Renting a second body, which one?

Hi everyone!

I am shooting my first wedding in August and can't wait. I feel like the experience will be invaluable to me and the couple seem absolutely lovely. As it is my first wedding, I am not getting paid apart from expenses.

I have been looking into renting some extra equipment for the day from Samy's. After speaking to the bride and groom about what style they would like, I am looking to rent a wide angle and telephoto along with another body.

I am looking at the Canon EOS 7D to be my primary body.

I cannot decide whether I should get a prime wide angle lens or a zoom. EF 14mm f/2.8L II USM, EF 24mm f/1.4 L II USM or EF-S 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5. I am looking to use the wide angle for bigger group shots, pictures of the church and the couple have expressed how important it is for me to capture all the surroundings on the day. I thought with the wide angle it would be perfect to capture all their special moments while taking in what is around them.

As for the telephoto, I am looking at the EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS I but am under the impression it is super heavy but also a big favorite for wedding photographers. I was thinking due to my inexperience I should maybe go for something a little less hardcore and rent the EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 US for example.

....so what I am asking is; Am I on the right track with the choices I have made here? Sorry, I realize I have written a lot! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I only have my T1i and a nifty fifty at the moment. (This would be my second body on the day with the 50mm f/1.8) Unfortunately I am not in the position to buy another body but have been renting for certain occasions.

Thank you in advance!

The 70-200 f2.8 is a very sharp lens and will give the best results possible in that range. The 2.8 aperture will work well indoors, but on a crop body it's going to be a little long for some situations, although it's still usable. It is a very heavy lens however. The 70-200 f4 version is said to be as sharp but obviously not as fast.

I shot my first wedding last weekend using the 24mm on my 7D a lot, much more than I had expected. Even for group shots you won't have to move too far back (assuming you have space) to cover everyone. I found that at f2+ it's extremely sharp and produces some really nice images and colors. That, combined with the 70-200 II were the parents of nearly all of my "wow" pictures. The EF-S 10-22 is really fun, but if you plan to shoot people with it closer up, it will distort them as it's so wide, it has it's usefulness though as it will cover pretty much anything on the wide-side. It's not as sharp or fast as the others of course, although it's really not bad on the sharp-side.

7D, 17-55, 70-200 f2.8 IS for starters. Nifty is fine in good light. Might struggle in lower light though.
I would say keep it simple for your first wedding.

Don't forget to get a flash, if you don't have one already.

Is the wedding indoors or out?

The 70-200 is great in a big church that keeps you back behind the guests, but indoors
at the reception it's pretty useless. Even more so with the crop factor of the 7D.

17-55, 70-200 and a 7D would work. Get 2 flashes (one for each body). Even if the wedding is outdoors, you still may need some fill flash. You will need to work the the 7D since the menu's and dials are different. T1i is a solid little camera but I would be hesitant to shoot above 1600 ISO for a wedding.

The 70-200 is heavy but you won't be holding it for longer than average ceremony time (20-30 mins). I'm renting this lens for my upcoming wedding.

Also, since you have a crop...24mm should be fine. I, myself and going to use the 35mm 1.4 because I'm using a FF so your 24 would be almost the equivalent to that once it's on your body.

Thank you all for your input, it's greatly appreciated!

The wedding is in a big gothic style church which is why I thought
the 70-200mm would be great. The bridal party pictures are being taken
in a park at about 4pm. The reception is at a lodge. Guests will be outdoors
enjoying canapes for an hour or so, I thought I could get the 70-200 out again
for this and stay on the edges out of the way.

From what the couple have said to me, they made it pretty clear they want pictures
of them in the church that take in all the surroundings. Do you think a 24mm would be wide enough on a crop body to capture all of that? Would the 10-22 distort the guests/bride&groom too much?

I have a 480ex speedlight so will probably hire a a second as I am familiar with it. The 7D
I should have for 6 hours or so before the wedding. I'm hoping I can become familiar enough with it in that time. I'm also going to read a lot about it before hand to play it safe.d)

So I am thinking... 7D with the 70-200mm (and a wideangle when needed)
Rebel T1i with the 50mm
480ex speedlights on both.

Does that look suitable for a beginner?

A couple of you mentioned the 17-55. Could you give me a link to this lens. I have my 18-55 kit lens but I am guessing the one you mentioned is better quality. I'm just not sure which one exactly you mean. I would like one with this range instead of the wideangle but would be afraid it may not be wide enough for some of the shots the couplr are hoping for.

Thanks again!

yeah the 17-55 2.8IS is my go to on a 7D. it is wide enough for group photos almost all of the time.
BUT, you may also want the 10-22 for more context if that is what they want. I use a sigma 10-20 for this and love it.

it took me a LOT longer than 6 hours to get comfortable enough to shoot an event with the 7D.
I would never want to go in that blind personally. there is enough stress already,
i couldn't image getting a new body in my hands for the first time that close to a wedding!
but i could just be slow...

and my guess is a 430exII won't have enough power to bounce in either a gothic like church or a "lodge". but that's a total guess, i only used one once.

Ah ok, the 17-55mm f/2.8. I will look into that.

I understand that working with a new body might be stressful
but the couple have hired me knowing what little equiptment
I have. I am doing this for free and renting extra equiptment so
I can get some more variation and experience for myself. I would rather
rent a 7D instead of another rebel. Would it even be worth putting
such good glass such as the 70-200 on a rebel? I hadn't actually thought
of that.

I won't be using flash in the church and luckily there are huge windows either side of
the alter.

Im trying to stay pretty positive about it all and not get stressed. Im sure I would be stressing out if it was a paid job but the couple are so laid back and have given
me creative freedom which is wonderful. At this point I would probably never even accepted a paid wedding job due to my inexperience, far too much pressure!

So sorry about my terrible postings, I am having to use my phone at the moment. I have just
moved and am waiting for internet to be installed!

Samantha.Lovett wrote in post #12589719
Ah ok, the 17-55mm f/2.8. I will look into that.

I understand that working with a new body might be stressful
but the couple have hired me knowing what little equiptment
I have. I am doing this for free and renting extra equiptment so
I can get some more variation and experience for myself. I would rather
rent a 7D instead of another rebel.

makes perfect sense then!

Samantha.Lovett wrote in post #12589719
Would it even be worth putting
such good glass such as the 70-200 on a rebel? I hadn't actually thought
of that.

yeah, the 70-200 usually goes on my 50d and its a good combo. I think the t1i's sensor is similar enough.

Samantha.Lovett wrote in post #12589719
I won't be using flash in the church and luckily there are huge windows either side of
the alter.

score!

Samantha.Lovett wrote in post #12589719
Im trying to stay pretty positive about it all and not get stressed. Im sure I would be stressing out if it was a paid job but the couple are so laid back and have given
me creative freedom which is wonderful. At this point I would probably never even accepted a paid wedding job due to my inexperience, far too much pressure!

positive attitude is good. but you still need to be honest with yourself.
i'm glad to hear its a laid back couple and that you are doing this for free.
best of luck to you and share some photos when you're done