4 Facts about the Wedding industry in Nigeria

                          Wedding business is big business all over the world. According to the CDC  statistics  I obtained from their website, over 2 million weddings are registered in the US per year and they generate a whooping $50 billion. Though I wasn’t able to get the statistics for Nigeria here (for obvious reasons), I believe that weddings in Nigeria will be well over a million. Moreover, we happen to be the happiest people in the world and we spend a lot of money on festivities. After years of shooting weddings in Nigeria, here are the facts I observed about the wedding industry.

1. It is a multi billion naira generating industry.  Just try and imagine the huge amount of cash that exchange hands between the players in the industry. Consider the fashion designers, makeup artists, MC’s, caterers, photographers, rental outfits, stylists, hotels, etc. all exchanging money with their clients just for a wedding and then multiply that over a million weddings. What you get is a crazily high amount of cash. well I hope I continue to get my share of these enormous amount of cash for long as a wedding photographer.lol  

   2.   Most weddings on the average have about 300-400 guests. This is quite different from the   statistics I obtained from www.weddingwire.com where a wedding in the US had an average of 138 guests in 2012. What this translate to is a bigger reception here compared to what obtains in the US. In fact, it won’t be surprising that only 10-15% of the wedding guests are well known to the couple. I wonder where the remaining teeming guests got their invites from.

3.      January and February are usually the least active periods in the wedding industry. This might not be peculiar to Nigeria only as other parts of the world also experience this occurrence. One advantage of this period is that it allows couples that have their weddings in this period to have discounted prices from various wedding services like photography, catering, and even from wedding venues

4.      Most weddings cost below #1 million ($6,450).  But according to a survey done in the US, an average American wedding cost $28,000 (#4.34 million).This amount is pretty reasonable but on the average, most Nigerians can’t afford to budget that amount of money for a wedding. Despite this fact, high profile weddings of important people may cost as much as #50,000,000 ($322,580).

My First Experience as a Sport Photographer

                         Ever since the first time I heard about the most prestigious sport competition among Nigerian universities coming to my vicinity, I had been so eager and enthusiastic about it. Why not take a break from shooting weddings and shoot a sporting event, so said a voice in my mind. Even though I wasn’t going to be participating as an athlete, my role was going to be from the sidelines as a photographer trying to document every bit and piece of the action. Your guess is as good as mine that the event would be as amazing as it should be. Funny enough, this was going to be my first experience as a sport photographer.

                  Nigerian University Games (NUGA) as it is usually called is a standard competition among public universities in Nigeria. At least, it is standard to a good extent. As a wedding photographer shooting sports for the first time, I needed a telephoto lens. My major consideration was my wallet simply because I wasn’t interested in investing too much into the event. Though I have had passion for sport and wildlife photography, this was going to be a good time to know what it feels like to shoot a sporting event. I don’t have a favorite sport photographer but I have always loved the amazing pictures taken at big events such as the World cup and the Olympics.

                      Having contacted a friend and fellow photographer by the name Damilola of Glitterati Photography concerning the place of purchase of the telephoto lens, I zoomed of to Lagos. Though I settled for the Nikon 55-200mm VR f/4-.6G lens, my plan was to buy it online at www.jumia.com.ng where it was going for a price of #38,751 ($250). I latter decided to buy it in Lagos because it was far-far cheaper there. I eventually bought it there for #22,000 ($141). I wondered why there was such a huge variation in price

                             When the event started, everything was going as planned. I took amazing, razor sharp images of the athletes and the event generally and I was having much fun.  As the event progressed, I experimented with various camera settings and I took more amazing shots. But unfortunately, things would start going wrong. I had gone to one of my favorite photography website with the address www.kenrockwell.com and I read an article on how to use AUTO ISO. I blindly copied the settings and started shooting the next day. I didn’t realize that something was wrong until some athletes requested for the printed copies of some of their photos. Had I known, I would have declined in giving them those printed copies. What I noticed was that there was much grain (noise) in those photos. I was dumbfounded after seeing those pictures myself. Unfortunately, 40% of those photos were rejected and a beautiful first time sport photography experience turned sour.

                      After much inquisition, I discovered that most of those rejected pictures were taken an ISO of 1600. And normally, that ISO was too high for the kind of camera I used because I actually shot the pictures with a Nikon D40. I later learned my lessons, though in a harsh way. Very simple. Never be over anxious whenever you are venturing into a new field. The reason for this is that anxiety causes unexpected and unwarranted flops. The mistake I made was that I used a camera setting I never really understood. After I made the corrections to my settings, I started shooting again and this time around, I got my usual amazingly super sharp pictures. The curtain was finally drawn for the event and everybody returned to their various places.

