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Choosing a photographer whose style you appreciate is one part of the small puzzle to find your ideal photographer.
Tip #1 : Look around, look at blogs, websites, talk to your friends or family who have recently gotten married. Find out who they recommend, who they trust and who they had spoken to.
Tip #2 : When you find a photographer whose style inspires you, book an appointment and look at entire albums. Anyone can take 500 pictures and post 2 good looking ones on a website, but when you are looking at websites and albums ensure you view a complete album. Look at how your photographer unwinds a couple's story, from start to finish.
Jay Dhokia, Creative Director and Photographer of Jay Dhokia Photography outlines some key questions you may need to ask your photographer before you sign on that infamous dotted line.
1. What is your Availability?
Once you have your wedding dates secured, you might want to know that your photographer is available for that day. This might be a good opportunity to discuss the times you might need your photographer, whether or not he/she will need to work overtime and if he may need to be in two places, an additional photographer may be needed.
2. What is your style of photography?
Each photographer has their own style of photography, it is important that if it is not clear from their website to clarify this.
3. When are you available for pre wedding shoot?
It is always nice to have a pre wedding shoot, to showcase at your wedding reception or to keep for your memories, of what once was ... :) This you can be more flexible with, as long as it is before the wedding and the photographer can have the edited final images ready prior to the wedding
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4. What equipment do you use?
Any SLR camera can take a decent shot outside for a daytime wedding, but most indoor wedding receptions are in a Low Light setting which requires certain requirements outside of the standard amateur photographers range of equipment. If you are approaching a reputable wedding photographer you would not need to worry about this (and they may get touchy about this, as would any professional who has spend numerous years perfecting and pleasing), however if you are approaching a very new photographer then be sure they are aware of the setting conditions at the ceremony and reception. No doubt they will know what they need.
5. What is our payment schedule?
Its probably crucial to know firstly, how much the total charges are including travel, additional hours and any taxes. Secondly, ensure your photographer and yourself are aware of when the first deposit is due and when the final payment is. Suppliers are helpful when it comes to creating a payment plan, they understand the strain a wedding can have on couples and their families.
6. What is your willingness to travel?
This partly ties into question number five. If you plan to have your ceremony or reception out of town, find out whether your photographer is happy to travel, and if it is far - there may be an additional charge. Discuss to come to a clear figure and ensure that is added to the total cost.
7. What can you offer Post production? I.e. Album production, digital copies.
Some couples may just want digital copies on a cd to keep and to create their own albums or to send images to their friends, you may find that the inlaws will most definitely want a madeup album to show to their friends and be proud of. So have the discussion about photo albums - if your photographer doesn't create these themselves, then they will most definitely know a company that does who will be able to give you a discount. (Its a great system!)
8. May we see some examples of your previous work?
As I mentioned at the very top of this post, its obvious that you will be keen to see the photographers previous work whether it is a photo album or a digital one alike.
9. If you have a summary of the day or at least have a break down - show it to your photographer.
No doubt they would have done this before and know what works and what you may need to allocate more time too. Your photographer should/will know how the day will pan out - but every wedding is different and its key you let your photographer know of any surprises.
10. Finally, Relationship building.
If all these questions were conducted over the phone then you might consider meeting up for a coffee or a drink. Trusting your suppliers is one side of the coin, but the other side is a complete match of personalities. When you meet your suppliers and they understand you, the importance of your big day and the feel you want from their photographs you create an ultimate trust. The two sides go hand in hand. When you trust your suppliers, you trust them to do their job correctly and you have no need to worry throughout your wedding day over it.
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Tip #3 : Photographers are one supplier you do not want to save the pennies on. If you can imagine hiring your friend or a newby photographer to take the photographs of your wedding and they get the lighting wrong or their thumb is is every picture or they spill drink on the memory card etc. Enjoying your wedding photographs is something you will most certainly have for years and decades to come.
Tip #4 : Your guests will pester your photographer for pictures of themselves, and that might be fine for the first few, but photographers are much more confident at saying 'No'. At the end of the day, they are being paid by you to produce an album full of you and your friends and family - not your friends and family and then the happy couple. Be sure to allocate a time for your photographer or even your second photographer, if you have one, to go around taking group shots.
Jay says: "Photographers are artists and you are investing in their art. Wedding Photography is definitely a competitive market. Work with photographers in your budget but not all good photographers are expensive."
I hope you have enjoyed our wedding planning blog this morning, just remember if you would like anything featured on Shaadi-Esque, then all you need to do is drop us an email on blog@rsbridalgroup.co.uk.
Keeping you Inspired!!
Rachyeta xxx
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