View Full Version : What would be your lens kit for a wedding /event (Video)?


William Chung
March 24th, 2009, 11:53 AM
Hey guys,

I'm specifically looking for third party suggestions and if people have used them out in the field yet. I have a good set of L's already but looking for manual functions. If any of you have taken a set of nikons or whatever with adapters out in the field to film anything please let me know what lenses you used. I know some are really cheap so you can do trial and error but with all the other equipment that you can spend on with video I would love to know people who have already tried certain lenses out.

Thanks!

Matthew Ebenezer
March 28th, 2009, 09:48 PM
Hey William,

Here's my current lens kit for shooting weddings with the 5D Mark II:

- Canon 50mm 1.4
- Canon 70-200mm 2.8 IS

My next purchase will be a wide-angle lens. Maybe the 20mm 2.8 of the 28mm 1.8 - not sure which yet.

On this video - Ben and Sally - a 5D Mark II wedding video - HD on Vimeo (http://www.vimeo.com/2824845) - I used a 50mm 1.2, 85mm 1.2 & 70-200mm 2.8 - it was awesome!

Hope that helps.

Cheers,

Matthew.

Oleg Kalyan
March 29th, 2009, 12:54 AM
Similar prime choice as Matthew, 50 1.2 and 70 200 IS 2.8

However you can go just with one lens 24 105 F4 IS to cover a lot of ground.
This clip
L.A. Passion, a Love Story of Brian&Ina By Oleg Kalyan On ExposureRoom (http://exposureroom.com/members/OlegKalyan.aspx/assets/90489f828ce44744894e0138a30d0fd1/)

was shot with just a 24 105 F4 IS, however I sold it, go with prime ones and 14 24 Nikkor for wider applications.

Matthew Roddy
March 30th, 2009, 11:40 AM
Oleg,
Do you have a link to the 14-24 you're referring to? I have need of a wide for my next project and would like something that's full-frame and of good quality.
I'm aiming for a 2.8 or better, but don't know which flavour to go with.

Jon Fairhurst
March 30th, 2009, 12:59 PM
Do you have a link to the 14-24 you're referring to?

He's probably talking about this one:
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8 (http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/14-24mm.htm)

Frankly, it seems a bit extreme for wedding videography, unless you want the POV of the dog that ate the wedding cake. Note that it has no aperture ring.

This might be a better choice: Nikon 17-35mm f/2.8 (http://www.kenrockwell.com/nikon/1735.htm) It's not so insanely wide, and it accepts filters.

Frankly, the 14-24mm lens sounds like a great item to rent for special situations, but not one for purchase, unless extreme wide angles form your signature look.

William Chung
March 30th, 2009, 01:38 PM
I was hoping to see more nikon lenses to see what generally people are using with the adapters but the responses are still very good.

To add to them during Fashion Week I used my 16-35 II exclusively for backstage video. The 2.8 it can do is great for depth of field and lighting. I loved it! I also met atleast 2-3 other videographers that were using it for a similar situation.