Reading mode: Light Dark

Wedding Photography Lens

Go to last post
J

JPritch84

New member
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
Hi Folks,

Firstly I am sure this has been asked many times before so thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.

My brother's wedding is coming up and he has asked me to take some photos for him. Whilst I have done quite a bit of wildlife and sports photography and indoor filming of sports events but I've never done a wedding before! Thankfully they have a professional doing the set pieces but he has asked me to do the speeches, reception etc., so lots of lowish light shots and wanted peoples opinions as to whether my current selection will be up to the task or if I should look to supplement what I have. Obviously its my brothers wedding so I want to do a good job :-)

Currently I am shooting on a Canon 6D with a 70-200mm L F2.8 IS (which I know up to the task), 24-105mm L F4, 100mm F2.0 and a nifty fifty (Canon 50m F1.8) and I guess my biggest concern is whether the 24-105mm will do the job or if I should consider the 24-70mm f2.8 or a prime. I get asked to do this quite often so it's probably worth the investiment but the 24-70mm really stings the wallet!

Thanks for your help!
 
Last edited:
For my wedding it was a friend of mine who was the photographer. It was a rather informal wedding, so I guess he did approximatively the kind of shot you are going to take - not "wedding sets" the pro will be in charge of (mainly reception, portraits of people drinking the champagne etc).

He had a 24-70 F2.8 for general shots, tables etc..., a 70-200 F2.8 for portraits and ... that's it. I forgot to mention a 50 F1.4 that he only used a couple of times, but really not for the highlight shots.

A good thing is maybe using 2 bodies if you have in order to avoid swaping lenses. Anyway, you should be able to acheive good results with 24-105 + 70-200 only. Try to go simple, it's your brother's wedding and you also have to enjoy it!!

Cheers

PL
 
pilou1253 said:
For my wedding it was a friend of mine who was the photographer. It was a rather informal wedding, so I guess he did approximatively the kind of shot you are going to take - not "wedding sets" the pro will be in charge of (mainly reception, portraits of people drinking the champagne etc).

He had a 24-70 F2.8 for general shots, tables etc..., a 70-200 F2.8 for portraits and ... that's it. I forgot to mention a 50 F1.4 that he only used a couple of times, but really not for the highlight shots.
Click to expand...
EDIT: take your 50 mm F1.8 in case you want to take shots in very low light and if you don't have a flash.
pilou1253 said:
A good thing is maybe using 2 bodies if you have in order to avoid swaping lenses. Anyway, you should be able to acheive good results with 24-105 + 70-200 only. Try to go simple, it's your brother's wedding and you also have to enjoy it!!

Cheers

PL
Click to expand...
 
By the way, if there's a pro there, why are you taking a camera, instead of having lots of fun and getting drunk with the rest of the gang???
 
JPritch84 said:
Hi Folks,

Firstly I am sure this has been asked many times before so thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.

My brother's wedding is coming up and he has asked me to take some photos for him. Whilst I have done quite a bit of wildlife and sports photography and indoor filming of sports events but I've never done a wedding before! Thankfully they have a professional doing the set pieces but he has asked me to do the speeches, reception etc., so lots of lowish light shots and wanted peoples opinions as to whether my current selection will be up to the task or if I should look to supplement what I have. Obviously its my brothers wedding so I want to do a good job :-)

Currently I am shooting on a Canon 6D with a 70-200mm L F2.8 IS (which I know up to the task), 24-105mm L F4, 100mm F2.0 and a nifty fifty (Canon 50m F1.8) and I guess my biggest concern is whether the 24-105mm will do the job or if I should consider the 24-70mm f2.8 or a prime. I get asked to do this quite often so it's probably worth the investiment but the 24-70mm really stings the wallet!

Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
You've got everything you need. You could leave the 50 at home, but might want to take it with you if you find that the FR is good depending on your location.

The 24-105/4L IS works fine in low light situations with the 6D. Certainly, the 24-70 is "the" wedding zoom, but there's no reason to get one for this if you've done fine without it.

The 24-105 is so good I've kept it even after getting the 24-70. Since we're only talking about a full stop of light - you can make up for that with the IS and ISO on your camera, as long as everybody's not jumping around too much.

Chances are good that just the 24-105 is going to be all you'll need anyway. Good for groups, and long enough to zoom in on faces. Do that and keep the others in your bag for backup, and worry more about having a good time. It's too easy to get caught up taking pictures and miss the event.


