How to Nail Candid Wedding Photos and Clips

Candid photography and videography capture raw emotion and the most intimate wedding moments in a seamless, natural way.

Acing candid shots is far from easy.

For the purpose, you’ll need to be perceived as a part of the wedding.

Many people feel uncomfortable in front of a camera, which can limit your ability to capture those candid moments.

On top of that, you need really good intuition and fast reactions to capture those fleeting moments.

Some intimate moments occur solely for seconds. If you miss them, you’ll have no second opportunity to create the same shot.

Candid wedding videography and photography are a lot more challenging than just adopting a documentary-style approach.

If you don’t know how to produce stellar results, the following tips will come in handy.

 

Connect with Your Photography/Videography Subjects

 

The first and most important thing you have to do when attempting to create candid wedding photos and clips is being present.

Introduce yourself to members of the wedding party. Don’t be afraid of pointing the camera at people.

The more you shoot and the more comfortable with you people feel, the sooner they’ll relax.

Your main goal here is for wedding attendees to stop noticing your presence.

The first moments will be awkward and everyone is going to be super conscious of your presence.

In a little while, these dynamics will change. It’s very important for you to smile, joke and interact with people.

Showing them that you’re there to celebrate alongside the bride and groom will soon create an informal environment that is so important for candid shot creation.

 

Keep Posing and Staged Shots to a Minimum

 

A focus on posed pictures will create dynamics that eliminate many opportunities for the capturing of candid moments.

While a few staged shots, especially when it comes to capturing the bride and the groom, will be needed, try to limit their use.

Instead, do your best to capture natural moments.

Keep directions down to a minimum. If possible, don’t direct people at all.

Let them interact naturally and be there to capture those moments.

 

Use the Right Equipment and Always Be Ready for Candid Wedding Photos or Clips

 

The right photography or videography gear will enable you to act fast when the need to capture a candid moment arises.

A professional camera is the absolute golden standard in the realms of photography and videography.

For the purpose of capturing candid shots, however, you may want to employ a smaller camera that’s easy to grab and that doesn’t require lots of preliminary adjustments before the shooting itself can begin.

The camera needs to be always on you.

Make sure the shutter speed, ISO and aperture are the right ones for the environment.

By going through these considerations in advance, you’ll feel good to go whenever the moment requires such action.

It’s also a good idea to have an additional memory card or two in your pocket.

You never know how many pictures you’ll need to take or whether the amount of raw footage will exceed expectations.

Lacking the right equipment can make you miss important moments and that’s a mistake you don’t want to commit.

 

Know the Story You’re Trying to Tell

 

Many newbie photographs and videographers think that candid shots are simply the ones you capture when people aren’t looking.

This isn’t necessarily the case. While it needs to be spontaneous, candid wedding photography or videography should still be telling a story.

The context is very important.

Why are certain people important and do you really need to be capturing a moment between them?

Are the place and the time right?

What’s happening in front of you and how does it relate to the overall concept of the wedding?

These are questions you’ll need to answer quickly when deciding whether to capture a candid moment or not.

Here’s an example of context and how it connects to the big picture.

Having a photo of the best man giving a speech is a no-brainer. That’s an important part of the reception.

A shot of them speaking, however, tends to feel quite boring and spiritless.

Instead, you can put the focus on the groom’s reaction in the background while the best man is speaking in the foreground.

This kind of candid shot tells a story while also capturing a common wedding moment in a rather unusual way.

 

The Best Candid Wedding Photos and Videos Involve Interactions

 

Interactions between people are the ones that produce the most genuine emotions and the sweetest moments.

So, while you are shooting a certain aspect of the wedding, be mindful of your surroundings.

A grandpa playing with the little ones can result in a really sweet candid shot. The same applies to a kid interacting with the bride or the groom.

Very often, candid shots don’t involve the main wedding action. They occur on the sidelines.

Capturing those moments is going to be much easier whenever you have a second shooter attending the event.

Once while is working on the main parts of the wedding, the second shooter will be dedicated to looking for and capturing those candid and very meaningful interactions.

 

Minimize the Use of the Flash for Candid Wedding Photos and Videos

 

What’s the easiest way to get people noticing your presence? That’s right – it’s the use of the flash?

Having bright light flashing in front of them is the best and easiest way to end an intimate moment without getting a good shot.

Candid photography and videography require minimal use of the flash.

You’ll need to get creative and find other sources of light that aren’t as disturbing as the flash.

Having large projectors installed throughout the venue is one approach that will guarantee optimal illumination.

You can also open up your aperture or slow down the shutter speed.

Those last two approaches are likely to increase noise in your photos and videos but you would have captured the moment.

Noise can be addressed during post-production. In some instances, it’s going to be a good thing that increases the authenticity of the shots you’ve created.

 

Take Lots of Photos and Video Footage

Instead of sitting by and waiting for the perfect candid moment to occur, take lots of photos or capture indecent amounts of footage.

The more you shoot, the higher the likelihood of capturing those special and very intimate occurrences.

Going through so much raw material will be challenging and that’s one of the difficulties linked to candid wedding photography and videography.

Having enough to work with, however, will ensure a genuine and emotionally-charged outcome that everyone will fall in love with.

So, tag along and capture the entire interaction between a group of people during the wedding.

By being present and in the moment, you will certainly document at least a couple of special instances that the happy couple will get to cherish for years to come.

 

Be Present and Work on Your Emotional Intelligence to Nail Candid Wedding Photos and Clips

 

We’ve said it a number of times already – good wedding photographers and videographers need to be psychologists in order to do a good job.

Your emotional intelligence and attentiveness will both be very important whenever working on a candid-style shoot.

You need to be present.

A good understanding of what’s going on and how certain people will react to a moment will determine the availability of shooting opportunities.

Some of these skills will be sharpened with experience.

As you participate in a big number of wedding shoots, you’ll soon get to anticipate those special moments. Creating outstanding candid shots will definitely get easier in time.

 

Final Thoughts on Acing Candid Wedding Photos and Videos

 

Candid photography and videography are both very demanding but the payoff justifies the efforts.

Many couples are seeking photographers and videographers who have the skills needed to capture emotion on film.

If you’ve never done candid shots before, use upcoming weddings to practice and sharpen your skills.

Offering such services to clients will expand your portfolio and increase your capabilities of attracting and retaining a diverse customer base.

The good news is that you don’t need special equipment to make candid shots happen.

Experience and attention to detail, however, will be required to deliver the results that couples will be looking for.

Give yourself enough time to relax, interact with members of the wedding party and have a good time.

Work on anticipating those special moments – some excellent candid opportunities will be easy to spot long before they’ve occurred.

Have enough equipment and supplies, be patient and shoot a lot.

The more raw material you acquire over the course of the wedding, the easier it will be to offer clients a diverse and colorful range of pictures or moments captured on film and featured in the perfect wedding video.