All Things Wedding Photographer
You spend months planning and preparing for your big day, and then just like that it comes and goes. The pictures (and potentially video) are the only concrete things you will have left to remember all of the special little moments that flew by. Your wedding photographer is an investment in your memories! When it comes to booking a photographer there are so many things to consider in order to feel confident in your selection. Follow this guide to have a positive experience from start to finish with your wedding photographer!
This article is divided into 4 sections:
Things to consider about wedding photographers
Questions to ask a photographer prior to booking
What to do after booking to maximize the photographers services
An example photo shot list
Things to consider about wedding photographers
A wedding photographer is different from other photographers. Wedding photography requires a specific skill set that develops after working many weddings. They need to anticipate reactions, micro-events, and opportune moments for raw emotion. A professional wedding photographer has also mastered the skill of being in the right place at the right time, while avoiding stepping into the way of the bridal party or other professionals. They also are there to capture your emotion on a very important day. In order to do this properly, it takes a practiced eye! Wedding photographers also often are capturing individuals who aren’t used to being in front of a camera. Their experience helps make their clients feel comfortable expressing those incredible emotions in front of the camera and posing the couples who are a little camera shy!
There are a million photography and editing styles out there. Wedding photography looks so different from photographer to photographer. Before diving into your photographer search, be sure to do a little research into the various styles. This will help direct your search and guide your selection process.
Check for photo clarity when browsing albums. No matter what style of photography you are drawn to, check for photo clarity. This offers insight not only into skill and experience level, but also quality of equipment! Photo clarity is a good sign of a highly experienced, skilled individual working with great equipment! There are plenty of opportunities for action shots and of course those may be a little less clear than the still photos, but there should still be a general consistency of clarity amongst their photos.
Make sure your contract protects you. This is true for all vendors, but it is especially common to find vague or ambiguous wording in photography contracts. Time frames for photo return, a minimum amount of deliverable photos, and additional costs (should you choose to add a service later) should be specifically outlined in your contract. If you love a photographer and find that this information is missing from their contract, ask for it to be added! If they refuse to add in concrete deliverable information, this is a pretty big warning sign that they aren’t confident in the promises they are making!
Be mindful when negotiating pricing. Providing and valuing a service is a daunting task for an artistic professional. These professionals spend years perfecting their craft and adjust their pricing based on their ever evolving skill level and demand for service. If you fall in love with a vendor who is out of your price range, it never hurts to ask if they can accommodate your budget. The key here though is asking and understanding if they aren’t able to make this accommodation.
Always look through a few full albums before booking. Everyone wants to put their best foot forward, so the photographs included on each professional's website is going to be what they consider to accurately and positively reflect their work. Occasionally, photographers will link a full album or two on their website, but more often than not they will include just the highlights. There is nothing wrong with only including the highlights on their website! There is plenty of reason to do so! Typically you can find at least anywhere from 15-50 photos from past weddings on photographers’ websites to give an example of their work and hopefully entice you enough to reach out. However, 15-50 particularly gorgeous photos are not enough to gauge the consistency of quality in their work. Request a few full albums to peruse (they will almost always happily provide these- if they don’t, be concerned!). Look through the full albums to make sure they are consistent with the quality they exemplify on their website!
Talk to the professional either in person or on the phone prior to booking. This is true for all vendors, but especially important with your photographer. Your photographer will be spending the entire day with you, so it is very important to find someone whose personality meshes with yours.
Understand the difference between posed photos and authentic moments. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to capturing authentic moments vs. posed photos, but there is value in understanding the difference as a consumer. If you like being told how and where to stand, that is totally fine! Just be sure that you find a photographer who has experience doing this! If you prefer minimal or no posed photos, look for raw emotion and authentic moments captured in the full albums! Typically wedding photographers will favor one of these styles over the other, but include at least a little of both in your wedding photos.
The price you pay is not just for your wedding day. Photographers spend a lot of time on their clients. They dedicate time prior to the wedding to study your personalities, timeline, and shot list in order to be fully prepared to capture your day. After the wedding, they pour hours of time and energy into sifting through thousands of photos, finding the very best shots, and editing accordingly. They also invest a lot of money back into maintaining and upgrading their equipment to ensure they are providing the best service possible. Take all of this into consideration when discussing price! Depending on the professional and your wedding day timeline, they will have often spent upwards of 40 hours working on your wedding! Above all else, you are paying for an accurate representation of how the day unfolded so you can reminisce for years to come!
Questions to ask prior to booking a photographer
Pro-tip: Not all of these questions will be necessary in every situation. Some may not be applicable to you and a lot of this may be answered on your photographer’s website or pricing menu. Be sure to carefully select the questions that are relevant to your unique situation to avoid overwhelming yourself and the photographer with too much information!
Package Insight-
Are you available on my date?
