Written by Andrea. Published on Nov 4th 2009.
Your photographer is probably the most important appointment of all your suppliers. The flowers will fade, the food will be eaten but when it's all done and dusted your wedding photographs is what will keep you warm on the cold winter nights, that and your new spouse of course. There is nothing worse that being disappointed in the photographs from your big day so research and patience when finding your photographer is crucial.
There are a few styles of photography to choose from so firstly you should decide what suits you and your wedding best. You can opt for the formal portraiture style where most photos are posed and elegant or you can have a more relaxed reportage format where the photos are spontaneous and result in a documentary style. There are no hard and fast rules so you could always have a little of both mixing some elegant posed shots with some unprompted relaxed ones taken throughout the day giving a beautiful representation of your day.
This being said the spontaneity of reportage photography can end up with random badly placed photos therefore finding a good photographer who understands the framing required for this style is imperative.
With digital entry level cameras coming down in price and with the chances that almost all your guest will come armed with a camera there is a real temptation to forgo the use of a professional photographer. In my opinion this would be a real mismanagement of your budget as the standards of a professional is well worth paying for. There is no way your guests or even nominated friend will capture your day in the same way. Your professional will know how to get the best from your guests, know when to back off, know where and how to get best use out of the lighting in your venue and above all will have a wealth of experience to get all the shots you want. So resist your best friend's sisters boyfriends uncle who takes really good photographs of his dog as no matter how generous the offer is chances are the standard won't be as high as you should expect for your wedding.
Finding your photographer can be a daunting process and if you haven't had a recommendation or have your ideal candidate in mind then you need to start looking. Visit wedding fayres, check our your local wedding magazines for your county/area, ask other brides (check out the forums on here for advice) and try to get a recommendation from someone who has used a good photographer in your area. Failing that you do the groundwork and start searching online to find one with a style that you like. Most professional photographer will have a website with a gallery of wedding photos for you to go through so find one you like and take it from there.
Once you have narrowed it down to a few photographers your next step is contact so give them a call and see how you feel about them. You'll probably know within the first few minutes whether you click with that person and whether you think you'll get on. Set up a meeting where you can see their portfolio of wedding photographs and make sure you see a whole wedding rather than the few good shots from each individual wedding. There are a load of questions you should be asking your prospective photographer but in the end it's all about the images so take your time and don't be scared to ask to see more than one wedding. Be sure the photographs capture the mood of the day as well as have great shots of all the important family members and friends. Be sure that each album you see has a different feel for it as if they are all the same you might be up against a photographer who has a few signature shots that he gets rather than understand the individual couple and what their style is. You want your photographer to see you as a unique couple rather than just another wedding.
Above all else you need to make sure you are comfortable with your photographer. There is no point in booking someone who takes really great shots but you won't feel comfortable being yourself in front of for the most part of the day. You will need to pose in front of them, possibly let them shoot the pre wedding preparations and then later taking romantic intimate shots so you want to make sure you will be relaxed in their presence. A good photographer will take you through this and put you at ease and enable you to be yourself around him/her as this is also part of their job.
So you've selected your wedding photographer what do you do now? You need to establish with him/her/the company exactly what you require on the day and should be asking questions such as these...
Once you've established all of the above and are happy you should secure the booking with a deposit although don't pay anything else until you have everything documented in writing.
The lead up to your wedding can be a stressful time but a meeting with your photographer will help alleviate any worries you have regarding that aspect so try to organise that a week or two before the day. This should be the time to discuss the finer details such as arrival times, what shots you want included and maybe even provide him/her/them with a detailed list to ensure that nothing gets forgotten on the day.
Things to remember on the big day with regards to photographs...
Above all the most important thing you can do to make sure you get the best from your wedding photography is to be in love. A couple in love just after they get married is the easiest thing to photograph and I doubt that will be hard to capture.
