a year till my first wedding gig...

[wasabean]

hi everyone, i've been presented the oppourtunity shoot my friend's wedding in August of '09 (we've been friends since 6th grade). so i still have some time to hone my skills and to acquire necessary gear. the wedding is going to be in Maui so i don't think i'll be having lighting issues. i do plan on buying a tripod and a set of remotes to move the flash off camera. i also plan on purchasing the new 50D after a couple months of it's release in Oct.

my current gear are as follows: canon rebel XT; EF-S 17-55mm IS; 430ex;

I plan on purchasing:
Canon 50D;
more memory;
70-200mm f/4 L;
50mm f1.4 ;
Manfrotto 055XPROB w/ 322RC2 Grip Tripod (which head can i get that is able to go from landscape to portrait?);
Elinchrom EL-Skyport Dedicated Radio Slave System (can't afford PWs);
maybe a 580ex II?

how does that future gear-set sound? am i missing anything? i'll be using the 50D as a primary and the Rebel XT as a backup. i'll probably mount the 17-55mm IS most of the time while switching between that and the 70-200mm f/4L on the 50D while the Rebel gets the 50mm f/1.4. shoud i get a wide angle and/or macro lens? i could possibly just rent those.

thanks in advance.

[TheHoff]

You don't need the tripod or the slave system to do a wedding. Both might be useful but I wouldn't say they are necessary. You can move your flash off-camera with a $10 sync cord or a $30 Canon ETTL cord, rather than a few hundred bucks in radio receivers; since neither the Skyports or PWs are ETTL you'll be in manual flash mode anyway.

I'd skip both of those. A second flash would be nice but you can probably manage without. Given it would be your first wedding I think you can pay more attention to capturing the right moment and getting a good exposure rather than multi-light setups, especially if it isn't something you do all the time (and you don't have a proper flash meter).

I would definitely get a fast wide, like the 24L or the Sigma 30 (though it isn't even that wide on your body...) or put money towards a 2.8 telephoto like the 2.8 zoom or the 200/2.8 prime.

[cdifoto]

Don't bother with a tripod. You'll neither have time to use it nor a need for it.

You can still have lighting "issues" in gorgeous places. I was actually struggling for the first time ever at a reception in Mexico. The ceiling was brick, absorbing my light instead of bouncing it back nicely like a typical white-ceiling banquet room.

I'll disagree with Hoff by saying I think off-camera flash with radio triggers is a great way to go. I was able to make up for limited bouncability by getting uber-creative with off-camera lights aimed all over the place. Unlike me, you have time to practice with it so you're ahead on that part. I had to wing it in Mexico.

[bwc]

Gear seems to be a good start. There is absolutely nothing wrong with a good back-up system and sometimes even that needs to be backed-up.

I would suggest besides gear that you read as much as you can from the web or other books as you can find them on what a wedding photographer should do and say when performing the functions of a wedding photographer. Just because you are friends, that doesn't mean that everything will fall into place when they are in front of your lens. You don't want your photographs to look fake(no one does). One wants to capture the intense love between two people and all the best gear in the world, doesn't mean beans if you can't talk and direct these two people into the best poses that you have in mind to convey that feeling of love that they share with each other. Since you still have a year, I would ask other wedding photographers in your area to tag along as an observer or even a grip(worker) for a photographer. Just to watch and learn what a photographer goes through when shooting a wedding. Everyone seems to have a camera these days and at the same time everyone thinks that shooting a wedding is a piece of cake, well, it isn't a walk in the park. It's a lot of work, and one has to be ready to think on their feet when something goes wrong. Maybe not with your equipement but maybe with the bride and her flowers no showing up in time, what do you do? Good luck and remember to have fun. Sure I'm new to this forum but that doesn't mean I'm new to photography, I am a retired industrial photographer that also has shot thousands of weddings on the side, and I still shoot some weddings if the price is right. When it comes down to it, friendship could be out the door if you can't become the wedding photographer that everyone searches for no monetary gain.

[TheHoff]

I'll disagree with Hoff by saying I think off-camera flash with radio triggers is a great way to go. I was able to make up for limited bouncability by getting uber-creative with off-camera lights aimed all over the place. Unlike me, you have time to practice with it so you're ahead on that part. I had to wing it in Mexico.

It could be fun but he could spend his entire budget on it with the expensive route -- a 580 EX II, pocket wizards, stands, umbrellas, a reflector, etc. Or he could do it on the cheap with optical triggers, Sunpaks, etc. But I think since he is doing it in front of a group, he'll also need a good meter and not rely on chimping -- so another $200 - $500.

