Now I am nervous...

Harvey_nikon

Harvey_nikon

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Hi,

Got a friends wedding on Sat, I was asked to take candid shots throughout the day as they have an official tog (as a guest, not paid). Ordered myself a 70-200mm f2.8 for the weekend from lensesforhire thinking this would be great with the D60 to get the job done.

Been to the rehearsal tonight, spoke to the videographer (same guy that did my wedding + great guy from CAM3 studios) and the photographer.

The bride has told the pro to go with the groom in the morning as she wants me to do the getting ready shots at her mums house, then the pro has asked me to get some shots of her walking down the aisle because due to the shape of the church it will make it near impossible for him to do.

I am not sure that my D60 has what it takes even with my 50mm 1.8 to take decent shots inside a church. I've only got the kit lens to use at her mums because I think the 50mm will be too close. I must say, I am bricking it ever so slightly.

They've said they will be happy with whatever I can get, but I want to do quality shots, not "it'll do shots".

Any words of advice? Do you think my kit will be adequate for the job in hand?

Wish I had the cash to just go out and get a D700 :( Also now googling wedding photographers for ideas :thinking:
 
You can do a surprising amount of work with 50mm unless you shoot a group of people.
That D60 will have to suffice for now as wedding is not the best test drive time for a new camera. You need to be familiar with it. A monopod or tripod at the back of the church can make a lot of difference. You may get away with 1/30s shutter speed or even slightly slower as there is little movement of people.
 
Luckily the only shot I need to take in the church is the one of the bride and father walking towards the alter, they have a large window in front of them so I am hoping I can keep the ISO down as it really lets the D60 down. But, I can only do this from my seat, I won't be able to move around so I have got an aisle seat towards the front.
 
Quickly nip out and get the 50mm 1.4 G and a D3s? :thinking:

On a serious note I've used the 35mm 1.8 on the 60 and that seems to be a perfect little lens for the job as it's not so close and a little sharper and it will auto focus! If you have a spare £200 that is :gag:
 
Harvey_nikon said:
I am hoping I can keep the ISO down as it really lets the D60 down.
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If you can yes, but don't risk getting any blur. Higher ISO can deliver a sharp photo, and Noiseninja can work its magic even on a really noisy file (such as the horror of 40D at ISO3200 and underexposed). Make sure to expose to the right but don't blow the highlights. Histogram is your friend. Don't try to judge the exposure just by looking and the thumbnail as it is not quantitative, but I am sure you know that.
 
Make sure that you are in your seat early and practise on other people walking down the aisle.
You then have time to adjust the exposure, composition etc if needed.
 
18-270 said:
Quickly nip out and get the 50mm 1.4 G and a D3s? :thinking:

On a serious note I've used the 35mm 1.8 on the 60 and that seems to be a perfect little lens for the job as it's not so close and a little sharper and it will auto focus! If you have a spare £200 that is :gag:
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lol, don't tempt me, i've been looking at the D700 and D300s all night umming to myself, should I? shouldn't I? :p £200 might be the cheaper option at the moment.

daugirdas said:
If you can yes, but don't risk getting any blur. Higher ISO can deliver a sharp photo, and Noiseninja can work its magic even on a really noisy file (such as the horror of 40D at ISO3200 and underexposed). Make sure to expose to the right but don't blow the highlights. Histogram is your friend. Don't try to judge the exposure just by looking and the thumbnail as it is not quantitative, but I am sure you know that.
Click to expand...

I am yet to try noiseninja, I'll have to check it out tonight, see what it can do with my noisy images and thanks for the tips. My 50mm is completely manual including exposure so I kinda ok at getting things right but it's still a learning curve for me!

Suvv said:
Make sure that you are in your seat early and practise on other people walking down the aisle.
You then have time to adjust the exposure, composition etc if needed.
Click to expand...

Good idea. It'll be a rush though as I am shooting the bride & bridesmaids getting ready too but definitely worth a try :)
 
Harvey_nikon said:
My 50mm is completely manual including exposure so I kinda ok at getting things right but it's still a learning curve for me!
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This could be a rather too steep curve for a wedding :thinking:. Could you afford or borrow 50mm f/1.4 AFS or 35mm f/1.8 at all? It think this would be very important lens, otherwise it is all down to 70-200. Wedding (even for a 'thank you') is a too serious business to experiment.
 
I can get well exposed shots with the 50mm, after a few sample shots. Might pop over to Jessops at dinner time for a nosey about, see what they have in.

Everyone who has seen my previous shots has lots of faith in me, think it's more a case of self doubt tbh.
 
Harvey_nikon said:
I can get well exposed shots with the 50mm, after a few sample shots. Might pop over to Jessops at dinner time for a nosey about, see what they have in.

