17-50f2.8 broken & 1st wedding in 5 days

Hi
I have my first ever wedding on Thurs &my 17-50f2.8 is broken.buy new 1 or would my 30mm f1.4 be okay?could borrow a kit lens for wide shots?
I also have a 70-200 f2.8 and 100mm 2.8 macro

Cheers
Pa

30mm may constrict you. Good opportunity to rent a 16-50mm or 17-70mm from SRS? Otherwise, I would quickly buy a new wide lens. Bad luck; how did it break?

A standard zoom is really needed, be it the 18-55mm, 16-45mm, 16-50mm, 18-135mm or 17-70mm.

The last wedding we did we both used the 18-135mm and it was brilliant. Fast, versatile and good results.

If you need to borrow a standard 18-55 WR zoom let me know I'll lend you mine.
The 70-200 should serve you well though, but I think a wide lens would be usefull...

Rent something from SRS? K.

Why not replace it with another 17-50?

I agree, you will need a standard zoom. I've never shot a wedding professionally, but the friends' wedding's I've shot at (and other formal events) demand the flexibility of a zoom.

Thanks for the offers but I'm in Galway, Ireland and the wedding is in Cork so don't know how I'd get the lens from anyone.
The zoom lug is broken, I'm getting it fixed. But not in time.
I can borrow a kit lens but the lack of constant f2.8 or f4 is an issue I think.
If I can pick up one in a shop I'll get it. Might be able to borrow one from
someone in Galway hopefully.
I'll update to let people know what I managed in the end.
Cheers.

this is why people should not hang up a "pro" or "open for business" sign until they are prepared.
Back-up equipment is a must!
When they hire somebody to shoot thier wedding, they do not need "super creative but no camera/flash/lens" to show up.

lecture over.

I didn't promote myself as a pro/wedding photographer. A friend asked me to shoot his wedding. We talked about it, I explained clearly everything (never did one before, lack of experience etc.)

I'll have the equipment I need, as I wrote the thread thought I'll get a replacement but always good to get opinions & comments from someone who hS been there.

I have a friend who is a wedding photographer, doesn't use flash.

"every journey, no matter how big, begins with a single step."

sorry if my post came across harsh. the wedding industry in my area has been nearly completely destroyed by amateurs with a single camera, kit lens and "Open for business" attitudes.

I officially took weddings off my business services list for several reasons...

8 out of every ten callers was a competitor posing as a possible client wanting to "Scope out our work" or find out our rates...

of the remaining 20% that were actually brides, 98% of them balked at our prices claiming they could get somebody else to do it for a couple hundred bucks, and yet when asked, every one of them had heard horror stories from other brides/friends about bad photogs...

So the combination of more photographers than brides, and more horror stories than happy customers has pushed the perceived value of a real wedding photographers work down to the point it isn't worth my time.
I don't even meet a prospective bride (waste of gas and coffee money) anymore unless they're referred by somebody who has hired me in the past, and has seen my work and has an idea what I charge.

Word of mouth is the only ad work I do, and I turn weddings down rather than work for peanuts.

That is just where the industry is right now, and until it rights itself or implodes completely, there's better pay for less hours elsewhere.

Don,
I think what you say about the wedding photography business applies to professional photography as a whole - even the professionals admit the money isn;t there anymore judging by the fact that people are more mobile now and equipment is affordable and of a high technical specification....

I see Pa has spoken with his friend and alerted him of lack of kit and experience etc that is good, as long as no promises have been made and there are a number of other people photographing the wedding there is a fall back if there is a major technical problem.

Did you see the 17-50 in the classifieds Pa? but it's in S Korea....

I'm glad I stopped photographing weddings and don't go to many, there will be far too many dweebs there with their £600 D3200s feeling smug that their camera has as many or even more pixels than the pros camera

Pa, good luck

I understand your situation. I'm no pro but if asked by a friend, I would shoot a wedding, as long as he understood that I'd never done it before and could not guarantee pro results.

I don't think I'd use the kit lens though, under any circumstances. Not that it's a bad lens for what it is, just wholly unsuitable for a wedding. Plus I always preach to my DSLR-owning friends "get a good lens, you don't need a new body" (not that they ever, ever, take heed) so I'd want to be seen to practice what I preach .

Don, I didn't know you were living in Glasgow, Scotland now

You can easily shoot a wedding with a standard zoom

Absolutely agree with Ken.