Maybe you've got some recommendations for new lenses too? Is f/4 at wide angle enough in most cases?
I've got several years of photography experience, but none with weddings.
I'm asking this, because I don't want to have to say afterwards that my lenses are not suitable enough for this kind of photography.
Personally I believe a good flash is EVERY BIT AS IMPORTANT as a lens and camera body.
Of course if it is a daytime wedding with lots of good light that is different, but many of my weddings and other similar functions were dark and even my F1.4 lenses would not suffice without the aid of a good flash.
BTW while the OEM flashes are very good, I think a Lumedyne or Metz is still a much better choice for a wedding photograher. LOADS of light and if you properly white balance, it will look just like sunlight.
Is it the amount of light that these aftermarket flashes offer that is better than the OEM. And when you say OEM you mean 420ex, 550, 580...right. I'm looking to invest in a good flash unit. TIA
GmElliott wrote:
Is it the amount of light that these aftermarket flashes offer that is better than the OEM. And when you say OEM you mean 420ex, 550, 580...right. I'm looking to invest in a good flash unit. TIA
OEM=ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTUROR aka CANON in this case...
I have to say as a side note the 420ex is a good unit... I loved mine till I sold it
It has limited usage tho... I have been using a buddies 550ex and will be buying a 550ex or a 580ex based on my usage which is mainly portrait/wedding...
At least 80% of my wedding shots are with a 28-70 f2.8, and I'd much prefer it over the 50mm prime. That said, I think your lens lineup is perfectly adequate as it is. If you plan to shoot a lot of weddings I'd suggest adding either the 24-70 or 28-70.
For flash your 420EX should be fine. I use one on my second camera (1D) and have a 550EX on my main camera (1D II). I'm not endorsing either flash as the best, but they'll do the job. Just learn to use them well in high contrast situations. E-TTL doesn't work too well with white gowns and black tuxes; it wants to expose for either the white or the black.
If you don't already have one, get a rotating flash bracket and the Canon Off-Camera Shoe Cord 2. At least for me, the majority of wedding photos are shot in portrait (vertical) orientation. Without a rotating flash bracket all these shots will have an ugly shadow at the side. GET A BRACKET!
Formal poses: In my neck of the woods formal poses make up 80% of my print sales. If possible plan to shoot the formals before the ceremony and schedule at least an hour (preferably two hours) for shooting them. And you'll want to try to finish the formals an hour before the ceremony begins, so that means starting the formals 2-3 hours before the ceremony. I strongly recommend studio lighting for the formals. I've never shot an indoor wedding without them. (A few hundred with them.)
Get a shot list, at least for the formals. The day of the wedding is no time for the bride to be deciding who she wants in her formal shots. Get all the family group shots in these that you can. We've shot weddings where we've sold $thousands of dollars worth of prints to families who only get together (all dressed up) at weddings. 95% of the time these are included in the shots the bride orders; the rest of the time we'll either take them at no extra charge or charge $10 per group for posing and a few proofs.
Newk wrote:
At least 80% of my wedding shots are with a 28-70 f2.8, and I'd much prefer it over the 50mm prime. That said, I think your lens lineup is perfectly adequate as it is. If you plan to shoot a lot of weddings I'd suggest adding either the 24-70 or 28-70.
For flash your 420EX should be fine. I use one on my second camera (1D) and have a 550EX on my main camera (1D II). I'm not endorsing either flash as the best, but they'll do the job. Just learn to use them well in high contrast situations. E-TTL doesn't work too well with white gowns and black tuxes; it wants to expose for either the white or the black.
If you don't already have one, get a rotating flash bracket and the Canon Off-Camera Shoe Cord 2. At least for me, the majority of wedding photos are shot in portrait (vertical) orientation. Without a rotating flash bracket all these shots will have an ugly shadow at the side. GET A BRACKET!
Formal poses: In my neck of the woods formal poses make up 80% of my print sales. If possible plan to shoot the formals before the ceremony and schedule at least an hour (preferably two hours) for shooting them. And you'll want to try to finish the formals an hour before the ceremony begins, so that means starting the formals 2-3 hours before the ceremony. I strongly recommend studio lighting for the formals. I've never shot an indoor wedding without them. (A few hundred with them.)
Get a shot list, at least for the formals. The day of the wedding is no time for the bride to be deciding who she wants in her formal shots. Get all the family group shots in these that you can. We've shot weddings where we've sold $thousands of dollars worth of prints to families who only get together (all dressed up) at weddings. 95% of the time these are included in the shots the bride orders; the rest of the time we'll either take them at no extra charge or charge $10 per group for posing and a few proofs....Show more →
Pics of said bracket? I just got my 10D and am brand new to dslr, i'm also about to buy a 420EX for the camera and might go ahead and invest on this bracket. I'm just curious to know where it mounts to and what the advantages are. Would the flash mount to some sort of bracket that goes off to the side instead of the hotshoe?
Sorry for the newbie questions but you gotta start somewhere
thanks for the good points. we all learning out of this.How do u get around the high contrast situation with the 500EX.
Also what bracket do u recomend?
