Starting wedding photography

Alight, first off… I have to start sometime or somewhere, so why not now.

1) I'm 17, and I'm starting up a little side business for my photography.

2) I have had tons of experience with the aspects of photography: and people tell me that I need to start charging for photos, which I want to do.

3) I think I have "decent" gear: Nikon D200, 18-55mm, 50mm f/1.4, 70-300mm, speed-light, 24" softbox, reflector disks/diffuser disks.

4) My question is, what to shoot for the portraits? I think I've got the "event" type for the reception, but I really need some help for posing, or "rules" for the portraits (engagement photos for example). I clearly understand that it's a creative art and you shoot what you want, but is there kind of a guide line? Maybe a book?

5) Can someone point me in the right direction to get some understanding of what to shoot for a wedding?

From my understanding, wedding photography is HIGHLY stressful and is an 95% chance you take a terrible photo due to the amount of people at the event. If you're asking about the rules of posing etc then i think you should go and talk to a local wedding photographer in your area.many photographers will be happy to let you join them on work experience to get a taste of what its like, and while you're at it take photos of the wedding yourself to get a better understanding of what the bride and groom are after.

a wedding couple are arguabley the worse clients a photographer could possibly have as their demands are so high. If you are hired and get it wrong, you can't retake the images. So i strongly suggest working under a mentor until you feel confident enough to do it alone

Hope this helps.