It’s a minefield right, this choosing a wedding photographer malarkey, as lasting memories are important; it’s what remains long after the day has passed. It must blow your minds when setting out upon the wedding planning journey with all the bridal mags and online wedding blogs throwing ideas at you, Pinterest boards with so many amazing ideas, Instagram full of amazing imagery, wedding shows and wedding suppliers all shouting out, “book me book me, we’re better than the others!”… it must seem daunting!
A wedding day is a rather important day in a couple’s lives, so who does one entrust to capture these once in a lifetime memories? To some, this is a hefty decision, some don’t care and others will have been guests at a wedding where the photographer was amazing and that is the one they choose also.
T’will sounds obvious to some, but that first task is to create a shortlist of photographers whose work you really dig, a portfolio of work that resonates with how you imagine your wedding will look- the feel of how you want it to be, if you like. Instagram/Google/Facebook/Pinterest et al have given us wonderful tools with which to scour the internet at ease finding scores of suppliers. Of course, the downside of this is your choices are huge, the upside is short-listing being far easier with information and pictures abundant. So having narrowed down to a smaller list, you can then get in contact to find out what options are offered and arrange to meet up to chat further about your ideas and how they can be worked into your wedding day and also ask advice on aspects you are unsure of possibly.
I always recommend meeting face-to-face with your shortlist of photographers (or at least arrange a video call if you live a distance away) as this is by far the best way to gauge if you like/trust the person/business and the products they offer. You can also talk more about your day and what you’re after/chat ideas easier than one can at a wedding show or via email/phone etc. Most wedding photographers I know have wedding albums and wall art on display that couples can browse through and I always love sitting down with a couple to hear their ideas and to chat about their upcoming wedding day, get to know them, what their interests are and they often walk away with new ideas after chatting and browsing.
So who is right for you? This is a subjective matter as everyones tastes, styles and requirements vary. I’m extremely passionate about creating memories for our discerning clientele and constantly pushing forward, improving both creatively and technically. There are huge swaths of wedding photographers who see weddings as easy money, rock up with camera on auto, go through the motions and simply burn the results to a USB and chuck it in the post and move onto the next one- no passion, no desire to create lasting memories, to be as creative as they can, to keep learning… blah blah etc. etc. right? And this is fine, there are couples out there who are happy with using their guests ‘phone pics, and I’m down with that; if photography/lasting memories really isn’t your bag, then save the ££’s to put toward something that is high up your priority list.
But I’m proud to be a part of a smaller demographic of creative wedding photographers striving to improve ourselves and the journey we take with each couple we have the honour to share days with. We, personally, only work with a small number of couple’s each year as in the past we’ve shot as many as we could and have burned out toward the end of a wedding season and client service has suffered, which frankly is just not on! We concentrate on the quality and don’t aim for quantity.
So ask us photography professionals, talk to us, chat about your ideas with us, we’re the ones who go to weddings all the time, we have insider information and answers to questions you may not have even realised you needed answers to! Personally, I have been in the creative wedding industry for 30 years with the past 20 years being a successful award-winning wedding photographer, and have had the privilege of shooting way more weddings than I can remember in all sorts of conditions and places, so I reckon I’ll have an answer to most (I’ll be brave and say any!) related questions you may have, and others will have different experiences they can draw upon.
As I mentioned above, it is always more beneficial to talk face-to-face and ask questions and there’s nothing like sitting down together to talk over ideas you have, even chatting briefly at a wedding show puts you one step ahead than those who book after an email or two.
I am truly passionate about creating life-long memories for our clients and constantly strive to push our wedding photography and client service onward and upward and I’m looking forward to meeting new couples at the upcoming London Olympia National Wedding Show in February- hundreds of excited couples over the two day show to listen to and help/advise, it’s going to be a fantastic weekend, so book your tickets and come along for the journey.
Meet SUCH Photography at The National Wedding Show Olympia at stand B30.