Does your package include a second photographer? If I’d like to add a second (or third!) shooter, what is the cost for an additional shooter?
How many hours are included in your package?
What do you charge for additional hours?
Does your wedding package include an engagement session? If not, what is the cost of booking this separately?
How many edited photos can I expect back from my engagement session?
How many edited photos can I expect back from my wedding?
Do you provide “sneak peeks” for either the engagement session and/or the wedding?
If so, how many typically are provided in the “sneak peek” for each?
What is the turnaround time for my “sneak peek” photos?
What is the turnaround time for my full wedding album?
Will I have access to the raw photos?
How do you deliver the photos?
Will the images be accessible online? For how long?
Will the online photo gallery be shareable so I can give my friends and family access?
Are albums or prints included in your package? How many pages or prints are included? Will you be selecting the photos in the album or will we? What is the turnaround time?
If prints and/or albums are not included in your package, do we have the option to order them directly from you at an additional cost? If so, what is the additional cost?
Do you retain any of the rights to the photos?
What do the rights you retain mean for me?
Will you be posting any of our photos on your website and social media?
Will you need our separate permission to submit the photos to any third party publication or will you already have those rights according to the contract?
Do you charge a travel fee? If so, how much and for what distance?
Experience-
How long have you been a professional photographer?
How long have you been a wedding photographer?
How many weddings have you photographed?
How many weddings do you typically have in a single weekend?
Have you worked at my venue before? If not, will you attend a venue walk through to scout out ideal photo locations?
Can we see a few recent full wedding galleries? (Hint: ask to see at least 2-3 full albums and take a really good look through them!)
Style-
How would you describe your photography style?
How do you describe your working style? Are you in the background capturing the events unfolding around you? Are you more active in posing people?
What kind of camera do you use?
How will you and your team dress? (Hint: keep in mind that your photographer will be doing a lot of moving around, so while they should still dress appropriately for a wedding they typically don't dress as formally as the guests.)
Can we request a list of specific shots we would like?
How many photos do you typically capture throughout the course of a wedding day? (Hint: this is different from the amount of pictures returned according to your contract. This is the full amount they will be sifting through to choose which ones to edit. If the photographer gives you access to all of the raw photos, this number will be more relevant to you.)
Do you have experience working at indoor and/or outdoor venues and how do you compensate or play up the lighting?
Logistics-
When will we receive the contract?
How much do you require for a deposit? When is it due?
What is your payment schedule like? (I.e. When is the remaining balance due? Hint: most photographers take payments in 2-3 installments: 1st payment is the deposit, the remainder is due at varying times before the wedding. The exact payment schedule varies from photographer to photographer.)
What is your refund or cancellation policy if I cancel?
What is your refund or cancellation policy if you cancel?
Do you have liability insurance? Does it cover your second shooter and assistant(s), as well?
Do you carry backup equipment?
What is the backup plan if you are unable to personally work my wedding for any reason? Is this written into the contract?
Do you have experience working with a videographer? If so, how do you work with and around each other to ensure everyone is able to capture the important moments in full?
Bonuses-
Do you offer any additional services, like a photo booth or videography?
If you don’t personally offer videography, do you have a videographer you recommend?
Are you available to photograph any pre-wedding events (i.e. bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, engagement party, etc.)? If so, what are the rates for these?
Maximizing your photographer’s services
What to do after booking your wedding photographer
Schedule an engagement session. Engagement sessions are great for a few reasons. First, the photos they generate are great for save the dates, invitations, and your wedding website. Second, the engagement session is the perfect time to get to know your photographer a little bit better. Familiarity is comforting, and you want to be comfortable on your wedding day! Forming a foundational relationship with this professional during an engagement session is a great opportunity to become familiar with each other so you are comfortable spending your wedding day with them! Third, your engagement pictures will give you an idea of how your photographer’s style will translate to you. While the engagement pictures typically have a slightly different feel to them than the wedding photos, this is still the perfect chance to see how your photographer captures you (and make suggestions if necessary)!
Build your wedding day timeline and be sure to schedule adequate time to capture all of your desired shots. Photographers are usually happy to offer feedback on your timeline based on what you are expecting from the photos. If you want a lot of bridal party pictures, extended family pictures, sunset pictures, etc., you will need to allocate plenty of time to make sure you are setting the photographer up for success! If the timeline is tight you may have to cut your desired posed photo list down a bit or shift things to accommodate the desired photo list.
Consider what photos you really want captured, and communicate this with the photographer. It is fairly common for couples to prepare a “shot-list” of desired photos they’d like. While it is nearly impossible to guarantee those exact moments will be captured (guest cooperation, guest availability, timing, etc. will affect the ability for these desired photos to be captured), providing a “shot-list” will certainly make it much more feasible! This list doesn’t have to be long if you aren’t particular about what photos you’d like. Your photographer is a professional and will do an amazing job capturing your day without a guideline. However, if you are passionate about a few (or many!) shots, provide them with a list so they can do everything in their power to capture all of the moments and details you’d like pictures of! Check out our sample shot list in the next section!
