Canon EOS R50 paired with canon RF-S 55-250mm for wedding photography?

[mileyheuser]

Somewhat of a beginner/self-taught photographer here: I booked my first few weddings for later this year after about two years of running a business off of a Rebel T7 and 50 mm lens, but it's definitely time to upgrade before those weddings happen. As I mentioned, I am self-taught and don't understand a lot of photographer/camera jargon very well. If I went out and bought the R50 and a 55-250mm set up, can I achieve high-quality images and be able to effectively shoot weddings as well as engagement sessions, senior portraits, etc?

[stevet1]

mileyheuser,

This is just my personal opinion.

It seems to me that weddings are more of a personal and intimate scenario and you won't be using the extra reach of the 250mm much.

You are more familiar with the field of view of a 50mm, so only you can tell if you want a little more zoomed in and narrower field of view to work with.

I suspect you'll be shooting in the 60-100 range a lot especially with the portraits you mentioned.

If it were me, I'd go with the RF 18-150mm IS STM lens.

But, that's just me.

Steve Thomas

[SignifDigits]

"If I went out and bought the R50 and a 55-250mm set up, can I achieve high-quality images and be able to effectively shoot weddings as well as engagement sessions, senior portraits, etc?"

God only knows the answer to that question.  Maybe yes, maybe no.  You've already done quite well with what you have in your hands, so maybe?  Without knowing a lot more I would not feel confident making a recommendation.  Also, I'm pretty sure you mean the RF-S 55-210mm f/5-7.1 IS STM lens as there is no 55-250mm RF mount lens that I'm aware of.

Let's start at the beginning with you answering some questions with no photography jargon.   First, kudos on your skill in composition and making people happy with your photos.  I assume you have great skill with your camera and a great eye for the art of photography as people are paying you and seem to be giving you good word of mouth advertising.  Add the fact that you've been able to do this on the gear you've got and double kudos are in order.

• Why are you changing gear if people are happy with your work?  I'm not saying it will not benefit you to upgrade - it likely will, but you'll have to learn to be comfortable with your new equipment first, so it will be a big change for you.  What are you hoping that the new gear will bring you that you don't have in your old gear?  
• What are your goals for your new camera?  What about your new lens?  Just tired of zooming with your feet?   Do you find yourself moving into the scene too much and want to be able to zoom in?
• What mode do you usually shoot in?  Manual, Auto, Aperture Priority....?
• What is your budget?
• Are you shooting from a tripod or hand-held?
• Are you using flash or fill lights of any kind for your portraits?  Natural backgrounds or artificial?

You were probably shooting with a very bright f/1.8 lens (possible that it was the f/1.2, but I'll assume f/1.8).  The zooms in that price range have image stabilization, but are naturally darker lenses and you might find it darker than your 50mm even with stabilization. Even with stabilization you may be giving up your blurred background if you're used to that.  If you shoot indoors you could also wind up with some pretty high digital noise.

Most wedding photographers shoot in the 24-100mm range.  With your 50mm you have been shooting in the effective 80mm range where a lot of portrait photographers tend to like to shoot, and if you're been shooting at f/1.8 you've been getting a blurred background (called bokeh) and very narrow focus plane (depth of field).  This combination makes for beautiful portrait shots.  To duplicate that in a zoom lens you may need to get an expensive zoom lens.  Do you find yourself wanting to zoom in a lot?  Is that why you want a lens that's effectively a 88-400mm?  That range would typically be closer to a sports/wildlife photography range than for weddings and portraits.

A low-to-mid-range pro wedding setup would usually be a R6 Mark II and an RF 24-70mm f/2.8 L IS USM lens in the $4,000 price range new, or RF-24105mm f/2.8 L IS USM Z for around $5,000.  That cost would normally be recovered in one to two shoots so getting the very best equipment wouldn't be a huge factor.    If you're getting paid, hopefully you can take the proceeds from a shoot or two and get high-quality gear that you can continue to grow into.

That said, the very least expensive solution is keeping what you've got and charging enough to get higher-end equipment.  Next would be an upgrade to an R50 and RF50mm, which would be pretty much what you have now in terms of pixels and range, but you'd get better and faster autofocus.  Next would and R50 and kit lens.  Steve mentioned the 18-150mm.  You could switch lenses to the 50mm for portraits, or keep your current rig for the fixed portrait shots.

