Lessons Learned in Year One: Wedding and Event Photography in Knoxville, TN
I have learned so much last year as I photographed over 40 events from April to December 2022.
From weddings and elopements, reunions and birthdays to crossfit events and engagement shoots, my year was freakin packed. I never realized that there were so many chances to pursue my passions, whether full time or as a side hustle.
I primarily shot in the Knoxville, Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge and surrounding areas, but traveled to Nashville, Chattanooga and to Fontana Dam three times. That road to Fontana Dam… Shoo Lord it’s a stressful road, haha!
For the first few months I shot with older Nikon DSLRs and had a couple of cheap prime lenses. Now I’ve got 2 Nikon mirrorless systems, a Lumix system for video, and tons of audio and lighting gear. I never would’ve thought that I would be this into it or would have gotten this far!
It’s April 2023 now and I have over 20 weddings booked for the rest of the year (and one in Tampa, FL!)
I have really fallen in love with photography over the past year. I hope to do many more weddings in Knoxville, TN, but would love to do more around the Smoky Mountains in general or travel to other destinations.
If I were to have any goals for the future, it would be to keep creating better, more consistent photos that tell the story of one of someone’s most meaningful day. My plan is to also start doing hybrid shooting, which is photo and video.
When it comes to learning lessons, I honestly learn something during every wedding or event. And that is such a big part of why I love it! But here are just a few bullet points that I have found to be most important.
Take your time. It may feel like you, the photographer, is holding the day up. But I promise that at the end of the event, everyone will be glad that you did it right. The final product is the most important part. Even seasoned photographers have their moments.
Check your ego at the door. Yes, the photographer holds the knowledge of lighting, shutter speed, etc, but the artistic style is all up to the clients. When I run into situations when someone asks me to do something that I don’t think will turn out, I always do it. But, I make sure that I get my version as well. “Okay awesome, that’s a great idea. Let’s do it, but would you also mind if we did it this way (my way.)”
Know the Exposure Triangle. After a year, I still have trouble with this. I have to go over it before every shoot. But it is SO freakin important. There is a video below by Peter McKinnon that is an awesome explanation of the exposure triangle. that actually got me on MANUAL mode. OR CLICK HERE
Know your worth, but also don’t be afraid to not get paid. Working for free sucks, but you HAVE to build your portfolio. You always have to get good at your craft. Photographing family, friends, and/or models just won’t cut it. You are already comfortable with them and it’s a whole other experience photographing people that you have never met. I still volunteer for projects or offer certain things for free (or very discounted.) On the flip side, know your worth. I promise you that wherever you are at in your photographic journey, there are worse photographers out there that are charging more. Plus, it is not just your skills that you are pricing for. You are pricing for travel, expenses, shoot time, upload time, edit time, cost of a gallery, cost of a website, taxes, time away from family, time away from friends and giving up your weekend.
Have Fun! This is the last and most important thing that I will leave you with. Make sure you have fun. Like I said in the beginning of this blog, for the first wedding that I ever photographed, I had low level gear. But looking back I had sooo much fun! The pictures looked awesome too! I was on fire about photography and eager to try new things I was so dialed in! Don’t get me wrong, I am way more knowledgable and dialed in now, but sometimes I get so focused on the day, making sure I get the right shots, and researching new equipment, that I forget the whole reason that I wanted to take on photography in the first place! It’s such a creative outlet that has saved my life in many ways.
I will let you go, for now, but if you have any questions about Weddings or photography in general, don’t hesitate to reach out!
SCRUFFYWEDDINGS@GMAIL.COM or through my contact page.
- Benjamin