Congratulation! You are newly engaged, and you have just embarked on an exciting new journey. Wedding planning may seem a daunting task, but it is undoubtedly one of the most exciting experiences in a person’s life. Ultimately the time to decide who you will trust to capture and preserve your memories has come. But how do you choose your wedding photographer? The below guide aims to provide you with real-life advice, based on my experience as a wedding photographer, which I hope you will find helpful during your wedding planning journey. So, without further ado, let’s see where you should start.
Define the Photography Style that Fits your Personality
Social media and the internet in general, have changed weddings along with all other aspects of life. This information overload is wonderful, but also overwhelming at the same time. Google, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest are all different mediums to find the work of wedding photographers. During your online search, you may have encountered terms such as photojournalism, “fine art wedding photography,” “dark and moody” or a “vintage film look,“, which has emerged in the last few years, as “adventurous elopements” became a trend. So, how do you choose which wedding photography style is the best for you?
For example: My editing style is “bright, vibrant and true to color”. This means the pictures will be bright with a boost of color, and true to color means that if your groom is wearing a navy blue suit then that color is going to stay blue and not a shade of purple or a tint of green. It means the greens are going to be green and not gray or a blue tint color.
In order to define the wedding photography style that fits you, I recommend you sit with your fiance and decide what you like and what you don’t like. Narrowing down the photographer options and trusting your own unique perspectives and who you are as a couple is the most crucial part. Make sure you do your research on a large screen, such as a desktop or laptop, since the bigger the size of the photos, the better you can judge them. All photos look good on mobile phones as you can’t tell if a picture is sharp or blurry, in or out of focus. Don’t just rely on an Instagram portfolio. Visit the photographers’ websites, view as many galleries as possible and also ask to view examples of full wedding galleries as delivered to couples. Use a critical eye. Do you like how the couple is portrayed? Do you imagine yourself in those photos? Can you feel the emotions and get a sense of the atmosphere of the day? Remember, your wedding photos will stay with you forever, and for that reason, you have to select a photographer who can document the day the way you want to remember it.
Experience Matters
I recommend that your photographer is very experienced in shooting weddings, as there is no room for mistakes due to inexperience or lack of organization. Good wedding photographers know how to combine the different photography genres, which are essential in wedding photography and are effective under the stress of time pressure. Furthermore, when the photographer is experienced, they know when and how to anticipate important moments and efficiently manage large groups. At the same time, they have the self-confidence to deal with any unpredictable situation and make the couple feel at ease. And trust me, several unpredictable situations happen in live events, such as weddings.
What about Pricing Considerations?
The way I view wedding photography is not as a commoditized service. Commoditization occurs when there is no significant difference between a product or service, and the only distinguishing factor, based on which people make buying decisions, is the price. Gas, for example, can be bought at any gas station, based on where it is offered at a lower price because the product is commoditized. Photography is first and foremost an art and should be valued as such.
Nevertheless, I certainly do not recommend paying much more than you can afford or maxing out your credit cards while you plan your wedding, as this will lead to disappointment and remorse when the wedding will be over. My suggestion is to think about the overall wedding budget and what part of it you would like to allocate to wedding photography. If your wedding photos are important to you, you may want to consider spending more on your photographer and cutting down on something else. This should be a conscious decision after discussing it with your fiance. I send my Wedding Guide, which includes pricing details, from the very start of the communication with a couple, as I believe in transparency and honesty.
I found a Photographer I Like, what Should I Do Next?
I highly recommend taking the time to contact the photographer you like directly. Direct communication is always faster, more effective, and it is highly unlikely that there will be any misunderstandings. Messages sent on social media, such as Instagram or Facebook, are certainly convenient, but it is easy to be lost within a large inbox, which does not only include professional inquiries, resulting in delays in replies. I encourage all my couples to text or call me directly or contact me by filling in the contact form on my website, which is also a questionnaire that enables me to receive useful information about your wedding event. Especially for destination weddings, that information is essential in order to create a custom offer based on your event needs.
After you exchange emails and check the photographer’s agreement and its terms and before you officially book them, I recommend you schedule an interview. Meeting the photographer in person, most often via a video call, is very important for both the photographer and the couple in order to establish a connection and understand if they are a good fit for each other. As a photographer, whose work is profoundly creative, good chemistry with my couples is absolutely crucial.
Red Flags to look out for!
- Make sure the photographer has multiple reviews from past couples saying that they loved their work. I love when my couples send me reviews after their sessions.
- Check to see if their website looks professional. I’m not saying that a photographer has to have the best website to be a good photographer, but if a photographer’s website is kinda “blah” and doesn’t have very much information or pictures on their biggest advertising tool, then that just says to me that they don’t really spend that much time or money in their own business, they why should you spend your time and money on them?
- Make sure you take the time to look through their whole gallery to make sure their editing style is consistent through out their work so you know that when you get your pictures back the picture will be consistent through out your gallery.
- One of the most important things is COMMUNICATIONS! If your photographer is taking a week or more to respond to you, or they can’t give you any informative answers drop them and start looking for someone else because if you are having problems like that in the beginning it’s probably not going to get any better and you don’t need that kind of stress when you are trying to find out when your pictures will be delivered to you.
- Make sure they send you a contract. Having a signed contract is as much for your legal protection as it is for your photographer’s.
Questions to ask your photographer
- How many years have you been shooting weddings?
- How would you describe your editing style?
- How fast is your turn around time?
- Do you have a travel fee?
- Do you offer an engagement session with your packages or is that extra?
- Do you offer any other products like prints, albums, and videography
- How do you deliver your pictures
- Do we get printing rights?
I hope the above has been helpful. In the meantime, I will be more than happy to receive any questions you may have. Planning your wedding is a very exciting period in your life. Make sure you enjoy it to the fullest!
Brianna
xoxox
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Hi There, I'm Brianna!
Welcome to the Brianna helms photography Blog! I'm brianna helms, and i am a wedding, Engagement, and family, photographer based in port huron, Michigan. I hope you grab some coffee (or a Mountain dew, in my case) and enjoy viewing my latest work, browsing tips and resources , and getting a little peek into my life!
I photograph all over michigan on a regular basis but are never opposed to traveling!! To find out more about me, my style and The photography Experience, you can keep perusing the blog or slip on over to the for more information!
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