                            Though I am going to be a better sport photographer in the nearest future, I need more experience and exposure to achieve this goal. The bottom line is this, never allow a first bad experience you have in a new field ruin your passion because no matter how experienced one is in a known field, things might not go well in the newly chosen field. I sincerely look forward to my next experience at another sporting event. And maybe, it might probably be the next summer Olympics. Who knows.

     

Here are some of the pictures i took at the event.

How to get started as a Photographer

                            Quite often, I have had  friends come up to me concerning their passion and interest in photography because they don’t know how to go about it. Well, it’s understandable how difficult it might seem trying to venture into a new field as this. And because I am passionate about this subject, I have decided to help by writing this article as a beginning in a series to follow thereafter. I am therefore going to be talking about the necessary things that will be required to get started and get working.

                            

             My first interest is of course to differentiate between between  a  genuine passion and an ordinary desire to snap good pictures. If the it’s the former, I immediately fall in line with  the passion but if its contrary, I simply advice the person to go and buy a good phone like iphone 5s  and start snapping the dogs and goats in his neighborhood . By implication, what I am saying is that the first thing needed in order to get started is your passion and not a camera. Yes, not  the other way round. Passion is what gets us going weeks and months after we have started something new. I remember when I started running marathon for money. After participating in 3 marathons, I gave up on my dream of being an Olympic marathoner due to frustration of always never winning.

                                   Now that passion is in place, then the next thing is to get a good gear. And by good I mean something durable, affordable and professional. There are numerous camera brands like Cannon, Sony, Nikon, Panasonic, Fuji Film, Kodak, Olympus, Sigma, Pentax, etc. The list is almost inexhaustible. Though the two most popular brand in the world are Nikon and Cannon, my favorite camera brand is Nikon. That doesn’t imply that it is the best but I prefer it because of its simplicity in terms of its usage and because it offers a wide range of choices when it comes to the issue of lens. You definitely won’t need the more expensive cameras that could cost as much as #5,000,000 (over $32,000). Go for something in that is price friendly  that will give you  good productivity.

                                 No matter the camera you are going for, always ensure that it is a Digital Single-lens Reflex Camera (also called a digital SLR or a DSLR). They are cameras which combine the optics and mechanisms of a single –lens reflex camera with a digital imaging sensor. This is far-far different from the old photographic film that was in use then. I will be listing some DSLR from Nikon brand that belong  to the Nikon DX series. Though they are not as good as the high end professional cameras in the Nikon FX series, they are good in their own category and could be over 100% cheaper. Since I don’t shoot with Cannon, I don’t have much information about cannon DSLR. So if you are a lover of the other brands, I am sorry to disappoint you, but you can still find a Nikon camera in the list to suit your needs.

                                The factor most people consider most when choosing a camera anywhere in the world (especially here in Nigeria) is the price. So here is a list of some Nikon DSLR that fall into the price friendly zone as well as being a professional starter kit. 

1.      Nikon D3100 – This camera comes with a 18-55mm Kit lens, 14.2MP sensor, HD Video 1080p.This camera goes for a price of #77,500 ( approx. $500)        
2.  Nikon D3200 – Comes with a 18-55mm kit lens, 24.2MP, HD Vide: 1080p. This camera is sold for about #93,000($600) 
3.     Nikon D90 – This was the first camera to be equipped with HD video recording. It comes with a 18-105mm kit lens. This is slightly of better performance than the more typical 18-55mm I lens. It has a 12.3MP sensor and is sold at about #130,000 (approx. $870). 
4.     Nikon D5000 – This camera has a 12.3MP sensor. It comes with a 18-55mm kit lens and currently sells for #95,945 ($619)on www.amazon.com 
5.    Nikon D5100 – This camera has a 16.2MP sensor with a 18-55mm kit lens. Currently, it sells for #107,880 ($696) on www.amazon.com          
6.   Nikon D5200 – This is a 24.1MP camera with the typical 18-55mm kit lens. It is sold for #115,630 ( $746)  
7.    Nikon D7000 – A 16.2MP camera. First produced in 2010, comes with a18-105mm kit lens and its price is slightly above #200,000($1,295).

