Ryan Goold
Wedding | Last Updated: February 16, 2021
Hi. I’m Ryan. I run Sea Salt Moments which is all about weddings. I’ve captured nearly 200 weddings since 2013 and love the intensity and variation it offers.
Up until this year, all of my lenses and cameras were Canon based, with various lenses from Sigma, Samyang, and of course L-series lenses, but I decided to try out some mirrorless cameras and made the switch to Sony back in January.
I try to keep my kit as minimal as possible as I am carrying a lot with me at weddings, but I use three primary lenses at a wedding; the 35mm, 85mm, and 135 G-master, which is a beast.
I think the Sony setup works well for me, as weddings are so fast, you need to be adaptable and by having the realtime view of the exposure it helps with changing settings to the right one at important moments.
Cameras
Sony A7 III x2: I chose to use two of these cameras as my setup instead of the incredible A9 because of budget if I am honest. The hype behind the A7 III was amazing and once I got used to the setup, I haven’t looked back since. The focus capabilities are insanely accurate particularly the face and eye recognition. I use these bodies for every project now.
Lenses
All of my lenses are primes, and I’ve done this because it makes me move more, and see things from different perspectives, which helps at weddings, as it makes you get closer to the action.
Sony 135 f/1.8: I wanted to get a distance lens, and having had the Canon 70-200mm f/2.8, I decided to change things up and get a prime to push myself to move more and get in the right position rather than letting the camera do all the work.
I often get this lens out for the speeches and candid snaps. My favourite part of this lens is the bokeh and low F stops, and in low-light, it works wonders.
Sony 85mm f/1.8: I have this lens on my second body for the majority of the time. It’s the perfect focal length for weddings, be it the ceremony, bridal prep, or portraits. Its light but still a good size to hold without strain on my hands.
Sony 55mm f/1.8: I don’t get this lens out often, but on the rare occasion, I’ll use it for some different views on the dance floor and portraits. I believe every photographer should carry a 50/55mm as they are so adaptable and offer good low-light solutions with the low F stops.
Sigma 35mm f/1.4: This is my go-to lens in every situation. I had the same lens for Canon prior to switching to Sony and even after reading and watching reviews online, I took the chance and still love the sharpness of the Sigma over the Sony.
Lights/Triggers
Godox V350’s x3: They’re cheap, comparable, and ideal for any wedding photographer with all the features of any other comparable flash, for example, the Sony HVLF60 which is much more expensive.
Godox X1T-S Trigger x1: With the Godox system, you only need a single trigger to set up a channeled lighting setup, and it’s super easy to setup. There’s no need for additional triggers for the external flashes too, which was a selling point for me.
Bags/Straps
HoldFast MoneyMaker: I had friends who used them and thought I would give them a try and absolutely loved the ease and support of switching cameras and not having to worry about dropping them. I would recommend a strong leather camera harness for any events/wedding photographer.
HoldFast Wrist Strap: I use this for the dance floor as it gives me the security of keeping the camera safe without getting the camera dropped out of my hands.
Lowepro Protactic 450 AW: I’ve used this bag for over three years now, and it feels very secure and supported when being carried around at weddings when needed.
Tripods
I use two Manfrotto light stands for various times in the day. I like to use natural light as much as possible but love to play with flash also, especially in the winter months.
Hardware & Software
I use Lightroom Classic and Photoshop Classic for the majority of my post-production with several presets tweaked to a style I like from other suppliers. I try to keep my work contrasted and timeless without saturating it too much.
iMac 21 inch: For the office.
iPad Pro: For on the move.
Several WD passport hard drives: I believe having several hard drives reduces the risk of losing a huge amount of work at any given moment instead of using less data storage.
Misc.
Bananas, Paracetamol, Deodorant, Prisms, Batteries, Cleaning Kit, Timberland boots, as they are the comfiest footwear when you’re on your feet for 12 hours, and loads of other bits like spare lens caps, hot shoe covers, etc.
I believe that there is a time in history for wedding photography and that time is now.
With the rise in technology and the affordability of everything, the vast amount of blogs and influential content, social media, smartphones, and many other factors, it is becoming easier for anyone with an interest in photography to get stuck in, and I’m not complaining.
I was in that situation once and it has led me to a perfect start in my career and without newcomers to the industry, we wouldn’t push ourselves to be creative and see things differently so that we stand out and stay in business. And who doesn’t love a good wedding!
www.ryangooldphotography.co.uk | @ryangooldphotography
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