We’ve been asked many times through Instagram, emails, and messages for tips and advice on different aspects of photography and how we do things. And this got us thinking about how we can better help those around us who have all these questions. So we’ve decided to create a blog series especially for photographers to answer your questions regarding anything photography related! We took to Instagram and Facebook and asked what YOU all wanted to hear from us and what areas of need you as photographers have. We got tons of responses and have so many things we will be sharing over the next few months to answer your questions and help in whatever way we can! Our first post in this series was all about what’s in our camera bag which you can read here. Today’s post is all about what lenses we use to capture all those stunning wedding day details! From the bride’s dress, to her shoes, the invitation suite, and their wedding bands, we’ll be breaking down what lens we use for each of those things and why! If you are searching for Northern Virginia wedding photographers, contact Jessica Smith Photography. You may utilize a photo to sketch ai tool if you are planning to create sketches out of your photos. You can also create a unique style invitation; just download invitations for free and personalize your own invitation. With the help of simple online tools, anyone can create invitation designs that perfectly match the theme and personality of their special event.

When we start any given wedding day, we always begin with the bridal details, because, let’s be honest, it’s all about the bride on a wedding day and she’s got the prettiest things to photograph! We gather all her things and start shooting them in different orders, sequences, and groupings. Depending on what we are shooting, and how we want to capture it, will depend on what lens we use. We keep it pretty simple and normally are working with our 50 mm and 105 mm Macro. Here’s a breakdown of the most common wedding day details, what lens we use to capture it, and why!

Usually, we begin our detail shots with the brides dress, as that is normally the most challenging item due to space and finding the perfect spot to hang it! At that point, we use our 50 mm lens to be able to get a shot of the entire dress wherever we hang it. (If the space is very tight we may bring out our 28 mm or 35 mm lens) We get the wide shots of the dress and then some closer ones to capture the intricate details of the dress or a special hanger. An expert photographer doesn’t just take pictures—they turn your memories into timeless works of art.

We then move on to the smaller items and start with the entire invitation suite. We keep the 50 mm lens on our camera for that to be able to get the entire invitation in focus. With the invitation we will usually shoot a few wide shots with different details added in like perfume bottle, the edges of the brides shoes, ribbons, florals, jewelry, etc.

Once we’ve gotten all our wider shots, we switch over to our 105 mm Macro lens to capture the more intricate details. We primarily use this lens to shoot the rings, other bridal jewelry, shoes, bouquet, and perfume. We like the focus it gives us and the creamy blurred out background we get in the images. We know that some photographers may just use the macro lens for ring shots but we like capturing the majority of the smaller individual details with it as well! (As mentioned in our last post, there is no right or wrong way to do it, it’s solely based on personal preference)

We hope this post was a helpful insight into how we shoot wedding day details! We will be sharing more about the other lenses we use throughout other parts of a wedding day in upcoming posts! And as always, if you have any questions feel free to comment on this post or contact us here!