                  Prices listed are what obtains in most online retail stores and depending on where you are buying, expect slight variation in prices. Similarly, be careful of where you are buying from because it might be more important than what you are buying.But Peradventure one’s wallet gives a constraint, there are still lower end Nikon DSLR that can still be purchased. Most of them sell for below #70,000 ($450) but don’t expect their performance to be equivalent to the above listed cameras. Some of them include D40, D40X, D50, D70, D80, D100, and D200. Depending on whatever your requirements are, a  great camera is always a good way to start. One’s you have a  good camera then the next thing is to know what to do with it and that requires developing  the necessary skills.

                         Photography is an interesting field that one can venture into provided one is willing to invest money into the purchase of equipment. Apart from that, it takes serious patience and practice to move from a novice to being a professional and this requires getting real knowledge. Majority of the concepts that forms the foundation of photography have to be learnt from training and reading and can only be perfected by the mistakes one makes while working in the field. I remember when i started photography years back. I won’t consider myself a photographer then but someone only taking pictures because I never understood basic concepts. Basic things such as exposure triangle meant nothing to me. I won’t be surprised if I see numerous professional photographers who don’t even understand it. They only know that a picture is white (over exposure) and a picture is dark (under exposure). As normal as that is, i am not happy about it. It can be likened to a doctor who cannot explain how the human body works but is very good when it comes to prescribing drugs.

                                          What I am saying is that you won’t go too far in the field of photography whether as a hobbyist or a professional if you lack knowledge of  principles such as lightening, composition, camera and light setup etc. This is what brings the difference between a Kelechi Amadi Obi  or a Jerry Ghionis and an average photographer. Knowledge is not power, only applied knowledge is power. Develop a genuine passion, invest in good gears, increase your knowledge and I assure you that the sky will be your starting point.

                           

Why Your Wedding Photographer is an Asset

Why Your Wedding Photographer is an Asset

Why Your Wedding Photographer is an Asset

                   John and Sara are already engaged. It’s one of the most blissful union I had ever seen. Even though they met about six months ago, their chemistry was just perfect. They decided on the perfect day to have their wedding. Both of them had very rich parents and as a man, John decided to take up most of the responsibility.They bought the best wedding dress ever and Basket mouth was going to be the MC of the day. In fact, John had to part with #500,000 to get his dream gold ring. As if that was not enough, the best event centre in Lagos was booked. Imagine planning a wedding with over a thousand guest and king Sunny Ade being the performing musician. That was their kind of wedding and I was contracted to shoot it

                              

                   90% of the time, it is usually the bride that contacts me to handle their wedding photography. Well, that won’t be surprising to a fellow photographer (unless one that shoots burial ceremonies only). It has always being a subject of concern to me and and I almost always ask the question, why? I believe that every decision is important in the wedding planning process but some are more important than the others.  Well, maybe that’s just how life is. We tend to major on the minor and minor on the major.

                      Whenever I arrive at a wedding, I feel am the most important person. Even though I am not the one getting married, I believe my job as the photographer is priceless. When other contributors  to the wedding like the caterers, decorators, MC, makeup artist,  music band,  cake designer etc. all end their contribution on the wedding  day, the relevance of job as a photographer has just began. Come to think of it, what happens to  Sara’s wedding dress after the wedding other being wrapped up and stored in a wardrobe forever. No matter how much Basket mouth is paid, his job ends on the wedding day. I have being to many weddings  where the decorators start to unpack their decorations even before the wedding is over(although I feel it’s  not so nice).

                     Couples must therefore ensure that their wedding photographer  help them capture those treasured moments that  matter most in such a way that will depict their personality and portray who they are. Consequently, one can conclude that the choice of wedding photographer is the most important decision a couple can take. Imagine the feeling that comes to mind by sequentially flipping through the pages of a wedding album 15 years into the marriage, scanning through the images of friends and family. Love begins to fill the air and then the relationship feels new again as if it all started some moments ago

                    In this regards, never choose a wedding photographer based on someone else’s opinion only. Take your time to check out their style of shooting and portfolio. I usually advice couples to select a photographer who is a wedding specialist just like you would prefer seeing an ophthalmologist over a generalist for eye examination. I often  advice bridegrooms to be actively involved When they are going to make that most important decision. They shouldn’t  leave it into the hands of the brides  alone, just because the bride’s father will pay for the services( which obviously relieves burden  on them). Our choices will make or mar us, so why not wisely make a good choice together. At least, what they say is that two (good) heads are better than one.

                  John and Sara’s story is never going to be complete without having a good photographer to capture the beautiful details of all those things they have invested their monies into. Moreover, life is short, so you might as well invest in getting the best wedding photos that will portray your personality and keep beautiful memories alive. Your wedding photographer could be your greatest asset.