So how do you choose a professional wedding photographer ? When planning and setting out to choose a wedding reception or choosing a wedding gown you have the luxury of knowing exactly what you will receive, before, or at the very least, on the wedding day. Choosing a wedding photographer for the best wedding photography package is the single most unique aspect to your wedding planning, simply because you don't know if you have made the best choice until you see your wedding pictures and in most cases this usually occurs well after the wedding day. Although it is impossible to cover all aspects on how to choose a professional wedding photographer in one article, the following guides make for some basic but very important criteria that is all to often overlooked by wedding couples at the planning stage.
Many wedding photographers and studio sales people use personality and charm to their advantage when selling and close a sale. Whilst compatible personality traits are important qualities for getting along your photographer on the wedding day, there have been many instances where couples were persuaded to book based on a wedding photographer's professional salesmanship rather than his or her professional photographic abilities. It is a fact that that there are many (including some high profile) wedding photographers that have their origins in the sales industry and have little or no formal training in wedding photography. Because professional wedding photography is an unregulated industry in some countries including Australia, it is seen as a very easy profession to enter. It is a also a fact that creative marketing determines the success of many wedding photography studios rather than creative ability.
Choosing Wedding Studios That Employ Freelance Photographers
Wedding photography studios sometimes employ more than one professional photographer or hire additional photographers as subcontractors (freelancers). Before you choose a wedding photography studio it is best to establish which of these photographers will be photographing you on your wedding day. Make it a point get to know the style and personality of the actual wedding photographer you are ready to choose. Wedding photography involves constant interaction between the wedding couple, bridal party, guests and the photographer, so it is your best interests to choose a photographer who's personality is compatible with your personality. Arrange at least one pre wedding interview that enables you to meet the actual wedding photographer who you are thinking of choosing to photograph you on your wedding day.
If you are considering choosing a wedding photography studio that employs more than one professional photographer or hires additional freelancers you might want to ask more about the credentials of the freelancer. For example, where is he/she from? Is this particular photographer a professional wedding photographer? Or do they have another job during the week. It may surprise you to know that there are (a percentage of} freelancers out that shoot weddings on weekends but are not professional wedding photographers. There have been many cases where wedding photography studios employ these freelances from all walks of life as many have had other jobs in professions unrelated to wedding photography. Some of these guys are photographing weddings to make an extra income and may not be qualified photographers. In other cases photographers who aren't wedding photographers may moonlight on weekends as photographers, so may or may not not have the skills and experience to produce the best possible wedding photography result.
Pre Wedding Photo Shoot
Pre wedding photo shoots are not just a great way to help you become aquatinted with your photographers style, work manner and personality and as a result may also help you to feel more at ease when your wedding day arrives. Hopefully by the time your wedding day arrives, you will have already been reassured that your choice of wedding photographer and the quality of wedding photography you have chosen the right one. After a pre wedding shoot and as your wedding day approaches, you should hopefully be on more familiar terms with your photographer. A pre wedding shoot is sometimes offered as part of a wedding photography package or as an extra option. In any case it may be worth considering choosing a package that includes a pre wedding shoot.
Variables That Can Affect The Standard Of Wedding Photography
Many wedding couples have an expectation that the wedding album, wedding photographs or digital images that they receive will look just just like the ones that they were promised, or just like the photo displays that had seen before signing the contract. Sometimes disputes arise after the wedding day if the photo coverage seems to lack the variety or even the standard of the display albums or photos seen beforehand. Quite often there may be many reasons for this. It may be miscommunication between the parties, or omission, or a deliberate misrepresentation made of the part of the photo studio or photographer. Often it may not always be the fault of the photographer at all, but an unreasonable expectation on the part of the couple. Whilst it is impossible to foresee all the circumstances that might occur, affect or hinder your wedding coverage, it is best to discuss the possibilities with your photographer or photo studio beforehand. The points below are the basis of issues you might want to raise with your photographer, however they may not apply to all situations and should be considered as a basic starting point when looking at choosing a wedding photography coverage.
