Close friends Mazi and Chrissy were getting married. They’ve admired my photography from a far but never did I expect to have them ask me to photograph their wedding.

I have little experience photographing weddings. Actually, this was my first. My trepidation wasn’t too excessive—I rarely shy away from a challenge, however, weddings are once in a lifetime events, these were my friends, and some money was involved. Either way, I had to make this photo shoot count and really execute.

I also had two choices: what style would I use to shoot these photographs? What gear would I used?

One might be surprised to find out that I didn’t use my digital 35mm Nikon system with pro lenses, however. For days after accepting the honor of photographing my friends’ wedding I was sure that I would use Nikon but the wedding was small and I was going to be going in alone. To many it might be a surprise that I decided against using the giant, yet powerful, Nikon gear and go with a smaller more compact system shooting with Olympus Micro Four Thirds equipment.
I wanted to be stealthy, highly mobile, small and noninvasive, and frankly, I just like shooting with smaller systems. I needed power and speed, and I needed flexibility. Micro Four Thirds systems provide this better than any other digital photography system I’ve encountered.

I was really impressed with the E-M1 Mark II. I thought my E-M5 was quiet but this one wouldn’t even know I was taking a picture. I almost forget that it actually did make any sound at all. This is really one of my favorite parts of mirrorless cameras in general. DSLRs are well known as the standard for professional photography but they tend to be noisy. With a mirror flapping around inside when taking a photo, there is a fair amount of mechanical noise. Especially during a wedding ceremony, I very pleased that there was no chance of my camera interrupting the beautiful moment.

Being the only person on the photography “crew”, the small size of the EM-1 (and my E-M5) gave me plenty of mobility and never did my shoulder, hand, or any other part of me feel distressed. At one point. I carried two cameras, one with the 12-100mm f4.0 lens, the other with a 45mm f1.8 lens, two batteries, all weighing a kilogram less than just my Nikon D700 with a 24-70mm f2.8 lens.

The M.Zuiko ED 12-100mm f4.0 IS Pro was probably my best decision. It is a real gem of a lens. Not only compact, it is a super zoom ranging from a nicely wide 24mm equivalent (in 35mm terms) to a 200mm reach. It’s razor sharp and renders images quite nicely. Weather sealed, metal barrel, and the focus ring doubles as a clutch to activate/deactivate autofocus, it will be top contender for my next lens purchase for my Olympus.

At the end of the day, however, photography is about photographs. And photographing a wedding is about capturing the moments uniting two individuals, the delight of their friends and family, and giving a lifetime of enjoyment looking back on memories.

When I made the decision to shoot with my Micro Four Thirds fear, I was concerned. Despite having shot with my Olympus gear for more than five years, so many photographers (and probably some who only claim to be), smear the ability of a non-35mm sensor to be a “real professional” system. It is hard to keep that constant negativity from chipping away from ones confidence. My fears were belayed during this shoot and also by seeing what other professionals using Micro Four Thirds can do. As I always say and truly believe, don’t worrry about your gear. Adrian’s Life Rule #55: Go out and shoot! Shooting with the Olympus E-M1 Mark II, E-M5, and the very pleasing 12-100mm f4.0 Pro lens was a delight and I will look forward to shooting with them again professionally.

But most importantly, join me in congratulating my two friends Mazi and Chrissy on their marriage.