honestly I have no experience with using it, and it is not the place to start learning. I honestly considered buying a kit with two softboxes/umbrellas I learn to use them before I go.

The event is not until the beginning of November, so I have lots of time to prep, study and so on. Which is why I came here as my first fact finding mission :-D

So... wait...

There are civil war reenactments in Denmark? LOL

Is it the Danish civil war or the US version? The latter would be hilarious in Denmark

[mad editor]

Originally Posted by maxharvard

So... wait...

There are civil war reenactments in Denmark? LOL

Is it the Danish civil war or the US version? The latter would be hilarious in Denmark

Hah! You just asked my question.