Ask your photographer or studio if variables on your day such as available time, locations, distances between various locations, weather, bridal party size, family size etc will impact on the quality of your wedding coverage or wedding photography. The expectations you have formed may have been based on display photography examples sometimes depicting ideal couples in ideal locations under ideal conditions with plenty of shooting time. The display photo coverages you might have seen usually look close to perfect, with a large variety of pictures that showcase the best of the best photography produced by the photographer or photo studio. Maybe ask your photographer how much shooting time he/she needs at the brides house, for family photos, location photos, bridal party photos etc . In attempting to make shooting time estimates make sure that you discuss as much as possible with your photographer so that the estimates take into account the size of your family and bridal party, ceremony time, reception starting time etc. Planning this should aid in helping you to budget shooting time on your wedding day. Don't forget to take other considerations into effect such as backup plans for bad weather. The time of year could affect the quality and duration of light available to shoot under, especially if the coverage is off to a late start.
Consider if your expectations are based on the standard of wedding photography displays you have seen. Are you convinced that your photographer can produce the consistency that is required to achieve the same that standard of photography on your wedding day? Some photographers work faster than others so you need to establish how much shooting time is actually needed by your wedding photographer to archive a similar standard as the display photography or album that you have seen.
Review your package and agreement before signing. Consider what is it that has been promised on the day and whether it realistic to expect that you will achieve everything with your constraints.
Communicate Your Needs To Your Wedding Photographer
If you want to request a particular pose or need a specific guest family member photographer negotiate it with your photographer beforehand. Don’t expect that just because you have seen or liked what another wedding photographer has done at another wedding, that your particular photographer will automatically read your mind and do the same. If you need to make sure your photographer doesn't miss anything, make a shot list and discuss it before your wedding day. In short, it is a good idea to ask questions and make your needs clear, during negotiations rather than afterwards when it’s too late.
Some photography studio sales staff do the hard sell by promising the world from the comfort of a showroom, only to send out unsuspecting photographers or contractors who find that a particular wedding itinerary might not have been planned to leave enough time to physically achieve the type of photography that was promised prior to contract signing.
Consider the following questions: Is the wedding photography that you were sold on, the actual work of the photographer that will shoot for you? Is the entire display wedding album or studio display you have viewed the actual work of the photographer who is photographing on the day? Is your chosen photographer photographing for the entire duration of your photography coverage? In rare cases the photographer announces at the last minute that an assistant will take over or that another photographer will (usually an assistant) join in and then take over the coverage. If you are happy with this fine, however you may wish to be warned before you sign any contracts. How long is your wedding photography coverage for? Have you seen examples of full weddings shot by your chosen photographer or just the glossed up studio displays? Who created the designs for the digital work or digital magazine wedding albums on display? Was it done in-house by the photo studio staff or was it designed by specialist graphic designer? Is the style of design on display still available to you? Or has the digital designer who created this work moved on? If the digital magazine style layouts or montages on display have not been designed by the studio's current digital designer, find out exactly what style you will receive, as no two designers produce the exact same style of design work.
Selecting Wedding Photography Packages
If you have booked a wedding photography package read the fine print to see what is exactly on offer. How may hours of coverage and how many photographs or images will be shot on the day? Who keeps the proofs? Do you also receive the originals such as negatives ( for film capture ) or digital images? If you receive digital images, are they high resolution or low resolution? Some wedding photographers now offer digital images or negatives, offering photography services only, allowing you to print your own pictures. Other studios offer wedding album packages with options to receive or buy negs or files. If you do receive the negatives or digital files how long after your order is placed do you receive those? Some photo studios offer negs or digital files after a certain period of time has elapsed.
