Lens/Lenses for wedding with D750

JJ!

JJ!

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So been asked to do a friends wedding in July. Nothing major, they are not wanting a pro, but of course I want to do the best job I can.

I have done two weddings for friends before.

First one - D610 with 28-75mm
Second one - D750 with 35/85 combo

What I did find is that the two lens copy was ok, but I found myself either missing shots or being too close or too far away. Its a great set up for two bodies, but think not ideal for one. I never took the 28-75 off my camera - but it was a super sharp copy!

Right now I only have a 50mm f1.8g which will be in my bag regardless, so now considering what to get or maybe rent.

So my considerations are:

Another 28-75
Pre-use and wedding profit and get a Tamron 24-70 VC (although getting a decent copy may be a pain!)
Rent a 24-70 Nikon
Rent/buy a 24/28mm and a 85mm

Thoughts, opinions, ideas!
 
If it is a one off just rent the 24-70, unless you have the cash and want to buy one.
 
24-70mm f2.8 would be the obvious choice. Is it something you'll use after? If so buy it, 3 days rental's not cheap by the time you've paid shipping, especially if you think you'll need to rent more than once. In that case it'd be cheaper to buy used and sell it again.
 
Ive shot many a wedding with a 24-120mm VR on film and digital but always had a 50mm near by just in case along with a flash gun :)
 
Phiggys said:
Ive shot many a wedding with a 24-120mm VR on film and digital but always had a 50mm near by just in case along with a flash gun :)
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So 24-70 seems the overwhelming favourite. Interesting to see 24-120 chucked in too!
 
JJ! said:
So 24-70 seems the overwhelming favourite. Interesting to see 24-120 chucked in too!
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I've just ordered the 24-120mm so can update you with my thoughts in the next few days. I will be taking it to a couple of Weddings this year, although I'm only a guest and not a wedding tog. It wouldn't be my first choice if I was the actual wedding tog though as I like shallow DOF for wedding portraits. Light gathering's not so important these days with the unbelievable high ISO performance of modern cameras.
 
I'd like some clarity on this point:
Is this just a favour for a mate?
JJ! said:
So been asked to do a friends wedding in July. Nothing major, they are not wanting a pro, but of course I want to do the best job I can.
...
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Or will you be making a profit?
JJ! said:
Pre-use and wedding profit and get a Tamron 24-70 VC (although getting a decent copy may be a pain!)
...
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If you're accepting a single penny for this job, you need a backup plan. No if's no but's!

You simply can't make a promise for cash reward and gamble on your gear not failing. Gear failure happens and it's totally unacceptable for you to tap the bride on the shoulder as she leaves the ceremony to tell her you failed to get any shots after her entrance and you have to go home now.

It doesn't have to be the best money can buy, but if you've started accepting jobs for cash, it's time to act like a professional.

If I misunderstood and there's no reimbursement, then the 24-70 2.8 is the obvious single lens option, I've shot loads of weddings with a std zoom on my primary camera and it's done 90% of what I delivered.
 
Phil V said:
I'd like some clarity on this point:
Is this just a favour for a mate?

Or will you be making a profit?


If you're accepting a single penny for this job, you need a backup plan. No if's no but's!

You simply can't make a promise for cash reward and gamble on your gear not failing. Gear failure happens and it's totally unacceptable for you to tap the bride on the shoulder as she leaves the ceremony to tell her you failed to get any shots after her entrance and you have to go home now.

It doesn't have to be the best money can buy, but if you've started accepting jobs for cash, it's time to act like a professional.

If I misunderstood and there's no reimbursement, then the 24-70 2.8 is the obvious single lens option, I've shot loads of weddings with a std zoom on my primary camera and it's done 90% of what I delivered.
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A little over dramatic if the mate appreciates the risks and is still prepared to chuck the op a couple of hundred quid for doing it then it isn't really a problem. It's not like the op is marketing himself as a 1000 quid a day super pro or something!
 
a1ex2001 said:
A little over dramatic if the mate appreciates the risks and is still prepared to chuck the op a couple of hundred quid for doing it then it isn't really a problem. It's not like the op is marketing himself as a 1000 quid a day super pro or something!
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It's not overly dramatic at all. If i offered to do you a favour and shoot your family for free, then I couldn't deliver, you might think less of me, but you've lost nothing.

If you'd given me £50 for the shoot and you got nowt, would you be ok with that?

