So you are a photographer and not just any type of photographer you are a wedding photographer. You’ve chosen a profession that will require many different skill sets, not the least of which is your ability to take a great picture. But there is a lot more to running a successful business than just having a service to offer. Many people have had a great idea or a special talent but have not been able to capitalize on that talent. This series of articles is intended to help you achieve your dream of working on your own, providing a unique service to deserving clients, and doing it all successfully.

The Real Cost of Wedding Photography Business

First and foremost let’s get the necessities out of the way. If you’re going into business as a wedding photographer there are certain things you are going to have to have at a minimum. Some photographers have done without some of the following items but to be honest I wouldn’t suggest it. These are just the basics to get you started. You can build up your equipment later on. Each of the following items is listed within its own article:

• website (with a secure gallery for customers) and email

• marketing plan

• photography equipment and home office

• a second photographer

• insurance, taxes, business license and bank accounts

What’s Not Listed

You’ll notice that I didn’t list photographic skill. When it comes to your skill as a wedding photographer I’m assuming you’ve already looked at your ability from an objective standpoint and determined that you do have something unique that others will want to pay for. If you have done this you’ll also want to make sure you can handle the responsibility associated with wedding photography. This is an extremely special day in a couple’s life so you have to be sure you are able to take on the immense responsibility of capturing every moment of that day. If you have both of those items then it’s on to looking at the other aspects that make up a business owner’s skill set, such as attention to detail, customer centric thinking, and patience.

The Devil’s in the Details

Details can make or break a wedding photography business. This is important to realize up front. If you don’t pay attention to those details you can easily falter. As a photographer you’ll need to pay attention to the details of the wedding. Equally important you’ll need to focus on the details of the business. These details include the wording on your wedding contract, the promises you make to your clients, your ability to keep track of the different weddings you might have at any given time. This leads us to the next important part, being customer centric.

The Customer’s Always Right

There is a reason that corporations spend so much money on figuring out ways to make customers happy, because it’s easier and cheaper to keep a customer than to get a new one. The same goes with the wedding photography biz. If you learn how to make your customers happy you’ll get repeat business, referrals, and a better reputation within your community. There is no secret to making your customers happy. Here are some simple things to remember:

• Always deliver what you promise – if you say it will take 2 months to edit their photos it shouldn’t take 2 and a half months

• Be quick about your replies – Wedding Photographers are notorious about not replying to emails and calls, set yourself apart by replying to all inquiries within 24 hours at the max

• Be courteous, friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful before, during, and after the wedding.

• Always keep in your thoughts that this is someone’s special day – When you have edited your 30th wedding and you are looking at your 600th picture in that wedding remember that while this is a job to you, its someone’s wedding day

• Don’t be on time, be early – Being early to meetings, weddings, and events will allow you to prepare yourself for those events. It also has the added benefit of making you look more professional

• Dress appropriately – Black or natural colors are always a good choice for photographers. Dressing business casual for most weddings will be sufficient but always check with the couple if in doubt. ***Remember, while you should look professional, you should also be comfortable***

Patience is a Virtue

Remember that your photographic skill didn’t happen spontaneously so don’t expect that your business will boom over night. It takes work to make a business successful and even given all of the right ingredients it still might fail. Even if it fails, learn from your mistakes, try again, and try and try and try. Never give up on something as important to you as pursuing your dream. If you have to work a day job during the week while getting your business of the ground then so be it. If you have to learn how to design websites just to put up your own website, so be it. If you have to shoot weddings for free to build up a portfolio then so be it. Just don’t give up.

How do I know all of this?

I’m the owner of a Pensacola wedding photography business. I have built my business from the ground up with no help from anyone else. I started by shooting weddings for free for friends and family members. My first cameras were consumer grade digital Rebels. I’ve upgraded everything along the way as I could afford it. I trained with a local wedding photographer and have always been into photography, web design and marketing. With these talents I created a solid business that exceeds my customers’ expectations, stays profitable, and allows me to live comfortably based only my own skills. I’ve had failures along the way but have learned from them and have become one of the top Pensacola wedding photographers.

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We will look into the style of wedding photography, what you like and how you have to see examples, how the price should never be your main deciding factor of wedding photographer and we’ll go into photographer insurances.