Or get a fast wide prime and do it au natural :D Both are valid approaches.

[shannyD]

have you thought about maybe a lens that can handle lower light situations? like a 50mm 1.8 or even a cheaper sigma 24-60 2.8? its about 220 new from amazon. and i have seen some excellent images come from this lens. and its not a bank buster either.

i like a lens that give me some range in f/stops so i can have more of a use for it.

i did fine with my 430 ex. but i would consider another flash for all around lighting like CDI imentioned.

i am not a pro.. but i have been shooting a couple weddings here and there now. and have learned a lot over that.

i found myself limited with slow glass. for my first wedding i was lucky t be able to use an 85mm 1.2, and that was beautiful lens. and i could use it at night and durring the day.

so i would suggest a lens that gives you more range for lighting as well.

i think you would be fine with a 40d and better glass. there isnt a huge difference between the 40d and 50d. other than the price. and i think you could offset that so you can get some good glass.

shannon
i ramble.. sorry.

[cdifoto]

It could be fun but he could spend his entire budget on it with the expensive route -- a 580 EX II, pocket wizards, stands, umbrellas, a reflector, etc. Or he could do it on the cheap with optical triggers, Sunpaks, etc. But I think since he is doing it in front of a group, he'll also need a good meter and not rely on chimping -- so another $200 - $500.

Or get a fast wide prime and do it au natural :D Both are valid approaches.
Cheap optical triggers won't be feasible at a wedding. Point & shoots will keep setting off the lights. And there WILL be point & shoots. I don't think I recommended Pocket Wizards and a 580EX either. That's definitely an overpriced way to get flash off-camera.

If you want reliability - Skyports (or CyberSyncs), Vivitar (or Sunpak or any other brand) of manually controllable power flash, and some cheap light stands are the way to go, IMHO. That's what I'm doing at least.

[TheHoff]

Cheap optical triggers won't be feasible at a wedding. Point & shoots will keep setting off the lights. And there WILL be point & shoots. I don't think I recommended Pocket Wizards and a 580EX either. That's definitely an overpriced way to get flash off-camera.

If you want reliability - Skyports (or CyberSyncs), Vivitar (or Sunpak or any other brand) of manually controllable power flash, and some cheap light stands are the way to go, IMHO. That's what I'm doing at least.

Ya, good points. The 580/PWs were in his list, but I'll shut up now about multi-flash setups.

[wasabean]

thanks for all your help and suggestions! ok so i'll scratch the tripod and look into a canon sync cord. but i would much rather have a set of skyports, i don't want to burdon myself with having to keep bundling up many feet of cable everytime i move locations.

hoff- i totoally agree with you on working on capturing the right moment rather than load up on gear, it'll save me money too! =) so i think i will limit my purchase to the extreme essentials. 40D or 50D, probably the 50mm f/1.4, and maybe the 70-200mm f/4L and a set of Skyports and a flash tripod

[TheHoff]

Read everything at the Strobist blog, if you haven't already (Google it, I'm lazy, thanks)

oh and don't think you have to spend $500 on a top of the line new Sekonic meter; there are plenty of good Minolta flashmeters on eBay for much less.

[wasabean]

i don't plan on getting a light meter, or will i look ridiculous running back and forth with the light meter, i don't even know how such a thing works. but also, i don't think a flash meter can replace one's sense of creativity in regards with aperature and shutter speed. i would much rather get glass than a meter, i think meter will handicap my ability to learn =P

[TheHoff]

Whoa there tiger... meters are your friend. I'd think a handheld meter and the knowledge of balancing ambient with multiple flashes is the sign of a pro. Setting up and then chimping and then running out to set your flashes again and again until the chimp is right is what would look silly. Using a meter is the intelligent approach and reduces the amount you have to move back and forth. It has nothing to do with creativity unless your creativity involves guessing the aperture and shutter speed with multiple flashes with different power levels until you get it right.

[cdifoto]

i don't plan on getting a light meter, or will i look ridiculous running back and forth with the light meter, i don't even know how such a thing works. but also, i don't think a flash meter can replace one's sense of creativity in regards with aperature and shutter speed. i would much rather get glass than a meter, i think meter will handicap my ability to learn =P
You'd look even more ridiculous constantly running back and forth between lights.

Meters save time, they don't waste it.

[Robert16]

I use an old lunasix light meter. It's almost as old as me and a total Godsend at times.

[wasabean]

i apologize for my ignorance =X
do you have to run up to your subject to get a reading or you can do it from the spot where you're shooting? or do you have to meter the area your flash is pointing at or where the camera is pointing at?

[Robert16]

Each situation will be different. Largely, you will meter the subject.