Because if you would, you're a special kind of person, I believe most people expect a result when they've paid for a service.

The 'mate' isn't accepting there's a risk, they've no idea how likely gear failure is, risk management hasn't entered their mind, they have thought no more about it than 'my mates doing me photos I've saved a packet', the photographer is managing that risk on behalf of the customer, and IMHO ignoring it isn't the best way of managing it.
 
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I'm with Phil.

When I do mates a favour (shot a couple of weddings and some family shoots) it is free or not at all, if they're not a good enough friend to do a freebie for then I point them towards a pro. This way no one is under the illusion they are obliged to get amazing results.

Inevitably I get given some nice wine (everyone knows I love wine) but that's as a thank you, not as payment.
 
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24-? and the 50mm. The ? would depend on the likely lighting conditions in the venue, if a dark church, the 24-70 f/2.8 but if brighter, the 24-120 should be fine.
 
a1ex2001 said:
A little over dramatic if the mate appreciates the risks and is still prepared to chuck the op a couple of hundred quid for doing it then it isn't really a problem. It's not like the op is marketing himself as a 1000 quid a day super pro or something!
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I'm afraid Phil is spot on here (hard to say that lol) so this comment ^^^ is truly naive in this day & age of sue'em high

So as Nawty says - do it for free and let them know that if they are happy they can bung you a 'Thank you' but its not a condition (hence not creating a contract). Charge anything upfront and a pee'd off wifey or mother-in-law will be seeking financial compensation for a pro's reshoot fee

Play it safe :)

To the OP - 24-70 f2.8 if you can get one, rented or bought, and in the past I've shot an entire Wedding on a similar focal range

Dave
 
The couple of weddings I've done, even if for a mate or mates rates, I have still had a backup.
If you have a good camera and need single lens for a wedding, the 24-70 f2.8 is a great option.
Make sure you have a backup camera, if you have a D750, put a 24-70 on it and why not get a used D7000 and put your 50mm on that, then you have 2 bodies and 2 lenses, enough to shoot all day and you're covered in the event of a break down.
Alternatively, see if you can borrow another body or lens from a friend.

Regardless of being paid or not, if I was the main photographer, I would a) want to do the best job I could and b) want to have a backup.
Also, if you borrow/rent any gear, if you're not used to it, make sure you try it out before the event, you don't want to be caught out not being familiar with it.
 
That's what i did. I had my D750 with 24-70 on it and the 85 in the bag. Then i had a D7000 which i bought second hand from here for ~£220 which i left in a seperate bag in the car. Luckily never needed it and i sold it here afterwards for the same price. I also had 2 flashes just incase 1 packed up, 4 camera batteries and 6 memory cards.

Be well prepared and take plenty of gear with you incase the worst happens.
 
Are you lot made of money or something???!!!

Getting a 2nd body is NOT an option. I literally had to sell my soul to get back another D750.

This is my friends, asking someone to do some photos at their wedding for them. Oh and lets be straight here, I have not offered, they asked if I minded taking some photos. I said yes and they know what the expectations are. I am not going to go take out finance or put a camera on my credit card for a one off!

Will look in to a 24-70 or 24-120. Thanks for everyones input, some of which I agree and disagree with!
 
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No one is suggesting you have to buy anything, and it doesn't have to be a D750.

But be honest, have you said to your mates 'by the way, there is a small chance that my gear will malfunction and you wont get any pictures' and they've said 'Oh, that's OK we know you can't help it if your gear breaks!'.

I'm not being a smart arse, s*** happens, and more often than you'd think.

If you were shooting for free, it's no-ones business, but if someone has trusted you and paid you for results, it doesn't matter whether it's £50 or £5000, they deserve pictures.
 
JJ! said:
Are you lot made of money or something???!!!

Getting a 2nd body is NOT an option. I literally had to sell my soul to get back another D750.

This is my friends, asking someone to do some photos at their wedding for them. Oh and lets be straight here, I have not offered, they asked if I minded taking some photos. I said yes and they know what the expectations are. I am not going to go take out finance or put a camera on my credit card for a one off!

Will look in to a 24-70 or 24-120. Thanks for everyones input, some of which I agree and disagree with!
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I'm not made of money either, I have one body, but if I'm doing something like a wedding, I'll borrow another body.
I did suggest borrowing a 2nd body, you probably know someone with even a modest crop frame body that you could borrow. Even if it's as a favour, if you are the main tog, you don't want to have a kit failure prevent you from capturing part of the day.
My cousin had a (cheapish) lens break from it's mount at his brothers wedding. Thankfully he was only a guest not the photographer, but you never know.
 