A simple search for “wedding photographer” or “wedding photography” on the internet will bring you millions of pages of results for you to sift through. So how do you start? By making your search more specific. You can turn your search “local” by including your city/town, You can turn your search to “style” with words like classic, wedding photojournalism, contemporary, this works great if you already know your style of choice. Word of mouth from friends, family and co-workers can be really useful. If they can give you a good recommendation of a wedding photographer they have used then check out the website. See if you like their work.

With the internet, most photographers have a website, visit it and look around. Seeing their work is a must. Every wedding photographer has their own style and their own artistic talent, but if at this stage you don’t like the style of photography, or if you don’t like the post processing of the wedding photo’s then you will most likely not like the photographs of your wedding day. This has to be a more important factor than the price.

A lot of people spend a lot of money on their wedding day. The only thing that you really keep are the memories. If you are on a budget, why not go for a non-album package now and get your photographer to design your album in a year. This way you will get better wedding photography now and get the album later.

Make sure your wedding photographer is fully insured. A number of things can go wrong on the day, and not always the photographers fault. He may be ill, memory cards can frazzle, he could knock someone over in his car: many things can happen, but if your wedding photographer is fully insured for public liability and for professional Indemnity then any problems can be sorted out. This can include scenarios like flying everyone back to the wedding location in order to get the group photograph taken again.

Now you have some more information on How to Choose the Right Wedding Photographer For You. Get the style you like first, if you’re on a budget then pay more on the photography, the album can wait and just ask what insurance they have and I am confident that your wedding photography will be to your liking.

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The wedding dress, ceremony, reception and cake will all be major features of your wedding. But, just as important are your wedding photos, for these will be viewed time and again by yourself, friends and family for years – if not generations – to come, bringing back sweet memories of events on your special day.

It’s true that high end wedding photography can be a large expense, but you’ll find professional photographers to fit all budgets, and beautiful wedding shots certainly are a way of ensuring that the magic of your special day lives on for years and generations to come.

So, get busy contacting local professional photographers for free quotes. It’s more than likely they’ll offer a variety of packages to suit all pockets. For example, a budget package might include attendance at the actual ceremony, resulting in a limited number of photos displayed in a traditional matted album.

If you’re after more than just the basics but still don’t want to spend a fortune, plump for a mid-priced package, which should include longer photographic attendance at your wedding, more photos, displayed in a better quality album, plus a few additional extras, such as an online gallery.

Perhaps you can afford a no-expenses-spared wedding? In that case, you’d be wise to invest in quality, upper price range wedding photography. With this, you’ll get top quality products and advice, plenty of photos in a handmade, custom-designed album, along with a variety of additional products.

But, what if you’ve overspent on your dress or cake, or don’t have a lot of money left over for wedding photography? What can you do to ensure your reduced budget doesn’t compromise the overall quality of your wedding pictures?

First of all, remember not to wear yourself out too much whilst planning your wedding, so that you’re fresh to really enjoy yourself once your special day arrives. This way, you’re pictures are sure to come out better – whether taken by a family friend or by a professional photographer.

Secondly, use pictures to create more pictures. A recent trend in weddings is to create slideshows of special or embarrassing photographs of the bride and groom, especially during their childhood days.

Another way of saving on wedding photography is to let your guests take pictures. Leave a cheap, disposable camera on each table, along with a note encouraging your guests to snap pictures of each other, the wedding reception, and so forth. These pictures could turn out to be some of your most interesting shots.

And, of course, you’ll also want to appoint a family member or friend to be in charge of the main wedding photos, taking more traditional shots.

While these wedding photography approaches will get you some unique photographs at an affordable price, they certainly won’t replace the amazing pictures produced by a professional photographer.

As outlined above, wedding photography doesn’t have to break the bank. Even if you’re on a budget, you can have your wedding documented with wonderful pictures. Remember, the cost is more than worth it. Your wedding and the magic created will live on for years.

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The first thing to learn is know your digital camera equipment inside out. Doing wedding photography requires perfection. It is a unique art which requires attention to detail. Always make sure your equipment is working, your digital camera, batteries, and light sources. It is common to have a second unit or even a third digital camera unit. It will save you from embarrassment if something happens to your first digital camera unit. A good photographer captures and create dream photographs. Something all couples desire on their most magical day of their lives. One must capture the love story of the wedding couple. Good wedding photography is focused on creativity and flexibility. There are no rules except to come with stunning beautiful pictures.

