"I'm new to photography ... have been asked to do a wedding"

StewartR

StewartR

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Stewart
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Not me, I hasten to add!

Someone posted this enquiry on our Facebook page. New to photography ... have a Nikon D3100 and a kit lens ... have been asked to do a wedding ... going round in circles reading reviews ... which lens/es do we recommend for a wedding?

:shrug:


The thing is, Facebook is public so I don't want to be rude and I don't want to ignore it. But I'm really struggling to work out what to say....... I mean, where do you begin?
 
give me his ID, I will pop something on lol

Seriously, that's the world we live in now, and the thing is that Brides think it is OK
 
how about

"well considering you will be using your D3100 as the backup to the backup camera..."

you will need at least 2 decent bodies with the following lenses

x
y
z
a
b

+

lighting

a
b
c
d

Reflectors
a
b

etc

Memory cards

Batteries

etc..
 
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Just tell them to read some wedding threads, that will put them off.
 
StewartR said:
Not me, I hasten to add!

Someone posted this enquiry on our Facebook page. New to photography ... have a Nikon D3100 and a kit lens ... have been asked to do a wedding ... going round in circles reading reviews ... which lens/es do we recommend for a wedding?

:shrug:


The thing is, Facebook is public so I don't want to be rude and I don't want to ignore it. But I'm really struggling to work out what to say....... I mean, where do you begin?
Click to expand...

Hope that helps.. .. ;)

Probably easier when it's not an official response.. ..
 
Give them a straight answer (something like two f/2.8 zooms to cover a decent range?) and recommend they spend time learning how to use whatever equipment they end up getting as good equipment is next to useless if you can't operate it.
 
Tell him to make sure he has enough insurance to cover a re-shoot if it all goes wrong as he will be liable. Hope that puts him off.
 
I'm not a pro tog, I'm experienced and took on a wedding last year I would NEVER do it again, I think I was more nervous than the bride was. Good results but far to much stress involved.
 
If it was anything other than a wedding, would you be "rude" considering your business is lensesforhire?

Give them the truth, whether or not they have the remainder of kit/insurances isn't your concern.

It is quite unlikely they are going to buy what they need, but maybe they would hire the high end kit from you?
 
Maybe he doesn't have the best gear and isn't the most experienced photographer but i'm sure the people who asked him are aware of this. We all have to start somewhere.

It is a pain as people like this are taking business away from us but we can't blame them for it. I did my first Wedding for a reduced price to get the experience and never looked back.

As long as he has told the Bride and Groom of his experience and equipment. Best of luck to him.
 
As above!!

As long as expectations are low then all is good. IF HOWEVER he has sold himself too much and expectations are high then he could well be doomed!!

It's all about managing the costomers expectations.

Dean

P.S - No way in hell I'd do it!!!
 
17-55/2.8.

Optional - 70-200/2.8 and/or a fast prime or two in the 24/35/50/85mm range.
 
Why not pop over to TalkPhotography and ask there?



Go on, dare you...
 
matty said:
Why not pop over to TalkPhotography and ask there?



Go on, dare you...
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Be an interesting thread, that is for sure.........:D
 
StewartR said:
The thing is, Facebook is public so I don't want to be rude and I don't want to ignore it. But I'm really struggling to work out what to say....... I mean, where do you begin?
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Just hire them a short 2.8 zoom and a 70-200 2.8 zoom, a couple of flash guns and pocket the money mate.

You run a lens hire business not a wedding photography advice centre............:thumbs:
 
As well as advising the phoographer, I think it's the couple that asked him who need to be aware of the pitfalls.

And I don't think it's so much a matter of equipment - a good photographer could make a decent fist of a wedding with a DSLR and kit lens. It would be basic and lack quite a lot of more creative equipment-led stuff (low light, shallow DoF, bounce flash etc) but as a passable record of the key events it can be done.

Maybe something along the lines of, I have a nice box of spanners but I couldn't change your head gasket, and I have a scalpel too but always refuse requests for heart surgery.
 
Simply point out that the cost of renting the gear you need to shoot a wedding + the cost of an Album and point out there are cheapo wedding togs that will slit there own throat for a similar budget.
 
Ive done a couple of weddings and have always maintained I dont do it for a living but will do my best.

I take in my kit, 500D, 580ex ii, 17-50 f2.8 Tamron, 50mm 1.4 and a 70-200 f4 IS. I also have spare batteries to spare SD cards.

Putting some money away at the moment for a 7D
 
I would say you can't win with weddings (unless your very confident).
brides say they want relaxed, informal photos... not the tacky stuff, something different and not staged.
what they really mean is they want the same pictures everyone else has, the usual styles and setups, even the "seen it all before" tacky shots...... they only think they want something different.
thats my experience anyway, I've experienced this personally and with people I know..
it's amazing how upset brides get if they don't have the same pictures they see in their head.
of course it's possible to do it with any decent gear (they you know how to use) but beware the wrath of the disappointed bride :)
 
oh and I've never done wedding photos myself (I've only been at this a month or so), my experience is with brides/couples that I've spoken to about this (including my own). I don't think I would ever do a wedding unless it was just some extra pix to go along with whatever the hired photographer was doing..... it's dangerous territory :(
 
Many, many years ago a relative asked me to photograph her wedding as they wanted it on the cheap. I used just 1 35mm camera - it was ok, the worst bit was I printed everything myself (anyone want to buy a LPL7700 ?). On the back of that I was asked to do others - I ended up doing several weddings but by then I was using a Bronica 645 with the 35mm as backup. Only did it as I was asked, never promoted myself as a wedding photographer but I did enjoy it......once I got the contact sheet back!!

Not sure I'd do it now with the use of web presentations and all that.
 
