What settings should I use/have on my Nikon D40 SLR for photographing a wedding?

Question

What settings should I use/have on my Nikon D40 SLR for photographing a wedding?

Answer 1

well... the best setting would be manual where you would set the shutter speed and aperture yourself. however i am assuming that that is not going to be an option since you asked on yahoo answers. lol.
try portrait. depending on the lighting and whatnot.

Answer 2

I hope you are not the main photographer. Photographing a wedding is one the most stressful and challenging photographic tasks ever. Many extremely talented photographers won't even touch weddings, just because pleasing the families/customers involved can be an exercise in horror.

That being said, in preparing for a wedding as a novice, you have a few things to do. First, you should visit the place where the wedding is taking place BEFOREHAND at the same time and same lighting, to get a feel for the place and where to place yourself. Practice taking photographs with your current setup to see if you even can get the views you want or if your current lenses and lighting gear will even work for you.

You will also need to sit down with the bride and groom and determine a few things like, will flash be allowed at the wedding? Will you be limited to certain areas? What parts of the ceremony are most important to them? Which family members do they want to photograph? How do they want the group photos done? You get the idea--there's a ton of questions.

Now, on to gear: assuming flash is allowed, you need to make sure you have the best flash around for your camera, the Nikon SB-800. Generally, the flash should be on TTL, unless you have a bright background, in which case, use TTL-BL. Lenses--if you're going to be far back, you'll need a good telephoto like a 70-200mm f/2.8 VR lens. If you're closer, you can get by with a zoom, like a 17-55DX f/2.8. If you're allowed flash, you can even get by with a 24-120mm VR Nikon lens.

I recommend shooting aperture preferred. On an f/2.8 lens, f/4 works well for some shots. However, in dim lighting without a flash (or even with a flash really), you definitely need to keep the camera steady in some way, like with a monopod or tripod (if a tripod is allowed). A monopod with quick release allows you to move around, release the camera if you need to get a specific shot, and remount for more steadiness for other shots.

Generally, use the ISO that will give you a shutter speed that will eliminate blur without forcing you to change your selected aperture. Outdoors in sunshine, that might be ISO 100. Indoors it could be anything from ISO 400 to ISO 1600.

One other thing to remember--a noisy shot that captures the moment is better than a low ISO no noise shot that's blurry or misses the mark. If your camera has auto ISO, make sure there's no limits on it.

So, to recap:
1) scout the venue and practice, practice, practice.
2) work with the bride and groom beforehand to determine what they want/expect.
3) have the right gear and use it to its best advantage. Apertures: generally wide for portraits. Stop down for groups. Select aperture preferred, control your depth of field. Adjust ISO as needed to make sure you get a shutter speed that won't result in blur (usually 1/60 or faster).

Now, if you're just a guest wanting to get a photo...set your ISO as high as you reasonably can (like 800), use a flash (guests almost never get in trouble for using flash, unlike pros), and select aperture preferred. Select f/8 and just take photos.

Answer 3

First, I hope you are only there as a guest. If you have to ask what settings to use you certainly aren't knowledgeable enough to actually be shooting a wedding.

For the ceremony, when you never ever use flash, you'll be shooting with an ISO of at least 400 with a short (100mm, 135mm) telephoto with at least f2.8 maximum aperture. You can use a monopod for added stability.

For the rest of the festivities you'll be using your flash. I hope you have a flash that is TTL (aka Off-Sensor Flash Metering) compatible with your camera and an off-camera flash bracket. With flash you can easily shoot at ISO 100 or 200.

Before using your flash, read and study the Owner's Manual that came with it alongside the Owner's Manual for the camera. Learn how to make them work together. With TTL you should be able to use f5.6 or f8 for most of the reception, etc.

Answer 4

look in book on how to set extra fine and large settings,then set on auto,press button half way down before you take picture,once adjusted you will have a very nice picture,the camera will do most of the work,take indoor and outdoor pictures with these settings to see the results,now you are ready.
good luck
p.s. do not let people responding to this ,get you down