Have you been wondering what lenses every wedding photographer needs? I wrote this post because it is a question I get all the time.

I think what I want to say first is that you can likely get away bringing just one lens to a wedding and capture the entire day with it, HOWEVER, if you are charging someone money to photograph their wedding day, there are built in expectations that you know what you are doing and you are relatively professional.

A lot of photographers use the 24-70mm f2.8L or the more expensive 28-70mm f2.0L all day without changing lenses. This allows them to have a wide angle lens and also bring things in tighter when they zoom to 70mm. You won’t get as much bokeh or blur in the background but it’s all in the preference of the photographer and their style.

Wide Angle

You want to make sure to have some sort of wide angle lens with you so that if you are in a small space when the wedding party is getting ready, you will still be able to capture everything that is necessary for your gallery.

The other reason I love having a wide angle is to add variety to the gallery when delivering the photos. If you shot with only a 50mm lens, your images are all going to look quite similar regardless of your posing.

The wide angle I use is the Sigma 35mm f1.4.

Macro

Depending on your style of photography, most photographers like to get some really close up photos of the rings and jewelry. In order to do this, you are going to need a macro lens. I use the Sigma 105mm f2.8. It’s less expensive than the Canon version and because I only use it for the rings, I decided to save my money on this lens and go with a more cost effective option.

Standard

A typical standard lens that every photographer should have and use is the 50mm lens. They come in f1.8, f1.4, and f1.2. The lower the aperture ability, the more expensive the lens.

The 50mm lens covers roughly what the human eye can see. It creates gorgeous bokeh and is one of my go-to lenses.

** I believe these lenses are the only ones you NEED as a wedding photographer **

Extras

Although the lenses mentioned above are in my option, the only lenses you need to capture an entire day of a wedding, it is always nice to have some other lenses to change things up.

70-200mm f2.8 – This telephoto lens creates gorgeous depth and bokeh in the background. The downside is that you often need room to back up in order to lock focus on your subjects. It is not ideal for when the wedding party is getting ready.

85mm f1.8, f1.4, f1.2 – This lens is similar to the 50mm in the sense that it creates really nice bokeh in the background and the images come out extra creamy. This lens is great for when you are taking bridal portraits and also bride and groom photos.

I hope that this helps guide you a bit on your next purchase! If you enjoy this education, sign up for my newsletter that will keep you up to date when a blog is posted, as well as, any new educational opportunities!

Read up on how to use flash at a wedding reception, to best prepare yourself for a darker scene.