A good wedding photographer has to learn and master a few things to be able to capture good images, composition, lighting techniques, quality lenses, correct aperture, high quality memory cards, good digital camera and knowledge of a good lab to make the perfect prints. To perfect the craft of wedding photography one must learn the art of photography. If you learn the art it will help you succeed in your wedding photography business.

Create a good wedding album is the best testament that you have succeeded as a wedding photographer. It is what will make the wedding memorable to the couple and their parents. All photographs that the wedding photographer must include in the wedding album should be highly creative. As they say, a picture is worth a 1000 words. Not only should a wedding photo speak 1,000 words but captures the emotion and mood of all the people involved in the wedding and capture the ambiance of this once-in-a-lifetime-event. The wedding photos should be able to bring back all the memories of the wedding day. Everything about the wedding day will fade except the wedding pictures which brings back memories of the wedding day. That is the real purpose of a photo album. A good wedding photographer must capture different expressions and moods of the groom and bride. There are several money shots worth mentioning, like the bride getting ready, being made up, walking the aisle. For a groom his arrival at the wedding place, shots with his friends and family.

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Did You Clearly Define Your Wedding Photography Goals? Your wedding photographer needs to know exactly what you want and what will make you happy. That’s right, it’s important for you to clearly spell out what you want in your wedding photography. This is your dream wedding day and you need to make sure that the photographer knows exactly what you want. Are you interested in tons of formals or are you more interested in creative bridal images? Do you want engagement pictures or do you just want to focus on your wedding images?

One of the best ways to show your wedding photographer what you want is by using examples. I know you’ve heard it before, but it’s true. A picture is worth a thousand words and surfing the web is free. Spend some time looking at wedding photography and decide on a style that you like. Once you find it, you can easily send the photographer an email with links to the images you want him to review. After that, make sure you explain why you like those particular images so the photographer can duplicate the style in your wedding photos.

Tell Your Wedding Photographer What You Expect. Does your wedding photographer know who you are? Obviously, you’re a client but does the photographer know the real you? If the photographer doesn’t really get to know you then how is he or she going to get unique images that represent your personality. The answer is actually simpler than you may believe. Tell the photographer about your basic information like, how you first met, how long you’ve been together, how your proposal occurred, and what do you like to do. Only by being completely honest and open with your wedding photographer, can you hope to get the type of images you’ve been dreaming of.

Create a Wedding Photography Checklist. To avoid any type of misunderstandings during your wedding photography, get together a list of “must have” photos. This is going to take some time on your part but it will definitely pay off when you see that you have all the images you wanted. If you ask your photographer, you’ll find that most already have a list and will be happy to give it to you. A common wedding photography list could include things like the bride and groom getting ready before the ceremony, the wedding cake, the details of the venue, the rings, signing the marriage license, the formals, etc. Remember, it’s up to you to make sure the photographer knows what shots you want and that list changes for them with each client.

Schedule Specific Blocks of Time for Specific Wedding Photos. Another common pitfall is to schedule a generic time slot for “wedding photos”. A better way to do the wedding schedule and prevent misunderstandings is to set aside specific blocks of time for specific groups. By tweaking your schedule you’ll be able to better manage your time and avoid having the entire wedding party or family hanging around for several hours. Your wedding photographer will thank you for being more organized and creating a schedule of what pictures will be taken and when.

When creating your wedding schedule, most people aren’t well versed in wedding photography timelines and don’t know how much time to put aside. As a general rule of thumb, you should probably allow about 1 ½ hours for the bride and groom alone, ½ hour for the wedding party, and about an hour for family portraits. Since your wedding pictures are the only tangible thing left after your wedding, it’s a great idea to leave your wedding photographer plenty of time to get all the shots you’ve been dreaming of and put down on your checklist. Don’t forget to give a copy of your schedule to the photographer, your wedding party and your family members.

Everyone has expectations and getting married is no different. The bride, groom, wedding planner, and the wedding photographer all have their own expectations to consider your event a success. The key is to get everyone on the same page and make sure that they know what you want, what you like and how to get it to you. Only by creating a trusting relationship with your wedding photographer and vendors can you get exactly what you want – great engagement pictures, great wedding pictures and a great wedding. Remember that like most relationships, communication is one of the key elements to success and getting the great wedding photos you’ve dreamed about. By using these wedding photography tips, you’ll likely avoid the 3 most common wedding photography pitfalls.

