Finding a photographer to capture your wedding day can be a daunting task.

We photographers are ten a penny and trying to find someone who will cater for your vision and your budget can be quite difficult. These days as soon as you type “wedding photographer” into search engines you are given 100’s of search results to choose from, and soon one website starts to blur into another as you spend hours clicking through and waiting for images to load.
Hopefully these questions and tips will help you make the search process and final decision a heck of a lot easier. It is by no means an exhaustive list of “what to ask” but from my experience these are some of the main points that come up during my meetings with clients.

• What is their style of photography?
  Make sure this fits with what you both want. Your wedding photographs will be reminders of your special day and you want to be able to look at them with love and pride over the years to come.

 

• Do they offer set packages, if so how many hours are included and would they be willing tailor the package to suit you?
  Most photographers offer a few set packages and couples have to pick the one that is the closest to suiting them and their budget. I believe wedding photographers should be willing to tailor their offerings to individual clients as every wedding is different and every couple unique.

 

• Do they work from a shot list and can we provide a list of photographs ourselves?
  Every wedding photographer will have a list in their head of the basic shots that they will take on any wedding day. Give them a list of any photographs and combinations of guests that you want photographs of, ensuring that they don’t miss anyone out.

 

• How many images will be taken at our wedding and how many will we receive?
  Dependant on how many hours the photographer is with you on your special day, they could take anywhere between 1000 and 1500 images. You won’t get all these images as the best ones will be picked and edited (typically between 150 and 500 images). Set packages will tell you how many images you will receive.
  I don’t offer set packages and therefore I do not dictate how many images a couple will receive. I believe that even if it takes me longer to edit them that they will receive all the good images that I take on their wedding day. This means that for a whole days photography they could receive anywhere up to 800 images.

 

• Do they have a limit on the amount of images that they edit and how do they edit them?
  The answer to the first part of the question should be NO!
  Many photographers will use bulk editing methods, which are easy to use and save a lot of time. Although these work well and allow for uniformed photographs; I prefer to individually edit each photo and give them the care and attention they deserve.

 

• How long until we receive our images?
  You don’t want to be waiting months and months. All my clients receive their photographs in time for their first months wedding anniversary.

 

• What format will they come in and is an album included?
  Always double check this with your photographer. You want to be able to easily access your photographs and download them to your own personal devices for your own use.
  If you have chosen a package from a photographer that includes an album, double check the amount of photographs that will be in the album and if you get to choose the photographs yourselves.

 

• What restrictions are on their on the images and their use.
  Many photographers will watermark and have you choose a certain number of photographs. If you then wanted more or full use of the photographs, they will charge you extra per image.
  I don’t do this. I believe that as you are paying me to photograph and capture one of the most important and special days of your life, you are entitled to all the good photographs that I take. I do not watermark images and you are free to use them as you like.

 

• How many weddings will they attend on our wedding day?
  Weddings are a lucrative business and some wedding photographers will try and squeeze a couple in on the day, especially in peak wedding season.
  I will only accept one wedding booking per date.

 

• How much time should we set aside for our main photographs on the day?
  No less than 40 minutes. It is amazing how quickly the time flies by. Before you know it you will be sitting down for your meal or having your first dance and you will wonder where the day has gone.
  I have shot weddings where the bride and groom have had certain photographic requests and a list of photographs that they wanted but we were hampered by time as they had not set enough time aside.

 

• When is the best time to have photographs taken?
  Depending on the order of the day and the ceremony time the normal thing for photographers is to take the bulk of the main and group shots immediately after the ceremony, before any meal or speeches, when all the guests are together in one place.

 

• In the peak summer months if this is in the middle of the day the light can be quite harsh. If you wanted softer, more romantic shots of yourselves, it is always worth setting a little time aside later in the afternoon / early evening where the two of you and your photographer can slip away from your guests for a short while and capture the lovely romantic shots.

 

• Do they visit a venue beforehand?
  The answer to this question should be YES!
  Any good photographer will familiarise themselves with their shooting location beforehand and speak to the venue to see where they can / can’t shoot and ask simple questions like “where can we have the confetti train” or indeed “are we permitted to throw confetti”.

 

• Do they offer a pre-shoot or engagement shoot?
  This is a great way to familiarise yourselves with the photographer and their style of shooting. It gives you the opportunity to try different poses and practise ones that you like before the big day.

 

• Do we have to pay a deposit to book their services?
  This is always typically YES!

 

• How long will they keep our images for?
  Many photographers will keep images for a fixed amount of time then contact the couples asking if they would like to buy them before they are deleted. This can send some couples into panic mode and they will spend exorbitant sums of money buying images that they really should have had in the first place.
  I do not set a time limit on how long I keep images for. If anything untoward did happen to your original copies I would send you replacement disks with your images on, free of charge

The list of questions that you can ask your photographer is endless and I could go on and on, but it can get rather boring. My best advice is to have a darn good chat to any prospective photographers. You should like their style of photography, their work ethos and them as a person. After-all, they are going to be spending a lot of time with you and your guests on your wedding day and you want someone that is friendly, outgoing and will put you and your guests at ease in front of the camera.

If you have any questions of would like me to add to this list I would love you to contact me.