B&W wedding photography, beginner...Lens/film recommendations? (Canon)

Hi. I'm pretty much a newbie to photography (and new to this list).

I have an old Nikon FG with a 50mm/1.8 that I've fiddled with, but

I'm about to invest in a new Canon Elan 7NE with a 50mm f/1.4 lens

and voyage into the world of photography in earnest.

 

Anyway, my sister-in-law is getting married in the fall and as one

of Mr. Greenspun's articles ("Building a 35mm SLR system") suggests,

I'd thought I'd take a few rolls of B&W film (it should be a fairly

well-lit wedding so, 400 speed I suppose) and shoot away, without

trying to get in the hired pro photographer's way.

 

I'm thinking of renting a zoom lens, so any recommendations? It's

mainly an experiment, but of course it would be nice to get a few

good shots to send to the bride.

 

I was thinking the EF 28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 II might be a good choice.

Any thoughts? (This is the zoom lens I am thinking of buying once

I've learned how to use my camera with a 50mm lens.)

 

Thanks. (BTW, great site, great forum, hope to post more in the

future as I further my hobby.)

 

Anthony

I'm not even close to being an expert, but you might want to include a price range in your question. You'll also get many comments saying your 50mm is good enough and use your feet to zoom. I too have the Elan 7e and a 50mm and really enjoy that combination.

 

The only wedding I shot from the seats (as a guest), I used my newly bought 70-200 f4L and got some really good shots (I should upload a few). It's a good cheap L lens ($600).

 

Hope this helps.

 

Tom

This is just my opinion, but... Since you're a newcomer, forget

zoom lenses. They discourage previsualization of framing and

encourage laziness and fussing with your camera rather than

paying attention to your subject. In addition, they're slow. The

big advantage of the 35mm format over other formats is lens

speed; zoom lenses toss that advantage right in the trash. A

fast zoom is f2.8. That's two full stops slower than the excellent

prime lens you already own. The zoom lens you're considering

is <i>three</i> full stops slower at the same focal length. That's

<i>eight</i> times less light hitting the film. With that lens

mounted, nearly every shot you take will require flash just to get

an exposure. Meaning your results likely won't be much better

than the average point-n-shoot.

<p>

Learn the craft of photography with a prime lens and leave the

zooms for the amateurs. ;-)<div></div>

Given the circumstances, I'm with Kevin in recommending the 50mm. It's fast & sharp - a great lens. Also, since you don't have to worry about required/must have shots, I would concentrate on the guests and the little dramas that develop aside from what's going on with the bride & groom.<div></div>

Thanks for the advice everyone. (Great shots!) Well, I think I will put off the lens rental experiment for another day and keep it simple by sticking with the 50mm/1.4. I'm looking forward to seeing what I can do with it.

 

Now that you mention it, I would like to keep fussing with the camera to a minimum, and I most definitely would like my shots coming out better than a point-n-shoot, so 50mm it shall be.

 

The 50mm/1.4 was a bit expensive (for me, anyway), but from all accounts it looks like it was money well spent.

 

Incidentally, as for price range, I probably won't be able to manage more than $300-400 on my next lens at most. But that's a tough decision I'll make after I've worked with the 50mm for a while.

 

So now that I (almost) have the camera and lens (they arrive next week), are there any special filters or other "absolutely, positively must-have/use" equipment that I should get for my B&W experiment?

 

Cheers,

Anthony

Listen to Kevin IMO.

 

Use your 50/1.4, it'll amaze you.

 

When you want another lens go fast prime again. The Canon 85/1.8 is around $325., new

USA warranty. Great for portraits to isolate the subject from the background. Same for the

Canon 100/2 @ around $375. new USA.

 

The only zooms I use now are the 16-35/2.8 (because none of the super-wides are any

faster anyway), and once in a blue moon, a 70-200/2.8 IS (IS allows a slower shutter speed

than normal, so it makes up for being so sloooooow).

 

90% of my shots are with a f/1.4 prime usually @ f/1.4 regardless of what camera system

I'm using.<div></div>

Marc,

I am curious how you can shoot so many shots @ f/1.4 without your subject being blurry due to shallow DOF. Does shooting @ f/1.4 pretty much limit you to being 5 feet or closer to your subject? I am afraid of ending up with blurry images if I go hog wild @ f/1.4.