Equipment for Wedding Photographers
by Josh Root
Should you try to take professional quality wedding images with a Canon Rebel
XTi and the kit lens? The answer is no. However, any digital SLR body
combined with a decent lens (see below) is a good start. This article
will explain the equipment that a typical wedding photographer uses
and some of the reasoning behind those choices.
Josh Root
When you are responsible for documenting something as important as
a wedding day, there is no excuse for not having the right tool. How
do you get your hands on a $1500
Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L USM (review) when you only have $100
in your wallet? Rent it! Most professional photography stores have a
rental department. Prices for a digital body range from $50-200/day
and most lenses range from $10-30/day. Most rental operations offer a
discount for multi-day or weekend rental as well. This is good because
you get the chance to become familiar with a particular piece of
equipment before you have to use it on the job. No photography rental
businesses near you? Many of the larger rental operations will rent
via Fedex/UPS.
Lenses
Lenses with a large maximum aperture of f/2.8 or larger are
extremely valuable for weddings. The option to use available light,
even in dark churches or dimly lit reception halls, is a strong tool
for the wedding photographer. Even more important is the option not to
use a flash, as few people would describe the light cast by an
on-camera flash as romantic. Furthermore, some locations have
restrictions on flash photography during the ceremony itself, or a
bride might specifically request that a flash not be used. The extra
two stops of shutter speed between a f/2.8 lens and a cheaper f/4-5.6
kit lens can make the difference in getting the desired
photograph.
There are photographers who make wonderful images with three to four
fast primes and photographers who have every focal length covered
with multiple lenses from 15-300mm. Most professional wedding
photographers, however, use a set of three zoom lenses: a wide-angle
zoom, a wide-to-tele zoom, and an image-stabilized telephoto zoom.
Wide-Angle Zoom
Josh Root
The wide-angle zoom lens is indispensable. This lens makes it possible
to photograph in confined spaces, such as the bride's dressing room or
a packed dance floor. The wide angle perspective creates a sense of
expansiveness and grandeur by showing the entire church or ceremony
location. Wide images are easier to create with a full-frame sensor
camera, as there are no f/2.8 lenses in the 10-22 range that gives and
equivalent field of view with a small-sensor camera.
Wide-to-Telephoto Zoom
The wide-to-tele lens is the single most important lens for wedding
photography. It is wide enough to take a group photograph, but still
long enough to take a three-quarter portrait of a couple without the
unflattering effects of wide-angle
perspective distortion. Given just this lens, most professional
wedding photographers could cover an average wedding to their usual
standards of quality. Both Canon and Nikon offer high quality f/2.8
wide-to-tele zooms designed for a small sensor-body. These lenses are
less expensive and physically smaller than their full frame
counterparts.
Image-Stabilized Telephoto Zoom
Josh Root
The 70-200mm focal length is an important range for ceremony
images. Very few wedding parties want the photographer in the way
during the ceremony. Most likely, you will be photographing down the
aisle from the back of the church. This is where an image-stabilized
telephoto zoom shines. 200mm is long enough to be able to take 3/4
length images of the bride and groom without creeping too far forward
down the aisle and 70mm is wide enough to take in the bridesmaids or
groomsmen as a group without switching lenses.
When using a small-sensor camera as your primary or backup body,
the bad news is that neither Nikon or Canon make an f/2.8 lens that
gives you an effective 70-200mm focal length. You are going to have to
pay the price and carry the weight of a lens designed for a full frame
camera. The good news is that the small-sensor camera's 1.5x focal
length multiplier can be a huge advantage. The 200/2.8 long end of
the standard zoom becomes effective 300/2.8, a lens that would cost
$4000 for a full-frame camera and be large and heavy enough to come in
its own suitcase. The effective 300mm length
allows for more creative options than a
shorter lens, such as tightly cropped images of the bride and groom's
hands while they put rings on each other's fingers.
Whether you are using a full-frame or a small sensor body, the
f/2.8 maximum aperture of these lenses gives you the option of
narrowing the depth of field, keeping the viewer's attention on the
in-focus subject while blurring the background. Canon's
Image-Stabilization and Nikon's Vibration-Reduction systems are
indispensable in allowing you to hold these large and heavy long
lenses by hand, especially in low light situations. No wedding
photographer should be without IS/VR on their long
lenses. Image-stabilized telephoto zooms are expensive and this is
another situation where rental may be a good way to go.
