How to Produce Cooler Wedding Images by Andy and Amii Kauth

Sunshine & Reign Photography is based out of Phoenix, Arizona, and photographs weddings all over Arizona and the United States. We’re modern and artistic. And we’re certain of the fact that we’re wedding photographers for the raddest of rad souls—those who want a combination of artistically modern images and unique portraits, along with a genuine documentation of their entire wedding day (from before they even begin to get ready until after the party is shut down.) Website: https://sunshineandreign.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sunshineandreign Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunshineandreign Despite being prime lens, off-camera flash wedding photographers, we try not to be gear heavy, and we don’t like complicated. Tether Tools is right there with us in the respect that their RapidMounts make things easier. The designs and quality are legit; the myriad of options is impressive, and at a range of $36.95 – $89.90, there’s really a mount for every budget.  

HOW WE SHOT IT: GETTING READY

Because our lighting assistant can’t always stand on a dresser while also holding a “kicker light”, and because we can’t always cram a light stand into small places, we love to use a variety of mounting systems in our kit. On one occasion, we attached the PowrGrip to a mirror to help us out while chasing the infamous hairspray/perfume/mist image. We mounted the PowrGrip to a mirror, threw a MagMod MagGrid on our SB-910, and had at it. If you look closely, you’ll see our lighting assistant crouched down behind our bride.

HOW WE SHOT IT: THE GONDOLA LIFT

Very recently, we photographed a wedding in Telluride, Colorado. We knew we were going to have the opportunity to get in a gondola lift with our clients and wanted to create some memorable portraits inside the gondola lift itself. PowrGrip to the rescue, along with a bit of help from a MagMod MagGrid and A & M Film and Photo’s Prism!

HOW WE SHOT IT: RECEPTION LIGHTING

One of our absolute favorite parts of a wedding is the reception because we love a party: the dancing, the joy, and all that celebrating well into the late night/early hours of the morning are right up our alley. And while our favorite option for securing our off camera flash at a reception is our lighting assistant + a softbox (we prefer the Westcott Rapid Box – 26” Octa Softbox), it’s not always practical and not always best practice to throw up a stand when people are dancing and children are running about. In the case of this reception, we got creative and used the PowrGrip to mount our light to one of the DJ’s speakers.

HOW WE SHOT IT: SEDONA ENGAGEMENT

We were stoked when, on a recent engagement adventure, our bride-to-be took the time to get her hair and makeup done at a local shop, so we arrived early enough to get some shots of her getting ready. Here we used Tether Tools‘ RapidMount Q20, due to our need to mount one of our Nikon SB-910s to a wall in a very small space (it’s gridded w/ a MagMod MagGrid). The final image is an in-camera double exposure that is also prismed with an A & M Film and Photo prism.