Needing equipment for wedding

[John Patto]

Hi Guys, Im looking for info on good quality light meter, external flash and tripod. Any recommendations or prefences?

[ricktas]

Perhaps tell us what brand of gear you use. No use recommending a Nikon SB 900 if you shoot Canon, eh?

And my thoughts are that if you do not know what gear you need, then you are probably not ready to be shooting weddings.

[Boo53]

Rick, the post is in a Canon thread, so I guess he's using canon.

John, what have you been using, and have you considered hiring in the short term to see what works.

[paulheath]

John i see you have a canon 60D with kit lens, .... you say you need it for wedding, would this be to actually take the official photos? or just to have a keep sake of the day yourself?. the reason why i ask , and ricktas makes a point is that your profile states you have only just recently jumped into the world of photography, you have your skill level at Advanced and i am not the one to say who is advanced or not, BUT official weddings are without doubt one of the hardest subjects to shoot ( you cant ask the bride "just do that kiss again" after they say " you may now kiss the bride) i have been asked many a time to help out at weddings, with my answer being " sorry but im not quiet ready" . Maybe offer your services as an extra guy to take photos that maybe the professional photographer may miss. im sorry if this seems a little harsh.

[ricktas]

John i see you have a canon 60D with kit lens, .... you say you need it for wedding, would this be to actually take the official photos? or just to have a keep sake of the day yourself?. the reason why i ask , and ricktas makes a point is that your profile states you have only just recently jumped into the world of photography, you have your skill level at Advanced and i am not the one to say who is advanced or not, BUT official weddings are without doubt one of the hardest subjects to shoot ( you cant ask the bride "just do that kiss again" after they say " you may now kiss the bride) i have been asked many a time to help out at weddings, with my answer being " sorry but im not quiet ready" . Maybe offer your services as an extra guy to take photos that maybe the professional photographer may miss. im sorry if this seems a little harsh.

We upped it from beginner to advanced last night as we felt if he is shooting weddings, he must be advanced. We watch the site all the time for posts like this thread and amend members levels accordingly.

[ricktas]

I just found your wedding thread: http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?105730-Weddings

what time of day is this beach wedding? Flash (speedlights) will be almost useless if its during the main part of the day on a sunny day (which is probably what the bride hopes for), unless you go all out and get strobes with battery power etc and then setting it all up on the beach is going to take time, and taking it down will as well. Wasting valuable time that you could be taking photos. You would be better off getting a beauty dish or reflectors (do you have an assistant for the big day, cause you will likely need one).

A tripod is just going to slow you down as well, more equipment to cart around. Hand hold for weddings! Save your $$ and forget a tripod.

All DSLR have a light meter built in, why do you feel you need one? I often use my DSLR light meter to determine settings for my medium format film efforts.

[John Patto]

Hi Guys, Sorry, Yes I use a canon 60D. The wedding is my sister-in-laws, I'm doing it as a favour and she's aware its not going to be of a high standard. The wedding is outdoors around 3.30pm in late June. It is a park wedding with photos taken on the beach afterwards as well as near a boat harbour.

I dont have any external flashes yet.

Someone suggested a monopod but as i'm planning this to be my only wedding outside family requests, i'll stick with a tri. Its more for family photos where the elderly may need to be seated.

Good point on the light meter, guess I just wanted one cause professionals use them, the more I ask about it the less I want it though.

[JM Tran]

you wont be needing a tripod or bipod at all during the course of the day, unless you plan to take a single shot for slow shutter or whatever reason.

I have never used a light meter at a wedding and have not seen anyone do so.

[WhoDo]

Repeat my advice from the earlier thread ... get a decent reflector (5-in-1, Large) and co-opt an extra pair of hands to hold it. Work in unbroken shade as much as you can, too. You're definitely a gamer man than I am, Gunga Din! :eek:

[GerryK]

equipment aside, if you have until late June, i would get to the sites and practice at the equivalent times. This way you may pick up ideas and specific locations that work & do not work. Also remember, you might be doing it as a favor, but all the other guests will expect you to know what your doing and to be confident and controlling what you want & when.

[fabian628]

External flash the 580EX version I is relatively cheap and powerful these days.
I would not worry about a trpod unless you intend to do long exposures (?) and then you can probably get away with a basic $50 tripod.

