15 Insightful Tips to Help You Choose a Wedding Photographer (from a Pro Photographer!)
Last Updated: February 15th, 2020
Once you have squared away your wedding date and venue, the next thing most couples start to look into is their wedding photographer.
The reason for this is so obvious – photographs make up the #1 tangible memory from a wedding day. Decades from now, you’ll be able to look back on your day and share them with your kids (and grandkids) – so having a wedding photographer you love is a really important thing.
Unlike a lot of posts on this topic you might find on wedding inspiration websites, we want to give you some tips for how to find your wedding photographer that come from our own personal experiences actually picking one for our wedding (a few years ago) and some insider tips that many couples don’t even think about as we are pro wedding photographers ourselves (we shoot weddings for a living!).
Ready?
Tip 1 – Lock in your wedding date & venue before contacting a wedding photographer
As wedding photographers, one of the hardest inquiries for us to respond to are those that are wanting to work with us, but haven’t even selected a venue and date yet. This is an easy mistake to make considering most people only go through the process of planning a wedding once.
We recommend solidifying your wedding date and location before reaching out to a potential wedding photographer, so they can quickly check if they will be available to work with you. Otherwise, their response will very likely be like our own – “Please check back once you’ve solidified your date and location!”
The only exception to this tip would be if you had your eyes set on a specific wedding photographer and wanted to make 100% sure you would be able to have their service. We’ve actually had a few clients reach out to us because they wanted to book our wedding photography service so badly that they wanted to be confident the date selection would work in our busy schedule.
Tip 2 – Think about plans for inclement weather before booking a venue
We recently heard from another wedding vendor a bit of wisdom he gives out to his clients – “make sure you love the backup plan in case of rain since there is always a chance you’ll be stuck with it.”
Having shot many weddings, we’ve seen our fair share of them get rained out. Beautifully planned outdoor events end up moved inside because Mother Nature had a different idea for the day. What do these indoor locations look like?
We’ve photographed at venues that had amazing alternative ceremony locations like a greenhouse. We’ve also been to others where the indoor option was a serious let down.
So – make sure you talk with the venue to make sure you understand the options for the day if a storm rolls in!
Tip 3 – Define your budget for wedding photography
Good wedding photography is not cheap.
In fact, we took a sample of 50 wedding photographers and found the average price is $3,239. You can easily end up spending this much (or more) on a wedding venue, videographer, and DJ respectively.
Taken in the context of how much people spend on a wedding on average (~$36,000 according to this source), a wedding photographer will cost roughly 10% of your total budget.
When it comes to budgeting for your wedding day, the best advice we can give you (as people who both work in the wedding industry AND have been married and gone through the process ourselves) is to spend the most money on the things you value the most.
Photography was high on our list personally because we valued having a great collection of images to serve as a memory of this HUGE day in our lives. It’s been a few years since we got married, and we still look back on them affectionately – sometimes even for things we wouldn’t have expected like actually good shots of family members now passed.
If photography isn’t as important to you, that’s cool. You can also find budget wedding photographers on the cheap – some who are just getting started in the industry as can be found through a platform like Thumbtack. The downside to these options is they will often be inexperienced and produce less quality products (but: it’s to be expected considering affordability).
Tip 4 – Use different methods to research wedding photographers
There are 5 different approaches you can use to find a wedding photographer that will work for you. These include:
- Ask friends and family for a recommendation
- Look through social media such as Instagram and Facebook
- Use established wedding vendor sites like The Knot and Wedding Wire
- Search Google for wedding photographers in your area (and modify searches based on your style like “bright & airy” or “dark & moody”)
- Ask other already booked vendors for their suggestions (ie: wedding venue may suggest certain photographers)
Being aware of and taking advantage of these different approaches to finding your wedding photographer will help you to find one that creates the best work for your vision. They may also lead you down a path to finding more up-and-coming wedding photographers that run “boutique” businesses – often times these are the most creative and compelling artists among us.
Tip 5 – Narrow down your selections and evaluate styles, cost, and more
When we were researching our own wedding photographer, we began by making a comprehensive list of everyone that we really liked (based on what we could find on them online). You may be able to weed out some options based on style, how they talk about themselves and their work, their pricing pages, and so on.
Ultimately – you will need to narrow down your list to a more reasonable size, so you can begin sending inquiries to see who is available for your date and to get more information.
Tip 6 – Send a personalized inquiry email for more information
As established wedding photographers with a reasonable level of success ourselves, and a consistent stream of inquiries, no emails get ignored quicker than those that were obviously being copy-and-pasted by a prospective client to a bunch of different photographers.
We understand that you, a person planning a wedding, may be stressed out and inundated with a lot of extra things to do along with working a job, taking care of your household, and so on – but nothing motivates us more to want to work with someone than hearing that they are excited to have found our work.
