Where to start?

[bcole]

Hello everyone, I am a senior in college and I would really like to become a serious wedding photographer when I graduate. Therefore, I have several questions that I would love to have answered for me.

1. What type of camera do you suggest for wedding photography and why?

2. Do you recommend that I do a few weddings for little charge in the beginning in order to build a portfolio, and then start charging more? Or should I just start by charging a normal fee?

3. Is there any other advice that you can give someone who is just starting out?

Thanks so much for any advice that you can provide me.

Brian

[liza]

1. You need two bodies, one primary and one back up. The 5D is a favored model these days as it's an affordable full frame body with great resolution and excellent performance at high ISO's. It's also lighter than a 1 Series camera, which make a difference if you're carrying it all day.
2. I recommend that you shoot for at least one year with a professional before even considering going out on your own.
3. Take marketing classes in college. You'll need them.

[davidfig]

I second all that lisa said.
Most of all become a slave (backup, second shooter) to a pro. The pressure for a noob is unbelieveable. You have to be prepared.

[coreypolis]

do you have a business plan at all?
any financial backing to start?
any business knowledge?
and contacts, possible clients?

IMO, the Canon 1d2n or 5d are the best wedding cams, or the D200 or D2x on the Nikon side. There are expensive piece of equipment, and you need atleast 2, either shooting both with different lenses on each, or atleast 1 as a backup.

Then you need good glass, the 16-35L, 24-70L, 70-200L, 85 or 50mm etc
then flashes, battery packs, brackets, sync cords, meters, pocket wizards, reflectors, strobes, stands, memory cards, tripods, bags, gels, filters, software, printers, pro labs, a album distributor, etc

I would also reccommend training under someone, its really difficult to start your own buiness without knowledge of weddings, pro photogrpahy, and buiness, plus having networks to get clients through.

[Gabbana]

good info, I'm trying to learn this bussiness as well.

[PIXI_666]

1. What type of camera do you suggest for wedding photography and why?
It depends what brand your comfortable with, and if your just starting out i'd get something that wasn;t too fandangle because that's a bit to learn. And you don't want something that every man and his dog has like a 300 or 350d. Personally i'd get one of these as your backup, and then a 30D on top as your main camera.

2. Do you recommend that I do a few weddings for little charge in the beginning in order to build a portfolio, and then start charging more? Or should I just start by charging a normal fee?
Do a few weddings for FREE....ask them to pay for the prints or whatever you do in the end, but do everything else for free!!! OR go and see a pro and ask if you can assist them for a while for free! After a few weddings charge a little bit for your time, and within a year you coudl start upping your prices.

3. Is there any other advice that you can give someone who is just starting out?
Never give up, be confident but not cocky, listen to advice as much as you can, work with some pro's, experience is the best thing out there!

By the way...all the equipment mentioned is not NEEDED...i shot my first wedding with an EOS 500 SLR Film, a crappy kit lens and an on the camera flash, yes that was idiotic but i MADE it work. Its what you KNOW that is important not what equipment you have! It helps yes, but for your first few weddings do what you can with the money you have.

Equipment that is essential is your bodies, 1 or 2 good lenses one with good potential zoom w/ a wide lens and maybe a good portrait lens. You need an off the camera flash, lots of cards lots of batteries, those are the basics...and you can easily do a wedding with this stuff.

Gels, Filters, Studio Lights all that crap can come later, you dont NEED those its not essential and personally i dont think a 1d or 5d is good for anyone starting out - what happens if a beginner really hates doing weddings and then they have this expensive camera they have to sell for 3/4 of the price.

Just my opinion...

Del :)