Advice on lenses?

lzfoto

So I'm shooting a wedding October 9th and poor person (aren't we all). I don't have all the fancy gear and equiptment. Every time I photograph, I rent the stuff I need for big projects like weddings and stuff. I had such great sucess with the engagement session, that I want to splurge a little and rent the best lenses out there for this wedding. The couple is absolutly gorgeous, the place is amazing, the bridal party is the best, and I really really want to provided the best for these people. So what's the best wide angle lens for a nikon camera and prime lens? So far I'm thinking of getting the Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 AF-S ED as a prime. Any other choice I should consider? Thanks for the much needed advice.

And for those that are questioning my ability...I don't kow all the photography talk, I don't have all the equiptment, and I am not a phanatic(sp?) like some are. I am a full time nurse with a family, that loves photography as a passion and hobby, and I usually shoot with my cheap ole D50, but I'm loving everything about it. I've shot several weddings, and numerous other things...With each shoot, I improve. I love to experiment and try out new things. Here is the link to engagement shoot I did and posted on here a while back. http://www.dgrin.com/showthread.php?t=174308

Any advice and help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Liliya
(Sorry for spelling errors)

Moogle Pepper

I don't see anyone questioning your ability. Secondly, you don't need fancy gear to get the shot. Thirdly, there is nothing wrong with renting things you need but can't afford. We do it all the time.

In any case, the 24-70 covers majority of the range you need at a wedding. You might want to consider renting another camera body and a telephoto, like the 70-200. Given that the 9th of Oct is nearly here, you should send out the rent requests asap!

Qarik

you can shoot 95% of the wedding witht he 24-70mm. The only situation where you may need more zoom is if the ceremony has some restriction on how close you can get and so 70-200mm maybe needed. Other lenses to consider...a 50mm 1.4 for very low light and/or detail shots. A wide angle like the 14-24mm or tokina 11-16mm would be nice as well.

The d50? wow..I would be scared to shoot with that but good luck.

lzfoto

Thanks for the imput....I guess I felt like I need to defend myself ahead of time, since I've was brutally attacked on another forum...it went somehting like this "if you don't know which equiptment to use, then obviously you don't knwo much about photography, in total should not be doing this wedding, and leave it up to the pros." So I apologize for defending myself ahead of time.

lzfoto

I'm not shooting this wedding with the d50...The body will also be rented...I meant the majority of my "hobby" photography is shot with the D50....For major events like this I rent the body also. I'm going with the Nikon D700. I'm renting from a store in my city which has a huge a selections, so I'm still good on time....but I need advice with wide angle. The area where the bride is getting ready is very small...plus with all the people and stuff there it will be smaller.

I have the telephoto lens...which is great....but nothing fancier.

Qarik

ahhh..the d700 and 24-70mm is a match made in heaven. I checked the link you provided..good stuff. I am sure you will do fine. Sometimes this forum will attack noobs as well but I think as long as you are reasonably talented (which it seems you are) and go in with eyes wide open and have prepared as much as you can...then mostly you will get a PASS here haha.

Matthew Saville

The 24-70 is all you'll need if you have an 'in your face' kinda style and no ceremony church restrictions.

The 70-200 is all you'll need if you have a more distant style and like to give people their space / privacy, which I usually find myself trying to do.

Personally, here's my theory- A telephoto zoom is more valuable than a mid-range zoom because telephoto focal lengths make it harder to "zoom with your feet". With a 35mm prime lens for example I can take one step forward or one step back and totally change my prespective. But at 70mm or especially 200mm, one step makes zero difference. Which is why zooming comes in handy.

But like I said it comes down to style. Some photographers shoot an entire wedding at 50mm...

My ideal setup for wedding photography can be read about here:

http://cameratalk.xanga.com/724047312/the-ultimate-nikon-dslr-setup---weddings/

Basically, I'd prefer to have an ultra-wide zoom, (17-35) ...a telephoto zoom, (70-200) ...and a mid-range prime. 50mm or 35mm or 85mm...)

...But that is because most of my shots are taken at wider angles or telephoto angles, and not so much the mid-range angles. 35mm is my favorite angle that even comes close to "mid-rage".

So either rent the D700 and 24-70 and then an 85 1.4 for the bridal portraits and low light, OR rent the D700 and a 70-200 plus a 35 f/2 or something, OR the D700 and the 17-35 and a 50 or 85. Like I said, it just depends on what focal length you use to make the bulk of your images...

=Matt=

DsrtVW

I have a D300 and a D50 I have no problem using my D50 as my second camera. I know its limits and it is a very capable camera used within those limits. I do not try and shoot low light with it but outdoors it is good. Depending on the situation I have 2 cameras with 2 different focal ranges so I can switch back and forth quickly. Would love to have a D700 or better but oh well. Waiting to see what Nikon replaces the D300 with(D400), mine has 95000 shutter actuations on it.
I really like the Tokina 50-135mm f2.8 which is a good fast lens which gives you the 70-200mm equivalent on a crop sensor camera.