When I first started pursuing photography, I really had no idea what lenses I should invest in or what camera model I should get! There are so many opinions about what lenses are the best because each profession may require different lenses! I remember thinking, “Well, this camera here comes with a lens already, so that should be good, right?” No! All lenses are not created equal. If you are wanting to be serious about photography or take great portraits, you simply can’t get great results with a kit lens! The good news is, there are many lenses out there that won’t break the bank that would work well and give you the creamy look you desire!

Ever wondered how photographers get that creamy, blurry background in their photos? It’s usually because they are shooting at an aperture below f2.0! One thing I also didn’t know is that longer focal lengths will compress your images more and produce a blurrier background. i.e. A 200mm lens can produce a creamier background than a 100mm lens which can produce a creamier background than a 50mm lens! So what do you do? How do you know which lens to use? Today I’m going to walk you through what I think would be the best purchases to make if you are wanting to get into wedding photography! Some of these can also be applied to portrait photography! I’m going to put these in order of what I would invest in first if I were trying to grow my business. My first piece of advice as you are getting started would be to rent gear to try it out before you buy it! I use lensrentals.com or rentglass.com for all of my rental needs! I use Nikon camera bodies because Nikons generally perform better in low light conditions, and I just love the way Nikon handles colors, but these tips would also apply to Canon users out there!

1. Get a 50mm Prime Lens, or a “Nifty Fifty”

This lens is the first lens I always recommend to ANYONE starting out with photography. I know wedding photographers who actually shoot exclusively with their 50mm lens all day, because it really is a great lens! For almost anything other than landscape photography, you’ll want to get prime lenses! Prime lenses are faster, cleaner, and let in more light because the aperture is larger! If you’re wondering what it means for a lens to be “fast,” it just means you can use a faster shutter speed to expose the image than you would with other lenses. I use a 50mm f1.4, but if you can’t afford that, you can start with a 50mm f1.8 and you’ll be just fine! The 50mm f1.8 is one of the cheapest lenses you can buy, but it really is one of the best! The con to prime lenses is that they do not zoom in our out because the focal length is fixed. When I first heard this, I thought it was crazy! But now that I’ve been using prime lenses I could never go back! They simply produce better images.

2. Invest in a good off-camera flash!

You need one! Even if you are a natural light photographer, sometimes there just isn’t any light! I couldn’t shoot most receptions if I didn’t have my off camera flash. While I prefer to do family portraits outside, I also use the flash for family portraits if we have to do them inside! You may get a dark ceremony location, or it may be raining outside and you have to do all of your portraits inside. You need to be prepared! I use the SB-700, but its already a little dated! I have two OCFs and use them regularly at receptions and for family formals. I recommend practicing with it at home to get comfortable with it. Don’t let it intimidate you!

3. Invest in a Full Frame Camera

A lot of people would say that it’s not about your camera body, it’s about your lenses. While that is true in some sense, I saw a HUGE difference in my images when I switched from a crop-sensor camera to a full frame camera! My first full frame camera was the D610 and I loved it! Now I shoot with the D750, and I love it even more. I really did see my images get cleaner and look better when I invested in the full frame camera!

4. Invest in a wide angle lens

Sometimes you just need extra space, and that’s when a wide angle lens comes in handy. As I mentioned before, you could shoot a whole wedding with a 50mm. In fact, I use my 50mm 85% of the time at weddings. But! Having a wider lens does come in handy for receptions or getting large group shots in a smaller space! I recommend getting either a 35mm f1.8 (or better yet, a 1.4), a 28mm f1.8, or a 28-70mm f2.8! You really only need one of them. Currently I shoot with a Tamrom 28-70mm f2.8 so that I can get wider shots in tighter spaces when needed! I don’t love the images I get with this lens because it’s not a prime lens, but it gets th job done! If I were starting from scratch, I would get a 35mm f1.4 for my wide lens!

5. Get a Macro Lens

I really can’t tell you how excited I was when I first got my macro lens. They made my detail shots really pop and become an important aspect of my photography! Now, I can’t imagine shooting a wedding without a macro lens for all of my detail shots! Currently I use the 105mm f2.8 macro lens and I am loving it! I also use it for ceremony shots when I need to get in closer. This one does come with a hefty price tag compared to some of my other gear, so I wouldn’t get this lens if you aren’t making any money off of your photography just yet! When I was still buying gear, I would give myself a goal of how many weddings I would shoot before I would get a new lens. That way I wasn’t buying extra lenses all at once or running out of money!

6. Save your speciality lenses for when you can afford them!

I LOVE my 85mm f1.8 lens, but I only got it recently! It is not necessary to have everything you want when you are first starting out. Even though I love my 85mm, I rarely get to take it out on a wedding day because I am moving so quickly! I mostly use my 50mm for all portraits! You really don’t need it at first, but it is fun to have when you can afford it!

7. Rent what you need for specific weddings

Currently I don’t own a good telephoto lens, but I rent one when I know I’ll need it! Always ask your brides what the ceremony venue will be like! Renting lenses is also a good way to test out gear before you buy it. I rented the 70-200mm f2.8 and honestly I didn’t love it! It is such an expensive lens, so I ended up not buying it and I just rent it when I need it for large chapels and ceremony spaces! I recommend starting out with the 50mm prime lens and then renting what you need after that until you can afford it. You can also rent flashes if you know that your reception location will be extra dark. There is no need to invest in something that you won’t use all the time!

There you have it! My recommended steps to take when getting your gear together for weddings. If you have any questions at all, shoot me an e-mail! I love answering questions and helping people achieve their goals.

Happy Shooting!

– Christi