# lens for my a77



## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

What is a good lens to use on my a77 for weddings? ? And flash?


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## Kolia (Mar 27, 2013)

Oh boy, in curious to see how much protection from flaming ou gender will provide this time !  Lol !

What pictures do you have in mind ?  That would drive you lens choices. 


You will definitely want fast, high quality lenses. 

-70-200mm f2.8 is a start. 
-Maybe a 85mm f1.4 

I could see some uses for a 35mm f1.4 for some "casual" pictures of the guests. 

Given the non repeatable nature of weeding ceremonies, I personally would not offer my services. Not yet. 

For the flash, I got a Sony HVL-F58AM. I read that the Metz flash are pretty good and work well with the Sony systems. The Sigma flash seem quirky at times but might be a good option. I'd get those for secondary flashes.


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## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

Just a friends wedding. She has a photographer already but,  I'm planning on taking some also... just a lil extra for her.  And,  I'm definitely NOT gonna dump $1000 on a Lens at this point. I'm not looking to go in to photography full time,  just a few jobs here & there on the weekends.  I'm dedicated to my job as a Travel Agent. Thanks for advice


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## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

Ya think my 18-135 would be ok?


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## Kolia (Mar 27, 2013)

Yes I think you'll do fine with that lens for a while. 

Play with the hand held night shoot function. It will take multiple pictures and combine them for noise reduction. It works very well for static shot. Down side is it will output in jpeg. 

Above iso 1600 the noise level are annoying. You could consider a monopod to help on long exposures.


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## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

Awesome!  Thanks for your help!


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## Designer (Mar 27, 2013)

Janeen said:


> Ya think my 18-135 would be ok?



Yes.  Now you should get a flash, and learn how to modify it, bounce it, and get if off your camera.  

If you flash directly at your subjects with the flash in the hotshoe, the photographs will not look any better than they would with the built-in flash.


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## pixmedic (Mar 27, 2013)

are you actually willing and able to budget in any more equipment? and if so, how much money?
its not really  relevant to ask about what lens you may need if you aren't actually going to get one. 
so...IF you have a lens/flash budget we will need to know what it is before we can recommend much. 

your 18-135 will cover most of the focal range you will need for a small wedding, assuming you don't have to cover a huge area.  its a slow lens however, and low lighting may present a problem for it. a good hot shoe flash/diffuser, if you don't already have one, will make a bigger difference in getting good shots that aren't far away than any new lens will. just make sure you get a softbox for it or learn how to bounce so you aren't flashing straight on.  
if you are on a budget, consider getting a 50mm 1.8 for any low light shots you might need to take. its about as cheap as lenses get, and anything after that will just start getting more expensive.


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## Kolia (Mar 27, 2013)

+1 for the 50mm f1.8 entry level lens.


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## DiskoJoe (Mar 27, 2013)

Janeen said:


> Ya think my 18-135 would be ok?





Weddings are serious work and not to be taken lightly. You want 2.8 or wider for the aperture. This would mean a significant expenditure on your part if you want something adequate. As a wedding photographer I have to stress to please not get in the hired photogs way. And be careful about popping off flash while they are working. This could effect their exposures and effect your friends pictures that she paid for and not to mention you will most likely piss off the person they hired.


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## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

Good point!


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## Janeen (Mar 27, 2013)

Have you all heard of Shelby Robinson Photography? Check her out on facebook. No fancy camera,  no fancy lens,  & her work is AMAZING!


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## DiskoJoe (Mar 28, 2013)

Janeen said:


> Have you all heard of Shelby Robinson Photography? Check her out on facebook. No fancy camera,  no fancy lens,  & her work is AMAZING!



Her lenses are fine if you are working outside with good light. This is not always the case. Plus she uses a lot of filters. Thats an easy way to achieve a personalized style. Its all about style.


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## pixmedic (Mar 28, 2013)

Janeen said:


> Have you all heard of Shelby Robinson Photography? Check her out on facebook. No fancy camera,  no fancy lens,  & her work is AMAZING!



I checked out her page. she does some good work, but also plenty of mediocre work. i saw plenty that were underexposed, missed focus, or poor DOF for the subject matter. (you can scream "artistic choice" all day long, but OOF is OOF, period) her composition is good, and she obviously is decent at post processing. She says she only picked up her camera  a year and a half ago, and it shows in much of her work. she appears to really love lens flare, and it works in "some" of her pictures, but not most. she has a good eye, no doubt, but I wouldn't go so far as "amazing" yet. 
if these pictures were done with consumer grade kit lenses, then she could very much benefit from some better equipment and some flashes. if she is already using faster glass and multiple flashes....she needs a little more instruction on making better use of them. I saw quite a few pictures that were "good" on their own merits. nothing wrong with good. but they could have been GREAT with some off camera flash to fix shadows, and poor lighting conditions. (and im not talking about the "artsy" ones in the dark forest) she definitely has a flair for the dramatic.


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## skieur (Mar 28, 2013)

Kolia said:


> +1 for the 50mm f1.8 entry level lens.



That is a great lens for low light churches and reception halls.  A lens that is no longer available new, look on the net,  is the 18mm to 50mm 2.8 Sigma macro which is extremely fast in auto focusing.


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## Janeen (Mar 28, 2013)

Thanks for all the advice!  It's appreciated


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## _Auricom_ (Apr 3, 2013)

Have you tried the 1.4 50-85mm? They're great portrait lenses. You can get some exquisite bokeh from them too! =)


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## cosmonaut (Apr 4, 2013)

I agree you will want 2.8 and also nice bokeh. I think this would be my choice.

Amazon.com: Sony SAL-1680Z 16-80mm f/3.5-4.5 Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T DT Zoom Lens for Sony Alpha Digital SLR Camera: Camera & Photo


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## Charmed (Apr 16, 2013)

If you look on ebay you can get a Minolta 50 1.7 fairly cheap.
I used my old Sony a200 and kit lens for my sister in laws wedding and they were very happy with the results.


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