Anyways, if you could provide us with some more information it would be much easier to make a recommendation.  As it is, I am not comfortable with your choice of lenses any more than Steve is and think you should reconsider a bit before making that purchase.

[mileyheuser]

Thanks for your response! 

I very much appreciate all of your insight, kudos, and advice. 

While I have crafted some really meaningful work with the camera I have now, I am recognizing the limitations in my gear and itching for an upgrade. Mainly, I want a better/faster autofocus, and based on what I have researched, I think the R10 will be a big leap in the right direction from where I am currently at. The mobility and touchscreen features are very appealing for focusing and adjusting my photo settings with ease. 

And to be quite frank, I want better image quality. I am able to get some really sharp, yet creamy portraits when I am standing somewhat near my subject. However, the further I go, the noisier my photos get. I want to begin advertising myself as a cinematic, storytelling, and candid photographer, but I can’t get many wide shots to be sharp and high-quality. 

As far as my goals go for a new lens, I am still a bit unsure, but I'm just looking for some more versatility than what I have now. I love the 50mm (yes, it is 1.8) and will definitely be buying the RF version and using it pretty heavily with my new camera, but I do need to be able to zoom without having to run back and forth, and as you said, avoid “moving into the scene” too much. I do a lot of engagement sessions, and I want to be able to offer my clients a bit of seclusion in some moments. So that’s where the need for a zoom lens comes in.

I typically shoot handheld in Auto/Portrait mode. I know that’s not the best, and it does limit me; however, I’ve still gotten some really great photos in that setting. But I know can’t live there forever, and I am beginning to practice manual, I just don’t feel super comfortable yet. Definitely something I want to work on with the new camera. No flash or fill lights, but I will need to learn that before my first wedding in October. 

Budgeting is a bit up in the air. My camera is actually going to be a graduation gift, with a budget of around 1200-1500 dollars. But for my lens budget, I’m not totally sure. I don’t feel quite ready to spend thousands of dollars on a lens, maybe within the next year, but not now. I’m thinking of selling my T7 and 50mm and using whatever money I get from that to buy the best zoom lens I can. I have heard a lot about the R6 Mark II and the 24-70, but again, I am just not quite there yet. I want to spend about a year or two on this first level up and then look into purchasing that gear because I have heard nothing but great things. 

Hopefully, this gives you a better idea of where I am coming from. Again, I am so grateful for your response because I am just learning as I go 🙂

[mileyheuser]

Thanks for that perspective! 

In my case, I feel like I won't fully know which lens will be right for me until I am actually using it. I will look into potentially renting the 18-150 and a few others to see how they feel. 

[SignifDigits · Accepted solution]

Thanks for the insight and information!  The R10 is definitely a better choice for videography and frame rate, but uses the same sensor so the pictures really are the same, just a difference in features and EVF resolution.  One piece of advice you'll see over and over here is something along the lines of "cameras come and go but great lenses last a lifetime".  

So, along those lines, I'd suggest that you invest as much as you can in a full-frame RF lens as you will almost certainly want move to a full-frame camera at some point.  A bargain lens, in my opinion, is the RF 24-105 f/4-7.1.  That said, buy as much lens as you can possibly afford, and plan to move to f/2.8 when you can.  My personal "wedding starter kit" recommendation, if you would possibly swing it would be the R6 Mark II combo kit currently at $2,299 at https://www.usa.canon.com/shop/p/eos-r6-mark-ii-rf24-105mm-f4-7-1-is-stm-lens-kit?color=Black&type=N...

The downside is that your 80mm (50mm on an APS-C) f/1.8 becomes a true 50mm lens, and you give up some low-light performance in that lens.  That low-light performance hit is at least partially, if not wholly, offset by the combination of IBIS in the camera and IS in the lens.

I think all of us that have IBIS love it.  You wouldn't miss it shooting landscapes, macro or astrophotography on a tripod, but most of the people with IBIS find they don't need a tripod for most of their shooting.  I would recommend the R6 Mark II over the R7 (the sole APS-C with IBIS), especially in your case, at close to the same price point.  But the R10 is a great camera (#1 selling camera in Japan), and will allow you to definitely step up.

I wish you well on your journey!  I'm sure (and hope) you will get some differing opinions to consider here.

[mileyheuser]

I’ll definitely spend more time looking into the R6 Mark II combo kit. Good to know about IBIS and low light performance! 

What would your thoughts be on the Canon EOS R vs. the R10?