I have a Canon 400d...?

Question

I have a canon 400d XTI...and a relation has asked me to shoot their wedding, equipment i have:

Canon 400D

UV lens caps

50mm lens

18mm-55mm Zoom

70-300mm

wide angle lens

telephoto lens

tripod 5ft

extra flash

Do i have enough equipment?

And will my camera be substancial enough for wedding photographs?

Thanks

K C

Answer 1

That's pretty much all you need. Good luck with the shoot.

Answer 2

Honesty, not even close.  Be up front with your relatives.  Ask them what their expectations of your photos are.  

Where is the wedding taking place, in a church or outdoors?  Churches have lots of rules of what is and isn't allowed of the photographer.  You'll find out that your equipment will be at odds with a lot of the rules (the biggest usually being no flash photography during the ceremony).  If it's an outdoors wedding during a sunny day, your equipment will at least allow you to get some in-focus, non-blurry images.

I've seen it happen time and time again... a couple asks a relative to do the photography, but the relative doesn't really have that much experience shooting a wedding.  In the end, the pictures didn't turn out all that well, which in turn fractures the relationship the relative had with the couple.  You need to ask yourself, is it worth putting my relationship with them on the line to [maybe] help them out?

In addition to your equipment, you really need another camera body.  Never ever bring just one camera body when shooting a wedding.  It may have never failed you in the past, but it almost surely will fail you on that day.  

Bring lots of memory cards.  (I usually bring 1 16GB, 3 8GB, and 4 4GB card with me.)  

Bring extra batteries.  I take 4 sets of fully charged AA batteries for my flash.  1 for before and the few shots I can get with flash during, 2 for the reception, and 1 just in case.  Also bring extra batteries for your camera.  I use a battery grip on both my camera bodies I take, so I have 4 batteries in use, and 6 fully charged batteries just in case.

Look at renting some fast lenses.  24-70mm f/2.8L and 70-200mm f/2.8L IS are two lenses that you should definitely consider renting.  I assume you've got the 50mm f/1.8.  It'll be good enough for some detail type shots and will be necessary if the light level is too low, even at ISO 1600.

To reduce the red-eye effect, consider an off-camera TTL cord (Canon OC-E3) and something like a Stroboframe.  Also consider adding some kind of modifier (diffuser or bounce umbrella) to your flash unit.  It also doesn't hurt to bring an extra flash as well.

Wedding photography is expensive for several reasons.  As you can see, the equipment alone is expensive.  Then comes the time a photographer has to spend working in photoshop, editing pictures or creating albums.  Also, not mentioned, but pretty much standard is insurance.  Not only do you have to protect your equipment, you also need to protect yourself from getting sued in case something happens that was really no fault of your own.

Answer 3

I would think you should also pack extra memory card and battery

Answer 4

Are you sure of your skills as a photographer?

That should be the first question you ask. Its a once in a lifetime opportunity for them. If you dont get perfect photos how will that afect your relationship with the couple?

If you are asking if you have the right hardware for wedding photos then maybe you should work on your photog skills before shooting one.