Phil V said:
No one is suggesting you have to buy anything, and it doesn't have to be a D750.

But be honest, have you said to your mates 'by the way, there is a small chance that my gear will malfunction and you wont get any pictures' and they've said 'Oh, that's OK we know you can't help it if your gear breaks!'.

I'm not being a smart arse, s*** happens, and more often than you'd think.

If you were shooting for free, it's no-ones business, but if someone has trusted you and paid you for results, it doesn't matter whether it's £50 or £5000, they deserve pictures.
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It is free - they were not even going to get photos done so were just asking on fly so to speak!
 
JJ! said:
It is free - they were not even going to get photos done so were just asking on fly so to speak!
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Then I apologise, however I did ask you to clarify, and you did say that you were planning to spend 'from profit', so it was hardly clear.
 
JJ! said:
Pre-use and wedding profit and get a Tamron 24-70 VC (although getting a decent copy may be a pain!)
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I think the above is throwing people off, as the way it's written it looks as if you're getting paid?

JJ! said:
It is free - they were not even going to get photos done so were just asking on fly so to speak!
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Only you know the guests and their expectations, so enjoy the day and explain the current situation up front, which you have probably done.(y)
 
Pre-use and wedding profit and get a Tamron 24-70 VC (although getting a decent copy may be a pain!)

Yes, I can see that this has thrown people off and it's even English! Think I must proof read posts better.
 
DG Phototraining said:
I'm afraid Phil is spot on here (hard to say that lol) so this comment ^^^ is truly naive in this day & age of sue'em high

So as Nawty says - do it for free and let them know that if they are happy they can bung you a 'Thank you' but its not a condition (hence not creating a contract). Charge anything upfront and a pee'd off wifey or mother-in-law will be seeking financial compensation for a pro's reshoot fee

Play it safe :)

To the OP - 24-70 f2.8 if you can get one, rented or bought, and in the past I've shot an entire Wedding on a similar focal range

Dave
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Nobody is going to sue a mate over wedding pictures provided expectations are set right 'ie sure I'll do it mate but I'm no pro so if anything goes wrong don't blame me' plenty of people aren't all that hung up on pictures and would rather pay a mate a couple of hundred to stay sober(ish) for a few hours than blow a much larger wedge on a pro. Besides which I haven't been to a wedding in the last ten years that wasn't chocca with dslr wielding guest so if you get desperate borrow one!
 
a1ex2001 said:
Nobody is going to sue a mate over wedding pictures provided expectations are set right 'ie sure I'll do it mate but I'm no pro so if anything goes wrong don't blame me' plenty of people aren't all that hung up on pictures and would rather pay a mate a couple of hundred to stay sober(ish) for a few hours than blow a much larger wedge on a pro. Besides which I haven't been to a wedding in the last ten years that wasn't chocca with dslr wielding guest so if you get desperate borrow one!
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AWESOME advice :)

Saves many of us now carrying all that extra gear what with all them snapper guests around ;)

Joking aside

To clarify - if you get paid then in the eyes of the Law & HMRC you're offering Pro services - if it goes wrong you are potentially in the SH** - if you don't get paid then you can apologies and say SH** happens, you should have hired someone !!!

If they really are a mate then forget making a bit of money off them, they're paying for you to have a good time, feed you, provide some booze, just offer the photos as your present and everyone's happy :)

Dave
 
a1ex2001 said:
Nobody is going to sue a mate over wedding pictures provided expectations are set right 'ie sure I'll do it mate but I'm no pro so if anything goes wrong don't blame me' plenty of people aren't all that hung up on pictures and would rather pay a mate a couple of hundred to stay sober(ish) for a few hours than blow a much larger wedge on a pro. Besides which I haven't been to a wedding in the last ten years that wasn't chocca with dslr wielding guest so if you get desperate borrow one!
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A couple of hundred is quite a 'wedge' in my eyes, especially as a 'favour' for a mate. I'd certainly want results for that.

