Would it be possible to shoot a Wedding with a Nikon F

I don't think a Catholic Church would let me use Professional lighting and no way could I place any Light stands Etc.

on the alter or any thing else and don't know if I could shoot a wedding using a Nikon F with F-250 or F-36 Motor-Drive

what would you say or what would be your suggestions on this issue

Of course. I suspect literally millions of weddings have been photographed in the past with a Nikon F.

 

But I'd ditch the motor. If anyone finds the idea of lights objectionable, there's a good chance they'll find a motor drive objectionable, too.

 

At the last wedding I attended (as a guest), professional photographer was using an F3 and FM during the service. No motors, no lights, handheld. Oh, and it happened to be a Catholic ceremony. She used a Hasselblad 500 series for the formals, and added a Hassy SWC to the collection for some of the reception. And she did use flash at the reception. I remarked to the photographer that it was refreshing to see somebody who still knew how to focus.

I did many many weddings with Nikons, an FE and a FM, with no problems.

I also used a Sunpak 522 flash with an external rechargable battery pack also made by Sunpak.

I agree with Richard C, DO NOT use a motor drive.

I worked for a wedding chapel, but I also did my own weddings.

Is there a problem or what is the issue with a Motor-Drive?

The motordrive just ads in additional noise.

Well I really doubt with at least 100 people there the Wedding march playing the Bride walking down the isle that they would stop the Wedding because I am using a Motor Drive and I don’t think it would make as much noise as a baby crying for 10 minutes at least.

>>I don’t think it would make as much noise as a baby crying for 10 minutes at least.

 

As long as you can make sure there's a crying baby there (set on '10 minutes') you should be fine, then.

Are you planning to take one yourself?

The only problem with an F body will be changing film quickly.

Robert:

Not with a F-250 Motor Drive I shouldn't have to change film till I get to the Recption.

I agree with the others to leave the motor drive at home. Aside from the noise issue, you'll need quite a bit of strength and endurance to handhold the F + motor + 250 back + lens throughout the day. Not to mention the battery packs you'll need to power that beastie.

Never in a Church with motor drive!

Of course, it is possible to do so. And indeed, any given Nikon F today has probably had about a million "actuations" as some call it now, perhaps a good percentage of which might have been wedding shots. But I'm not clear why you WANT to do this? Is it just that this is the only camera you have? Not only is the motor drive noisy, the camera is noisy.

 

What kind of film? The films are better than they used to be, but are you going to shoot in hi-speed B&W? What kind of color without flashing all over the place?

 

This is putting all your eggs in one basket for sure. I would strongly recommend that you have a air reservation for a remote spot in the event you louse up somebody's wedding pictures.

I shot (few months ago) a wedding with an Exakta and the couple loved the photos. I don't see why a Nikon F couldn't do the job. A modern DSLR would give you much cleaner high ISO pictures though.

 

Best regards,

 

Miha

I recommend two bodies instead of the motor drive and long roll back. Fast lenses on both bodies, one moderately wide and one moderately long. Zooms are nice but more than likely you will need the speed more than the reach, and the added weight of the zoom and the long back and motordrive and battery pack will make hand-holds very difficult. If both bodies are loaded with 36 exp rolls, that gives you 72 exposures between film changes. If I'm at an event like this and there is a lull where there is time to change film, I'll swap out the roll even if there are 3 or 4 exposures left on the roll... better to waste a few frames than loose an important moment because you were changing film. I'd really recommend a later model like the F3 or FM if you have access, as these are quieter and have more sophisticated metering available.

 

Inside the church you will want some fast film for sure. Either Kodak Portra 800 or Fuji NPZ 800 are good films, with fairly low grain and you might even be able to get away with pushing the exposure one stop. You could also choose to shoot B&W in the church and open yourself up to even faster films which would give you more range with slower lenses. A high quality 400 speed film might be nice, but depending on how the church is lit, it might not be fast enough to do anything. (I've shot inside Baptist churches with 400 speed films, but those typically have white walls and lots of windows, whereas I think of darker walls and fewer windows when I think Catholic churches.) Depending on how low the ceilings are, you might be able to get away with bounce flash, but most older churches do not allow flash photography because it fades the dyes in upholstry, tapestries and paintings.

 

I'm with JDM, find yourself a beautiful outdoor location outside the church, maybe in a courtyard or outside of a side-door. Make arrangements with the family to spend about 20 minutes after the ceremony taking photos in that location, and make sure they know you are serious about it. Professional 100, 125 or 160 films with low grain and high resolution will be great for those shots, and will knock any digital images out of the park. (Kodak Portra 160NC is a wickedly beautiful portrait film with an unbelievable range of skin tones.)

Patrick::

160 ASA Portra is what I use now I have used the Photomic Prism metering system I almost gave it away for the standard Prism I have use both the Nikon FE and FM personaly I did not like either Now on this Motor drive Issue it was only going to be a couple of shots while the Organ was playing the Wedding March I though with it playing I could get away with a few shots comming down the isle of course not durring the ceremony I really like the feel of a heavy camera not this Plastic junk they make now. and one set of Batt. will last for 500 shot without changing and yes I was thinking about 800 ASA Prtra or maybe 1600 ASA havent heard anything one way or the other about 1600 ASA Color Film I wish to thank you for the reason against their not wanting Flash at least now I know why/

It's not the camera: it's the lens. What's your fastest?

Fast prime lenses will be useful. For normal views the 50mm f1.4 is a good lens, but depth of field wide open is shallow. You could likely get by with the 50mm f2, but I like the 1.4 simply for ease of focusing. That way if I can shoot at f2 or f2.8 I do have some depth of field. Apparent depth of field in wide angle lenses is helpful too. A 35mm f2.8 or 28mm f2.8 would not add much weight. Round it out with a short telephoto such as the 105 f2.5. But again, use what you have or can borrow. When I stopped using Mamiya Press cameras for weddings my first 35mm wedding was done with a 50mm f1.7 and a 35mm f2.8.

Yes the 50 1.4 is a killer lens for wedding photography.