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I've metamorphasised(sp?) into a wedding photographer and so have decided that all my eggs are going into the wedding photography basket. Money is tight, full stop. I have no means to get any more than £3000 start-up, and am racking my brains for the best gear from this money. I only have a 350D, 2 crappy kit lenses and the Canon EF 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 III which is ok, but I'm not happy with the aperature. I want to stick with Canon as I have a few weddings this winter and don't need the hassle of learning the ways of other brands (fight for other brands if you must 
I'll list what it is I want, my style etc. and if anyone can give any imput, it would be so greatly accepted!
Body: I wouldn't like to blow more than £1000 on this as I need to squeeze a lot out of my £3000... Idon't mind second hand at all if anyone knows some good older models - the 11mpx 1d?
Lenses: I'm LOST! So many differing opinions out there - fixed vs zoom etc. I have considered a 17-70 f2.8-4.5 as a general 'one fits all' lens, then a fixed 85mm f2.8 for more specific portraits and a wide/fisheye to add some art into the package. I've also considered the EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM for use indoors (especially close-ups from the back of church etc), but I think my work would become shoddy battling with f4.5 in low light.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your time.
Kerry
At the end of the day, its not necessarily the equipment you use, but how you use the equipment you have available.
For example, I shoot with a 20D and use just 3 lenses regularly. I know other professional photographers who shoot with similar. I do get people saying, "Shouldn't you have a 1D or a 5D and some prime lenses?". At the end of the day, I will be judged by my images, not by the equipment I use.
I am not a 'tog-snob', and therefore dont care how I get the images, as long as I get the images.
I was at a group shoot recently, and a lot of the other photographers had high-end equipment. Were their images better for this? Not for me to say, but from what other have said they wern't.
Nick
It's a hard one !
The 1dmkii body is robust, waterproof and produces fine images, however it is complete pants at low light Autofocus, so be warned !!.
The 5d is a option, but it may be worth looking at the 50d when it levels out in price.
On lenses.
buy second hand, what I recommend
the 50d
16-35 f2.8 l around £500.. or you wont get everything in !!! without standing 2 miles away
50mm f1.4 usm. around £120, extremely useful portrait lens on a 1.6 crop body (80mm)
and a 70-200 f2.8 is at around £950
in short, nothing over f2.8 !
Flash metz 58 af 1 with quantum pack, as it is twin tube and the bees knees for modelling shots
And a big bag to keep it all in
~Thats the 3k gone !
Quote: Nick has his points.
But if you want to get new kits, my recommendation would be:
Canon 5D
Canon speedlite 580
Canon 24-70 F2.8
Canon 70-200 F2.8 (non IS probably)
That’s a good set up, add a spare body for when the unthinkable happens and your main body has a fault/dies, it can happen and probably will if you are not prepared for it.
Get public liability insurance too.
Nick is right, the best camera is no better than a bottom of the range camera in the wrong hands.
If you are going to consider a second hand body, pick something relatively new, a newer lower spec camera may have superior image quality over an older 1Ds etc due to the updated image processor and sensor.
Is this £3K only for equipment ?
What about insurance, studio lights in case it rains, advertising, cards, brochures and professional membership of SWPP/MPA ? - is this coming out of another budget ?
PS - you won't make a living doing this with prices starting at £350 and topping at £950. These need a rethink...
Insurance could be paid for monthly , lighting could be sorted with a couple of second hand flash guns, cards can be had free in the beginning, you won't need brochures or membership of any clubs, societies or 'professional bodies.'
Buy second hand and don't rush into any rash purchases. You'll be fine.
You have all contributed to the max, and I'm so grateful -
5D it is! I'm definately going with that.
THANK YOU ALL!!!!!!!
Kerry
Quote: Insurance could be paid for monthly , lighting could be sorted with a couple of second hand flash guns, cards can be had free in the beginning, you won't need brochures or membership of any clubs, societies or 'professional bodies.'
Buy second hand and don't rush into any rash purchases. You'll be fine.
Oh well, that's me told.
K's got a point - just buy a second-hand body, a second-hand lens, a couple of old flashguns, some free cards from vistaprint, insurance by direct debit and keep charging that £350. You'll be fine and the customers will roll in...