But JJ's explained his position now so all's good (y)
 
DG Phototraining said:
AWESOME advice :)

Saves many of us now carrying all that extra gear what with all them snapper guests around ;)

Joking aside

To clarify - if you get paid then in the eyes of the Law & HMRC you're offering Pro services - if it goes wrong you are potentially in the SH** - if you don't get paid then you can apologies and say SH** happens, you should have hired someone !!!

If they really are a mate then forget making a bit of money off them, they're paying for you to have a good time, feed you, provide some booze, just offer the photos as your present and everyone's happy :)

Dave
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Was never implying a pro should borrow gear but a mate doing it for peanuts why not?

The eyes of the law and hmrc blah blah blah what sort of friends do you people have? If a mate of mine asked me to shot the wedding and they'd Bing me a small amount of cash I'd do it as the only pro they'd get for the same sort of money would be a Facebook Waller with a single xxxd and kit lens. My mates wouldn't sue me if it went wrong as well we are mates and I was doing them a favour!

I'd offer to do it for free but being nice guys they'd insist I took something!
 
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a1ex2001 said:
Was never implying a pro should borrow gear but a mate doing it for peanuts why not?

The eyes of the law and hmrc blah blah blah what sort of friends do you people have? If a mate of mine asked me to shot the wedding and they'd Bing me a small amount of cash I'd do it as the only pro they'd get for the same sort of money would be a Facebook Waller with a single xxxd and kit lens. My mates wouldn't sue me if it went wrong as well we are mates and I was doing them a favour!

I'd offer to do it for free but being nice guys they'd insist I took something!
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So £200 you mentioned is peanuts? :eek:

I personally wouldn't charge my mates owt for such a thing, but if they insisted I took something I'd certainly give it back in a flash if things went tits up.
 
snerkler said:
So £200 you mentioned is peanuts? :eek:

I personally wouldn't charge my mates owt for such a thing, but if they insisted I took something I'd certainly give it back in a flash if things went tits up.
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£200 is peanuts in the wedding photography market go and see what it gets you and of course I'd give it back if it went tits up!

Back in topic ignore the amount of money if you are doing a favour you don't need to follow the usual you need 8 bodies 15 lenses two cars and a backup tog or you won't be doing it properly nonsense.
 
a1ex2001 said:
Was never implying a pro should borrow gear but a mate doing it for peanuts why not?

The eyes of the law and hmrc blah blah blah what sort of friends do you people have? If a mate of mine asked me to shot the wedding and they'd Bing me a small amount of cash I'd do it as the only pro they'd get for the same sort of money would be a Facebook Waller with a single xxxd and kit lens. My mates wouldn't sue me if it went wrong as well we are mates and I was doing them a favour!

I'd offer to do it for free but being nice guys they'd insist I took something!
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I'm sure Dave's shot weddings for free, and he'll also have shot weddings for very little money too.

And he's bang on here. If you're shooting for a mate, do it for free, if they're not that good a mate... You guess.

And as soon as money changes hands the situation is fairly clear, if my mate offered to fit my kitchen for a bargain price and screwed up, I'd want his [PLEASE DON'T TRY TO BYPASS THE SWEAR FILTER] for ear rings. Same if he promised me wedding pictures and didn't deliver, or fixed my car and didn't deliver. Money makes a difference, you have a strange attitude to money if you can't see that IMHO.
 
a1ex2001 said:
£200 is peanuts in the wedding photography market go and see what it gets you and of course I'd give it back if it went tits up!

.
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But we're not talking pro wedding togs, we're talking mates doing a favour, £200 certainly isn't peanuts in my world.

And I'm perfectly aware of the cost of wedding togs :p
 
Phil V said:
I'm sure Dave's shot weddings for free, and he'll also have shot weddings for very little money too.

And he's bang on here. If you're shooting for a mate, do it for free, if they're not that good a mate... You guess.

And as soon as money changes hands the situation is fairly clear, if my mate offered to fit my kitchen for a bargain price and screwed up, I'd want his b****x for ear rings. Same if he promised me wedding pictures and didn't deliver, or fixed my car and didn't deliver. Money makes a difference, you have a strange attitude to money if you can't see that IMHO.
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Really don't see how a token amount of money makes a difference I've had mates do me all sorts of favours down the years and chucked them everything from a couple of beers to a couple of hundred quid in every case I wouldn't have held them to the same standards as a pro doing it for a commercial rate they are my mates all would have done things for free but that's taking the p!

