I would consider myself a fairly serious amateur photographer and have mainly shot landscapes. My friend saw some photos that I had taken and asked if I could take her wedding pictures. I told her that I was in no way a professional and that I could not guarantee the "perfect" wedding portraits. She said that she knew that and wanted me to take them anyway. Now I am wondering what type of lighting and lenses would best suit wedding photography. I can probably think of some things but I just thought I would ask so that I don’t miss anything that would make my pictures better than they would be otherwise. Thank you for your help.

wedding photography tutorials: http://www.net-art.it/photomonitor/html/teoria_tecnica/ripresa-tecniche/matrimonio-cerimonia-e.shtml

Wedding Photographers are soo pricey. Does anyone have any creative alternatives?
I am already planning on doing the disposable cameras. I am concerned with nice portrait type photos.

You can do the disposable cameras, but you can’t be sure that you will get great pictures. Some people do, some don’t. Ours were fine from the disposables, but then when I saw them compared to the photog’s pics, they were nothing.

I looked at it this way - there are few things that you will have from your wedding that you will be able to hold on to. Memories will fade - in order to keep them fresh, you want to have a good photographer. Those pictures will last you for the rest of your life and then be passed onto your children as well. Skimping on them may inhibit a lifetime of memories. You won’t remember if you got the more expensive linens. You won’t remember if you had 4 candles or 5 in your centerpieces. But you *will* always want to remember that first kiss, your Uncle Ted dancing the night away, the toast from your Best Man, what your dress looked like, what your wedding cake looked like, etc. And a professional photographer can best capture that for you.

Be creative, have fun, but don’t skimp on something that will be the most long lasting memory of your wedding.