[devouges]

A lot of good advice here...…. Thank you very much everyone.
Like I mentioned earlier, I have 6 months to practice and will have access to the hotel where the ceremony will be as often as I want before the wedding.
The ceremony will be on the hotel terrace, adjacent to the celebration room, at 4pm and direct sunlight should not be a problem..
So until then..... practice.... practice.... practice....
Thank you very much everyone

[UncleVanya]

Make a checklist to reduce your mental gymnastics on the day.

[onlineflyer]

A lot of good advice here...…. Thank you very much everyone.
Like I mentioned earlier, I have 6 months to practice and will have access to the hotel where the ceremony will be as often as I want before the wedding.
The ceremony will be on the hotel terrace, adjacent to the celebration room, at 4pm and direct sunlight should not be a problem..
So until then..... practice.... practice.... practice....
Thank you very much everyone

I'd also suggest you take your backup shooter, so he/she can also become familiar with the surroundings, if at all possible. You do want some good shots of you walking your daughter down the aisle.

[shyrsio]

- a 100mm macro: pretty much useless for a wedding I imagine

I think you're wrong about this lens, personally i would do some isolated pictures of the couple with this one, its great for portraits, and at 100/2.8 you will get a lot of bokeh(unless it is a MF of course)

[UncleVanya]

The 100mm macro would be fine for some portraits or head shots - or even some shots of the rings (a traditional shot).

[devouges]

shyrsio: yes I will look into that. I bought that lens mostly for bugs an flowers but I hear several good things for portrais. I will need some room since I am using it on an APSC sensor. Spacewise, that will be 150mm. But I sure will try it out. Oh.... and it is autofocus.... but will probably be used MF if things go well.

I am taking a LOT of notes here with all the feedback I am getting !

[UncleVanya]

I currently have a K5ii and a K3ii which I use about 99% of the time for birding pictures.

Now, with my cameras I have the following
- a 35mm 2.4 plastic fantastic: my be useful for group shots
- a 50mm 1.4 FA: maybe a few portrais with some bokeh
- a 18-135mm 3.5-5.6 DA DC: may be good for general shots where space is small
- a 100mm macro: pretty much useless for a wedding I imagine
- a 300mm f4 which is my favorite lens but will be basically useless for a wedding.
- a 55-300mm DA zoom which would most likely not be useful.
- a METZ 52 AF-1 is on the way.

I have a shot-list of minimal pictures that must be taken.

I have a second photo hobbyist to take shots I will not be able to take.

1) Will the 2nd shooter use your equipment or his or her own?
2) IF they are not using your 2nd body do you want to try to lug two bodies while popping in and out of non-photo duties.
3) How will you keep the gear safe and watched over while distracted by the wedding and your role in it? Can you get another assistant or the 2nd shooter to own this job?

4) Do you like clean out of focus backgrounds or loads of depth of field? (The clean washed out background will pop the subject but it is personal taste in my opinion.

5) Can you share the shot list and order that you expect to take them in?

6) Are you open to buying another lens? Budget?

7) Do you have any flash triggers? Do you have any offcamera flash brackets? Flash extension cords?

SO based on some answers the feedback will vary. But assuming you have a 2nd shooter using your equipment and he or she will watch things - setup the bodies as follows for various shooting: And assuming we are making do with just what you have listed.

Scene with small groups:
K-3ii DA 35 f2.4 Frame to crop away some in case you need to change ratio for her. Extra pixels will help.
K5ii DA 18-135 Frame tighter for more detail and longer focal length to increase background blur.

Object detail shots (rings, altar, etc.):
K-3ii 55-300mm (gives flexibility if something else happens)
K5ii 18-135mm (gives flexibility if something else happens)
Either can be fitted with 100 macro but it will be a problem if a quick opportunity comes up and you have nothing else handy.

Scenes with one or two people:
K3ii FA 50 f1.4
K5ii 18-135 at anywhere from 40's to 70's it can give great portraits with little effort. Also keeps someone ready if something else pops up.

One shooter will likely want the flash and maybe will want it on a bracket so it is not dead top center. Ideally a flash modifier like a black foamie or a fong lightsphere or something you learn to use will be in place to help. The fill flash even outdoors is a great way to tame harsh shadows - but fill flash may not be allowed in some circumstances. Find out.

