PLEASE chime in... A new member needs your help!

I was pointed to this community after some glowing recommendations. I'm an amateur photographer who wants to get into wedding photography to further pursue my love for photography and make a nice side cash on top of my day job at a professional company.

I have a $1500 budget and after days and days of research, I came across the following trio set to finally pull the trigger with:

Rebel XTi: An obvious nice entry-level choice ($580)

Canon 85mm F1.8: For sharp focus and shallow DOF portrait shots ($340)

Tamron 28-75 F2.8: An all-around lens that was recommended from this forum's very wedding FAQ ($340)

Remaining budget goes to fill flash, memory, etc...

What do you think? I need your final assuring comments or other alternatives. Do they compliment each other well? If I were to stick with 85mm, should I get a different lens than a Tamron for other purpose? How about vice versa? Do I really need a Canon 85mm if I have a Tamron?

I chose these two dynamics because they SEEM to go together well with my limited knowledge in wedding photography. I know both lenses perform very nicely under dim lit conditions which is crucial in weddings.

I know they're both great lenses separately with countless positive review. The real questions, do they compliment each other well for a wedding?

Please let me know what you think!

I'd drop the 85 1.8, and get a flash instead.
And I'd drop the 28-75 and get the much more highly regarded tamron 17-50
I'd get a used 20 or 30D over the XTi.

and I'd say a few prayers because wedding shooting is probably one of the most difficult types of pro photography. Do yourself a big favour and start by second shooting for a year before hiring yourself out. Contrary to what others think, the LAST thing wedding shooting is, is "EASY MONEY".

When you've saved more get a second body.

First off, you don't already own a digital SLR camera?

I would purchase a used 20D before getting the Rebel XTi (I see them on craigslist for $575.)

For lens, I really like the 85mm F1.8. It has served me very well. However, I think you'll need something wider than the 28-75 lens. That's just my opinion.

At the risk of disagreeing with Picturecrazy,(I know I must be mad ) I love my Tamron 28-75 and serves me well on indoor shots. With that being said I have never had the opportunity to use the 17 - 50 so the wider FOV might be nice. Eiother way the 28-75 is very nice lens for the money.

Oh yeah, skip the XTi and get a 20 or 30D. That I agree with

Greg

Owning an XTi myself I see very few reasons to purchase a 20D over the XTi. The thumb wheel is nice but not "necessary." For those that say the 20D equates to better image quality I don't feel this is true either.

The Xti has plenty of features to keep a "new" photographer busy. The 17-50 2.8 Tamron is a great lens. I use it on my XTi and highly recommend it.

Welcome.......and since Tim has not shown up yet, I will step in for him. You need to read the basics first: https://photography-on-the.net …/showthread.php​?p=2453681
I agree with Megansmom...........yo​u should know your camera inside and out and put take thousands of pictures before you think about wedding photography. It will be a short and painful career if you do not.

Also, check out bcap on this board. He is a prime example of someone starting up who's done everything right. He did a whole bunch of second shooting this summer, he's researched everything to death and is still reading to further his knowledge. He practices shooting constantly and has now become ridiculously good at it. He's learned as much as he can about post processing so now he's a genius at that. He's thoroughly researched his market and competition to know where he wants to fit into that mix. He's saved up and patiently built up a COMPLETE wedding kit, backups included. He's enlisted (and paid for) professional help for his website and logo/branding. Now he's barely begun taking wedding bookings for 2008, and guess what? All that prep time he put in has now put him at least 3 years ahead in his business. He could have started out on his own and chased bookings off the bat, but he wouldn't be anywhere near as far as he is now.

That's pretty much the perfect example on how to get into this biz.

picturecrazy wrote in post #4284760
I'd drop the 85 1.8, and get a flash instead.
And I'd drop the 28-75 and get the much more highly regarded tamron 17-50
I'd get a used 20 or 30D over the XTi.

and I'd say a few prayers because wedding shooting is probably one of the most difficult types of pro photography. Do yourself a big favour and start by second shooting for a year before hiring yourself out. Contrary to what others think, the LAST thing wedding shooting is, is "EASY MONEY".