Do you know this site gets me sometimes, one one hand we have mods threatening to kick anyone off for trolling a wedding thread or certainly we are meant to get the feeling that watch what we say otherwise were going to get booted because they seem to have had enough of wedding threads in general, and then we have advertisers who repost a question "which lens/es do we recommend for a wedding?" thats your business isnt it so why the :shrug:. and just to top it off a mod then goads the advertiser into temting the poster to come here as if theyre the lamb to the slaughter.

:shake:
 
The reality is you could use the kit lens for the wedding, it might not be the best lens in the world (but it's not the worst either) far more important is having the knowledge of photography, and being able to manage people.

I' m courious why you the OP as a dealer haven't just advised him already, or don't you have any product knowledge?
 
facebook said:
and just to top it off a mod then goads the advertiser into temting the poster to come here as if theyre the lamb to the slaughter.
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Assume by the mod you mean Matty? If so, he is one of the owners of this forum, as such, he can pretty much do what he wants. I also believe his comment to be firmly tongue in cheek, as over the years, they have had more than enough wedding thread issues to last them a lifetime.
 
Get them to tell the bride they will do it but not to expect great results then charge a low rate. If the bride still wants them she won't expect too much and can't complain. If they are asking what lens to use they probably aren't gonna be great.
 
snapy said:
Get them to tell the bride they will do it but not to expect great results then charge a low rate. If the bride still wants them she won't expect too much and can't complain. If they are asking what lens to use they probably aren't gonna be great.
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What she says before and what she'll say after are often two different things, and she certainly can complain if things are wrong with the photos, or worse case theres none for some reason.
 
The question is a very broad one and I dont think that many people are being constructive on the matter. Personally if they jave just started in photography I would recommend that they may be better off politely declining the job as it isn't easy especially if you are new to photography.
However, the D3100 is a pretty decent camera and is capable of taking good photo's even if left on auto with the kit lens.
The answer to their question can only be answered once a budget has been established.
My camera bag includes 2 bodies and 4 lenses for a wedding, not to mention flash, countless batteries and a few filters. I think the most important things needed at a wedding are experience, knowledge and the confidence to do a good job of it.
 
In fairness though you don't "need" anything like that much kit. It's been proven time and time again that punters can get photos they're happy with from people with no kit and less ability.

With situations like this you can either:

A, Ignore them.
B, Help, recognising they're unlikely to pay thousands for the kit you deem essential for them to do their aunty sue's wedding.
C, Bitch and moan on the web.

Either way, they'll still do it...
 
PSILVERMAN said:
In addition to all that you need the kit good enough to perform in low light and be able to operate it fluently.
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Where did you get a hint that poor light levels were going to be an issue?

Bob
 
don't reply

StewartR said:
Not me, I hasten to add!

Someone posted this enquiry on our Facebook page. New to photography ... have a Nikon D3100 and a kit lens ... have been asked to do a wedding ... going round in circles reading reviews ... which lens/es do we recommend for a wedding?

:shrug:


The thing is, Facebook is public so I don't want to be rude and I don't want to ignore it. But I'm really struggling to work out what to say....... I mean, where do you begin?
Click to expand...
 
Only done one,many moons ago.
My cousin had no money for a car or a tog,so Decked my car out with white ribbon,and with my trusty OM1n and OM10, a pocket full of films stepped into the breach...............NEVER NEVER again.All turned out fine after the specialist developers tore the main film on their machine,spent 3 weeks repairing the film and getting prints from it.
Oh ,did I mention dropping the OM1n on the floor whilst the registrar was talking,and not noticing it,s ISO had altered to 800 .
My oh my.
The resultant pictures where really good ,thanks in most part to the developers working there t#ts off.

That was 40 years ago,and such a pleasure I'm thinking about doing another.

NOT!:bonk:
 
These threads are a means for "kit collectors" to justify their purchases by telling everyone what they should have to do the job.

Its hilarious to read.
 
Merc said:
Maybe he doesn't have the best gear and isn't the most experienced photographer but i'm sure the people who asked him are aware of this. We all have to start somewhere.

It is a pain as people like this are taking business away from us but we can't blame them for it. I did my first Wedding for a reduced price to get the experience and never looked back.

As long as he has told the Bride and Groom of his experience and equipment. Best of luck to him.
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Agreed. Everyone has to start somewhere, and if the B+G cannot afford a pro, or would prefer a friend to be taking photos, as long as they understand the compromise, good for them.

In answer to the original question, be honest, and give lens advice, i hired 2 lenses from you when i was asked to shoot weddings from friends some time ago as I couldnt afford to buy them.
 
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facebook said:
Do you know this site gets me sometimes, one one hand we have mods threatening to kick anyone off for trolling a wedding thread or certainly we are meant to get the feeling that watch what we say otherwise were going to get booted because they seem to have had enough of wedding threads in general, and then we have advertisers who repost a question "which lens/es do we recommend for a wedding?" thats your business isnt it so why the :shrug:. and just to top it off a mod then goads the advertiser into temting the poster to come here as if theyre the lamb to the slaughter.

:shake:
Click to expand...

Come on, this is a photography forum, people will ask sensible questions and get sensible answers, and others will ask silly ones and torn a new one. Stewarts' is an interesting one and was perfectly valid. I think youre just a bit upset at some of the answers you got to your last thread.


fracster said:
Assume by the mod you mean Matty? If so, he is one of the owners of this forum, as such, he can pretty much do what he wants. I also believe his comment to be firmly tongue in cheek, as over the years, they have had more than enough wedding thread issues to last them a lifetime.
Click to expand...

correct, it was tongue in cheek. I TRY not to do what i want, but sometimes it just slips out..
 
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