Personally I wouldn't, as it will swallow up too much of your budget unless you can find one second hand. Way too much is spoken about the quality of camera that you need to 'do' a wedding, when in reality a couple of second hand 30D's, or Nikon D200's will probably serve you well, especially when you start out.
If you really had to have the extra pixels or whatever function you were missing for a 'special' occasion, then you could always hire one for the day.
...and I have not indicated that the money will roll in but a great many wedding photographers started out on a shoe string and cut their cloth to suit their pockets. There are some high profile users of this very site whose first weddng was done on the cheap with whatever equipment they could muster together.
It's about time we stopped scaring new and would be professionals and started offering realistic advice.
Been doing weddings for a few months now, have a 5D and a 40D, a spare body is essential. A 580 ex11 which I bought after dropping another one two weeks ago during a wedding. Lenses are a 20-40mm sigma which works great, though I hanker after a canon 17-40. A 135 f2 canon, and for 70 quid, I've found the 50mm f 1.8 indispensible. Insurance costs me 27 pounds a month, and is essential.
I'd love to spend on a 70-200mm f2.8 is. But I have to earn it first!.
The average customer, particularly in your price range only notices the composition and posing of your shots unless they're badly out of focus. Go for a second hand body and get as large an aperture as you can afford with your lenses. A wide angle is essential!
enjoy yourself, and they'll enjoy your company, it's more about people than anything else! you'll love it!
Martin.
Quote: It's about time we stopped scaring new and would be professionals and started offering realistic advice.
Too true! All too often we hear from pros here that sound like they are trying to scare people off, and just enjoy telling us all the great kit they have. Yes, newcomers can be told of the pitfalls, advice given etc, but wedding photography is not rocket science. You'll get all levels of photographers in wedding photography, from the average to the very best, and they'll all cover a huge range of prices. If someone is charging only £350, the expectations will not be anywhere near as high as someone charging say, £2.000. For an established wedding tog, a full range of 2.8 lenses is great, but someone new to the game can get away a lot cheaper options. There are very few togs that start doing weddings with a full range of 2.8 lenses.
Well, I did my first wedding using a D70s, a borrowed D70, two 18-70 kit lenses and one SB-600 flash. Went without a hitch (well, apart from the desired one)
I can't stress enough - before you buy anything, do a bit of research into any grants available in your area for starting small businesses. I managed to get hold of a fair bit of free cash from various sources when I started up - your local Business Link is a good starting point.
Most of the grants aren't retrospective. You have to let them know in advance what you're buying and why. Often they'll cover a fair bit of the expenditure. Sorry if all this sounds a bit vague, but the grants vary massively - some are 50%, some are 100%
Just makes the whole process much easier.
Good luck,
Jamie.
HIre if you can! for about £120 you can get 40d, 70-200L is a 1.4 50mm 580ex II, get yourself a 24-70 and maybe a 10-20 or 12-24 sigma and some spare non-canon batts and a couple of 8gb cards for £20 each and build up as you go along....
Why are previous contributors mentioning £350 fee....i can't see, is this a follow on topic?? Anyhow, good start price for friends/family but IMHO you'll under-price yourself out of work in that price bracket 
Good Luck!
Weddings, no matter what anyone says, aren't the scary high pressure environments some people make them out to be. Sure if you shoot in a genuine documentary style, you'll need to be good to catch those fleeting moments.
Very few wedding togs shoot in a genuine documentary way anyway. very few. Those that do, don't fuss and worry about all the crap that gets churned over here about cameras and lenses and sh*t, they know what works for them, and thats that.
for those who set stuff up, and pose couples all afternoon, they have plenty of time to shoot and chimp, and shoot again. and could easily shoot a wedding with a cheap consumer grade camera and kit lens. Who's to know in a 12" print?
Id say to the OP, if you're serious about the job, then spend once, and get what you really need.a pair of 30/40D's or Nikon equivalent, a wide 2.8 zoom and a telephoto 2.8 zoom will cover practically all your work. learn to use it, without having to think about it, and you'll be fine. the more gear you have the more you'll miss by faffing about in your bag.
i regularly shoot weddings with a pair of 1D's, a 28mm 1.8 on one, and an 85mm 1.8 on the other. For me, the less gear days, almost always turn in the best pics...
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