A Deal????

Yes they are cheap lenses, and they are cheap lenses for 35mm film cameras rather than digital ones. Therefore 28mm is the widest focal length there and that won't be all that wide on that camera. In terms of quality the lenses are probably ok compared to a standard kit lens. But the extras look very cheap too and it generally doesn't look like that great a deal to me. Keep looking IMO.
 
I personally wouldn't purchase from that person an expensive item... the feedback isn't all that great especially with over 25k items sold. 7 bad feedback within the last few months...
 
That's a wide angle of 42mm corrected for the smaller sensor size in the digital camera. You would need to be standing quite a distance away in the procession to make use of a lens like that. I shot a wedding on an 17mm lens which worked out at 25mm corrected, and it really was just wide enough to get decent action shots in the wedding, especially while mingling with the crowd.
 
First off.. the *deals* you normally find on eBay like that arent deals... there is a lot of items in there you simply wont use much...

The lenses arent bad but they are simply low-end consumer lenses... that lens kit goes for $199 on any given day... the RebelXT can be had for in the $500s... 1gb cards are cheap now... you will be better off in the long run paying slightly more and getting from a VERY reputable dealer...

I do ALL my business with Allens Camera in PA... its a phone call only... no web sales... but worth its weight in gold EVERY time... I cant stress that enough...

Also other places will be B&H, Adorama (just be careful with them... had a few bad experiences with their shipping abilities), KEH, and a few others...
 
First off.. the *deals* you normally find on eBay like that arent deals... there is a lot of items in there you simply wont use much...

The lenses arent bad but they are simply low-end consumer lenses... that lens kit goes for $199 on any given day... the RebelXT can be had for in the $500s... 1gb cards are cheap now... you will be better off in the long run paying slightly more and getting from a VERY reputable dealer...

I do ALL my business with Allens Camera in PA... its a phone call only... no web sales... but worth its weight in gold EVERY time... I cant stress that enough...

Also other places will be B&H, Adorama (just be careful with them... had a few bad experiences with their shipping abilities), KEH, and a few others...

Well the problem I am having is that I only have around 700 dollars to spend on a camera, and part of me says to get as much equipment with it if I can.

However, if these lenses aren't good enough to shoot decent shots at a wedding, then they are useless to me.

Thanks for the help... I am going to look for a D50 kit that comes with the 18-55 Nikon lens!!!
 
RMT - I don't want to sound too harsh but I will -

These lenses are NOT FOR WEDDINGS!!!

Doing weddings means using quality gear - the camera is fine but you need fast lenses. Would you want your wediing images taken with someone using the cheapest gear they could find? Probably not....

Weddings should not be taken lightly. This is a couples most important day of their lives.

The problem with weddings is anyone with a DSLR thinks they can do one. You need 2 cameras (what if yours stops working)! Believe it or not this happens. I'd to stand in for a friend whose camera broke.

You need a wide - normal lens (something like a 17-50 f2.8) and a telephoto lens like a 70-200 f2.8. These are not cheap. Smaller apertures will be useless in low light.

You could maybe use an 85mm f1.8 and/or a 50mm f1.4 for low light shots (like inside a church) but you'll need to be close to get decent images.

I use a 20D and 350D. I have a 24-105 f4L IS (or a fast prime) on one and the 70-200 f2.8L IS on the other.

I also have 2 flash guns a 580EX and a Sigma EF500 DG Super. You need lots and lots of memory, diffusers for the flash, a decent bag, a couple of camera batteries for each camera, batteries for the flashes etc etc

Do not take weddings lightly. You want to be able to produce quality images for the couple and this means quality gear.

I wish you luck.

Regards
JD
 
I did a wedding with a friend a few months back
Our combined equipment was as follows
2x Canon 20D
2x Canon 24-70 f2.8 L
1x Canon 17-40 f4
1x Canon 70-200 f2.8
2x Flashguns (can't remember what type but both were the same and good quality)
1x Canon 70-200 f4 L (possibly)
Numerous CF cards, Battery grip and at least a dozen batteries for the flash guns and bettery grip

High quality gear and back up that is also high quality is a must for a wedding.
I wouldn't rule out Ebay but more care is needed when buying from there. as far as that seller is concerned - on average 1% of transactions don't go to plan. Personally i could live with that and would buy from someone with that average. However only you can decide if you trust that seller.

As has been said, I don't think that gear is good enough to shoot a wedding.
 
On the flipside if you know the people well, and they realise that they will get what they pay for (I assume you are not charging the close to a grand wedding photographers often do?) you should be able to shoot with a basic SLR and a film backup.

I did an aunts wedding on a Nikon D200, a 18-70mm f3.5, and a SB-800 flash unit. The backup was a Nikon FE with a 50mm f1.8 prime, and they were more than happy with their results
 
On the flipside if you know the people well, and they realise that they will get what they pay for (I assume you are not charging the close to a grand wedding photographers often do?) you should be able to shoot with a basic SLR and a film backup.

I did an aunts wedding on a Nikon D200, a 18-70mm f3.5, and a SB-800 flash unit. The backup was a Nikon FE with a 50mm f1.8 prime, and they were more than happy with their results

That's exactly it. If I had the cash to go buy two bodies, and several fast 15-90 lenses and a few quick zooms, do you think I'd even post?

I've been getting by with my Canon A610... I beg of you to go look that camera up and see the limitations I am under...

I didn't ASK to become a semi-pro photographer... I merely started showing off my flickr to a few friends, and it grew... now I get calls EVERY DAY, and YES I have turned away about 50% of the jobs offered, because of a lack of equipment.

However, this is a friend of a friend who was going to make their poor old mother in law with her digital camera take the pics. They hired me, and paid me, to take some practice shots on the beach of them (engagement photos), and after seeing the results, hired me to do their wedding... with the understanding I would be using my A610 Canon.

However, I am starting to take this seriously, and since I have a day job, two kids, a wife, rent, car payment and blahblahblah, I have to buy my equipment in PIECES...

So that's why I asked. I am not someone with a "DSLR who thinks he can do it" just because I spent 500 dollars on a camera.

I apologize if I sound snarky, look it up, but I KNOW already what I would LIKE to have for the wedding... my question is... what are the bare necccesaties.

Oh, and I know I'm not the greatest, but you can view my flickr:

www.flickr.com/photos/rmthompson

Ryan
 
Honestly, you'd be better off getting the camera and then using the 200 dollars that would buy those two lenses (since you will never use the 70-300 in a wedding) and put it towards a fast ultra-wide.

Since you need a lens that is wide angle (factoring in the crop factor) and especially need a lens that is fast. Maybe buy your camera and shoot something (if you get something other than weddings that may be the best bet) and use that money to pay for your quality glass.

Garbz post is also a good idea.

But yeah, I dont think any of us have the access to money for camera gear that we'd like, so piecing it together is part of the process.

And I dont think EOS's post was meant to be an insult or anything, he is just saying that to get the quality that most people come to expect, you can't cheap out... As someone who actually does wedding photography, his advice is good.

EDIT: You do great work with a P&S alone, so I definitely stand by my first idea. Buy the XT like you want, and maybe something like the 50 1.8 and do some more portrate photography like the pictures of the girls (dont break your foot this time ;)) and use that money to buy the stuff you need to get into the wedding deal.
 

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