Lens for Portraits & Wedding/event Shooting Recommendation


cklivina

New Member
Sep 28, 2010
6
0
0
Hi all,

I'm going to buy my first Pentax DSLR, so i need some recommendation from you guys about which lens should i get with if my main target purpose going for portraits, wedding, events

Should i buy the set with kit lens or just get body with the specific lens?

I might get either 1 of these New Pentax DSLR

1) Pentax K-r
2) Pentax K-5

Will consider the
New SMC PENTAX DA L 35MM F2.4 AL
New SMC PENTAX-DA 18-135MM F3.5-5.6ED AL [IF] DC WR

Any suggestion?
 

Last edited:
Hi all,

I'm going to buy my first Pentax DSLR, so i need some recommendation from you guys about which lens should i get with if my main target purpose going for portraits, wedding, events

Should i buy the set with kit lens or just get body with the specific lens?

I might get either 1 of these New Pentax DSLR

1) Pentax K-r
2) Pentax K-5

Will consider the
New SMC PENTAX DA L 35MM F2.4 AL
New SMC PENTAX-DA 18-135MM F3.5-5.6ED AL [IF] DC WR

Any suggestion?

For event, U might need a fast lens . Cos it's really depend on the indoor lighting condition.

I suggest DA* 16-50mm f2.8 or the cheaper Tamron 28-75mm F2.8
 

the tamron 28-75 will probably be too tight. would better go with tamron 17-50 or da* 16-50mm.

for wedding photography, chances are one lens may not be enough. personally id go with the sigma 30mm 1.4 for low light shots and either tamron 17-50/da* 50-135 2.8.

once again, depends on your style.
 

oh and dont forget to get a flash
 

The new 18-135mm should suffice. Get a flash and learn how to use it properly.
Though natural light shots will always be tempting, even a f2.8 lens will only marginally cut the cake. At large apertures, DOF is shallow, ISO still needs to be high. For events and weddings, you need to deliver, lens FL versatility and a properly used flash will ensure this reliability.

If you have the budget, not harm for a 16-50/2.8, 28-75/2.8, 17-50/2.8 type lens.
 

Thanks for all of yours suggestion. Seem like i need at least a lens with 2.8f + flash.

Anyone can recommend me good flash? Sigma Electronic Flash EF-530 DG ST good?
 

I have done event and wedding before. What you will mostly use is a lens about 35mm focal length in the full frame sense. You need a camera that is light and also the battery on the camera AND the flash can last.

In the old days a 35-70 F3.3-4.5 already was doing the job very well. Those who like to use extra wide for exaggerated view, be warned. Many women hate distorted views of their face.

From what you are doing, sounds like a business. To make money, you want to minimize your investment and maximize your profit. Hence:

Pentax K-r plus a SMC PENTAX-DA 18-135MM F3.5-5.6ED is more than enough for the job.
Complicated camera can easily get you into trouble because of wrong settings. So stick to a simple to use cam and be familiar with it.

You may add a 50mm F1.7 or F1.4 to zoom into the bride. Maybe should get a k-x as back up. For the flash, any reliable one that is dedicated to Pentax will do. Flash uses 3rd party external portable supply. (These days they are cheap ). This is a must. Don't change battery in front of everyone. Its very unprofessional.

I have seen too many amateurs carry such a heavy and complicated setup and they ran out of steam towards the end of the wedding or the event, which may be the most exciting part. Photographers ran out of batteries, films (storage space) are not uncommon boo boo.

Don't forget in the digital age you also need to invest in a computer with supporting pheripereals. You will need to invest in software, storage and media. So keep some money for that too.

My setup:
1. Full frame with 35mm F2
2. Cropped DX with 50mm F1.4

These two are portable and easy to use. With 16G shooting raw, I never had any issues with company events or wedding.
Zoom lens do not meet my standard, so I don't use zoom when I want quality pictures.
Pentax unfortunately do not offer sensibly priced large aperture primes in the 35mm region.
Sorry to say, Pentax does not offer a complete professional solution compared to others.
 

Last edited:
Thanks, Nikkornos for sharing your experiences and info.. indeed Pentax did not offer much of Lens choice.

