Budget flash needed

I am very much an amateur photography and not a very good one. My friend has asked me to be the official photographer at his wedding in spain in 6 months time(Im very worried).I am desperatly trying to get better quick.
I own a canon 350d but i will be using his 500d at the wedding along with my 50mm 1.8 prime lens.
I will be able to take most or alot of photos outside however the ceremony will be in a small church which probably wont have a great deal of light,so i need a good but cheap flash that i will use then maybe sell after the wedding.
Can anyone recomend a good budget flash for a canon?

You can go with Nissin's Di622 / Yongnuo 465/467/468 for TTL.

eggbutt wrote in post #11597200
I am very much an amateur photography and not a very good one. My friend has asked me to be the official photographer at his wedding in spain in 6 months time(Im very worried).

If he asked you, I suggest answering with "No, thank you." This sounds like a recipe for disaster if you say "yes."

Are you sure you want to commit to this? It sounds like a good way to ruin a friendship......

Oh dear now im more worried I have already agreed but You are making me think again.

Maybe you should go back to him and tell him you'd rather be an assistant to the main photographer because you don't feel too confident about doing it alone. I agree with the others... This does sound like a recipe for disaster unless you have some prior experience with similar situations.

Not sure I would take that responsibility on but I would recommend alien bees. They may be more money then you want to spend but you can sell them used and only be out ~$70

eggbutt wrote in post #11599540
Oh dear now im more worried I have already agreed but You are making me think again.

Tim S wrote in post #11597995
Are you sure you want to commit to this? It sounds like a good way to ruin a friendship......

We don't want to discourage you but you say you don't have much experience. A wedding is different than a portrait session,no do-overs or rescheduling. If you are not confident it WILL show in your work.

If you are planning on using the flash during the ceremony, you need to check with the officiant (pastor, priest, rabbi, etc.) to be sure that it is even allowed. There are many churches that absolutely do NOT allow flash photography during the ceremony. Also, if it is allowed, you'll want to gel your flash properly so that it is consistent in color with any ambient (unless you're wanting to bring enough heavy-duty strobes to nuke the whole place). These shoots are harder than the nice, controlled conditions of a studio and you don't get to do it over in case you botch it.

That being said, it is possible to handle a wedding. Just about everyone has the first wedding that they've shot. Usually this happens first as a GWC (guest with a camera), and then the person graduates to a second-shooter to get a little more experience with posing, lighting, and so on. The dedicated ones (not always the best ones) start doing it for money. If you're good, the progression can go fast, but I don't think that I would recommend skipping any of the steps.

Well I am going to buck the trend but only with your considering some of the advice already given. I would say go for it but under certain circumstances and with mutual understanding.

1) I assume he is asking you because they cannot afford a professional photographer and/or are not SO concerned with getting truly professional pics? Not everyone is overly concerned with photos, as we had to convince my brother/sister-in-law in even taking time to let us get portraits of theirs.

2) See if you can take some/all portrait shots before or after the wedding day. Those are important posed shots and will take a lot of pressure off of you. This way you can concentrate more on getting candids and family/friends shots at the wedding itself (easier). At a minimum it will lessen the portrait shots needed.

3) Make a list of all shots desired: A) At wedding...Bride/Groom, Dad/Mom/Groom, Dad/Mom/Bride, Preacher/Bride/Groom, etc, etc. Enlist someone to help you with that as it will take a huge burden off of you. You only have to worry with taking the picture with such. B) With portraits....make a list of desired poses and desired photo areas.



If they are wanting professional shots and for you to instruct other qualified shooters then defer! Otherwise, just be sure to communicate your concerns of not being a professional AND get prepared. It will go significantly better for you and add confidence.

I say go for it if you are able to and don't let the jitters get you. A close family friend asked me to photograph his daughters wedding 25 yrs ago and I tried for weeks to get out of it. You seem just as nervous and unsure as I was then but the experience was phenomenal and catapulted my intrest in photography.

Anyhow, you just have to know what you are getting into. If you accept, go practice the type of shots you expect to be taking (indoors and outdoors), etc, etc. Also, I like to take two shots as inadvertently someone will close their eyes.

Good luck!

The last wedding I shot was in 1977. I swore I would never do it again...and I haven't.

MT Stringer wrote in post #11602286
The last wedding I shot was in 1977. I swore I would never do it again...and I haven't.

I hear you, mine was 1993.....

Did my first in 1994. Doing my second July 2011. Way more prepared this time.

I would not say do it or not do it. You can get in a lot of learning and practice in that time if you want to. I have never agreed to do a wedding, only to attend and take some pictures, except once when I was talked into doing a sound movie (with film). Never again. That was very painful although it came out fine. You work all day and half the night.

A very important thing for weddings too is to have backup equipment, as you can't postpone the session if something goes wrong. There must be a Plan B if anything stops working, same as any other shoot that must be done at a certain time.