So you’re thinking about making the switch to a Fujifilm mirrorless system. You’ve read the reviews, watched the videos and listened to people tell you how their experience of shooting weddings has changed since they halved the weight they carry around for 14 hours every Saturday. They might have also mentioned how much time they have saved with post processing due to the quality of Fujifilm’s JPG files. Or how many candid shots they are getting now since they blend in with the other guests.
But you’re still not sure.
Let these five professional wedding photographers tell you about their experience of making the switch.
If they can do it, why can’t you?
Ian Weldon – Ian Weldon Photography
“I had my Canon 5D II in my bag and a 580 EX-II Speedlight, just in case. My head was spinning all day and I must have opened that bag 3 or 4 times and had to force myself to not take the ‘easy way out’.”
“After that day, nearly 4 years ago, I’ve never used anything other than Fuji cameras for my wedding work. Light, inconspicuous and all round pretty cool. What more could a documentary style wedding photographer need?”
“80% of my wedding work is shot with the X-Pro1 and 18mm f2 and the rest, mostly dancing shots, are with the X-T1 and 18mm f2. I do switch to the 35mm f1.4 on occasion for that extra bit of reach and use a Nissin i40 flash with sync chord. That’s it, liberating!”
See more of Ian’s work
Website: http://www.ianweldon.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ian-Weldon-Photography-124854627581367/timeline/ & https://www.facebook.com/ian.h.weldon
IG – @ianjweldon
ello – https://ello.co/ianjweldon
tumblr – http://ianweldon.tumblr.com
Paul Richards – Albion Row Photography
“I first used Fuji at a wedding way back with the original X-Pro & 35mm in July 2013, originally using it alongside a DSLR. I loved it, but it wasn’t until 2014 and the purchase of an X-T1 along with the 23mm & 56mm that the system really took over my wedding photography.”
“The Canon 5d3 was rather swiftly retired; there’s a lot that I love about the Fuji system but for me the main eye-opener that changed the way I work is the tilt-screen. I shoot weddings in a documentary fashion and the tilt-screen has become a firm favourite of mine. I love being able to move among guests in tight receptions with a wide-angle prime and the ability to shoot with the back screen as a waist level viewfinder. I get so many shots without people noticing I am there and without the intimidation of a camera raised to the eye. I can get closer and make shots with a feeling of intimacy and of being there – with a guest’s eye perspective.”
“For a wedding photojournalist I think the combination of image quality, ease of use, discretion and weight (or lack of!) that the Fuji system offers is outstanding. Nowadays I shoot with 3 X-T1 bodies and mostly the 16mm f1.4, the 35mm f1.4 and the 90mm f2 lenses and I am immensely happy with the system as a whole.”
See more of Paul’s work
Website: http://www.albionrow.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weddingphotocornwall
Paul has also written a couple of blog posts about his switch that you can find here and here.
Lord Parker – Lord Parker Photography
“I switched from Nikon to Fuji in the latter half of 2014, after Damien Lovegrove advised me this was the future. I’m a disabled Photographer, so the weight of the DSLR has always been a problem by causing me to be more unbalanced.”
“When I switched to the Fuji X-T1 I was astonished by the weight of the camera and the images that were coming out of it, in my opinion superior straight out of the camera compared with the Nikon. The Fuji X-System has really helped me with my disability, no more arm aches and back ache”
“I shoot all my weddings using nothing more than the Fuji X-T1 and the X-Pro 1 with the 27mm, 18mm and the 16-55mm lenses. I don’t use flash, unless I’m getting creative after the wedding with a Cactus for some off camera flash work, I find that the ambient light, a low F-Stop and an ISO of 6400 is easily manageable.”
See more of Lord Parker’s work
Website: http://lord-parker.co.uk
Steve and Samantha Vaughan – SSV Photography
“We are documentary style wedding photographers, based in Bicester, Oxfordshire. Our style is to photograph the whole day, from preparation to well past the first dance. We starting using Fuijfilm X-series equipment a couple of years ago, to lighten the load on a long wedding shoot, but to also make us less obvious during the day.”
“With our DSLR gear, we found guests would pose and point at us. Using our 2 X-T1’s and X100T we are able to mingle with the guests and take natural, relaxed images. It is truly liberating to shoot a whole wedding with just a small shoulder bag, two bodies and 4 lenses.”
“The image quality from our X equipment is fantastic, as are the lenses. We are totally committed to Fujifilm equipment now.”
See more of Steve and Samantha’s work
Website: http://www.ssvphotography.co.uk
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SSVPhotography
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BicesterPhotos
Instagram: https://instagram.com/stevevaughanssv/
Mike Riley – Michael Riley Photography
“I’ve been a commercial photographer for a while now but have recently decided to start offering a documentary style wedding coverage. I’ve thought about it before but I’ve always resisted as I’ve never liked the wedding pictures I’ve seen in the past – all grip and grin, faked smiles and endless group shots which don’t tell you anything other than what people wore on the day.”
“As a contrast to the highly technical staged commercial studio work I do I want to tell stories. To tell stories I have to be in the middle of the action or at least very close to it and so when picking kit to do this with I settled on the Fuji X system.”
“I already had an X-Pro1 for personal use and the quality was fantastic – so good in fact that its sometimes hard to match the jpg quality with a RAW edit. The X-T1 I’ve added to the kit bag now is even better as it its a more responsive in use and is completely silent with the electronic shutter allowing me to be stood right next to the registrar or vicar and shooting without them knowing about it.”
“I can be right in the middle of the action capturing the story of the day without people stopping and gurning at the lens. Because of the small size of the kit I can move fast and easily and not worry about a massive lump of glass and metal swinging around as I move. I’ve shot one wedding this way so far and look forward to many more.”
See more of Mike’s work
Website: http://www.michaelrileyphotography.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikerileyphotography
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MRileyPhoto
Instagram: https://instagram.com/michaelrileyphotography/