Anyway, still a beginner to photoshooting. A long way down the road for me to catch up.
 

Thanks, Nikkornos for sharing your experiences and info.. indeed Pentax did not offer much of Lens choice.

Anyway, still a beginner to photoshooting. A long way down the road for me to catch up.

actually, based on Nikkornos' suggestion (35-70 on FF), wouldn't the the 18-55 kit lens work out to 27-82 on an APS-C? ;)

imo, if its just a casual shoot for a friend, and not a paid shoot, no harm using the kit lens with a flash and see how far you can go with it.

that will give u an idea of how much longer you need to go to take the type of photos u want and develop from there.

i totally agree that you have to be familiar with your equipment and use it well... things happen quickly in an event. you need to be quick to capture the moment... no point fiddling with your settings all the time and missing the shot.

personally, i would prefer something a bit longer for events, like a 17-70. both the pentax and the sigma versions have garnered good reviews.
 

I recently ran around a wedding like event with a KX at ISO 3200 and a F1.8 Prime. No flash. The pictures came out really dramatic (and mostly sharp too). Far better than the professional shots I saw with the flash.
 

tsammyc, any chance we can see your photos anywhere?
 

wah pump iso to 3200 how is the noise? even kx is really good in noise control but 3200 will it be noisy? have you print put those picture and how is the quality? care to share so of your shot?
 

Sometimes we need to look at the perspective of the paid photographer. Do the job 1st, then talk about the extra 5% "special" stuff. Flash shots, will give the deliverables. The groom/bride don't want to listen to excuses when the "artistic/special" shots with f1.2, ISO12800 don't meet expectations. :)
 

For event, especially indoor event, better get a faster F2.8 zoom lens instead of slower zoom lens...
 

Wow... at last i heard someone photoshooting wedding event with K-x and most amazingly without flash...

1 more thing, friend of mine who own Pentax camera for years telling me that Pentax lack of in term of fast focusing. Any pentaxian willing to share with me about your experience?
 

Sometimes we need to look at the perspective of the paid photographer. Do the job 1st, then talk about the extra 5% "special" stuff. Flash shots, will give the deliverables. The groom/bride don't want to listen to excuses when the "artistic/special" shots with f1.2, ISO12800 don't meet expectations. :)

Agreed, I shot a wedding recently and the couple's main priority was to get no-nonsense record shots (of tea session, table shots, etc) before any other arty farty stuff.

Of course, if I'm shooting casually knowing that the main photographer has all these things covered, then of course there's the luxury of time and space to go find cute candid moments and interesting angles.

Back to TS's original question though, I constantly shoot events with my K20D, Tamron 17-50 f/2.8, Tamron 70-200 f/2.8 and Pentax 12-24 f/4. When the K-5 settles to a nice price I will get it so I can shoot with 2 bodies, no need to rush to change lenses anymore. :thumbsup:
 

Darrrrr is right. I wasn't the main photographer at the event. I was a participant shooting and I didn't have to go to each table to take a nice sharp posed photo. Instead I went around shooting people having a good time. the best were when they Yam Seng etc.

Also, I hope I haven't offended any professional wedding photographers. All I meant was that there can be a different perspective to these events other than the largely posed shots. I'm not sure if the guests want their pictures posted in a photo forum, but I'll share one (since I don't know anyone in the picture :D )to give you an idea of the effect.

This was at 1SO1600 F1.8

4738444821_c5d90d323c_b.jpg
 

Darrrrr is right. I wasn't the main photographer at the event. I was a participant shooting and I didn't have to go to each table to take a nice sharp posed photo. Instead I went around shooting people having a good time. the best were when they Yam Seng etc.

Also, I hope I haven't offended any professional wedding photographers. All I meant was that there can be a different perspective to these events other than the largely posed shots. I'm not sure if the guests want their pictures posted in a photo forum, but I'll share one (since I don't know anyone in the picture :D )to give you an idea of the effect.

This was at 1SO1600 F1.8

4738444821_c5d90d323c_b.jpg


Nice indeed!
Thanks for sharing.
Really gives me something to think about when doing these 'free' service for friends/relatives. :)