Ever shoot a wedding with an XTi?

[bigtruck1369]

A friend just asked me to shoot her wedding, which I'm somewhat leery of doing. I always said that I would stick to portraits and stay away from weddings; too much pressure. If I mess up a family portrait, we can reshoot, although that's embarassing at least the client won't end up with a ruined family portrait. If I miss up something with the wedding, I can't have them reschedule so we can do it all again!

I guess it's a confidence issue and my lack of experience.

Anyway, the reason for my post: all I have right now is an XTi, a nifty fifty, my kit lens, and a crappy tele-zoom that'll get me to 300mm but doesn't have IS. Anyone ever done a wedding with an XTi? All I see on here is work done 30-, 40-, 50-, & 5Ds... I'm also very willing to rent a lens or two for the event (in fact, I was panning on doing that if I do decide to take the job), so I will have better glass. The only thing I can't feasibly do is rent a back-up body, so that kind of sucks.

Anyone have any advice?


BIG THANKS IN ADVANCE!!!!!!!

[viet]

I shot weddings with a Canon D60 (2nd generation dSLR from Canon). Nothing wrong with a capable body like the XTi, if you know what you are doing.

[Big O]

If you have the room financially, rent a solid body and lens combo and use your XTi and 50 as a good backup. The biggest hurdle might be lighting for you if you don't have the right equipment for it.

[tim]

The camera body's fine, so long as you're comfortable with it. The issue will be the operator, not the equipment.

[Tumeg]

I have shot (well, assisted) 1 wedding, with the XTi.
Like said above, it is a very capable camera. But you will need fast glass, because the noise on the XTi is too much.

[IAMJOSIE]

i think if you rented a 50d or 40d you would have worse results then if you stuck with your xti... the xti is a great body... as Tumeg said you need fast glass though, and lighting and you will be all set.

[D Smith]

I actually used one for a pet portrait assignment once. It went very well and the lcd was shockingly bright compared to my 30d I was using earlier. Consider this, look at the advancements made in the rebel lineup in the last 5 years and compare it to what the pros were using then, you'll be fine if you know your way around a camera.

[bigtruck1369]

Like I said, I don't know that I'll be able to afford to rent a body: I was laid off at the beginning of February, and the job market here is terrible so I'm having trouble finding something else to do, so money is tight tight tight!

I do have a 430EX that I use on camera, and I'm slowly building a strobist-inspired off-camera lighting set up with some used 540EZs and the Paul C. Buff CyberLink triggers, so I should be good to go as far as setting up my lighting...

I've practicing my lower light event work at the wine store that we hang out in on Friday nights, and have come away with some good stuff:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3360/3285358631_d85ea1426b.jpg


and

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3324/3286141136_65011cf0d8.jpg

or

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3444/3286153824_68cb69d1b1.jpg



So besides some focus issues (still trying to rein in that nifty fifty and it's extreme DOF!) I think I'm doing pretty well. The noise issue bothers me, always has with this camera, so I try to do all my shooting at 200 iso.




Any reccomendations on which lenses I should try to get considering I'll be using the crop camera? Maybe a EF-S 10-22 and a 24-105L?


Thanks!

[Skrim17]

17-55 2.8 IS, lots of memory and extra batteries. do you have a flash? Is it an evening indoor wedding?

[bigtruck1369]

Memory and batteries, I've got! I should go ahead and list out all my equipment on here somewhere, I guess...

[bnlearle]

I liked my old XTi more than my 40D.

[SOK]

The noise issue bothers me, always has with this camera, so I try to do all my shooting at 200 iso

:shock:

You sound like you're choosing a roll of film!

Have you even tried 400 or 800 in the conditions you're expecting?!? I find them to be fine on the XTi. Even 1600 is fine if you're sensible with your exposure and noise reduction.

If you're adament about ISO200, I'd be taking plenty of batteries for your flash....

[tim]

:shock:

You sound like you're choosing a roll of film!

Have you even tried 400 or 800 in the conditions you're expecting?!? I find them to be fine on the XTi. Even 1600 is fine if you're sensible with your exposure and noise reduction.

If you're adament about ISO200, I'd be taking plenty of batteries for your flash....

Sign my name to this post. Expose properly and ISO1600 will be fine.

[Peacefield]

I still shoot with my XT. It's my third of three bodies that I bring to weddings, but it is fitted with a wide angle and sees action everytime. I never have any apprehension using it. As is said so often (and correctly), image quality is much more driven by the lens than the camera.

[TheObiJuan]

I shot a wedding with an XT and had no issues.
The noise is not a problem at ISO 800 even at 1600!
The focus is fine with quality lenses, too.
I think the BODY will not be the weakest link, just practice as much as possible before and be prepared.
Search around for some wedding pics you like, save em, and then reproduce them.
This will allow you to be a lot smoother when actually shooting.

