How To Take Great Wedding Ring Photos

How To Take Great Wedding Ring Photos | Second Shots Photography

April 20th, 2015

Ever wondered how to take great wedding rings photos? Look no further! As a photographer we are often inspired by others. Susan Stripling is known as one of the greatest wedding photographers in America. I was introduced to her work about two years ago and I have been amazed by her growth and consistency. Nothing has stood out more than her rings shots, which are some of my favorite images to capture throughout the wedding. As a result, I have went to the drawing board and tried to capture wedding bands in a fashion that are both artistic and filled with bokeh. Bokeh is photography word that in Japanese means blurry.

This is an aesthetic quality of blur that produces in the out of focus parts of an image and is produced by a lens. These small circles are the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light and make the ring shot truly pop. I have made it a point of emphasis to give every 2015 bride a ring shot that is not only unique to her wedding décor but will offer a different set of elements that no other bride has had before. This is forcing me to think about these shots and in advance and have an idea of what I want to do before I get there. After a few hours of practice, I’ve used it on my last 3 weddings with some great results.

For these shots, I have used the Canon 100L Macro (which is one of my favorite lenses). I find that the key to these photos is using the lens hood to stop overhead light from spilling over.  I light these shots with the Yongnuo YN-300II LED Camera/Video Light with remote control (which comes in handy). The barn doors that are attached to this makes for great directional lighting. My settings were between: F/8 and F/11, ISO 2000, 1/100 shutter speed. You can use anything with a reflective service that will allow the light to bounce of it and create the bokeh. Glitter paper, Tin foil, mirrors, glassy services (Check out Michaels, Hobby Lobby, Jo Ann Fabrics) will all do the trick and help you not only capture great images, but think more creatively.

Here’s a few of the shots that I’ve taken so far using this technique and I hope it’s a benefit to you.