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Wedding photographers should always be ready and prepare for any unpredictable situation that may happen during and after a wedding ceremony. The ability to take great pictures in a wedding event day will depend largely on the experience and techniques you use when photographing a subject. Studying photography will greatly improve your photography skills but the way in which you capture those special moments of a particular wedding ceremony will be solely and completely be up to you.

When covering a wedding photography have the best digital photography camera you can afford. Buying the best quality digital camera can improve the image quality and the resolution of any image. The higher the resolution on your camera the better quality your image will be. Always take pictures that are well focus and have depth. The closer your subject is to your lens the less depth of field you will see on your images were as a subject far from your lens will have more depth of a field.

In conclusion wedding photography is a recording of memorable moments of events shared in a marriage ceremony. Good techniques plus experience combined with the right digital camera will produce great wedding pictures on any wedding photography Event.

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Recently, I was interviewed for an upcoming story by the Wall Street Journal.

The reporter was writing a story on current stock shots he’s been noticing in wedding photos lately, and was seeking expert opinions on the trend and whether I thought it would last.

He was getting two responses from photographers. One was from those who do those shots and thought they were “fun” and another from some of us (like me) who thought they were “contrived and cliched”.

Because… well, they are.

People in decades gone by similarly posed for v-e-r-y contrived photos, perhaps you’ve seen them in your parents’ album: the bridal couple sticking their heads into a limousine looking at the photographer; bride and groom standing by the cake smiling at the camera; the bride staring at her bouquet while the groom stands ten feet behind her, both of them softly focused, among others we look at as being outdated and perhaps enjoy a chuckle at their expense, thinking them “cheesy” today.

Likewise, in a few years, today’s trend becomes tomorrow’s cheese: the “bridal party jump into the air” shots, “standing solemnly staring off in different directions” and “close-up of the bottom of the feet” shots will be considered just as dated.

Why? Because they’re “cookie-cutter” shots. The essence of the cookie cutter shot is that it has nothing to do with the wedding at all; it’s all about the photographer pulling an irrelevant stock shot out of their bag o’ pictures. It reports nothing about you, says nothing about your day; it’s only about a gimmick. It’s no more a true wedding photograph than any other picture that’s more about the picture than the people in it.

Maybe this would be appropriate if your wedding itself was cookie-cutter, as it may be for some people, as their wedding day is but a mere mass-produced product; orchestrated and arranged as a canned, pre-packaged event. The wedding is not of the couple’s devising, it belongs to the deejay who decides to use the wedding to do his thing; to the venue manager who dictates how the wedding will unfold. The couple just follow along and do what they’re told.

You Are Not A Cookie-Cutter Bride & Groom

But that is not the wedding you’re planning. That is not you. Your wedding will not be about conforming to a mold or being subject to vendors’ agendas or constrained in any way to someone else’s notions of what your wedding day should be like.

Your wedding is likely to be more about the experience: being in the moment, living, laughing; deeply and warmly invested in a celebration of love with a gathering of your most intimate and closest friends and family.

As a photographer I can assure you there are excellent photo opportunities that arise from weddings like yours. These are your life’s privileged and sacred moments which are for only you to uniquely experience, different and distinctly separate from any other bride and from any other wedding.

To neglect that difference, to push it aside as if meaningless and negate it by substituting in cookie cutter shot photography; to document your wedding using stock shot routines, a list, a mere copy of routine shots from previously photographed weddings and to be photographed yet again in many weddings to come, is not only a disservice to you, but bordering on insulting, as it infers your genuine moments are not good enough.

Of course, it’s not meant as insulting by the common photographer whose work consists of those types of images; it’s just the by-product of being the common, ordinary kind of photographer.

That kind of common typical wedding photography is not what one should hire a true wedding photography professional to do, but the cookie cutter wedding crowd wouldn’t know that. It’s not part of their world.

You see, a cookie-cutter wedding is an ordinary wedding. Ordinary becomes forgettable as it blends in with everyone else’s wedding.

Correspondingly, cookie-cutter photography is ordinary (and forgettable), as it makes your pictures look just like everyone else’s pictures. And the cookie cutter couple only gets what everyone else gets and does what everyone else does.

This explains the popularity of the Chicken Dance…

But yours is a more couture wedding. A wedding with a difference. Distinct, not typical.

