Wedding
A whole day of changing light: bright outdoors, dim churches, and a dark dance floor. Each part needs its own starting point.
Lenses that suit this: A 24-70mm zoom covers most of the day; add an 85mm for portraits.
The guide
Plan for the light
Walk through the venue before the day and note which rooms are dark. That tells you when you will need a wide aperture, high ISO or flash.
Use Auto ISO with a limit
Set Auto ISO with a maximum of about 6400 so you never miss a moment while changing settings.
Shoot RAW
RAW files let you rescue colour and brightness later — very useful under mixed church and party lighting.
Situations through the day
Bride / groom portrait
1/250s · f/1.8–f/2.8 · ISO 100–400
Wide opening for soft background, shutter fast enough for small movements.
Ceremony
1/250–1/500s · f/2–f/4 · ISO Auto (400–3200)
Indoor light is often dim; the faster shutter keeps walking and turning heads sharp.
Group photo
1/160–1/250s · f/4–f/8 · ISO to suit light
A narrower opening keeps every row of faces inside the sharp zone.
Reception / speeches
1/125–1/200s · f/2–f/2.8 · ISO 1600–6400
People are seated and moving less, so a slightly slower shutter is safe.
Dance floor
1/60–1/125s + flash · f/2.8–f/4 · ISO 800–1600
Flash freezes the people while the slower shutter keeps the room's atmosphere visible.
Low-light party without flash
1/100–1/160s · widest aperture · ISO 3200–6400
A starting point — accept some noise rather than a blurred, unusable photo.