If I shot a mates wedding for a token amount of money they insisted I take I wouldn't be promising anymore than I'd do my best that's how helping your friends out works it's a strange world where anyone would contemplate legal action against a mate for helping you out! Maybe pro wedding togs don't trust their mates!
 
a1ex2001 said:
Really don't see how a token amount of money makes a difference I've had mates do me all sorts of favours down the years and chucked them everything from a couple of beers to a couple of hundred quid in every case I wouldn't have held them to the same standards as a pro doing it for a commercial rate they are my mates all would have done things for free but that's taking the p!

If I shot a mates wedding for a token amount of money they insisted I take I wouldn't be promising anymore than I'd do my best that's how helping your friends out works it's a strange world where anyone would contemplate legal action against a mate for helping you out! Maybe pro wedding togs don't trust their mates!
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To be honest I disagree, it's called being mates. I do stuff all the time for my mates and vice versa and no money changes hands. Once in a while if it's a major job/favour a crate of beer may be given as a thanks.
 
snerkler said:
To be honest I disagree, it's called being mates. I do stuff all the time for my mates and vice versa and no money changes hands. Once in a while if it's a major job/favour a crate of beer may be given as a thanks.
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That's just semantics though so doesn't change my comment that your doing a favour for a mate so you don't need to stress the ton's of extra gear and guaranteed results etc!
 
a1ex2001 said:
Really don't see how a token amount of money makes a difference I've had mates do me all sorts of favours down the years and chucked them everything from a couple of beers to a couple of hundred quid in every case I wouldn't have held them to the same standards as a pro doing it for a commercial rate they are my mates all would have done things for free but that's taking the p!

If I shot a mates wedding for a token amount of money they insisted I take I wouldn't be promising anymore than I'd do my best that's how helping your friends out works it's a strange world where anyone would contemplate legal action against a mate for helping you out! Maybe pro wedding togs don't trust their mates!
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You're not getting this. It's not about choice or 'professional results' it's about you give your mate some cash to do a job for you and he doesn't do it. Simply failing to deliver on a promise, it'd be a big deal between me and one of my mates (just bear in mind I shot a wedding for free for close friends this year)
 
Phil V said:
You're not getting this
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Totally :agree: ^^^ (with everything else Phil's said too btw)

And of course I've done work & freebies for mates, but they have always been just that - paid properly or FREE (I get pished on the FREE ones lol)

And just for info's sake, I'm party to some Wedding Facebook Forums where £200 is ALL a lot of them are asking offering their pro services to strangers, you can still hire a highly experienced pro near me for £55 per hour starting from just 1 hour; for many people it is quite a lot of money so calling it a 'token' just makes you sound a bit of a monied ass :D

And my last word before bowing out of this thread then just to see if you can finally get the point... we are NOT trying to have an argument, we are merely pointing out the correct & safest way to shoot a mate's Wedding for all parties (which means we're trying to help YOU cover your back); and that's to do it for free OR on a full professional basis. Its the being paid that makes the difference and could (most probably won't of course) but COULD land you in trouble if you fk up and your annoyed mate is having his ear bitten off my his new wife and other annoyed family members. They'll be annoyed at him for hiring you and you are then in their & his firing line. Avoiding putting yourself in unnecessary risk is a bit like insurance, no-one expects to crash their hire car but just in case most upgrade the insurance element to make the excess as small as it can be as bad things COULD happen, risk avoidance is a good thing - stupidity is not

THAT's it, that's all the advice is, so take it and happily ignore it if you will and I sincerely hope you have a great day, get some great photos that makes everyone happy, and that you spend your 'token' £200 on the next homeless person you see

Right, where's that UNWATCH button :)

Dave
 
Seem to have opened up a can of worms!!

And the £200 being branded about is nothing to do with my post/question!

Back on subject.... so a 24-70 of some sort is the best option as primes could miss a shot right?

Anyone used a 28-75 on the D750? Wondering how it would hold up on the demands of a D750.
 
My Tamron 28-70 held up fine on my D610 and if you were after a lens you could do much worse than look for one of those, should be able to pick one up for under £200 and they are easily equal in IQ to the Nikon version.

That could be all you'd need although ideally something longer for speeches (70-200 f/2.8 is the classic choice) and a fast prime for the dance, focal length depending although the ISO performance of the D750 negates this requirement a little - just use the 28-70.
 
Perhaps a stupid question, but why do these threads invariably end up as a rant fest?
 
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