What then is the couture approach to wedding photography?

What is the standard for photography that should be applied to your wedding?

What Is Couture Photography?

Perhaps it’s expressed best by celebrity wedding photographer Charles Maring, “Luxury wedding photography… returns to a more nostalgic photojournalistic approach that will tell your inspirational wedding story from start to finish with plenty of style to capture your once-in-lifetime moments.”

Agreed. We think of the great, iconic images of weddings before us: Princess Grace of Monaco to Prince Rainier; JFK and Jackie Kennedy in Newport, Rhode Island; Princess Diana to the Prince of Wales in Saint Paul’s Cathedral, London. All these, among others, yielding classic images, rich in dimension, living on beyond their time. All of them photographed photojournalistically, as they happened, in documented, pure moments.

Not a one of them containing a single, cookie cutter shot.

Denis Reggie is the photographer who has championed “wedding photojournalism” in our time. American Photo magazine named him “one of the top ten photographers in the world”, His distinctive, spontaneous images have been featured on the cover of LIFE magazine, and named in “Photographs of the Year” by People, LIFE, Time, and Newsweek. He’s photographed Kennedy family weddings including those of Maria Shriver to Arnold Schwarzenegger, Caroline Kennedy to Edwin Schlossberg, and John Kennedy, Jr. to Carolyn Bessette, as well as the weddings of such well-known people as Mariah Carey, Alan Greenspan, Tom Clancy, Peter Jennings, and that of Maria Cuomo to Kenneth Cole. He strongly advocates a natural, editorial depiction of events.

“Knowing when to press the shutter button, comes from your life experience, your sensitivity, your soul. It’s difficult to quantify but the difference is clear. The quiet photographer is pensive and anticipating moments and sensing and feeling. The quiet photographer is the one who finds the interesting moments to document. In the quest of greatness in the capturing of images, the real challenge is to allow our souls and our personalities to come forth quietly and to tell us, to point us toward those moments that are interesting, beautiful, telling, the ones that will be profound in their impact on the viewer.”

This thinking is all foreign to the cookie cutter photographer. They only know the “hey sweetheart, hold his hand and look this way. Great! Smile! Say ‘Schnizzle’! 1, 2, 3…” routine, as they are of that school.

Thus, this photojournal mind-set is a primary ingredient in couture photography, along with talent, expertise, skill sets and several other behind-the-scenes attributes.

And what are those?

The Differences Between Cookie-Cutter vs. Couture Photography

…and what it means to you

The photographer’s ability to create beyond a well exposed image starts with a superior image based on years of experience working with light, its quantity and more importantly, its quality. The word “photography” itself is Greek, meaning “to write with light” – the use of light against shadow being fundamental to photography, yet the average photographer has little to no knowledge of it because they are not artisans of the craft but only camera technicians.

A high end photographer creates a masterful image because they understand light. They also know how to use their camera, lenses and other tools, fully as well as the camera technician if not more so, to master whatever situation they come upon. The photographic artist is paid less for their time and more for their talent, skill, experience and accumulated knowledge of their superior image making ability, as their entire life’s work comes down to the moment you hire them, and every experience and breath they took in between matters because it reflects in just what images they will create, according to what they know will photograph best and what moment will touch the heart of the viewer.

Couture professional photographers also have the ability to pay for superior processing of photographs, better equipment, offer luxury choices, be involved in ongoing photographic education and generally provide the best of everything to you simply because they can afford to; they work with clients who’s top priority is not about making the photography the least expenditure of the day, though very well understanding that everyone works with a budget regardless of their station in life, but more about making the photography the best experience possible along with obtaining the optimum results, as their fees are structured to free them from cutting corners on your wedding. Simply put, you most certainly do get what you pay for.

In a world of fast food photography, the couture photographer offers the premium, more desirable, gourmet.

The better photographer also takes care to surround themselves with the most talented, experienced Creatives in the process of rendering your assignment. This typically calls for higher remuneration as low wages does not attract nor keep the best people. This is why, typically, the average “wedding factory” photo studio churning out hundreds of weddings per year often can afford to hire only returning to work retirees or people just out of school, friends, relatives or other local neighborhood types, based on a criteria of paying a minimum wage, while the better talent seeks out a better working environment elsewhere. Their part-time weekend photographers can never ascend to full time perfecting of their skills.

