How To Select The Right Photographer For Your Wedding

“If there is one thing I’ve heard a hundred times is… I wish we would have spent the extra money for a better photographer!”

Some information you DON’T want to miss!

What most people don’t realize is that there is a difference in pricing between photographers usually because of their skill level or the niche that they are in. There is the old adage of, “You get what you pay for”. So if you want to skimp, be careful. But if you want to splurge, you must be careful as well. You don’t want to get ripped off either.

You are about to make a substantial investment in a project that may have a tremendous impact on your final wedding album. Please take a few minutes to read through this informative report on selecting the right photographer, I guarantee that it will save you time and help you make the best possible choice for you and your significant other.

Why trust my advice

By helping you really find the right photographer, I hope that you will make a decision based on quality and value instead of just price, and that even if you don't select us, you will hire a professional and remember us for your future photographic needs.

PART ONE - FINDING A QUALIFIED PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER

Photographers are not commodities

While you may be able to buy beef futures, every restaurant will prepare the dish differently, and it would make little sense to compare a fast food restaurant to a five star steakhouse. In the same way, photographers are not interchangeable. Our technical approaches, visual styles, areas of expertise, and even our ways of doing business are highly individual. You need to take a lot more than price into account when choosing the person who will create the visual representation of your special day.

Consistency is King

Every photographer has at least a few strong images, and only shows his or her best work in their portfolio. As a result, it is essential to limit yourself to photographers who are consistently showing work of the quality and caliber that you want for your project. Choosing a photographer who has a limited number of strong images on their site, and hoping that you will be fortunate enough to get images of that quality for your project, is likely to leave you with results that you will not be satisfied with. Their portfolio represents their best of their best - so if you don't see quality and consistency there, you won't see it in your images either. Consider only photographers whose portfolios are consistently of the quality you desire, or preferably above it.

Photographers specialize

Photography is a broad description of a number of highly specialized fields. The specific capability to shoot your project should be evident from the photographer's website or portfolio. It is essential to find a photographer with a sizable body of work that is, as close to the type of photos you need as possible.

You know quality when you see it

Many people can’t tell what the specific differences are between a professional and an amateur photograph, but they can still distinguish the two. Simply put, you recognize good photography on an intuitive level. Even when you can’t put your finger on the distinctions, when you examine at the work of two photographers side by side, the differences will be apparent based on your feelings about the work. Your clients will associate the quality of your imagery with the quality of your product or service.

The Devil is in the Details

After you’ve narrowed down your choices to those photographer’s who’s images feel highly professional, spend some time really looking at their individual images. Are there distracting objects in the shot? Does the sun wash out a part of the scene? Are there distracting backgrounds, or other elements in the photo? Do you believe what you are looking at? Take a long, critical look at the photographer’s work.

You can't copy vision

Every photographer has his or her own range of visual style. Always find a photographer whose style and look are right for your needs. It is rarely a good idea to show the work of one photographer to another and ask them to emulate that style, especially if they shoot in a very different way. If you need to hire different photographers to create imagery that will work together, then look for photographers who already have similar styles. If you can't find work on a photographer's site that is representative of what you need, they are very likely not the right photographer for that project. Find a photographer who already has the "look" you want for your project.

PART TWO - COMPARING VALUE

Pick up the phone

After you've located a number of professional photographers who you feel may be right for your project, it's time to speak with them personally. While email may be a useful introduction, actually talking to them is the best way to get a feel for who you will be doing business with. When you call, the more you know about what you want, the better the information you will get. Speak with the photographer personally.

Hire a business, not a freelancer

A professional photographer will distinguish themselves in a number of ways. They will have a business license. They will have a list of clients and will answer their phone like a business. They will have a substantial professional insurance policy with a minimum of one million dollars in professional liability and be able to provide you a certificate with your name on it at your request (although there is usually a small cost for this service). They will have a team that can include assistants, graphic artist, (digital retouchers), and most other services that your project may need. Make sure you are hiring an experienced professional.

Proposals

For more complicated projects, it can take a respectable amount of time to put together an estimate. The professional standard is to begin by getting proposals from the three photographers you think are best suited to work with you. This will also help you determine if the project needs to be adjusted to better meet your needs or budget. By considering only your top choices, you will put yourself in a far better place to have a successful shoot. Narrow your field to three.

Quality and quantity

Good photography usually takes more time than you expect. The reason that professional images feel and look so different from the work of non-professionals usually has to do with the time taken to set up and refine each image. Questions such as "how many shots can you do in a day?" generally need a great deal of clarification. Some images simply take more time to create than others.

The more time allocated to invest in each image, the greater quality the photo, especially if you are looking for fine art photography. It is usually very helpful to establish the level of quality you are looking for and the use to which the images will be put. Showing the photographer samples that represent the quality you are willing to invest in from either that photographer's site, or from another site, is an outstanding way to help them put a proposal together. Establish the level of quality you want for your project.

The shot list

If you know what style you want, you can make up a list of shots with as much detail as possible. If budget is a concern, limiting that list and keeping the images simple will generally do a great deal to keep your costs down. On occasion, I've been presented with a long list of images and told that "this should take a day", when it may actually take three to do well. Just because you have a budget and a wish list, doesn't mean that it is possible to deliver the imagery at an acceptable quality at any particular budget.

Start out by calling the photographer on your list that is your first choice. Chances are that they'll have a lot of questions for you, and can help you establish how much time will be involved, what issues you may still need answers to, and will be able to help you better refine your project. Sometimes, when you don't know all of the details, it helps to define all of your parameters (even if some may change) so that you can compare the responses of the photographers you are considering.

When you don’t know what you want

I often field calls that begin with phrases like "I love your work, and I'd like to find out about having you shoot for our wedding". These calls have led to some outstanding projects. However, in almost all of these cases, the client was wiling to share a budget with me, and knew what they liked about my photography. After some discussion we can figure out what style they like and get a better idea of how in depth the photography needs to be.

You get what you pay for

The photographer who seems perfect but charges far less than his competitors usually does so with good reason. Whether it is because they haven't been working, because their portfolio isn't representative of what they can do with consistency, or because they don't know how to professionally bid your project, there is often a good chance that the result will be appropriate to the cost. Beware the lowballer.

Get it in writing

A professional photographer will always be able to provide a professional estimate that details your project, the cost of the project, what is included in the bid, covers the usage, and requires your signature for copyright release. Without a written agreement, not only can the best meaning people easily find themselves with different expectations, but from a legal point of view no rights to use the images are granted to the client without a legal document. In my experience helping other photographers with difficulties they have had with clients, well over half of the time the issues stem from not taking the time to put the agreement in writing. Never do business without a clear, written agreement

Air One Custom Photography specializes in engagements and fine art weddings. View their work online or stop by the studio in downtown Valpo!