Due to the limit on weddings, my sister has asked me to be her wedding photographer. I am not a photographer - I just invested in a DSLR to start the hobby. HELP ME!

OP I feel for you. You’re in a tough spot. I want to chime in on this particular point.

She could easily (EASILY) find someone with a couple years experience shooting weddings to shoot her wedding in 3 weeks notice.

You don’t need the best pro out there. You need someone who has done a handful of weddings before who is willing to shoot for not that much money bc A) they are still trying to build their portfolio and B) we’re in the middle of a economic shitshow rn and they’ll happily take just about any job.

This situation is honestly a dream situation for a lot of newer semi-pro photographers out there.

A low stakes wedding where the bride has realistic lowered expectations, where they can proactive and build their craft while 90% of all other weddings have been indefinitely postponed.

Technical photography knowledge is the floor for being able to shoot a wedding. It’s a high stakes job where you have once chance at capturing what many consider they most important day of their lives. The photos exist forever and eventual become the memories for most people.

I get it man, you were asked to do this and you don’t want to disappoint. I know that feel. Lots of other people have said this but I want to reiterate in the clearest way possible - this is a disaster in waiting.

This is a terrible idea and one that could very well lead to hard feelings between you and your sister for years. It’s not even just the problems we can tell you about, it’s also the 100 other things we can’t predict that only someone with experience would know how to handle.

Don’t do it.

/r/photography Thread Parent