Way, way darker than it appears - Monterey Bay Aquarium with 6D and 24-105.
 
This might be a way out of the box thinking but if I were you, I'd take the 50mm f1.8 lens (unless you want to upgrade to the STM version for better focusing) on my 6D and that's it. Keep it simple, small, and light and have a blast at your brothers wedding. I think for me, I'd have a hard time letting loose and having fun with a 24-105mm f4 and the 70-200mm f2.8 lenses that I have to lug around. Just my two cents. YMMV.
 
JPritch84 said:
Hi Folks,

Firstly I am sure this has been asked many times before so thank you for taking the time to answer my questions.

My brother's wedding is coming up and he has asked me to take some photos for him. Whilst I have done quite a bit of wildlife and sports photography and indoor filming of sports events but I've never done a wedding before! Thankfully they have a professional doing the set pieces but he has asked me to do the speeches, reception etc., so lots of lowish light shots and wanted peoples opinions as to whether my current selection will be up to the task or if I should look to supplement what I have. Obviously its my brothers wedding so I want to do a good job :-)

Currently I am shooting on a Canon 6D with a 70-200mm L F2.8 IS (which I know up to the task), 24-105mm L F4, 100mm F2.0 and a nifty fifty (Canon 50m F1.8) and I guess my biggest concern is whether the 24-105mm will do the job or if I should consider the 24-70mm f2.8 or a prime. I get asked to do this quite often so it's probably worth the investiment but the 24-70mm really stings the wallet!

Thanks for your help!
Click to expand...
for wedding photography, i'd get only one lens...24-70 f2.8II....period!
 
JPritch84 said:
Currently I am shooting on a Canon 6D with a 70-200mm L F2.8 IS (which I know up to the task), 24-105mm L F4, 100mm F2.0 and a nifty fifty (Canon 50m F1.8) and I guess my biggest concern is whether the 24-105mm will do the job or if I should consider the 24-70mm f2.8 or a prime. I get asked to do this quite often so it's probably worth the investiment but the 24-70mm really stings the wallet!
Click to expand...
I would start with the 70-200/2.8 and take the "safe shots" for close(r) ups of the speeches and some people. Then go over to the 24-105/4, to go for a little wider shots including some context.

If you've got all the expected shots, I'd move over to the 50/1.8 and go for some more creative, shallow DoF stuff that only an F1.8 lens will give you. The unpredictable AF of the 50/1.8 II will be a little hit and miss, so don't do anything that you NEED to get with that lens. The 50 STM is way better AF'ing than the II version, BTW, but nowhere close to the spot-on AF performance of the 70-200 or 24-105.

I'd leave the 100/2 at home, because I would do these shots with the 70-200/2.8 instead.

I have both the 24-105/4 and the 24-70/2.8 and I would certainly bring the 24-70/2.8, but I certainly would not upgrade just for this. The 6D+24-105/4 served me very well in very low-light scenarios.

If you want to upgrade something, the 50 STM would be my suggestion. But only if you're into that focal range (like I am).
 
With only one body, you are limited to one lens at a time. Ideally, you will have two bodies, one with telephoto lens and the other with wide angle lens. So I think it is best if you just use the one that is the most versatile, this way you don't have to worry about switching lens and miss the shots. I believe 50mm 1.8 would be good enough for most of the shots; it is light to carry around, not too wide, not too narrow, it has a big enough aperture to gather light. If you already hired professional photographers, I doubt you will be required to shoot everything. After all it is your brother's wedding. I think you should just enjoy the wedding and use the 50mm 1.8 for the shots. The 24-105mm f4 is good only when you shoot outdoors or bump up the ISO indoors. This is why I suggest you used the 50mm 1.8

--
A good photographer can capture a great image with a bad camera/lens, while a bad photographer cannot capture a great image with the best camera/lens. A better camera/lens can only make a photographer's life a little bit easier.
Don't focus too much on what kind of photo equipment you own or wish to have. Instead, focus on your techniques as a photographer. The final result is what really matters!
 
Last edited:
kevinplui said:
With only one body, you are limited to one lens at a time. Ideally, you will have two bodies, one with telephoto lens and the other with wide angle lens. So I think it is best if you just use the one that is the most versatile, this way you don't have to worry about switching lens and miss the shots. I believe 50mm 1.8 would be good enough for most of the shots; it is light to carry around, not too wide, not too narrow, it has a big enough aperture to gather light. If you already hired professional photographers, I doubt you will be required to shoot everything. After all it is your brother's wedding. I think you should just enjoy the wedding and use the 50mm 1.8 for the shots. The 24-105mm f4 is good only when you shoot outdoors or bump up the ISO indoors. This is why I suggest you used the 50mm 1.8
Click to expand...
 
