Bronwyn and Marcus Wedding 15 Dec 2012

 Bronwyn and Marcus wedding was really fun to shoot not withstanding the fact that the bride had to organize much of the wedding herself while getting the make up and hair done, and she was delayed by heavy traffic which cut severely into our shooting time. Then there was the sun which came out in full force (about 29 Degrees C) and fortunately a breeze came up to make things bearable (it was an outside wedding at mid day in the middle of summer). The high sun also created its own challenges like harsh shadows and mottled lighting under the trees (every wedding photographers worst nightmare...).

We solved the mottled lighting problem or at least diminished it by using flash to fill in the shadows. On the couples shoot we used shade, flash and reflectors wherever possible.

I love shooting weddings and it is amazing how the adrenaline kicks in when you are pushed for time and you have to get the shots no matter what. It really tests your ability as a photographer, and I like that. My wife, Dee was the second shooter and it was fantastic to see her working different angles on the day. She got some awesome shots in addition to my own.

I still have a few thousand images of their special day to work through, sort and edit, but here is a sneak peak....You can click on an image for a larger view. If you like our work, then please like us on facebook  http://www.facebook.com/pages/SGM-Productions/158301737605681?ref=ts&fref=ts

 

 

 A quick self portrait.....

 

 

A stroll around Sonstraal lake with my 7D

 The ultimate fisherman...

With about an hour to kill I decided to take a leisurely stroll around Sonstraal lake in Durbanville with my trusty Canon 7D and 70 to 300 mm lens. There is always so much to see and take pictures of at this urban retreat for our feathered friends.

 I find that taking photographs of birds in flight is not for the feint of heart. It can be very tricky with fast moving, unpredictable  and small bird species. So if you are starting out, try your hand at the larger birds first. The other important things when it comes to bird photography is getting close enough to the birds followed by the background. The background needs to be uncluttered and also needs to compliment the bird.

Zooming in with a wide aperture of about F5.6 or less makes sure that the background is nicely out of focus while the bird is sharp.The eye of the bird usually has to be in focus for a picture to work.

Now you might think that these pics where taken with a very expensive L lens, but you would be wrong. I used a very old Tamron AF LD 70 to 300mm F4 to F5.6 lens which is not the quickest focusing lens at all. Zooming out and framing a moving bird and then zooming in quickly enables you to focus properly with out the lens hunting and ruining the shot. I also used Photoshop to paint out any bad purple fringing on high contrast areas which these lenses are prone to.

Maybe I will do a tutorial one day on how to do this.....

I also increased contrast and sharpening where needed. You can click on an individual photograph for a larger view. Please share this post if you enjoyed it....

Regards Sean Mills

 These birds are great for practicing flight pics on....

 This duckling was all alone....

Reflection

 I used a little bi of fill flash on this picture.

 This pic of a dragonfly was also taken with the 70 to 300mm Tamron lens using manual focus to get as close as possible.

Take off...

Amazing panoramic images from in and around Aurora

 I took these Amazing panoramic images in and around Aurora on the west coast of South Africa. Equipment used, Canon 7D with 24 to 105 F4 L lens. All shots taken hand held and stitched using Photoshop.... You can click on an image for a larger view.

Enjoy.

Robyn and Werner's beautiful Wedding at De Oude Welgemoed

We had the privileged of Photographing Robyn and Werner's wedding at De Oude Welgemoed on the 8th September 2012. It turned out to be a lovely sunny and warm day despite weather reports to the contrary.

We really enjoyed photographing this wedding and the love that the couple has for each other shines through in the pictures.Let us know what you think.

Sean and Dee Mills (sgmproductions@gmail.com)