Prime Lenses
Many photographers keep their lens kit to the three zoom lenses
discussed previously. These lenses would probably cover 80-90% of the
photos for any given wedding. It is worth including 2-3 fast prime
lenses in your bag as well. These lenses are small, light, and fairly
inexpensive. There are times at a wedding where, either for artistic
or technical reasons, even an f/2.8 aperture is not enough to get the
motion-stopping shutter speed or shallow depth of field desired. The
faster prime lenses are ideal in these situations. An image that
requires a 1/10th of a second shutter speed at f/2.8 will only require
1/30th of a second at f/1.8. That can be the difference between making
a sharp image and a blurry one. However, for most professional wedding
photographers, the best reason to include a few prime lenses in their
wedding kit is that they provide an economical backup to their zoom
lenses. Nothing is quite so terrifying as having equipment fail at a
crucial moment. At a wedding in 2004, the aperture blades of a Canon
28-70/2.8 froze during the formal portraits. I remembered the 35/2 and
85/1.8 in my backup bag. After telling everyone to "take five" so I
could run to the car, the backup lenses allowed me to finish the
wedding without anyone noticing the failure.
Josh Root
My preferred three lens prime kit consists of a 28/1.8,
50/1.8, and 85/1.8, all used on a full-frame body. The 28mm takes in
the full scope of most ceremony locations and also works in crowded
spaces, the 50mm is good for small groups or a dancing couple, and the
85mm is long enough for ceremony vow/rings/kiss images. A wedding can
be successfully photographed with just these three lenses. What is
better, telling a bride that you missed the kiss because your one long
zoom lens malfunctioned, or providing her with an image, even if it
isn't the absolute best photo you could have possibly taken?
Three-Lens Prime Kit:
Camera body
Most professional wedding photographers would agree that the
essential tool for wedding photography is one of the current
full-frame Canon or Nikon digital SLR's. As of late 2007, the best
choices would be the Canon EOS 5D (review) or
the Nikon D3 (review). These bodies offer
the best wide-angle capabilities with current lenses and the best
image quality in low light. Does this mean that weddings cannot be
photographed with a less expensive camera? Absolutely not. There are
many excellent wedding photographers who use small sensor cameras such
as the Nikon D300 (review) and the
Canon EOS 40D (review). These cameras have
excellent imaging and AF systems and, as mentioned earlier, provide a
welcome boost in magnification for telephoto work. Their main drawback
is the lack of f/2.8 wide-angle lenses.
What about the entry level DSLR bodies? Could you photograph a
wedding with a Canon Digital Rebel or Nikon D40? In theory, yes. The
imaging systems in these cameras are very good and skilled
photographers have no problem creating excellent images with
them. However, these cameras do not make our list of recommended
primary equipment for several reasons: (1) slower handling due to
increased use of buttons/menus, rather than dials; (2) reduced AF
speed; and (3) inferior low light/high ISO performance. Despite those
limitations, these cameras make excellent and economical backup
bodies.
Only a fool would try to photograph an event as important as a
wedding with only one camera body; bring a back-up body. If you do not
own a back up body, or only have an entry level DSLR, look into
renting.
Josh Root
Flashes and Accessories
- 2-3 500-800 w/s monolight heads
- 2-3 "speedlight" on-camera TTL flashes
- light stands for each flash
- umbrellas/softboxes for each flash
- flash triggering device (radio slaves, optical triggers, or PC
cords)
- hand held flash meter
There are two schools of thought regarding electronic flashes for
wedding work. Photographers with a lot of studio experience usually
feel most comfortable with the flexibility and power that a set of
studio monolights provide. Photographers with more editorial
experience often feel more comfortable with "speedlight" TTL flashes
due to their light weight and speed of setup/takedown. Studio flashes
have the advantage of significantly more lighting power and many
options for light modifications such as softboxes, snoots, and
barn-doors. This can be an advantage when you have a large wedding
group to photograph, or when the location calls for some creative
lighting to achieve the proper romantic feel. In my experience, time
is the scarcest resource at a wedding. The faster you can set up
and tear down, the happier you and your clients will be. For my
personal wedding photography, TTL flashes' quick setup and lack of
need for extension cords or electrical outlets have proven to be a far
greater advantage.
With either studio strobes or speedlights, you will need light
stands and light modifying devices for each flash. Umbrellas are
very popular due to their easy setup, but softboxes have better light
softening and directional abilities. The real-world answer is that you
should use whatever you can afford and are comfortable
with. Monolights require fairly sturdy dedicated light stands. Even
the small ones are somewhat heavy and require a lot of
support. Small TTL speedlight flashes can be mounted on just about
anything, but most photographers find that investing in a set of
sturdy light stands is a worthwhile investment. For those new to
working with external flash, the photo.net Studio Photography Primer and Lighting Equipment and Techniques
Forum will be useful resources.
500-800 w/s Monolight Heads
On-camera TTL Flashes
Josh Root
Light Stands
Umbrellas/Softboxes
Remote Flash Triggering
When setting up remote flashes for formal portraits, radio slaves
are very handy. They allow you to eliminate long cords that wedding
guests may trip over and to place flashes in locations where a cord
would never reach. However, they are not necessary and many
photographers successfully rely on optical flash triggers or infrared
devices that allow the duration of remote flashes to be controlled by the
camera body's through-the-lens flash metering system.
