Want to learn at your own pace? Try my book, How to Get Off the Green Auto Setting: A Practical Guide to DSLR Photography for Beginners. It is available on Amazon.com in print and kindle editions.

Instructor Background

Vail’s love of photography started early. For her 8th birthday, her mother gave Vail her old SLR from the 1960s. As she got older, this hobby turned into a passion. Vail took photography classes at her high school and was the photo editor of the yearbook for 3 years. In college she had the privilege of taking a photography course from Steven H. Begleiter, who began his career as first photo assistant for Annie Leibovitz.

Vail went on to get her Ph.D. in bioethics, but her love of photography only grew stronger. After attending many a wedding and hearing from her friends and family that the shots she took were better than those by their hired pros, she decided to take the plunge and started Fucci’s Photos so that her passion could become her profession. To gain experience in wedding photography, she was a second shooter and assistant for Daniel McGarrity.  From these humble beginnings Vail has gone on to become awedding wire bride’s choice award winner in 2011 and 2012.  In 2012 she ventured into the world of fashion photography and shot  shows at NYC Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week for Kryolan Professional Make-Up.  In October 2012, Vail was honored to be a speaker at Kevin Kubota’s Photographers Ignite. In 2013 Vail had her first child and in 2015 she had her second.  With her children getting older, in 2018 Vail decided to pivot from shooting weddings and refocused her business on headshots and rebranded as Vail Fucci Photography.  In January, 2021, Vail joined Peter Hurley’s headshot crew, and in December 2021 became a headshot crew associate photographer.  In 2022 Vail became a SpotMyPhotos Pro.

What Gear Should I Buy?

I get asked this question all the time by my students. Frankly, the best answer is the gear you should buy is the gear that fits the type of photography you want to do.  But I’ve put together a list of different items that are helpful to buy when you are starting out and when you get a little further along.  Canon is my favorite camera brand but if you prefer Nikon, Sony, or Fuji you can find cameras, lenses, and flashes with similar features made by those brands at B&H as well.  B&H is where I buy all my gear and I think you should buy yours there too.  I’ve been thrilled with their customer service for over 20 years!  

Camera Body: Canon EOS R100, R50, R10, RP, R8, or R7. Any of these cameras will do a fantastic job for a photo enthusiast of varying levels of ability.  From a person who knows nothing about photography, up to someone who likes to shoot in manual all the time.  All these cameras are mirrorless.  I don’t recommend buying DSLRs any more.

 Canon R6, and Canon R5: These cameras are for a person ready to jump to a professional level full frame camera body.  All four of these cameras are weather sealed so they can be taken in much harsher conditions than consumer grade cameras and have more durable shutters that will last longer.

Speedlight: FJ80II Universal for all cameras except for Sony.  For Sony you will need the one that has the special Sony adapter.

Memory Cards: 2 Sandisk 128 GB SD Cards: the only memory card company I suggest people use is Sandisk.  They are the very best and most reliable.  They are a little bit more expensive than the competition but they are much less likely to result in card failures than other brands. Always own at least 2 memory cards as you don’t want to be left having to delete shots because your card filled up.  I would suggest purchasing the 128GB size.

A second camera battery it is a smart idea to have at least 2 batteries for your camera, particularly if you are taking the camera on trips where electricity will be in short supply.  I suggest getting only Canon brand batteries, not 3rd party versions.

External hard drive: the pictures we take are very important to us.  Nowadays people everyone just leaves pictures on their computer hard drives.  Unfortunately, these devices are prone to failure.  So be sure to have a backup.  I suggest all my students have an on site external hard drive and an off site back up as well. Now you can get 8 Terabyte hard drives that cost only about $100!

Camera bag: You should have a properly padded bag to transport your camera with you. Digital SLR cameras are expensive and delicate.  A good camera bag can help keep your camera in good working order for years to come.

Photo editing software: I suggest to all my students that they get or a subscription to the Adobe Creative Cloud Photography plan (Photoshop + Lightroom)  which only costs $9.99/month.  Adobe Lightroom is an amazing user friendly program that will allow you to edit your images and catalog them as well.

Lenses: 

Canon 50mm 1.8 “nifty fifty” lens: this is one of the very best photography buys on the market.  For a lens that is only $199 you get amazing image quality and all the benefits of a maximum F 1.8 aperture lens.  This allows you to have nice blurry background with your subjects in crisp focus.  It also lets you shoot in much lower light than the kit lens that comes with the camera does.  Once most of my students put this lens on their camera they never want to shoot with anything else because the pictures are so much better.

Canon RF-S 55-210mm f/5-7.1 IS STM Lens (Canon RF): If you are shooting things like your children’s soccer game this lens will become your best friend.  It allows you to zoom in on the action. Or the Canon RF F/5.6-8 100-400 if you want to get REALLY close on the action.

Canon RF 24mm-105mm L F4.0 lens: For those who are ready to jump to the next level the first L lens I suggest people buy is the 24-105 F4.  It is extremely versatile, is tack sharp, and focuses incredibly quickly.

Canon RF 70mm-200 L 2.8 Lens: This is the lens I use when I shoot the runways at fashion week in New York City.  It is also wonderful for sports.  It is very heavy though.  You need to either be very strong or use a monopod when using this lens for any extended period of time. It is a fantastic portrait lens as well. If you want a lighter one you should check out the RF 70mm-200 4.0 lens.  If these lenses are too heavy for you, check out the RF 135mm 1.8.

Canon 135 L 1.8 Lens: This lens is a personal favorite.  It focuses so quickly it blows my mind.  It is what I loved to use for portraits on wedding days.  Unlike the 70-200L lens it isn’t terribly heavy, so you can hold it for extended periods of time without a monopod and still get steady shots.  The bokeh is creamy and beautiful.  I find for outdoor portraits it just can’t be beat.

Fucci’s Photos LLC is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, Adobe Creative Cloud Affiliate Program, and B&H Affiliate program.  These affiliate advertising programs are designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, adobe.com, and bhphotovideo.com. All the products Vail Fucci has mentioned above are ones she has personally picked out.  She does not receive endorsements directly from the companies that make the products