If you’re not one for writing novel length emails, then simply answer “why?” Why are you interested in finding out more about the wedding photography service of a particular person or company?
Here is an example inquiry that would make us feel really interested in working with you:
“Hi Jes & Chris. I stumbled on your wedding photography through Instagram while looking for photographers to shoot my wedding on November 1st, 2022. I really loved what I saw! I went and visited your website, and loved that you had your pricing information all laid out in addition to reading some more about you guys personally on your About page (I also love The Office!). I wanted to reach out and see if you were available for my wedding date at The Garden Inn in Philadelphia, PA. If so, I’d love to chat some more with you!”
See – this type of inquiry is relatively brief, but also shows that a person put some effort into reaching out. While most wedding photographers also run businesses, we are creatives at heart and, more than money, like being recognized for our artistic abilities (being honest here).
Oh – and an example of a bad inquiry:
“Hi. Are you available for my wedding day on November 1st, 2022? And do you offer discounts because it’s in the winter?”
We’ve received this type of inquiry in the past, and it screams to us that this person is price shopping with other photographers and not actually interested in our service. These inquiries either receive a generic follow up from us, or no follow up at all (depending on our mood on a given day).
Tip 7 – Be weary of “weird” pricing structures
The wedding industry in general is loaded with a lot of pitfalls where vendors try to maximize their earnings from every couple. While we have no issue with upsells and other sales tactics if everything is transparent and spelled out, the reality is many wedding photographers forgo transparency in an attempt to make a quick buck.
It’s because of this that we’ve laid out our own pricing in a very simple to understand way – including all total costs (including taxes) and identifying potential “extra” fees that may come up for travel and so on. Transparency has been the name of the game for us because we know what it’s like to be a customer here too – we want the numbers to be simple, not a hidden $500 fee as the wedding day gets closer.
While there are many business models in the wedding photography industry, one common one we consider particularly misleading is the “in person sales” (or IPS) model. Basically how this works is a photographer will offer their service at a “low” rate (let’s say $1,000 instead of $3,000 – so it looks like a steal). But! You end up only getting an online gallery of images from which you have to select and buy digital downloads (could be hundreds of dollars). IPS also involves a requirement to meet after your wedding day to review albums, prints, and other physical purchase options – with some photo services over-charging for these types of things (thousands of dollars for an album is not unheard of even when the manufacturing costs are relatively low).
We suggest using common sense – if you aren’t understanding the pricing or what is actually included, and can’t get a straight answer, it’s best to stay away.
Tip 8 – Ask questions before booking
There is nothing wrong with asking questions about the service you are considering investing in.
In fact, it should be encouraged!
In the past, we’ve managed to book $4,000+ dollar wedding packages with nothing more than 2-3 email exchanges. It’s an incredible feat as a business owner to feel trusted enough to enable people to do this, but we know for ourselves personally that is something we could never do.
We are not suggesting to ask questions just for the sake of asking questions, but if there is something you genuinely want to know, then ask!
A few great questions to ask your potential wedding photographer:
- How would you describe your photography style?
- What makes you different than other wedding photographers out there?
- How long does it take to get the photos after our wedding?
- Do you require a deposit?
Tip 9 – Make sure your personality jives with the photographers
While most wedding vendors will just show up, “do their jobs”, and basically be forgotten – wedding photographers have a much more intimate role in your big day.
For many, you will have already established a relationship thanks to meeting before hand and even shooting engagement photos together.
In reality, wedding photographers are often with a couple from the start of their wedding day to the final goodbyes at the end of the night. During the prep, we sometimes see people just as they start their day getting dressed. We get exposed to your family & friends really closely – and (personally) tend to make sure the parents are getting a few photos they want to see on the mantle. Once, grandma fell on the dance floor and we just had to spring into action to make sure she was okay. Not to mention – wedding photographers are literally your personal paparazzi for the day.
We say all of this because wedding photography is a lot of fun if you are working with someone you like being around. You need to be confident your personalities will match up – and you do this by simply talking, meeting, and working together before the biggest day of your life.
Tip 10 – Know what’s expected of YOU!
So here is the kicker about wedding photography – it is a two way street!
One thing we’ve learned over the past few years of working as career wedding photographers is that the couples who put in some effort tend to get the best results. It’s not to say that we can’t produce good work no matter what – but getting timely responses to the things we need from our clients helps us to help them in ways they don’t even realize.
When it comes to setting expectations of what is needed from our clients, we try to discuss these things as openly as possible (usually at our first consultation meeting). We make it known that we need timely responses to emails, need a questionnaire filled out a month before the wedding, and need to receive confirmation from the couple that their wedding photo timeline works for them. Our own expectations are actually pretty minimal, but the things we do expect – we really need to operate at our best.
