Funny you should mention this, I'm about to go in to hyper-graduation mode. I'll shoot 20+ rolls over the next two weeks.
The primes vs zooms debate is stupid. Sorry. This is like arguing whether you should have a flat blade screwdriver or a Phillips (cross head) screwdriver in your tool belt. The answer, of course, is both. The right tool for the right job. If you zoom isn't fast enough to deliver the shot, use something else. If your prime isn't short enough, or long enough to deliver the shot, use something else. Don't try to just GUESS which tool you'll need. Consider: Leave as little to chance as you possibly can. Can you scout the location in advance? Indoor or outdoor? Rain or shine? Other photographers higher up in the food chain? Visualize. What shots do you "have to" get? What shots do you want to get? Will you be allowed to use a tripod or monopod? Will you be allowed to use a flash? Can you get a program in advance? Can you reserve a seat? They're usually setting up for a graduation days in advance. Go there. Look around. Ask someone who has been there if you can't go. The shot everyone wants to get at graduation is the "hand off" of the diploma. How close can you get? Will the sun be overhead? Perhaps a bit of fill flash would help those eye-socket shadows? Can you get a good angle? If you scout one, figure an alternate as you may find the school pro in that spot on the big day. Be nice, he may help you. Great photos can be either taken or made, and a little advance scouting will help either approach immensely. Make a plan. Be prepared to disregard it. Have more than one kind of film on hand. I use three to four cameras for the big show here on campus. The school Nikon 6006 with a zoom. My MZ5 and Super Program with primes. And some medium format stuff for the class picture, usually a Koni-Omega 6x7 w/90/3.5 or 60/5.6. Still saving for that Pentax 67.... I like to get "establishing shots" of interiors with a big ceremony going on. A fast 28 or 35 with 800 speed film is a good thing here. I also like a faster prime for "the diploma handoff" if possible and if I know where I'll be for the big moment. Nothing huge is needed if you can get in the wings or the first few rows. A 100 2.8 or even a cheap ol' 135/3.5 screw mount will give you good results. Once again, if you know where your going to be at the big moment, you dont need a zoom or AF. And BTW, I wouldn't be caught dead without a zoom for walking around shooting candids, groups, and individuals. Use a lens shade whenever possible, especially if the sun is overhead. I use flash a lot, but maybe not the way you think. The sunnier it is outside, the more I use fill flash to kill those ugly shadows under the eyes. I generally avoid flash inside, but I do use it, especially where I use my zoom. Kodak Portra NC 160 (outdoors sunny), 400 (outdoors cloudy) and 800 (indoors) are the films of the day. The Fuji equivalents work just as well, they're just harder to get in my neighborhood. Avoid super saturated films like velvia or E100VS (extra color) or even the standard Kodak Golds unless your subjects want to have their pimples and other skin imperfections rendered in brilliant reds and purples.... One more bit of advice. Look behind you, sometimes you can get great shots of people who are themselves focused on the things that would be the usual "subject" in a given situation. Good luck, Chris L. School Publications Guy - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