When you've saved more get a second body.

Thanks for your comment.

Just for clarification, I don't certainly think this is easy money. I've carefully weighed my options and decided get into this. I'll shadow-shoot several weddings before I start to charge. $$ is only a side benefit!

Waiting for further replies...

I'm in a sort of similar position, in that I also recently decided I want to get into wedding photography (always into photography, but only got interested in weddings after working in the wedding industry for a few years).

About $5K and 4 months since starting my kit, I've finally got together a good basic kit (IMO): body, a few good lenses, a good flash, some studio stuff. Mind you, my body represents $2K, so you could save significantly there. I don't have a good wedding kit, but enough that I can start working in protraits.

My plan is this:

I spent the summer doing free portrait shoots - shoot and burn with the option to order prints. This month, having a very paltry portfolio and some good WOM, I've just started charging for portraits. I've also done a few small events for free.

Over the winter I'd like to continue in the same vain - nothing for free anymore, though, except some NPO events. My goal is to have become proficient with portraiture and had some experience with events so that I can start 2nd shooting in the summer of '08 with confidence.

In the fall of 08, after what I hope will be a great season of 2nd shooting, I'll start advertising wedding photography. I'm doing it this way because I don't want to enter the wedding market at the low end. I want to enter as an established photographer with a good reputation in the area and some wedding experience, so that I can start off charging a good rate.

The nice bonus is that while I never had a desire to do traditional portraiture before, I've been really enjoying it, and I can actually see myself going full time with photography by offering a range of services (in a few years). I'm sure my approach is ALL wrong, but it is what works for me, and I know I'll be able to move through the phases of this plan with confidence. Food for thought I hope.

KennethPhotography wrote in post #4284804
Owning an XTi myself I see very few reasons to purchase a 20D over the XTi. The thumb wheel is nice but not "necessary." For those that say the 20D equates to better image quality I don't feel this is true either.

The Xti has plenty of features to keep a "new" photographer busy. The 17-50 2.8 Tamron is a great lens. I use it on my XTi and highly recommend it.

I would go with a 20/30D over the XTi

The 20D has ISO 3200 , the XTi is limited to 1600- Not optimal, but you can shoot with half the light when needed.

20d - 5 FPS limted to XTi - 3 FPS - good for action shots (bouquet tossing etc)

The scroll wheel allows you to adjust M mode settings quickly as well as AF points.

Easy money, eh?

Chuckles.

picturecrazy wrote in post #4284812
Also, check out bcap on this board. He is a prime example of someone starting up who's done everything right. He did a whole bunch of second shooting this summer, he's researched everything to death and is still reading to further his knowledge. He practices shooting constantly and has now become ridiculously good at it. He's learned as much as he can about post processing so now he's a genius at that. He's thoroughly researched his market and competition to know where he wants to fit into that mix. He's saved up and patiently built up a COMPLETE wedding kit, backups included. He's enlisted (and paid for) professional help for his website and logo/branding. Now he's barely begun taking wedding bookings for 2008, and guess what? All that prep time he put in has now put him at least 3 years ahead in his business. He could have started out on his own and chased bookings off the bat, but he wouldn't be anywhere near as far as he is now.

That's pretty much the perfect example on how to get into this biz.

I hope he stops by and reads this! He'll be so tickled.

mizuno wrote in post #4285217
Easy money, eh?

Chuckles.

Yup easy money. I'll be filthy rich!

That's EXACTLY what I said.

It sounds like you are a film photographer making the switch to digital, and I thought I should add - give yourself time to learn digital. I made the mistake of assuming that a good digital camera would be just like using film, but it is most definitely not. So just thought I would warn you that it will be an adjustment. Hope it's a smooth one!

JJacula wrote in post #4285244
I hope he stops by and reads this! He'll be so tickled.

he's gonna be a superstar. I *KNOW* it. Soon I'll be paying $1200 to attend the bcap seminars.