Use the extra money on a decent lens, this will set your photos apart from the narrow aperture kit lenses. Something like a 85mm f/1.8 is quite good, very nice for portraits. If your sister in-law cares anything about the photos Im sure they will either cover the cost of this lens (approx 3-400 second hand) or at least lend you the money to buy this lens, then sell it again for no loss.

Good luck with shooting.

[GoldZilla]

Another alternative to buying lenses (and probably other equipment too, I'm not too sure) is hiring it - assuming you can find a business that caters to this need in your area.

It might even be handy to hire equipment and use them to figure out if you want to eventually buy it or not.

[bricat]

I just attended a wedding as a guest and took some wonderful shots. The official tog had control of the bride, groom, parents of them, best man/maid of honour etc . Photo's of brides preparation, arrival, the kiss , signing papers, cutting the cake, bridal party and all the guests for a group photo. Make a list with the bride of what she expects. I got maybe 20 great shots and the rest were typical amateur shots out of about 450 shots. PS What I consider as great shots may not meet the demands/expectations of a pro tog. I was glad I wasn't asked to be the "official tog" If your up to it by all means do it. cheers Brian

[ricktas]

I just attended a wedding as a guest and took some wonderful shots. The official tog had control of the bride, groom, parents of them, best man/maid of honour etc . Photo's of brides preparation, arrival, the kiss , signing papers, cutting the cake, bridal party and all the guests for a group photo. Make a list with the bride of what she expects. I got maybe 20 great shots and the rest were typical amateur shots out of about 450 shots. PS What I consider as great shots may not meet the demands/expectations of a pro tog. I was glad I wasn't asked to be the "official tog" If your up to it by all means do it. cheers Brian

We have a checklist to use as a guide on what to photograph : http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showlibrary.php?title=Genre:Wedding_Photography_Check-list

[Analog6]

Hi Guys, Sorry, Yes I use a canon 60D. The wedding is my sister-in-laws, I'm doing it as a favour and she's aware its not going to be of a high standard. The wedding is outdoors around 3.30pm in late June. It is a park wedding with photos taken on the beach afterwards as well as near a boat harbour.

I dont have any external flashes yet.

Someone suggested a monopod but as i'm planning this to be my only wedding outside family requests, i'll stick with a tri. Its more for family photos where the elderly may need to be seated.

Good point on the light meter, guess I just wanted one cause professionals use them, the more I ask about it the less I want it though.

Reflectors are the way to go for a sunlit day. Much nicer effect than hard flash. You'll need at least 2 nice big ones (they fold into little carry cases) so line up at least 2 family members (maybe children?) to assist you by holding them. They are inexpensive, just have a look on eBay. I suggest a practise run with some human guinea pigs at the beach at the same time of day a week or 2 before just so you can get a feel for it.

This is the type of thing (http://dx.com/p/5-in-1-collapsible-large-flash-reflector-board-60cm-diameter-80460) we mean - and I'm not recommending this seller, just the best image that came up

[ricktas]

Reflectors are the way to go for a sunlit day. Much nicer effect than hard flash. You'll need at least 2 nice big ones (they fold into little carry cases) so line up at least 2 family members (maybe children?) to assist you by holding them. They are inexpensive, just have a look on eBay. I suggest a practise run with some human guinea pigs at the beach at the same time of day a week or 2 before just so you can get a feel for it.

This is the type of thing (http://dx.com/p/5-in-1-collapsible-large-flash-reflector-board-60cm-diameter-80460) we mean - and I'm not recommending this seller, just the best image that came up

I would suggest looking at something bigger than the 60cm that those are.

hypop have large 110cm ones on special for $26.99

[Analog6]

I would suggest looking at something bigger than the 60cm that those are.

hypop have large 110cm ones on special for $26.99

They did have bigger ones, it was mainly posted for the pic so the OP had aan idea of what we were all rabbiting on about :) I also saw this great Lastolight one (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151574480056391&set=pb.134504581390.-2207520000.1367362231.&type=3&theater) on Facebook, I hope the link works. If not it is in the Sydney Photographic Workshop page

[bricat]

We have a checklist to use as a guide on what to photograph : http://www.ausphotography.net.au/for...phy_Check-list (http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showlibrary.php?title=Genre:Wedding_Photography_Check-list)

I guess I will have to look more into the site than my usual areas I access. Thanks

[Blueywa]

Hypop have the large 110cm ones on special for $24.99 + $15 P/H.