The finer photographer views your wedding photography, not as pieces of 8×10 inch paper, so to speak, but as a lifetime investment that pays in emotional dividends for you because of the value of what is on that 8×10.

There’s an integrity to their product and service. They set high standards of excellence for themselves and thus raise the bar in their industry, while the common cookie-cutter photographer actually pulls industry standards downward to their “good enough”, mediocre level.

The couture photographer seeks to be the best. The cookie-cutter photographer strives for average.

The couture photographer does what is required to excite and thrill his client. The average photographer merely looks to “satisfy” their customer.

The better photographer recognizes that the professional should indeed satisfy their patrons, but that in fact, mere satisfaction is a given – not the goal.

I can’t stress that enough, so I’ll say it again: mere satisfaction is a given – not the goal

It is this particular mind set of the couture photographer that manifests itself in not settling for anything less than best and serves as an internal driving force for them to continually excel. Conversely, the typical photographer merely seeks to replicate what they’ve already done and was “good enough” before.

You can see how the better photographer is more aligned with a bride and groom who do not seek to be ordinary or look to achieve a mere satisfactory level in their wedding, nor wish to be xerox copies of other weddings, but rather, desire to create an experience that is both highly personal and very meaningful to them.

They seek to plan a wedding day that truly reflects their personalities, celebrates their uniqueness and incorporates their individuality.

Their wedding day is the ultimate design of their preferences, highly personalized, instead of a series of one-size-fits-all menu offerings from typical vendors. They have higher standards. They’re more discerning.

They seek a photographer on their level, as only that caliber of photographer is skilled enough to take on their assignment.

Unlike the cookie-cutter wedding, this is the type of couple that concern themselves with the above-mentioned “behind-the-scenes” attributes of the photographer when considering who to bring in to document their day, to assure that they will experience the outcome they expect, namely, that the photographer meets their higher standards.

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Outline the Day’s Details

Make sure that your wedding photography contract is very specific about the details of your wedding day. It should include the exact length of time that the photographer will be there, if the photographer is coming alone, has a second photographer coming with, or is bringing an assistant. Making sure that the hourly commitment is crystal clear in the contract will make sure you have your wedding photographer there to cover ALL of your memories, and not one minute less.

Right Place, Right Time

If you know where you are getting married at the time of booking with your wedding photographer, make sure to include the specific details of when and where inside the contract. This way, the wedding photographer is clear about what venue the ceremony is taking place at, where the location of the reception is, and any in-between pit stops there might be during your day. Are you getting married outside, in a church, at the courthouse, or in mom and dad’s back yard? Make sure the wedding photography contract has the details, including addresses, telephone numbers, and a possible contact name and number for someone coordinating at the venue.

What Your Wedding Photography Package Includes

If any place at all, this is the place within the wedding photography contract where there should be NO questions or confusion! Be sure that the contract states exactly what is included in your agreement. This includes the length of time the wedding photographer is committed to, the number of people the photographer is bringing, how many final wedding photos you are expected to receive, the length of time it will take for you to receive your wedding pictures, and your rights as the bride and groom to republish and distribute your wedding pictures. Will there be a photographer logo on every picture? If you do not wish to have one, make sure this agreement is in the contract.

When To Pull Out Your Pocketbook

Most wedding photographers have a specific timeline for when they expect payment for their services. Some require a 50% deposit and the rest upon the date of the event. Some wedding photographers want the full payment up front. Others may set up a payment plan with you. Be sure you are aware of specific payment due dates in your wedding photography contract. Read the fine print. Some wedding photographers may book someone else for your wedding date if you do not pay on time.

In addition, because a wedding photographer is committing an entire day to shooting your wedding and your events, the photographer and his or her assistants will need to be fed! Most wedding photography contracts include an agreement of what a photographer is fed at your wedding. In most cases, there is time allotted for the photographer and assistants to eat during the wedding reception. They need to keep their energy up to shoot the most quality wedding pictures possible!

Must-Have Wedding Photos

If there are specific shots you want during your wedding day, throw them into the contract so that there is no confusion or misstep. Many photographers will work with you before your day to add the photos you want to the master shot list. However, it is always a good idea to cover your tracks and put these into the wedding photography contract as well, making sure you get your favorite photos.

