Digital Gear WISHLIST

[rankamateur]

I work for a small wedding photography studio (we shoot 50-100 weddings per year) and the time has come for us to transition fully to digital. Our goal is to shoot portrait/engagement sessions on digital asap/immediately.  And we would like to shoot weddings on digital starting this summer.  
 
So far, we have acquired one lens -- Canon L series, 70-200mm.  But we really need to get recommendations for an optimal equipment package for shooting weddings.
 
canon body(s)
lenses
flash system(s)
battery(s)
memory cards
additional camera accessories -- anything essential and/or gear that makes life easier.
 
 
The 40D seems quite popular.  And obviously the 1DSMARK is best-of-the-best.  But I am wondering if it would be smarter to spend the money on two 40D, instead of the high-end 1DS.  Or start with a 40D now, then decide between another 40D or 1DS later.  I am assuming that 2 camera bodies is optimal for wedding shoots (please feel free to comment if you disagree).  We are willing to spend whatever necessary, but we want to do so wisely.
 
Any help is greatly appreciated.

[DarkPenguin]

How about 2 5D's?  Should come in cheaper than a single 1D mk iii.

[Acadian]

In your situation I would probably use my budget for two lower end bodies rather than one high end body. Build a more respectable lens selection on top of that.

I work for a small wedding photography studio (we shoot 50-100 weddings per year) and the time has come for us to transition fully to digital. Our goal is to shoot portrait/engagement sessions on digital asap/immediately.  And we would like to shoot weddings on digital starting this summer. 
 
So far, we have acquired one lens -- Canon L series, 70-200mm.  But we really need to get recommendations for an optimal equipment package for shooting weddings.
 
canon body(s)
lenses
flash system(s)
battery(s)
memory cards
additional camera accessories -- anything essential and/or gear that makes life easier.
 
 
The 40D seems quite popular.  And obviously the 1DSMARK is best-of-the-best.  But I am wondering if it would be smarter to spend the money on two 40D, instead of the high-end 1DS.  Or start with a 40D now, then decide between another 40D or 1DS later.  I am assuming that 2 camera bodies is optimal for wedding shoots (please feel free to comment if you disagree).  We are willing to spend whatever necessary, but we want to do so wisely.
 
Any help is greatly appreciated.
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[Craig Murphy]

Buy a Nikon D3.  The low noise at high iso would make this the best wedding camera on the market right now.

[Mike W]

Yeah, but it's 5k, the Canon 5D is around 2K.

the 5D, a good speedlite, and a 24-70 or 24-105mm zoom seems
 like a good set-up in this case, methinks.

Buy a Nikon D3.  The low noise at high iso would make this the best wedding camera on the market right now.
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[DarkPenguin]

Or $10k for two of them.

[rankamateur]

Thank you for all the great suggestions.  

With the 40d at the low end and the 1ds at the high end, a pair of 5d bodies might be just right.  We might also considering a 1dm3 + a 5d, simply because I have been hearing wonderful things about the 1dm3 image processing and it is comparatively lightweight which is something I am concerned about.  

Perhaps, we could start with the 1dm3 and add the 5d later this year.

For lenses, we have the L-series 70-200mm.  Maybe add a 24-70 f2.8 for starters?

Not only are we moving from film to digital, we are moving from nikon to canon.  Any opinions re: the 580 EX2 flash unit?

[DarkPenguin]

You might want to keep your sensor sizes the same so your field of view doesn't change if you have to go to a backup camera.