new guy/trying to fit in

ok, so i just recently purchased a samsung pro 815. i myself love the camera,

but maybe because its by far better than my last.

i fiance and i just had a baby and i wanted a good camera for portraits. i have

done pretty well with his pics with just a sheet in the background and the

camera on a tri-pod.

we are in the middle of planning our own wedding and have had three different

photographers recommended to us. they were NOT professional. all three

basically just come take the pics and give us the disc. we do the printing and

everything else. they were charging 650-850.00 for the wedding. (i live in a

small town)

well that got me thinking....if thats all they do, i can do that! i have a good

imagination and i really enjoy taking photos. i have been doing alot of

research on lighting, backdrops, editing, and wedding photos.

when i came across this site i have to tell ya, it now has me a bit scared.

talking about shutters breaking on cameras and have an extra flash backup. that

kind of thing. i don't have alot of money. well with a wedding and honeymoon

of my own, i don't have any money. But, i do have a friend wanting me to do her

wedding for her. i am def. buying the external flash for the camera. it is

kind of hard to locate though. does anyone know of a different brand flash i

can use and be compatible with the pro 815?

was buying this camera a mistake for my new "ideas and plans"?

a camera with detachable lenses would have been a better buy, or about equal?

should i forget about getting the lighting studio and doing weddings and

childrens protraits as a small source of income?

 

basically am i too small for this tall job?

i joined this site cause i haven't seen anyone being rude, i see alot of

questions answered and i see honest answers. that is what i am looking for. be

honest, i can take it! i just need to know if i should through my plans out the

window or i have some potential.

 

thank you very much

Joey

I'm sorry i also wanted to mention 2 other things.

i have photoshop 7.0 and paint shop pro 7.

i see alot of people talking about giving the raw files to the customers. i have taken a few pics in RAW format and i understand what it means however i am not good or do not have a good program for editing a raw photo and making it look like a good photo. would taking wedding pics in hi res jpeg be a bad idea?

does anyone know of a good program and/or tutorial to learn how to make raw images look like a professional picture?

Best thing to do is to seek out some classes in photography at a local tech school to learn some basics.

 

Start with a minimum of equipment (either a DSLR or film SLR) and practice.

 

Seek out a pro and work for a year assisting and second shooting weddings.

 

It's almost a rite of passage, but it works.

 

Would you trust your wedding to someone toting a point and shoot digital camera in program mode?

You want to take your OWN wedding photos?? Or are you just saying from what you've seen,

a wedding photographer's job is pretty easy so after your wedding maybe you'll try to get

into it?

 

It's a LOT of work and you need to do a LOT of learning, but if you're interested in it, go for

it. Just don't take anyone's money until you KNOW what you're doing for sure. Read, read,

read and practice, practice, practice.

 

Good luck!

no i don't wanna do my own wedding. haha. this wedding i have booked in october. it gives me alot of time to work on things. maybe not enough time but i am free! if i did 12 weddings this year they would all be free. i am only doing this 1 wedding. hopefuly it goes well and the time and effort i am putting into this will be worth it and allow me to continue. i am very critical of myself and i am also a hard worker. all my best will be put into what i do.

thats for your input, hopefully receive more.

so the pro 815 is a bad choice? or no one is very familiar with it?

 

joey

Yes, the Pro 815 is a bad choice for weddings. In DPReview.com's review of it they say these things; * Long shutter lag, * Focus hunts - and often fails - at long end of zoom, especially in low light, * JPEG processing doesn't make the most of the lens, smearing of low contrast detail, * JPEG Images over-processed, specifically over-sharpened, * Fairly harsh highlight clipping (JPEGs), * No image stabilization, no high ISO capability, * Supplied raw converter worse than useless, * Raw files large, raw file writing very slow, * Tiff files no better than JPEGs, and very very slow, * Unreliable white balance under artificial light. They go on, but those are enough to disqualify it for professional wedding use.

 

So, what you need before you start charging for weddings are; two good (not cheap) camera bodies, two sets of good (not cheap) lenses, two flash units that work well with the camera bodies. You also need a whole lot of education and experience. That's probably the most important part.

joey,

if your heart is really into it....great things can happen...anything done well isn't as easy as it looks but you can do this if you really want too! it isn't like only a chosen few can be wedding photographers....start small and keep learning and you never know where you will be in just a couple of months....years.... ;)

I bought some old scalpels on eBay. I'd like to book your next surgery, please. I'll make it quite a ways in advance so I have time to study up. That ok? You won't mind if I practice on you, will you?

There are plenty of people in the U.S. that are on tight budgets and even a thousand bucks for a wedding is a big deal. You'll find plenty of clients for sure. You need to study and practice more, perhaps take a photography class or two. Ideal would be to start as a second shooter/assistant to an established pro. You also need better equipment though. A couple of reliable bodies and electronic flash units to start.