What else does your wedding package include? Before you order or after? Have you seen the wedding album cover , the pages, the frames on offer if any? Wedding albums and frames can vary greatly in quality and type. If you have negotiated to receive the digital images for the purpose of printing your own photographs, make sure that they are hi res (high resolution) if you intend printing decent prints from them. If you are receiving wall portraits albums or extra pictures (reprints) make sure you know the pricing and the time frame for delivery. One of the most common complaints after the wedding is that the wedding photos or the wedding album take too long. This could be that the studio is taking it's time, or simply be due to the fact that the order was not placed by the couple in a timely manner. If you are receiving an album or extra pictures make sure that you place your order as soon as possible after your wedding day. If you fulfil your obligations on time, hopefully your wedding studio will do likewise
Comparing Wedding Photographers By Qualifications
If comparing two wedding photographers on your short list you find both produce good work and one of those photographers has engaged in formal study, which one would you be choosing? As the wedding photography industry is unregulated in many parts of the world, some photo studios are run or staffed by professional wedding photographers with no formal academic qualifications in photography. Many of these photographers call themselves 'self made' professionals. Some of these photographers do not have a grasp on some basic disciplines relating to lighting for instance and some might have come in without formal qualifications but received mentoring which is ok too, if their abilities and end product are of a high standard. Many of photographers, however, have even come from unrelated industries such as sales and have turned their marketing skills to promoting their studios which they do extremely well.
Many self made professional photographers would argue that there is no need to have studied formally to achieve good results with wedding photography. Granted, experience is probably by far one of the the best teachers and creative ability cannot be taught solely from books. However technical competence is largely gained through formal training and a lack competence starts to become apparent as situations and conditions become extreme, testing the photographer's technical knowledge. In such cases a little expert knowledge would have made the difference. Outside of the wedding photography industry there are probably very few professions where the customer places their complete faith in a professional that not necessarily required to be a qualified professional.
Before you choose a wedding photographer, look at the work and consistency of quality firstly. Whilst it is always wise to question a photographer about their formal or academic qualifications, also consider the photography work you have seen before making a decision.
Professional Photographic Bodies And Associations
For peace of mind many couples choose to go with a wedding photographer who is in an accredited professional body or the member of an association. Whilst these bodies actually generally do have a code of ethics for their members to abide by, it is generally entirely up to the member to abide by this code of ethic and standards.
The biggest mistake that a wedding couple can make when choosing a photographer is to exclude him/her simply because they do not belong to a professional body. It is false to assume that a photographer from a professional association is automatically more competent or more ethical than one who isn't. As mentioned, the wedding photography industry is largely unregulated and many professional photographers refrain from becoming members of such associations for their own reasons.
There are good photographers inside and outside of professional bodies . Choosing a wedding photographer always comes down to 'buyer beware' and it would be wise to conduct relevant business checks before booking. Before passing judgment on any wedding photographer, first look at the photographers work, experience then their formal qualifications. Possibly check relevant government bodies or consumer groups to see if any major complaints have been lodged. Try to follow leads that come to you by recommendation first and test them out.
Bridal Magazine Advertising Vs Recommendations
Many wedding photography studios market heavily by constantly advertising in bridal magazines. As mentioned earlier is is better to follow recommendations from people you know first.
Consider this: If a wedding photography studio has been established for a long time and is still relying on bridal magazine ads whilst a similar studio close by, does quite well without the help of bridal advertising, maybe it would by wise to question why. Some popular studios advertise constantly as they do not seem to build up enough repeat or referral business. Strangely, other wedding photography studios do not advertise at all and book many weddings (and sometimes turn work away) simply because a constant stream of wedding couples are recommending them to friends and family.
Before Signing The Wedding Photography Contract
Read what is presented to you in the terms and conditions but do not sign until negotiations are completed or unless you are happy with the terms and conditions. Know your obligations and the photography studio's obligations under the terms of your contract. Some of your obligations may include the payments you will make as deposits. Familiarise yourself about payments before and after the wedding so that you will always know when they are due. Prices for reprints, albums, dvd's, negatives, digital files, enlargements, frames, extra shooting time, locations etc etc should all be fully discussed and agreed to.
It's a good idea to keep records of payments you make and obtain receipts for all payments. Ask about cancellation policies, hidden costs and taxes.
You should never feel pressured into agreeing to anything you are not sure or happy with. If you have negotiated something that is not written in the photography contract then have it added before the parties sign. Get anything you are unsure about out into the open with your photographer before signing and if you are still unsure, don't sign yet, just walk away and seek professional advice before continuing. Know your exact legal position as it relates to you in your part of the world and if necessary consult a legal expert.
