Know your light

Chaddy, of Dear & Tine Photography, shares her knowledge and artful management of light in today’s edition of this month’s “Lovely Light” series.

We are fortunate to have Chaddy as our official photographer for our upcoming Gold & Sunshine Coast Wedding fairs.

Here is what Chaddy had to offer on knowing your light…

Know your light

Lighting is a powerful element which sets moods; it can be dramatic or it can be subtle. A professional wedding photographer should know how to master light whether it be artifical or natural. An experienced photographer will be able to work with whatever lighting situation they’ve been given on your wedding day. However, in order to optimise conditions for your wedding photos, it’s a great idea to think about how light works to create different moods and effects.

Scheduling for portraits

As a general rule, it’s also best to avoid the harsh mid-day sun as this often creates challenges with shadows and overexposed features. When the sun is directly overhead, it causes harsh and unwanted highlights on the skin. You’ll also find that it is extremely difficult and uncomfortable to keep your eyes open for photographs during this time. However, with that said, a creative photographer is able to utilise shadows to to their advantage to create different dimensions.

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The Golden Hour

Most photographers prefer to shoot sixty minutes prior to sunset. This is called the Golden Hour. As the sun starts to set, the natural light is filtered through the Earth’s atmosphere and becomes softer with a golden warmth to it, which helps to set a more romantic mood to your photographs.

As there is limited natural lighting for outdoor photography, before booking in your ceremony time slot, it’s a great idea to discuss with your photographer how much time they would need for your wedding day portraits. From there, you can work backwards to find out what time sunset is and schedule in your ceremony to allow for enough time for your photographer to work. From my experience, this can vary from wedding to wedding; depending on the size of the bridal party and the location of the ceremony, locations and reception. As a guide, I would usually allow 30 minutes for family portraits after the ceremony, and 1 hour plus travel for bridal party portraits.

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Lighting up pitch black 

However, some of my favourite photographs have been taken where no natural light has been available. There are many ways to think outside the square by using artifical light to create a dramatic mood.

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You can see more of Chaddy’s work across our website and Facebook Page in our Gold Coast Fair promotional images. You can meet her in person at our Gold Coast Fair on June 22nd. Tickets are now on sale (buy one and bring your bestie for free!).

Let there be Light!

Elissa, from Fresh Honey, lights the way in the first edition of this months “Lovely Light” series.

Elissa is one of our beautifully talented sponsors for A Darling Affairs – Gold Coast Wedding Fair.

Here are a few of her thoughts on styling with light…

“Lighting is one of the most effective tools you have in your styling arsenal when it comes to setting the theme, tone and mood of your wedding day. With a little thought and planning, the right lighting choices will complete the look and feel of your special day, imbuing it with elegance, glamour and style. Ignore its importance or handle it clumsily, and you risk your wedding lacking the ambience, romance and magic it deserves!

So let’s kick this blog post off with a few of my all-time favourite ways of bringing light, illumination and style to weddings.

Candles, candles, candles

Never underestimate the impact a humble candle can create, especially when used en masse! Candlelight is soft, romantic and spiritual, making it perfect for weddings. If you are on a tight budget, make good use of candles as they create an amazing atmosphere at a very small cost.

The other wonderful thing about candles (which is also a money saver!) is the way in which they double as a décor item that you can style in a myriad of ways. Clustered in jars, dripping from candelabras, glowing inside paper bag luminaries or floating in water with delicate blooms, candles are a fail-proof lighting option for weddings. Did someone say romance?

paper bag lightstable setting lightschapel lights

Fairy Lights

Delicate strands of fairy lights are ‘oh, so enchanting’, creating an allure that is almost impossible to top in my opinion! When strung up against the roof of a marquee or hall, wrapped around a tree or incorporated into your décor in another way, fairy lights are a magically captivating way to play with lighting.

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fairy light love tree

fairy light chandelier

Cafe Lighting

Cafe lighting has taken the wedding industry by storm in the last few years, lending an industrial edge which is at once both vintage and modern. I love this type of lighting at weddings, as it’s so whimsical and fun, yet still quite rustic. It looks fantastic both inside and out, and works really well when combined with other décor elements, such as lanterns, chandeliers or fairy lights.

pom poms and bulbs

bulbs and lanterns

under the bulb dancingLighting: Byron Audio

Paper Lanterns

Paper lanterns are always a very popular choice when it comes to wedding lighting. Whether strung individually, between poles or in colourful clusters with fluffy pom-poms for extra impact – it’s hard to go wrong with these pretties!

lanterns and flowersDown-Bangalow-Road-weddings062Image: Down Bangalow Road

ColourRoomImage: Byron Bay Bunting

Chandeliers

Are you looking for elegance, glamour and a splash of drama? Cue the chandelier, or even better – multiple chandeliers! With their dripping crystal jewels and undeniable vintage charm, chandeliers evokes old-world glamour like nothing else. For added appeal or to really ‘up-the-ante’, mix it up with some fairy lights or naked industrial bulbs.

outdoor chandelierfresh honey chandelierImage: Fresh Honey Weddings

Lighting has the power to literally improve, enhance and transform every other element of your wedding, so taking the time to talk over your options with a lighting professional is a worthy investment. Your wedding planner or venue should be able to recommend a lighting company whom they know and trust, so be guided by this when deciding on which kind of lighting to incorporate into your wedding day. For more lighting inspiration visit my pinterest page “Let there be Light” http://pinterest.com/freshhoney/let-there-be-light/)

Image Sources: Unless otherwise stated all images have been sourced online and repined to my lighting board: http://pinterest.com/freshhoney/let-there-be-light/”

Thanks Elissa xxx