Tip 11 – Realize wedding photography requires some effort from you, too!
Just to make this crystal clear – while you may be paying a wedding photographer good money to shoot your wedding, it’s not like buying a kitchen appliance.
Creating beautiful couples photography and wedding images that tell a personal story requires that you (the client) are willing to be a little open in your life with your photographer. Even when standing in front of the camera, being willing to let yourself go and just exist with your partner is sometimes the most we’ll ask from people – but it does translate into far better images.
Note: Great wedding photographers have ways to help make you comfortable, too. We often tell our anxious couples that the first 5 minutes are the toughest as you get used to standing in front of a camera (it can be awkward, we all know it!). Wedding photographers will often pull on posing prompts like these to help create less “posed” images and more authentic portraits. Of course, everyone has their own uniqueness they bring to the table to “get the shot” as well.
Tip 12 – Understand what you are buying
If you think that wedding photography services are just for “wedding photos”, think again!
Many wedding photographers put together package offerings that detail how many hours of wedding coverage you will receive, as well as extra add-ons such as an engagement shoot, print credit, albums, flash drive image delivery, online gallery image delivery, etc.
In some business models, all of these things will be available A La Carte – meaning you can choose what you want, and leave off the rest.
Ultimately – you want to be sure (before signing a contract) everything you are receiving for your money. You also want to be clear about things you are not getting.
Tip 13 – Know your photo rights
Photography, being a creative art form, is protected under copyright law in most parts of the world. Here in the US, our photographs are our end product – and using them in unintended ways could (potentially) get you in trouble.
Many wedding photographers provide images to you for personal use only. This means you could download images and refer to them 10 years from now as a keepsake memory. You could also post them up on your Facebook page to share with friends and family.
Generally, wedding photographers do not provide you images for commercial purposes (unless this has been pre-arranged and likely paid for). This would mean using images to promote a product or service. We didn’t think this would be something to consider as photography business owners until it was brought up by a client who also worked for a local jewelry shop that was interested in using a shot of her engagement ring in an ad. As you might imagine – that type of use of the image is very different than wanting to have photos to look back on in old age.
We have also seen some…interesting…wedding photography services that include more limited and complex rights.
For example, while researching wedding photographers for a family member recently, we came across one that provided images for personal use, but required you to purchase a print release if you wanted to order physical copies of the images from anywhere other than their online store. It’s not very common – but it is something to look out for.
Tip 14 – Put it in writing
Established wedding photographers should already be using contracts to cover themselves. But, more important for you is making sure everything you are spending your hard earned money on is being properly documented in a contractual agreement.
Generally, we would advise against doing business with any service provider (photographer or otherwise) that is unwilling to produce a contract that you can both sign for some peace of mind.
One thing we like to reiterate to our clients before we send them a contract is this: “Please be sure to read and understand the contract. If you have any questions, please ask before signing. We want you onboard 100% because you want to be, not because you feel like your being forced into it!”
For the photographers reading this – the best contract service we use is Honeybook. Be sure to read our in depth review if you want an easy solution for sending and signing contracts (+ a bunch of other great things!).
Tip 15 – Why is XXX’s photography service so expensive (or cheap)?
To our photographer audience on this site, we talk a lot about the importance of pricing their services so they can live and thrive.
In the wedding photography industry, the trend for most photographers who end up successful looks like this. They start off by offering a really cheap service, and gradually raise their price until they are making enough money to live. Eventually, with enough demand for their service, they can raise their prices to make even more money.
This is, frankly, how most businesses should operate – not just photographers or wedding industry specialists.
To summarize, photographers decide on their pricing based on things like…
- Their experience level
- Their reputation
- The quality of their portfolio
- How many bookings they need
- How much money they need to make to be content
- How much people will pay them
In this industry, it is generally the case (though not always) that more expensive wedding photographers produce more consistent results. Cheaper photographers may not be as experienced, may not be consistent, or are still in the process of defining their style and customer experience.
Conclusion
If you’ve stuck with us this far, you can tell that we are pretty chatty people, but it’s only because we have so much information we want to provide you with.
The easiest way to walk away happy with your wedding photographer (from your first inquiry to booking to gallery delivery after your wedding) is to make sure you are working with the right person.
Wedding days can be big expenses, and having a photographer for hire is no small part of this for many couples. But – the expense is worth it when you have amazing pictures to look back on again and again for the rest of your lifetime.
If you still need help finding the right wedding photographer for you, please drop us a line or leave a comment below.
You can also check out our photography brand website – Hand & Arrow Photography – to talk with us about shooting your wedding. We are located in Pennsylvania (USA), but regularly travel around the world!
