I’m a bit of a photography nerd and love talking about gear (yes, probably normal since I am in the profession 🙂 ). But, truly it’s just so much fun to answer gear questions during sessions. Some of my clients are hobbyist photographers themselves and want to better understand their own gear. Others are curious as to why I use so many different lenses throughout their session. Whatever the case is, ask away! (but also keep reading, because this blog post will cover a few FAQ’s I receive about my gear 🙂 )

Below is an image of my bag which includes the equipment I always bring to portrait sessions and weddings. I do take additional equipment to weddings and corporate gigs and will cover that later in this blog post, but I wanted to discuss my must have equipment first.

 

My Camera Body: Canon 5D Mark IV

My workhorse camera body is the Canon 5D Mark IV. It’s a full frame body that helps me produce sharp images in a variety of conditions. For portrait sessions and corporate events, I shoot with one body and rotate out my lenses. However, for weddings, I prefer using two camera bodies since the day flies by so quickly. The less I have to change my lens, the better.

My Go-To Lenses: Canon 24-70mm f/2.8, Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art, Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Art, Canon 70-200mm f/2.8

 

Canon 24-70mm f/2.8

The range of this lens makes it extremely versatile. It produces both wide and close up shots. While it isn’t my favorite portrait lens due to the 2.8 f-stop, it’s a must have for wedding days. I almost always have this lens on one of my bodies. It works great for getting ready photos, wide angle ceremony shots, dance floor photos, and more!

 

Sigma 50mm f/1.4 Art

In the photography world, a 50mm lens is known as a “nifty-fifty.” What does this mean? Extreme usefulness! I use my 50mm primarily for portraits and detail shots.

Sigma 35mm f/1.4 Art

This is another tack sharp prime lens. Prime lens = singular focal length. Unlike my zoom lenses, I have to change the photo composition by moving my feet.  The 35mm lens is wider than the 50mm, so I typically use this for portraits (when I want to include more of the background), dance floor shots, and low light events (a wider aperture helps to reduce grain when it gets dark).

Canon 70-200mm f/2.8

This is one of my favorite lenses, despite the weight. It’s tack sharp and never lets me down. In my opinion, the zoom capabilities make it a wedding day must. Since it’s a telephoto lens, I can naturally capture candid moments and reactions throughout the day (telephoto = you can stand pretty far away & make yourself discrete). I also sometimes use this lens for wedding day portraits and for regular portrait sessions because the compression at 200mm is beautiful. I can’t rave about this lens enough!

 

Other Gear I Always Have in My Bag

• Extra Camera Batteries and Battery Charger
• CF and SD Cards
• Breakthrough ND Lens Filters
• Drone ND Filters & Propellers (my drone is definitely not always in my bag though)

 

Additional Gear I Bring to Weddings & Corporate Gigs

As you may have noticed, I have not included lighting equipment yet. That is because I almost never pack flashes for portrait sessions. I love utilizing natural light and am not known for the “glamour portrait look.” However, lighting equipment is absolutely needed for wedding receptions and corporate gigs.

The Best Camera Harness Ever: 

• HoldFast Camera Harness
• This connects to my two camera bodies and I love it! I always wear this for weddings, and sometimes I will break it out for portrait sessions as well.

My Lighting Equipment:

• Yongnuo Speedlite YN600EX-RT II (I have several)
• Yongnuo Speedlite Transmitter (a trigger for off-camera flash)
• Tons of rechargeable batteries for the Speedlights. My favorite brand I have found is Watson.
• Light stands for Off-Camera Flash

Extras:

• A double-sided reflector (not always used but very useful to have)
• Collapsible White Backdrop
• Umbrellas and Other Light Modifiers
• 16-35mm f4 Lens

 

I hope this was a fun post to read and also provided some insight into why various lenses are necessary. As a disclaimer, some photographers prefer more equipment, others use less – what matters is what we can do with it. Having said that, I do believe professional equipment is important, which is why I chose the gear I own. This list will most definitely evolve over the years, but this is what I choose to work with right now. Please keep asking me all your photography questions – I love answering them!  🙂