Lens, flash, wedding photo advice please!!

[flmomx5]

I have been asked by a friend to photograph her mom's wedding since an emergency came up with their professional photographer. By no means am I a pro. I'm just a mom that takes decent pics of her kids. I have a Nikon D5000 but only a standard kit lens (crappy zoom). I'd like to purchase a lens for the occasion. Can anyone give me advice as to which lens would be suitable? I guess I should also look into getting an external flash as well, so I would appreciate any info in regards to that. I've never photographed a wedding (and they are very well aware of that) so I would be very grateful for any pointers. It will be an outdoor wedding at the Daytona Int'l Speedway in Victory Lane at 4pm and the reception will be indoors. I'm in a panic, the wedding is THIS Sat. Please help!! Thank you , in advance!!

 

[mJs]

i guess it depends on how much you are willing to spend.... a popular lens is the 24-70 2.8.... quick, versatile, nice quality, but about 2 grand. you will want a flash for the indoor reception especially if you get a bigger lens, then you won't have shadow.

take LOTS of frames.... of EVERYthing... cover your butt.

 

[bigtwinky]

Instead of buying, look into renting.

Renting a 24-70 and a 70-200 (both f/2.8) will greatly help.
As for the flash, well, not much you can do in such a short time. Buy a speedlight, mount it, and look for places to bounce the light off of...dont point it straight at them. Maybe find a way to diffuse the light as well.

But yeah, as mJs said, make up for quality with quantity.

 

[Flash Harry]

Rather than spend a fortune, I'd go for a 35mm 1.8 Nik lens and a decent flash for your camera, this is a prime lens will give you all the light you need and the view will be as a 50mm on your crop sensor, all for around $300 so no need to break the bank for a one off occasion. H

 

[Mike_E]

Go to the nearest bookstore or photography store today and buy a book!!! You need to get into a Wedding Photographer's frame of mind. Start thinking about which poses- yes, do the normal poses, they will thank you later if not right away and the feel of the kind of shots you'll want to take. You will need an assistant so pick somebody and go over the book with them so that they can be helping you to remember what you wanted to do and also be on the lookout for backgrounds and shots that you might miss ( you are going rushed, be prepared for it). You are going to want your assistant to be in charge of making sure that the dress, ties, and various other clothing is in order before you shoot also. You might want to get them to help with the posing too. Check here for posing tips (you might want to bookmark it -or copy it, it's getting harder and harder to find and since Mr. Zeltsman had it up for free when he was alive I doubt he would you mind keeping a copy. Zeltsman's Living Legacy - Portrait Photography Lessons - PhotoDigital.net

If you know what you want and work within the capabilities of your rig you may not need another lens. Nikon doesn't make a "crappy zoom", you may have a bad example but in general you can do great work with what you have just stay within their limits. If you want to get some distance between you A 55-200mm VR is an inexpensive way to go although you are certainly welcome to spend more if you like. Be Sure to get lens hoods for all you lenses if you don't already have them.

Outdoors at 4 pm in Daytona, Florida is not going to require a fast lens (you might need an ND filter to burn about 4 stops though ) and the only thing you should need a flash outdoors for is for fill. (you really should know how to do fill properly btw) At the reception you can use a better bounce card without shame.. Peter Greggs ABBC ABetterBounceCard for Canon Flash Nikon Flash and Digital Cameras | abbc is abetterbouncecard for canon flash nikon flash and better flash photography If you would like to make your own let me know and I can point you to some diy instructions or you can Google for yourself.

When using a flash at the reception (if you don't have an external flash an SB 600 will do- you don't have to spend $500 if you don't want) Do Not put Tupperware on your flash!! The ONLY thing that matters is the size of the light source and a reflector is the most efficient use of your flash, shooting through anything just burns candle power. (learning how to gel your flash can wait until next week )

 

[KmH]

I have been asked by a friend to photograph her mom's wedding since an emergency came up with their professional photographer.

Professional photographer? Give me a break!

A pro makes prior arrangements to have a competent backup shooter that can cover a contract in case there is an "emergency". In fact, a "pro" states they have done that in their contract, and it's only Wednesday so the (cough) pro still has time to cover the job.

But then, quite a few calling themselves a pro wedding photographer today are sadly, to often laughable.

Do the best you can for your friend, but be aware it takes time to become familiar with and learn how to best use new gear, and flash adds an additional level of complexity.

Get the new gear ASAP and start using it so you have an idea what to expect come Saturday.

 

[Scruggelgreen]

For something easy and workable in the time you have i would recommend the gary fong lightsphere. They have a universal mount type (that i have) and it works very well. Just throw it on your speed light and point it right at the subject. Usually bouncing works better then this approach, but this approach is very forgiving (especially when you have all of a half of a second to snap that one hilarious picture).

[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Gary-Fong-Lightsphere-Universal-System/dp/B0011646UC/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1275498631&sr=8-8"]Amazon.com: Gary Fong Lightsphere Universal System Cloud:…[/ame]

Just my thoughts......

 

[gsgary]

For something easy and workable in the time you have i would recommend the gary fong lightsphere. They have a universal mount type (that i have) and it works very well. Just throw it on your speed light and point it right at the subject. Usually bouncing works better then this approach, but this approach is very forgiving (especially when you have all of a half of a second to snap that one hilarious picture).

Amazon.com: Gary Fong Lightsphere Universal System Cloud:…

Just my thoughts......

Over priced plastic, a plastic 2 litre milk carton is just as good

 

[Derrel]

Why worry? You have two whole days plus a little extra time, to figure it all out. A wedding lasts 4 hours or so, and you have over 48 hours to get ready...that's more than twelve times the length of the event alloted to preparation. It's only a once- or twice-in-a lifetime event for most people, so no big deal. Stay calm. Charge your batteries, format your memory cards, clean the front and rear elements of your lens,and blow out the sensor chamber of your d-slr. Then go shoot the event.

 

[brianhuds81]

Hi,

The 24-70 (f/2.8) will give you best quality.When shots outside after a ceremony or during the posed shots you’ll probably want to keep your flash attached to give a little fill in flash. I tend to dial it back a little (a stop or two) so that shots are not blown out – but particularly in backlit or midday shooting conditions where there can be a lot of shadow, fill in flash is a must.

 

[ghpham]

The Nikon 5000 does NOT have a focusing motor in its body. Whatever lens you rent, buy, etc, you will need to get one with built in lens motor.

With two days to go, nothing I say is going to help you. Good luck.