Everyone who has seen my previous shots has lots of faith in me, think it's more a case of self doubt tbh.
Click to expand...

I am more concerned about focusing; Manual exposure is used fairly regularly. MF at f/1.8 is not very precise as viewfinder only shows up f/2.8 and the precision of the eye is sometimes simply not good enough. Electronic rangefinder may work, but may be just as hard. MF on moving subjects will be very tough at best, and you must nail it f/1.8. You can try and get some shots but it is not worth the risk for the wedding.

Also take plenty of memory cards, shoot RAW and charge all batteries! Don't delete anything until you have printed albums and everyone is happy.
 
Focusing shouldn't be a problem, i've been using the manual focussing for some shots of my dogs running around etc and they turn out sharp.

Luckily I am not risking the wedding, if I don't get the aisle shots there won't be any anyway because it's impossible for the tog to get entrance shots and aisle shots due to the odd layout of the church. :)

Memory cards are covered, always shoot RAW, plus I have a room there as my wife is a bridesmaid so I can make regular backups onto a laptop + portable HDD and charge batt's if needed :)
 
If I were you I'd do the best you can with the equipment you have to hand, you said yourself that you're not getting paid for it so why go out and splurge loads more cash on equipment?
 
Hairyduck said:
If I were you I'd do the best you can with the equipment you have to hand, you said yourself that you're not getting paid for it so why go out and splurge loads more cash on equipment?
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Because I really really really want it ?? :D lol

Missus would kill me :lol:
 
I'm in a similar position and also bricking it!! :help:

I have just the 2 lenses to take..

Canon 24-105 F4 IS
Canon 70-200 F2.8 IS

...so I'm hoping they'll cover everything.
The worry I have is that the couple getting married have seen some of my better landscape shots which they have based their expectations on. I have never done any people photography yet where the subjects are always moving, and I think they will expect good shots rather than "they'll do" shots even if they say they won't. :shrug:

Good luck - Think we both need it!!:D
 
In about a month. Thankfully it's not a church wedding and the reception etc is at one of the parents houses (a rather large pad in Knutsford, Cheshire).
Initially they only wanted candid shots as they are not having a pro. Now they've sneaked a few formal shots they want.
 
If your focusing technique is good enough for dogs I doubt that a bride will give you too many problems but don't forget that narrow DOF. Have a little look at some DOF scales and now you have seen the venue you know roughly what range you will be shooting at. Therefore you can imagine the tolerance you will have for that shot on the day.

Two little tips for you.

1. Get into your seat and practice the exposure, make sure you actually NEED to be at f1.8. As usual it's a balancing act between shutter speed, ISO, and DOF. Try to keep to 1/60sec. That's usually my minumum safe speed for moving people.

2.Speak to the bride. (Here is the cunning bit) You know her so ask her to pause with Dad at the top of the aisle for a moment so you can get the shot. It will take about a second to do and won't impose much of an interruption in proceedings.

Gareth, you seriously need to talk to your couple, taking landscapes where you have all day is mile away from shooting a wedding and while I'm not saying that it is impossible I'd say it was a bit like entering someone for the Touring Car Championship because they have a licence and a BWM!

I'm not saying don't do it but please educate them and make sure that their expectations are at least realistic.
 
AliB said:
Gareth, you seriously need to talk to your couple, taking landscapes where you have all day is mile away from shooting a wedding and while I'm not saying that it is impossible I'd say it was a bit like entering someone for the Touring Car Championship because they have a licence and a BWM!

I'm not saying don't do it but please educate them and make sure that their expectations are at least realistic.
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My point exactly!! I've told them to expect nothing and any decent shots will be a bonus. They say they're fine with this, but I'm not so sure. :bonk:
 
AliB said:
1. Get into your seat and practice the exposure, make sure you actually NEED to be at f1.8. As usual it's a balancing act between shutter speed, ISO, and DOF. Try to keep to 1/60sec. That's usually my minumum safe speed for moving people.

2.Speak to the bride. (Here is the cunning bit) You know her so ask her to pause with Dad at the top of the aisle for a moment so you can get the shot. It will take about a second to do and won't impose much of an interruption in proceedings.
Click to expand...

Good ideas :) And I've now got the 35mm f/1.8 lens :bonk: Should make it a tad easier and the extra field of view compared to the 50mm on a crop body makes a huge difference. I may even be tempted to sell the 50mm now to fund it :)

Wippers, I am sure you will be fine, do some practice shots on friends and family, don't be afraid to speak up for the formal shots. Picture them as school children and you the teacher addressing them while they are being rowdy. :)
 
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