Cover Your Bases

Know what will happen in case your wedding photographer has an emergency or becomes ill the time of your wedding. Will he or she hire someone else to shoot? Will he or she come shoot your wedding anyway? Who will be there to capture your memories? The wedding photography contract should have a clause in it stating the alternatives in case an emergency should arise.

Think It Over

Spend time carefully reading the wedding photography contract, discussing it with your fiancé, and making sure that you understand and accept each and every bit of what is on that paper. This will give you the reassurance you deserve when booking your wedding photographer, knowing that this person will be there to catch every tear, every laugh, every hug, and every kiss of your wedding day.

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I think it is important when you are researching a professional wedding photographer to let your groom in on the experience. (Based upon the fact that he’s interested!) My fiancee happens to be a professional photographer so he has a vested interest in this part of the wedding.

Therefore, take a look at different photographers’ portfolios, ask your friends, relatives, your wedding event planner for references as well as research online at various wedding sites that offer suggestions and wedding photography tips when you are first selecting your photographer.

Next, go and interview your potential photographer like I did today (well, I didn’t really interview Michael since I have worked with him as a wedding event planner on other weddings)! It’s important that you and your fiancee are comfortable with your photographer so that you will look relaxed and happy in your pictures no matter what happens at the party.

Discuss with your professional wedding photographer what type of pictures you are looking for.

* Do you want wedding portraits or journalistic-styled pictures?

* Do you want black and white and color shots?

* What type of wedding photography package do they offer?

Prior to the meeting, you should create a wedding photography checklist to help you focus in on hiring the right type of photographer for you and your fiancee.

Other wedding photography tips to think about include providing the photographer with the name of your other vendors, such as the DJ, wedding event planner and florist since many times they work together at other weddings and will talk amongst themselves as to what important shots should be captured that day.

Also, very important, well in advance of your wedding, create a wedding photography checklist for your wedding day. Remember to include and write down which type of family shots you want and who you want in them, ceremony shots, bridal room shots, candid pictures during cocktails and the reception and party shots to name a few.

Keep in mind where you’re getting married (indoors or outdoors) as well as the time of day. You want to make sure that your photographer knows the people you want photographed by face and/or name so you might want to consider making a Facebook for your photographer. All of these elements are just the tip of the iceberg when you start to generate your checklist, and this is why you want to start early with your list and then continue to add to it up until your wedding day.

I hope you found these wedding photography tips helpful for when you start your selection of a professional wedding photographer. It is not only important to create a wedding photography checklist during the selection process but also one for the wedding itself. Until next time, remember the Budget Bash mantra: make it simple, delicious, stylish, fun & economical to all!

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You should plan to allocate a significant portion of your wedding budget to ensure photographs are perfect. Expect to spend at least $1000 on hiring a professional wedding photographer to document your event. Albums and prints are usually extra. Other extras that may increase your bottom line include additional hours, additional photographers, custom albums etc. etc. Add on too many extras, and your photography budget could quickly creep to $5000 and beyond!

Before you panic, remember that just like every other element in your wedding day, there are ways to save on wedding photography without sacrificing on quality. Save on wedding photography with these photography budget tips:

Cut the Extras

Purchase a basic wedding photography package from a skilled photographer. By paying for the photographer’s expertise only, you will ensure great images – and you’ll buy yourself some time to save up for the custom album and prints after the wedding.

Get the Proofs

To that end, try to find a photographer who will let you keep the proofs. Many photographers consider themselves to be photographers only – artists not in the business of selling photographs. After the big day, they’ll hand over your proofs and be on their way. They’re yours to keep – you can print them in any manner you please or save them for printing after you’ve saved up some cash.

Enter the Digital Age

Digital photography is usually less costly than film, and with technological advances in equipment – digital images are no longer a sacrifice in quality. Many photographers have taken the digital plunge – which can result in savings for you.

Cut the Timeline

The longer your event, the more it will cost to document it. Since photographers often charge based on the number of hours they will spend at your wedding, a shorter/smaller wedding celebration will yield big savings in your photography budget.

Do Your Research

This sounds like a given, but you will find that a number of photographers in your area offer similar skill levels and packages – yet varying prices. I’m not saying to go on price alone, but definitely take your time to shop around and REALLY compare what you are getting. Learn more about how to compare wedding photographer rates then determine the skill level, photography style and products that suit your needs, and shop for the wedding photographer who meets your requirements and budget.

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