Example shot list
Getting Ready
Bride and bridesmaids arriving to getting ready location
Bride's dress and/or robe hanging in a photogenic space
All of the bridesmaids’ dresses hanging together
Bride’s hair and makeup being done (either by the professionals or stage a bridesmaid doing touch ups for the picture)
Bridesmaids’ hair and makeup being done
Bride re-reading vows to herself
Bridesmaid pouring champagne
Bride and bridesmaids toasting
Bride with bridesmaids after hair and makeup is done but before formal attire is put on (in robes or other getting ready attire)
Wedding invitation with bride’s jewelry and bouquet
Mom helping bride with a final detail, (either putting on the veil, zipping up the dress, or putting on a necklace)
Full-length photo of the bride in her dress looking in a mirror
Dress detail shot (i.e. lace, embellishments, buttons, etc.)
Picture(s) of shoes, rings, garter, jewelry, or other small pieces
Emotional moment of bride with significant family members (i.e. siblings, parents, grandparents, step-parents, etc.)
Bride with all the women present for getting ready
Groom getting ready with groomsmen and/or family
Dad or Best Man tying the groom’s tie
Emotional moment of groom with significant family members (i.e. siblings, parents, grandparents, step-parents, etc.)
Groom with all the groomsmen
Groom’s mom putting his boutonniere on
Groomsmen putting on boutonnieres, ties, and jackets
First look or touch picture with bride and groom
Bride with the flower girl
Groom with the ring bearer
The Ceremony
The ceremony space before anyone enters
Guests arriving and finding their seats
The altar before anyone is standing there
Groom waiting to walk down the aisle
Close-up of groom waiting for bride at the altar
Processional pictures of the bridal party, family members, and kiddos walking down the aisle
Wedding party waiting at the altar
Bride and escort before walking down the aisle
Bride and escort walking down the aisle
Groom’s face as he sees the bride at the end of the aisle
Bride and groom at the altar
Altar from the back during ceremony
Wide shot of audience during ceremony, from bride and groom's point of view
Close-ups of the bride and groom while exchanging vows
Close-ups of bride's and groom's hands when they exchange rings
The kiss (Pro-tip: make sure your officiant knows to move to the side so they aren’t in this shot!)
Bride and groom recessing up the aisle, guests' smiling in the background
Group shot with all guests still in seats once bride and groom get to the end of the aisle
Bride and groom outside ceremony site
Celebration shots: the bride and groom hugging, laughing, and crying with good friends and family immediately following the ceremony
Bride, groom, officiant, and witnesses signing the marriage license
Cocktail hour (OR before the ceremony if you are doing a first look and have extra time)
Bride and groom together (Pro-tip: don’t spend too much time at this point on just you two! Save some of these for sunset!)
Bride with her parents and/or stepparents
Bride & groom with the bride’s entire immediate family
Groom with his parents and/or stepparents
Bride and groom with the groom’s entire immediate family
Bride and groom with all parents
Bride and groom with immediate family members from both sides
Bride and groom with groomsmen (serious and playful pictures)
Bride and groom with bridesmaids (serious and playful pictures)
Bride and bridesmaids holding their bouquets together
Bride and groom with whole wedding party (serious and playful pictures)
Guests enjoying amenities at cocktail hour (i.e. appetizers, drinks, games, etc.)
Bride’s and groom’s rings together
The Reception
Shot from outside reception venue
Empty reception room once all details are finished before guests enter
Reception design details such as welcome sign, place cards, seating chart, guest book, centerpieces, sweetheart table, decorations, place settings, guests favors, champagne glasses, the bar, buffet being set up
Guests taking their seats
Bride and groom arriving at reception venue
Grand entrance
Bride and groom at the sweetheart table
Parents' table
Guests' tables
Sunset/golden hour pictures with bride and groom (typically start about 15 mins prior to true sunset and lasts 15 minutes after)
Close-up of friends and family making toasts
Bride and groom listening, laughing, and crying during toasts
Bride and groom visiting with the guests while everyone is seated for dinner (table pictures)
Bride and groom's first dance
Parents dancing
Bride and Dad dancing
Groom and Mom dancing
Wedding party dancing
Grandparents dancing
Kids playing and dancing
Vendors making everything perfect behind the scenes
Guests getting it on the dance floor
Cake and/or dessert table
Bride and groom cutting the cake
Bride and groom feeding each other cake
Bouquet toss
Retrieving, tossing, and catching of the garter
Picture with the bouquet and garter catchers
Bride and groom dancing with the guests
Grand exit