Hiring a camera for a wedding or a trip
Rentoodle team, updated 5 minute read
Choosing a body and lenses for a wedding or a trip, how many batteries and cards to take, test shots before the day, and who is responsible for the kit.
Start with the day, not the camera
Before you look at a single listing, write down where you will actually be standing. A winter wedding in a dim stone church, a summer reception in a marquee and a walking trip in the Highlands all want different kit, and the difference matters far more than which brand you hire.
The honest questions are: how dark will it be, how far away is the subject, how much weight will you carry all day, and will you have anywhere to charge. Answer those four and the shortlist writes itself.
Choosing a body
For indoor events, low light performance is what you are hiring. A full frame body will hold up better as the light goes than a smaller sensor, and that is worth more than extra megapixels you will never print. For a trip where you are carrying everything, a smaller mirrorless body you will actually take out of the bag beats a heavy one you leave at the hotel.
Hire a body you can operate. If you have only ever shot one system, hiring the same system means your fingers already know where the dials are. Learning a new menu at a wedding is not a plan. If you do switch, hire for long enough to practise first: the default two day minimum on Rentoodle gives you a day before the event, and booking a day or two longer is cheap insurance for a day that does not repeat.
Choosing lenses
Lenses change your pictures more than bodies do. For an event, a fast standard zoom covers most of the day, and a fast short telephoto gives you ceremony shots from the back without intruding. A wide lens is useful for the venue and the group shot. If you must carry one lens only, a fast standard prime is small, works in poor light and forces you to move, which usually improves the photographs.
For travel, one versatile zoom often beats three excellent primes, because the lens you are not carrying takes no pictures. Check the mount matches the body, and check whether the listing includes hoods, caps and a filter. If you are shooting near water, sand or Scottish weather, a protective filter is a small thing to buy yourself.
Batteries, cards and the unglamorous kit
This is where hired setups usually fail. Mirrorless bodies drain batteries faster than people expect, and a cold day drains them faster still.
- Take more batteries than you think you need, and check what the listing includes rather than assuming.
- Take the charger, and check it is the right one for the body you hired.
- Take at least two memory cards, and change cards between the ceremony and the reception so one failure cannot lose the whole day.
- Check the card speed is fast enough if you plan to shoot video or long bursts.
- Pack a blower and a microfibre cloth. Condensation and sea spray do not wait.
- Back up to a laptop or drive each evening on a trip. Cards are not a backup.
Test shots before the day
Unbox the camera the moment it arrives, or check it at collection, and take real photographs rather than a single frame of the kitchen. Shoot at the widest aperture and at high ISO, shoot something moving, and shoot a few frames in a dim room. Then look at them on a screen larger than the camera's.
You are checking three things: that the autofocus is accurate, that the sensor is clean, and that nothing rattles or sticks. Set the date and time, format the cards in the camera, and set the file format you want before the day rather than during it. If anything looks wrong, message the lender immediately, while there is still time to sort it out.
Who is responsible for the kit
Every booking on Rentoodle is covered by the Lender Guarantee up to £30,000, which protects the owner's equipment. That is not a hirer's damage waiver: as a hirer you remain responsible for returning the kit and for damage you cause, so look after it as you would your own.
In practice that means a padded bag, caps on both ends of every lens, the camera off your shoulder and across your body in a crowd, and nothing left in a car boot overnight. Check your own travel or home insurance if you are taking hired equipment abroad. Pack it carefully for the return leg, send it by tracked delivery to arrive with the lender by the end date, and tell the lender the tracking number.
Frequently asked questions
How far in advance should I book a camera for a wedding?
As early as you can, and book the hire window to start at least a day before the event. That gives you time to take test shots, charge everything and raise any problem with the lender while it can still be fixed.
Does the Lender Guarantee mean I am insured if I break the camera?
No. The Lender Guarantee protects the lender's item, up to £30,000 per booking. Hirers are still responsible for returning kit and for damage they cause, so treat hired equipment as carefully as your own.
Should I hire a system I have never used?
Only with practice time built in. If you do switch systems, start the hire a day or two before the event so you can learn the controls and menus before they matter.