[The Moose]

I've used my 400D at one wedding, albeit with the kit lens. I wasn't disappointed with the body at all and I never will be. A lot of people say they avoid using ISO 1600 on their 400D but I don't. I don't have any problem using my 400D at all.

[dithiolium]

I shot my first wedding with an XTi as well. 2 lenses got me through - 16-35LII and 24-105L. Plus a 430EX with stofen. ISO800 most of the time with the occasional ISO1600.
fast focusing glass is more important than upgrading the XTi. I think you can skip the 50/1.8 as it focus-hunts in low light. Can't have slow-focusing and mis-focusing during a wedding. Good Luck!

[Bobster]

not a XTi but a Rebel :)

[Bkolowski111]

I know a guy that does some wedding work with an XTI and a 24L.

[Big O]

by the looks of your wine pictures ... you will be fine.

[photagraph]

Stay at iso 800 or below, if you absolutely have to and it comes down to blurry photos vs noisy photos then go to 1600. Even with my xsi 1600 is not very pretty.

[JimL]

I just shot a wedding in Janurary with my XSi and the 18-55 kit lense. Pictures came out great. I just wish I had my Tamron then.

[Bobster]

Stay at iso 800 or below, if you absolutely have to and it comes down to blurry photos vs noisy photos then go to 1600. Even with my xsi 1600 is not very pretty.
shoot RAW, shoot to the right, and i bet you cant tell the difference when its printed..

when i shot with the Rebel, people couldn't tell ISO1600 from ISO400

[jblaschke]

Like I said, I don't know that I'll be able to afford to rent a body

If you're not already familiar with the workings of a 40D/50D, abandon the idea of renting a body right now. The controls and functions aren't the same as on an XTi. The Wife just got a 50D and I've struggled to figure it out having my XTi for more than a year. It's a fantastic camera, just not intuitive once you've been operating differently for that long. A wedding is not the time to be figuring out new equipment this complex.

If you're going to rent something, the EF 70-200 2.8 IS L is--from most accounts I've read--the lens to use for weddings. If you need something shorter, the other lenses in your kit will fill the gap.

[scpictaker]

Shoot in Raw+Jpeg, bring extra memory cards, and use the rehearsal as a good practice session to get used to the lighting. Dont be afraid to take some portraits aftr the rehearsal too. Maybe see if a freind will loan some lens to you.

[mattograph]

The camera body's fine, so long as you're comfortable with it. The issue will be the operator, not the equipment.

+.75

You can shoot a wedding with that body, and that lens, no problem.

We you will be short -- lights, modifiers, and back up gear.

Shooting a wedding is, well, unlike any other endeavor out there. Wedding shooters are like the Navy Seals of photography. They can shoot everything, while not all photographers can shoot weddings. Few do it well.

You have one shot to get it right. Any one of 50 people can mess the whole thing up. Your contingency plans have to run as deep as any in place with the military today. There are no excuses, no mistakes, and no second chances.

Frankly, if you are wondering if you have the right camera for the job, then you really aren't asking the right question. And, if you don't know what the question is, then you aren't ready to shoot the wedding. Do your friend a favor, and refer them to a pro.

I, by the way, do NOT shoot weddings.

[skhuynh13]

I've shot two weddings with my XTi and will be shooting my third one this April. I had a 580EXII with a Lightsphere on most of the time.

Used my Promaster 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6 for all of the first one (my only lens at the time). Switched between that one and the 50mm f/1.4 for the second one. The 50mm can take a long time to focus, but can get great shots if you can get them off.

Use the 50mm for naturally lit portraits (if possible) and the detail pics (cake, place settings, invitations, etc). Try it in low light without a tripod and you're askin' for trouble.

Just know where your settings are on the XTi so you can change them quickly if you have to (ISO, white balance, etc).

I've gotten away with having only one body so far, even though it's frowned upon by the pros. If I had the $$, I'd buy second body. I'm just makin' due with what I got, as you seem to be doing. Good luck and enjoy the experience!

[bigtruck1369]

If you're not already familiar with the workings of a 40D/50D, abandon the idea of renting a body right now. The controls and functions aren't the same as on an XTi. The Wife just got a 50D and I've struggled to figure it out having my XTi for more than a year. It's a fantastic camera, just not intuitive once you've been operating differently for that long. A wedding is not the time to be figuring out new equipment this complex.


I understand that. I've been playing around with a 50D in Best Buy the past couple of times I've been in there, and without a manual, I can't figure out how to change the drive mode from single shot to continuous! I didn't think that that camera would be so much harder to figure out, but it was! I definitely agree!

[Rey.dos]

i have shot a wedding anniversary and other parties with my xti, mounted a 70-200 f2.8 and it was a great combo...and shot parties with a kit lens...

[bigtruck1369]

Thanks again for all of the great input and advice, I feel a lot better about using the XTi on that project now!