How to Choose a Wedding Photographer (That Doesn’t Suck)
Ok. I jest. I don’t think you’ll choose a wedding photographer that sucks without my help. However, I’d love to give you some tips to help you make that ever important decision of how to choose a wedding photographer. Second only to whom you choose to marry!
It’s all about finding the right style, asking the right questions, and reading the reviews. You want to like the photographer as well as their photos. (Check out our last post on questions to ask a wedding photographer.)
Chances are you can narrow your selection to a handful of photographers based on their websites. You can get a feel for their work and some ballpark pricing to make sure they fit into your budget. Once you confirm that you like the result, it’s time to compare and contrast the people behind the camera.
There might be nitty gritty details that matter to you such as exactly how many photos you get. However, it’s important not to get bogged down in the details and miss the big picture. You might think that a photographer offers the best package at the best price with the most photos and then later realize you would prefer quality over quantity.
Do you want a 14 hour package with an average photographer or an 8 hour wedding package with the best photographer? But what does best actually mean? Here are our tips for how to pick a wedding photographer.
how to choose a wedding photographer
- find the right style
- ask the right questions
- read the reviews
Let’s break down these three topics in order to help you discover what photographer is right for you. It’s about both the photographer and the photography. It’s about the style and experience. And most importantly it’s about you and your love.
find the right style
The first thing you’re probably going to do when you begin your wedding photography search is search. Google, other search engines, and wedding specific websites are likely the most common sources. I’ll also mention asking your married friends for suggestions too, just because there’s nothing better than someone you trust giving you a recommendation (more on this below.)
Looking at portfolios, instagram feeds, and other examples of a photographers work can give you a good idea whether you like their style or not. You might be interested in understanding more about wedding photography styles to help you dissect what is different about what you’re seeing. The style of photos can impact the experience of the wedding day.
Therefore, when you’re looking at style you’re looking at the style of photos as well as the style of shooting. Photographers have different ways of approaching a wedding day from hands on to hands off and everything in between. Find what the right fit for your personality and preference is.
ask the right questions
Choosing a wedding photographer comes down to asking the right questions. I’m talking about the questions you ask yourself and the questions you ask your photographer. I’m talking about knowing what’s right in order to be able to choose what’s right.
Ask yourself what your priorities for your wedding are. And then ask yourself what your priorities for your wedding photos are. Keep those answers in mind as you start to investigate your options.
First, let’s talk about asking yourself the right questions. What do you care about when it comes to photography? What type of person would make you feel comfortable when you’re having your photo taken or during a vulnerable moment on your wedding day?
Essentially, good questions will help you understand what you reahttps://www.bergreenphotography.com/questions-to-ask-a-wedding-photographerlly want out of wedding photography. When you picture the walls in your house, what kind of wedding photos do you want to hang? When you imagine sharing your wedding album with your kids, what’s the story you want to tell.
Next, head on over to this post on questions to ask a wedding photographer that are actually helpful. I talk about a few main things. Most importantly you want to get to know your photographer and what you’re getting from them.
These are the most important things. It can be easy to get bogged down in the details, wedding planning can get crazy. However, one of my main planning philosophies is to keep everything simple by focusing on what is most important to you.
read the reviews
If you were buying something on amazon, how do you make your decision? What about booking a place on airbnb? Do you trust the pictures or do you read the reviews?
We think our couples are amazing. (Note: you want photographers who think their clients are amazing.) And we get giddy when our couples feel the same way about us. (Note: you want photographers who have clients that think they are amazing!)
There are several places to read reviews about wedding photographers so feel free to just pick one. Google, yelp, wedding wire, and the knot are all options where you can read unedited reviews. A lot of photographers put reviews on their website too.
They might be edited but might also give you an idea of what is important to your photographer. Here’s why our couples think we’re the best colorado wedding photographers!
If you found the photographer on a venue preferred vendor list you could also go one step further and ask what the venue likes about the photographer. Sometimes it is helpful to know what you’re looking for before reading reviews. Maybe you’re interested in the value or the experience or how the photos turned out.
Perhaps you found the photographer because one of your friends used them. Ask that friend about the experience, the products, and have a gander at their photos. This is valuable insider knowledge!
conclusion
In conclusion, as usual, I like to keep things simple. Rather than giving you 102.1 things to consider regarding how to pick a wedding photographer I boiled it down to three main things to do.
- Find a style that looks and feels like a good fit.
- Ask the right questions to make sure you’re getting what you want.
- And read the reviews to get an idea of the result.
Wedding photography is the one thing that you’ll have after the wedding day. That’s why I encourage you to utilize reviews to analyze results after perusing websites to find the right style.
Hope you enjoyed this post on how to choose a wedding photographer. Hop back to our last post on questions to ask a wedding photographer or read more about how to find wedding vendors that fit your style. After that it might be helpful to getting started on understanding wedding photography styles.
And more importantly, I hope they actually help you make a decision and plan a wedding. Stay tuned for more tips on wedding photography! In the meantime, you can view more of our current and most popular wedding planning advice. If there’s a question we can answer, reach out.
We don’t just want to be there for you on your wedding day, we want to be there for you as you plan and prepare. And we want to be there when you celebrate your 10 year anniversary! If you’re a photographer we offer planning tips like these on marketing.
FREE comprehensive e-guide: Prioritize your planning so your wedding is a memorable adventure.
We are Marc and Brenda Bergreen, a husband and wife photography team specializing in mountain wedding photography and other adventures. Capturing people in nature and the mountain lifestyle is a passion that became a dream that became a life. Our philosophy, love. adventurously. is the guidepost for everything we do. Let us help you make your wedding an adventure! It would be an honor to capture your love.
Based in Evergreen, CO we travel throughout the state as Colorado adventure wedding photographers. We also frequently travel to California and other wedding destinations to document love and adventure in a variety of memorable settings. Don’t hesitate to contact us and let us know how we can help! Be sure to follow us (weddings instagram & adventures instagram) and/or like us (facebook) to stay tuned.
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