 

Digital pro cameras, printers, computers, and programs are a major investment, are soon outmoded, and don't hold their value. At this point in your career you'd probably be better off picking up a couple of manual (not automatic) film SLR's by companies like Pentax, Olympus, Canon, Nikon, etc. and a couple of single focal legnth lenses like a 35mm and an 85mm. These are usually faster and sharper than zooms, and well as being smaller and lighter. The best thing is that clean used ones are cheap because everybody is jumping on the digital bandwagon. For flash the Vivitar 283 is probably the most reliable flash unit ever made. It's been on the market for 30 years! One of my 283's must be twenty-five years old. If you decide that wedding photography is not for you then put your film cameras back on Ebay and you'll likely get your entire investment back.

I have to agree with Al on this one. If starting from ground zero, shooting film is definitely the best way to "get in the game" and equipment depreciation is virtually non-existent. Negative film is also much more forgiving than digital which gives you a larger margin of error.

The camera you have is too slow in operation IMO. I would also say it is not a great idea to go to a wedding with only one camera/flash.

 

My path would likely be to sell that 815 and get a couple of used 20d's, a used 430ex or two and the 24 + 85 lenses (one on each body). Then learn as much as you can.

 

Those who do what you mention (quick and dirty) are shooting and burning average work in most cases. Once someone has studied and worked enough to be 'good' at it, they usually charge a bunch more.

 

lots more opinions to come I am sure.

thank you david. that is exactly what kind of advise i was seeking. do you think selling my 815, memory, camera case, extra battery, and tripod might allow me to afford at least 1 20d and lens or two? i haven't done much research on prices of these yet.

A used 20D goes for at least $600 right now, and a 430EX flash new for a little over $200, a 24mm f/2.8 lens for nearly $300, and a 85mm f/1.8 lens for $350 or so. Perhaps a better lens than the 24mm would be a Tamron 17-50 f/2.8 for about $450.

 

$1450 to $1600 for one marginal setup. You still need two of them. You should never do a wedding, even a free one, without adequate backups of everything.

 

We're not trying to be mean to you Joey, but you are either going to have to cough up more investment money, or start off with film cameras. Film cameras won't save anything on lenses, but the camera bodies are certainly cheaper. Of course you will have to buy film and processing, so eventually digital becomes cheaper.

 

I still think your greatest need is education and experience. Once you get that you will know what equipment you need. There is no cheap and easy way to get into wedding photography without ruining a few weddings along they way. Of course, if they are not your friends...

no don't worry, with the exception of wigwam jones's comment. everything you guys have posted has been very helpful. kept me up all night worry about what to tell my friend. instead, i just sent her to read this forum. this way she knows i'm not trying to talk myself up as being a photographer. she knows what she is getting now and she is still wanting me to do it.

i've changed my plans for photography in the last 24 hours. i will now do plenty of studying, and a lot of hanging out on this website. in the meantime, saving my money for the good equipment. luckily i have another very generous friend willing to let me "play" and test out different things on her Cannon rebel XT. tonight was the first time i ever used a DSLR (with detachable lens) in Manual focus. i shot some decent photos, but def. not anything i would even want to post on a myspace page.

i now believe that DSLR cameras with the simple point and shoot ability give people false capabilities. i thought for the past month and a half i was doing a pretty good job. (the rebel xt does however have a pretty good auto focus).

i also now compare myself as a photographer to a straight ball bowler. lol (i am a bowler) and people who roll the ball straight think its a easy game....ever see a straight bowler on t.v.? no, and i won't be finding myself freelancing for national geographic with my point and shoot abilities either. :)

 

thanks again everyone

Definately don't give up though! The Rebel XT is where I got started with DSLR photography and have it as a backup now. Start small and build your way up. You can pick up used DSLR on craigslist or Ebay for around 600 bucks or so. You need good fast glass, that's more important than a fancy camera. Get a wide, normal, and long prime if you can. The 50mm f/1.8 is only 75 bucks brand new! It's not a cheap industry to be in, expect to spend at least $5000 to get started. 2 bodies, 4+ lenses, 2 flashes, batteries, memory memory and more memory! 2 bodies is probably the most important...honestly, how would you explain to a bride that you can't take the pictures because your camera is malfunctioning! Even if it is for free, get a backup, film or digital, it doesn't matter. It's also nice to have at least 2 bodies so you can use both and don't have to switch lenses often. Anyway, good luck with everything. and remember to practice, practice, practice!

Joey, you missed Wigwams point, you can't start out in the hospital as a head surgeon, but you can do a backstreet abortion and maybe get rich. This is not a hit to discourage you, I wish you the best. I have studied and been around cameras since the 70's and the thought of doing weddings sends chills up my spine. I see some of the great stuff that these guys do and I'm impressed on the results and know there isn't anyway I could repoduce that shot in a studio if I had all day. It requires a large learning curve either thru second shooting or assisting, let's face it no one ever got good without practice. If you have friend that you can do that with, great. The other avenue is like stated there are no second chances, back up everything otherwise you may have a bridezilla and open up yourself to all kinds of legal issues.

Speaking of legal issues...make sure you get a contract signed, free or not, to avoid those legal issue that could arise.