Wedding Gear List

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What would be the best setup (let's say under $5,500 for shooting weddings with the current cameras on the market? Curious as to what people would choose..

 

Cameras and lenses only.

[Pascal Garnier]

I just switched from Canon to Pana and shoot a few weddings every year.

 

I'd buy

- 2 to 3 G6's,

- Gini shoulderrig

- a small Glidecam or JR Steadicam

- 2 Zoom H1's + 2 Giant Squid lav mics

- F&V Z96 LED light
- Rode Videomic (Pro)

- spend the rest on lenses : Pana 14 2.5, Canon FD 24 2.8, Canon FD 50 1.4, Canon FD 35-70 3.5, Pentax 110 18 2.8, Pentax 110 20-40 2.8.  If you wanna keep it lowbudget, you can use cheap C-mount lenses : I use the 35 1.7 and 25 1.4 that you'll find all over ebay.  Corners will be very soft, but you can turn this into an aesthetic choice for wedding videos.

- if you have money left, you can invest that in a slider and or crane.

[Quirky]

What would be the best setup (let's say under $5,500 for shooting weddings with the current cameras on the market? Curious as to what people would choose..

 

That sounds a bit like asking what's the best car for driving on gravel roads with all the current cars on the market. Regardless of what kind of gravel roads and where in the world are we talking about, and whether we're going to try winning the WRC championship or just go out for a picnic in the woods.

I'd say the choice of gear depends on your personal preferences and needs, as well as your budget and your clients. Whether or not you're shooting just a cinematic wedding video, or a photo/video fusion piece (stills and video) with the same gear, whether or not you're the lone gunman at the venue or come equipped with a team, etc, etc.

 

I'd say the camera brand in particular, and the lenses to a certain extent are the least critical issues to ponder about. It's mostly a matter of taste. Whatever the camera of your choice, you'll probably need at least a decent wideangle and a standard lens, perhaps a moderate telephoto, too, and whether or not those all are within one single lens or more is up to you and your personal preferences. I'd also say keep it simple, especially if you're shooting solo.

Professional wedding photo/videographers are using anything from camcorders and GH3's to C300 and anything in between.

 

 

 

 

Cameras and lenses only.

 

I find this sentence a bit curious because it's the rest of the stuff, everything else but the camera and the lens which are likely to either make or break your wedding video. Concentrating only on cameras and lenses sounds like a ticket to disaster to me. Or to mediocrity to say the least. I'd concentrate more on choosing the right kind of gear beyond the camera and the lens, as long as you've got yourself at least a decent video shooter and a suitable set of lenses. 

 

Well, maybe it's just me, but suppose I'm a bit old-fashioned in that way. My point being that a list of popular cameras and lenses isn't really going to help in making your wedding gigs go any better. Differnt gear will suit different shooters, and the most popular ones are always those "usual suspects." The brides don't really care about your gear, nor are most of then even likely to notice some dSLR shortcomings like a little bit of aliasing, as long as your end result is compelling enough, and that you deliver what you promise. 

 

In other words, if you happen to already have a Canon 60D, Nikon 5x00, Sony a77 or whatever dSLR camera which can shoot decent but not the best possible video, don't obsess about the negatives, and just make sure your audio gear is decent enough, and that you can cook up a compelling video story in post. It really isn't about camera and lenses only.

[fuzzynormal]

For shooting weddings you'll need so much more than a good cam and lenses. And I'm not talking about gear.

That said, an Oly with 5axis stabilization would be my choice. The production value of that feature trumps all other considerations, I think. Simulated slider, crane, and steady cam shots all via handheld? That's a ridiculous advantage.

Then a 12-35/2.8 zoom. That would cover it for me. Less is more I say. Worry more about the shots than carrying misc gear all over the place.

[Zach Ashcraft]

The bare essentials for me:

 

2 DSLR's, one on a tripod for the ceremony recording the entirety of the ceremony, and one on a monopod, shoulder rig, or tripod with me the entire time getting different shots. 

1 or 2 Zoom H1's, one lav mic. I always stick the zoom h1 in the grooms jacket pocket, and if there is amplification during the ceremony I'll record an out from the mixer to the other recorder. In one case, i just stuck an H1 in front of a speaker and it worked surprisingly well.

At least 1 fast lens, like a 50 1.8. You'll likely need it at some point, probably during the reception. 

Some kind of video light. Even if its on camera during the reception. I like to stick an ice light on a light stand and place it off camera during the reception during the bouquet toss, cake cutting, etc. 

 

I think that would do it for me. Everything else is a luxury! 

[rak_heri]

I would start with the following : 

 

2 Panasonic GH3

4 SD Cards Sony 32GB SDHC class 10 Memory cards

2 spare GH3 batteries

 

Support:

1 Sachtler Ace Tripod for static GH3

1 Manfrotto monopod for mobile GH3

1 Slider

 

2 Switronix Bolt Led (+2 basic stands)

 

Lenses:

1 Sigma 18-35mm f1.8 Nikon mount + speedbooster (for static GH3)

1 Olympus 45mm f1.8 (for mobile GH3)

 

Audio:

1 Rode videomic Pro + Boompole and Stereo 3.5mm extension cord so you can extend the RodeVideoMic Pro and put it closer

1 Sennheiser G3 wireless pack

1 Tascam DR-05

 

A Lowepro bag or Pelican case