If additional equipment is possible - slap a 16-50 or 17-50 f/2.8 on camera 1 and a 50-135 on camera 2 and go for it. The primes are great but not as flexible. Some shots you will still want the 18-135 handy on camera 2 but most of the time the two lens combo will work. Alternately a DA 20-40 in place of the 16-50 or the Sigma 17-70 f2.8-4. The main idea is to have some additional flexibility and fast aperture. If both photogs have some flash experience or if anyone else can help with a reflector some type of fill lighting (reflected or flash) will help tame the daylight shots and give some life.

Here's a shot that fill flash helped me with. This is with the DA* 50-135:



Similar shot without fill flash:

[DeKay]

At the last wedding I shot, I also took along a Nikon Coolpix W300.
Now this is not the best camera in the world by a long shot, but it does take a decent snapshot and its shock proof.
I gave it to one of the kids around 12 years old and told him to go to town and photograph whatever he wanted of the wedding and reception.
Kids see things in a different way, and what came back was some absolutely great photos of all the kids and also the food. Kids act differently when in front of a pro photographer, but in front of another kid, they seem to relax and be more natural.

[Sandy Hancock]

PS: I am toying with the idea of borrowing some $$$ (it is my daughter after all) for a K1ii with a 28-105.

Borrow some dollars and hire someone to take the photos. It is your daughter after all.

My daughter was married last April. I took a few shots during the preparations (ceremony in our garden at home, but once the wedding march started the cameras were put away. I didn't even take my phone to the reception.

DA70 on the KP, for what it's worth.

[MarkJerling]

My daughter is getting married this summer and asked me to take pictures at her wedding.

To all those making the helpful comments to the OP to hire a photographer. His daughter asked him to take photos at her wedding. I think advice offered should respect her wishes.

[Sandy Hancock]

To all those making the helpful comments to the OP to hire a photographer. His daughter asked him to take photos at her wedding. I think advice offered should respect her wishes.

Young people sometimes make decisions they later regret. Experience in similar situations might be worth relating.

I, for one, think distracting the father of the bride with photographic duties is a bad idea.

All respect given.

[MarkJerling]

Young people sometimes make decisions they later regret. Experience in similar situations might be worth relating.

I, for one, think distracting the father of the bride with photographic duties is a bad idea.

All respect given.

At most weddings, the father of the bride has two duties, namely to walk his daughter down the isle and to make a speech. It sounds like the OP has those circumstances covered with another photographer. I can't see why his daughter may regret her decision.

[MarkJerling]

At the last wedding I shot, I also took along a Nikon Coolpix W300.
Now this is not the best camera in the world by a long shot, but it does take a decent snapshot and its shock proof.
I gave it to one of the kids around 12 years old and told him to go to town and photograph whatever he wanted of the wedding and reception.
Kids see things in a different way, and what came back was some absolutely great photos of all the kids and also the food. Kids act differently when in front of a pro photographer, but in front of another kid, they seem to relax and be more natural.

What a lovely idea!

[Hamiltom]

My personal experience with wedding photography is that many people think that taking pictures is something anyone can do. The results are often disappointing. The novice who takes on the role misses important shots. is in the wrong location when a shot needs to be taken, doesn't have backup equipment when something goes wrong.

I made the same mistake almost 50 years ago and have regretted it ever since. When one of my relatives asks me to shoot their wedding, I always say I will gladly take a few pictures, but I offer to pay for a professional.photographer as a wedding gift.

It is difficult to perform two jobs at the same time. On one hand you are part of the wedding party, enjoying the day in a social manner. On the other you become focused on the job at hand. These situations will collide, you will miss shots, be in the wrong place, forget to turn on the flash when you get distracted by an old friend, etc. etc. etc.

Please do yourself a favor and enjoy the day. Bring your camera and take a few candid shots when you have a moment, but leave the recording of the event to a professional.

[Sandy Hancock]

At most weddings, the father of the bride has two duties, namely to walk his daughter down the isle and to make a speech.

....and be the host of the party. If you're stuck behind a camera it is hard to do that well, and enjoy it.
If you can't enjoy your daughter's wedding, why are you there?