Off Camera Lighting For Wedding Receptions

No need for running laps around the venue.

Off camera lighting for wedding receptions.

2 off camera speedlight at weddings i typically carry 3 4 speedlights with me and 4 6 transceivers. High iso settings can only take you so far when it is pitch black outside and can create nightmares in post production due to high noise levels. In her final post of the wedding lighting master class series shootdotedit wedding pro leeann marie wedding photographers shares reception lighting tips for photographers. We use two kicker lights and one off camera stand light.

Reception lighting gear whether you are shooting indoors or outdoors it is imperative to have an off camera flash on you for wedding reception photography. Match your on camera flash and off camera flash to the existing light in the room. Depending on the temperature of the ambient light tungsten daylight etc dial in a custom color temperature setting in camera to balance out the light in your scene. We like to use heavy duty stands because they have a wider base and are less likely to tip if a guest or staff member bumps into or kicks them during the night.

In addition the lighting of the flash should be incredibly low so you don t overexpose anyone or wash out the dress. She will share 4 wedding reception lighting setup scenarios you can practice. Tranceivers or transmitters receivers are devices that allow you to remotely trigger your flash without it being attached to your camera. Here is another example of our setup.

The kicker lights which provide backlight during the reception are lumopro lp 160 speed lights on heavy duty 9 foot flash stands. Light stand i set it anywhere from 10 20 feet from where the subject i want it to back light is sitting standing dancing depending upon the size layout of the reception room. I set the height of it so that the flash is about 1 to 2 feet above where person s head will be. Keep reading to learn more.

We don t want that kind of lighting in wedding photography. These will be set up in the corners of the room and it will allow for even light to bounce around. Our setup itself is actually a rather simple three light system. The best off camera light to use here if you need the flash is to use speedlites.

By having our off camera lighting placed in the far corner of the room we re able to light up the guests behind our couple so that it never looks like we re shooting into a dark cave.