Thanks to everyone for the feedback!

The Pro's only there for the formal shots and the actual ceremony anything after we leave the church is up to me. I have two bodies but really don't want to be dragging them both about at this wedding so a 50mm prime sounds like a great idea. Would people recommend the 50mm 1.8 STM over the 50mm 1.4?
 
I have the 50mm 1.8 STM; I believe it is better than the 50mm 1.4. I felt my copy of 1.4 is a bit softer than the 1.8 STM. Plus STM is a lot cheaper!
 
I find 50mm too long for almost any wedding situation. I'd get the 35/2 IS for receptions and most other tight areas and use the 70-200 and 100/2 for everything else.
 
Spotted Cow said:
This might be a way out of the box thinking but if I were you, I'd take the 50mm f1.8 lens (unless you want to upgrade to the STM version for better focusing) on my 6D and that's it. Keep it simple, small, and light and have a blast at your brothers wedding. I think for me, I'd have a hard time letting loose and having fun with a 24-105mm f4 and the 70-200mm f2.8 lenses that I have to lug around. Just my two cents. YMMV.
Click to expand...
For the speeches though with only a 50 you would be right in front for individual shots....it would be ok for group shots.

A lens like the 70-200 and you are not in everyone's way. I would prefer a 135 f2 L for speeches. and maybe the 50 for group shots.
 
df6148fbdd7c4f9a9efb014d668a38c9.jpg

I have both the 24-70 2.8 MKII and the 24-105 4.0 and I love them both, of course the 2.8 is better, but I have shot an entire wedding with only 2 lenses the 16-35 2.8 MKII and the 24-105 4.0 and the end result was fantastic.
 
Member said:
Spotted Cow said:
This might be a way out of the box thinking but if I were you, I'd take the 50mm f1.8 lens (unless you want to upgrade to the STM version for better focusing) on my 6D and that's it. Keep it simple, small, and light and have a blast at your brothers wedding. I think for me, I'd have a hard time letting loose and having fun with a 24-105mm f4 and the 70-200mm f2.8 lenses that I have to lug around. Just my two cents. YMMV.
Click to expand...
For the speeches though with only a 50 you would be right in front for individual shots....it would be ok for group shots.

A lens like the 70-200 and you are not in everyone's way. I would prefer a 135 f2 L for speeches. and maybe the 50 for group shots.
Click to expand...
You are right Neil, I actually agree with you. But seeing as how he doesn't have the 135mm lens, he can take his 100mm f2 along with the 50mm lens and still have a very light compact kit which will still allow him to enjoy the wedding. I guess for me, it's either "am I there to take photos" or "am I there to enjoy the wedding." I think taking the 50mm with the 100mm is a good compromise. The way I dance, I might knock someone down with my 70-200mm f2.8 IS lens in hand and they may never get up. :)
 
JPritch84 said:
(..) I have two bodies but really don't want to be dragging them both about at this wedding so a 50mm prime sounds like a great idea. (..)
Click to expand...
Don't go without the 24-104/4!
 
I have shot weddings with the cheap combo 24-105/4.0 and 70-200/4.0 and the 35/1.4 for low light shots. The 24-105/4.0 works fine for wedding. The IS works great not only for fotos but also for video clips. Some short funny clips can make a difference.

The Canon 50/1.4 and 1.8s are compact so bring them with you, even if only as backup. They will work fine at the party when light gets dim.

More important than the lenses is the flash and maybe a small light modifier. Bring a lot of batteries for the flash. Read wedding fotographer tips for the use of flash. Using the flash like a pro will improve your shots much more than the usage of the most expensive pro lens.

Work with the pro fotographer. Dont just double the shots but use different angles and focal lenghs, keep moving. Therefore you will add variation.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Keyboard shortcuts

f
Forum
m
My threads
Mobile site
About
Editorial content
Cameras & Lenses
Community
All content, design, and layout are Copyright © 1998–2025 Digital Photography Review All Rights Reserved.
Reproduction in whole or part in any form or medium without specific written permission is prohibited.
When you use DPReview links to buy products, the site may earn a commission.
©GPS Media - Guides, Products, Services.
Back
Top