Alex Tenters

Wedding | Last Updated: May 6, 2022

Hi! I am Alex, a wedding photographer from Kent!

I have been doing this job for 8 years if you can call it a job. Let’s be honest, it’s joining couples for the best day of their lives and shooting it! What could be better than that!

I started out as a sports photographer, just documenting my friends. Then eventually I shot my first wedding for a friend and the rest, as they say, is history!

Cameras
Not that I didn’t love my Nikons, but times are changing and Sonys are lighter, faster, and all-around better suited for the fast pace of weddings and how I shoot. I am documentary based, apart from taking the time 5 minutes here or there to get a few nice portraits I work fast!

My whole goal of switching was to make everything in my kit streamlined and simplify as much as possible. For example, I used to have 24mm, 25mm, 50mm, 85mm, and a big zoom lens with my Nikon kit. Now I have stripped it back to basics, and loving it! It allows me to focus on what is actually important…MOMENTS!

So my main bodies are two, (soon to become 3 for backup) Sony A7III’s. These are absolute workhorses, and I love the touchpad and screen. The EVF is game-changing, and to be honest, I don’t know why I didn’t switch sooner. I have also kitted both bodies out with a Smallrig attachment because my hands are too big!

Lenses
I use a Sony FE 35mm f/1.8 lens for most of the day. Zoom with your feet always! For those out-of-reach moments, the Zeiss Batis 85mm f/1.8 is the one. This is all you really need when shooting weddings in my opinion! A 35mm and 85mm will keep you in good stead for moments galore!

For the occasional wide shot, or for shutter drag on the dance floor I have the ridiculously small and light Samyang 24mm f/2.8. This is a perfect, cheap and cheerful lens for what it is! And considering it comes out the bag for an hour or so, here and there, it’s a great value!

Lights/Triggers
One of my favourite pieces of kit, and my cheapest purchase, is my trusty video lights. The Neewer & Yongnuo YN160III video light is perfect for just getting a little bit more light for speeches and dance-floor. I don’t like to use flash if I can avoid it, and these offer immediate results!

I have kept all my Nikon flashes as they work with the Sonys. So it’s a Nikon SB900 flashgun and 2 x Yongnuo flashes for OCF dance floor when I fancy it! All kitted with Magmod attachments so I can grid them when I want to.

Bags/Straps
A Holdfast Moneymaker is what I use to carry my kit, and a Think Tank SD card pouch keeps all those SD cards safe. I use the super fast Sandisk Extreme pro SD cards, because who wants to wait for the buffer! A LaCie Rugged 4TB Thunderbolt hard drive comes with me for extra backup on the road.

All this is housed in a Langly rucksack, which I love! It’s compact, durable and doesn’t look like a camera bag! I also have a nifty little bag that houses all the battery chargers, USB chargers, etc, that goes to every wedding nice and neatly. That is pretty much it. Sweets, chocolate and a whole load of coffee, too, are ESSENTIAL.

Tripods
I have a set of 3 light stands for flashes, Manfrotto 1004BAC Master Light Stand 3 Pack. They clip together and go super high for barns and the like!

Hardware & Software
I use an iMac 27” with all the gizmos and whistles. Lightroom, Photomechanic and Photoshop.

Gear is important – don’t get me wrong – but you are the tool to make amazing images! Use your kit to make those images you already have in your head.

Don’t complicate it, keep it simple and make the most of your kit.

www.alextentersphotography.co.uk | @alextentersphotography