How to Choose a Wedding Photographer
Your wedding day will be one of the most important days of your life and the photos are keepsakes to bring you back every time. They are a reminder of the love that you share, the emotions you felt, and something you can cherish for a lifetime. Therefore, choosing the right wedding photographer requires careful consideration. Here are a couple things to help you in that selection.
Determine Your Style
Every person is different and there are a thousand styles of photography out there; photography is an art and there is not one way that it is to be done. You have to figure out what kind of photography style you are looking for. Here are a couple ways that photography is labeled: lifestyle photography, light and airy, moody, natural skin tones, portrait, flash, contemporary, artistic, traditional, and nostalgic. If you are looking at my page, I like to describe my style as lifestyle, natural skin tones, with artistic aspects. I choose to keep natural skin tones to help ensure that a couple is more likely to enjoy their pictures decades from now.
Traditional photography can look like posed shots with formal portraits while lifestyle photography is more about using prompts and candid emotion. It’s like photo journaling with some guidance to make it more appeasing to the eye.
Consider your Budget
The first thing to keep in mind when it comes to your photography budget is that wedding photography is one of the biggest expenses for most weddings. The venue space, catering, and then photography/videography. Most professional photographers cost over $250-$450 an hour for a wedding day, averaging up to $2,000 to $3,600 to the Chattanooga area for your average. Some photographers in the Chattanooga area can go up to $5,000 to even $10,000 a wedding.
Always talk to the photographer you are considering through an interview process, whether that is in person or over video chat. Make sure to talk through the logistics of what you are wanting to see in your wedding collection and that will help determine how many hours you are going to need. As a wedding photographer, I have seen a lot of brides surprised in how much goes into the logistics of a wedding day and how long pictures can take at times based on what they’re envisioning. Most photographers can capture the highlights of the entire day from getting ready down to the send off within an 8-10 hour period.
Research Potential Wedding Photographers
Once you have decided on the style that you are looking for—begin researching that type of photographer and research that photographer. Finding a photographer can be easy through asking family and friends, Facebook pages, and asking your wedding planner. Once you have found a few, you need to look at least 10 full wedding collections, any and all of their reviews (Facebook, Google, their website, Wedding Wire, the Knot), and the professionalism of their portfolio and website. Remember that you are not just hiring someone to make a collection but spend your entire wedding day right beside you. Review each of their wedding collections and see if the way they capture hour by hour is what you are looking for. Not just the IG Grid. See how they do in both indoor, outdoor, day time, and night.
Schedule Interviews with at least three photographers
After you have narrowed down your choices of photographers, set up a meeting with at least three that really got your attention. It will be important to get to know that photographer through the interview; their portfolio should already speak for themselves and now its time to focus on their professionalism but also is this someone you want to spend your entire wedding day with? Be sure to voice what your preferences are, what you are looking for in your collection, where the wedding is, and the details of that day.
Ask the photographer about why they are in wedding photography, how long they have been doing this, the type of equipment they use, what are their expectations of clients, and how they protect your images from getting damaged or lost. I would recommend if they have not already to be able to review their contract to ensure that it’s clearly communicated what you are getting into. As well as if they offer prints, how many photos do they provide, or what is offered in the package step by step.
Review the Contract
Congrats, you like them, they like you, now you are down to the last step of receiving and signing a contract. READ THE WHOLE thing—you need to make sure you are on the same page and that everything is truly communicated on the contract that can be held by law. Not joking, after the years I have been doing this, I have unfortunately experienced with my wedding clients poor communication from their vendors and having appropriate contracts for their services. Contracts that were never provided or the contract did not have a leg to stand on for the client. Just make sure that every thing that you are expecting is clearly communicated such as the date of service, the hours of service, where it will be held, and the prices are correct. You may also want to know if this photographer reviews the image rights, usage, copy right, and timeline for when the photos will be released.
Enjoy the Experience
Once you have found a photographer that vibes with you but also has a professional work ethic—CONGRATS! You have nailed down one of the biggest vendors that you will no longer have to stress about. If you have not caught on already, I could be that wedding photographer. And my job is not just to show up the day of your wedding but also ensure that anything photography leading up to your wedding including creating a custom timeline to your wedding is completed. Ensuring that I am the one taking initiative to communicate with you and make the experience as easy as possible.