Optical Triggers
PC Cords
Hand-Held Flash Meter
With the instant preview available on digital cameras, it is easy to
take a test photo, check the exposure on the rear LCD, and adjust
flash exposure if needed. However, a hand-held flash meter can be
valuable when setting up flashes for formal portraits. It is easy to
stand in front of the flashes with a light meter in one hand and a
radio slave trigger in the other. You quickly get an accurate idea of
exposure and ratios among the different flashes you are using. Given
how small and inexpensive a flash meter is, it is wise to make one a
part of your wedding photography kit.
A bag to hold it all
Split your wedding gear into two bags. One bag holds your main body,
the most frequently-used lenses, an on-camera flash, batteries, and
the most important accessories. The second bag holds your backup body,
specialty or backup lenses, extra flashes, battery chargers, and other
accessories. With a backpack as your large bag, you will be able to
carry all of day's equipment without back- or shoulder-strain. Unlike
larger hard-sided gear cases, a backpack can easily be tucked away in
your car's trunk or under a reception table. This allows it to be
easily accessible while still protecting your gear from any bumps and
jostles. The shoulder bag gives you something smaller and easier to
work out of moving around a lot, particularly in crowded
spaces. Bridal dressing rooms, reception areas, dance floors, and
limousines are a lot easier to navigate with a shoulder bag instead of
a large backpack. Keep in mind that a single giant shoulder bag
negates any mobility advantages and will give you a serious backache
after a long day. For more advice on the overall topic of camera bags,
visit the photo.net camera bag section.
Backpacks
Josh Root
Shoulder Bags-Large
Shoulder Bags-Small
Battery Packs
External battery packs for speedlight flashes yield faster
recycling time and more photographs between battery changes. The
disadvantages are their extra weight, awkwardness of use, slow
charging time, and high price. Many photographers prefer to use
high-capacity rechargeable batteries instead. You can carry 20 of them
for the weight and space of one external battery. Rechargeable AA
batteries, costing $1-2 each, provide fairly decent recycle time and
capacity. In a battery shortage crisis, AAs can be recharged
quickly enough to get you through an unexpectedly dark reception.
Light-Stand Weight Bags
Even a gentle breeze can knock over a light stand with a flash and
umbrella mounted. This is an easy way to break some expensive gear,
and will cause the whole portrait session to grind to a halt. The
solution? Nylon or canvas bags filled with sand or water can be used
to add weight to the bottom of the light stand. A strong gust can
still knock them over because an umbrella makes a great sail, but
lighter winds pose much less of a threat.
Tripods and Monopods
Josh Root
When in dim churches, your shutter speed may dip fairly low. Since few
parts of a wedding ceremony involve fast subject movement, you can
usually get away with it, especially if you are using a monopod. But
there is a limit to how low your shutter speed can go before camera
shake ruins the image. A general guideline is a handheld image will be
acceptably sharp if the shutter speed is faster than
1/focal-length. For example, for a 50mm lens, a shutter speed of
1/50th of a second or faster. For a 200mm lens, use 1/200th of a
second or faster. IS/VR lenses will provide at least an extra two
f-stops of practical stabilization, meaning that you can use 1/50th of
a second on that 200mm lens, but there are situations where IS/VR is
insufficient. A tripod provides the ultimate in stability and
sharpness, but isn't as useful for weddings as for, say, landscape
photography, because people at a wedding move around a lot more than
mountains. The tripod stabilizes the camera, not the subject. The
tripod is most useful with long lenses, e.g., when photographing from
a church's choir loft. A monopod provides less stability, but is
easier to move around.
See the photo.net tripod section for
specific recommendations in this area.
Gaffers Tape
Gaffers tape is surprisingly handy in almost any situation. You never
know when you are going to need to tape down a veil, cover a power
cord, or hold together a bowtie. It is the kind of thing that can save
the day in hundreds of different situations. In the past year alone I
have used gaffers tape to hold up a dress, keep a veil from blowing in
the wind, tape down a power cord, hold a broken flash together, and
make an emergency shoulder strap. It is more expensive than duct tape,
but is also much easier to tear and leaves less glue behind. Throw a
roll of it in your case, and you will probably forget it's in there
until the moment you need it most. Then it will be worth its weight in
gold.
Conclusion
Any digital SLR can be an effective tool for wedding photography,
if combined with a high quality high speed lens. For most
photographers, three professional-quality zooms are the standard
outfit. Bringing studio strobes or wireless speedlight flashes to a
wedding is a big step up in complexity, but opens up a lot of creative
possibilities. Remember to spend at least a few days working with
bodies, lenses, and flashes before the wedding. A wedding should be
the third or fourth project that you do with a new piece of gear, not
the first!
For further advice, please visit the photo.net Wedding
Photography forum, where many experienced photographers will
be happy to answer your questions.
Text and pictures ©2007 Josh Root.
Article created October 2007
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