The 5 key factors to consider when picking a Wedding Photographer

Your Wedding Photography is one of the biggest investments of your Wedding! It’s important that you pick the right one for you and your big day. Wedding Photos last a lifetime and are often passed on from generation to generation. No one wants to have a wedding photography that they’re not 100% happy with.

But with so many Wedding Photographers out there, how do you pick the right one? Here are the top 5 things that you should consider when picking your Wedding Photographer:

The Person

This is arguably the most important factor when selecting your photographer. Your Wedding Photographer is going to be with you at every step of your big day, from getting ready, to your ceremony, to those all important couple and family portraits, all the way through to your reception. They’ll even be there before the wedding through pre-planning and after the wedding with delivering your final treasured photos and prints. The person behind the camera is just as important, as what comes out of the camera as they will massively impact the moments and emotions they’re able to capture for you.

Having someone that you feel comfortable with, that jells with you, your partner, your families and friends is going to make the world of difference to your final photos and to your wedding photography experience as a whole. The more relaxed you feel with your photographer, the better quality of photos you’re going to receive. Especially those all important couple portraits. It’s best to have a photographer that you feel is going to fit in well at your wedding and who’s presence is going to be a comfortable, positive and welcoming one to anyone they interact with. Make sure you spend some time getting to know your photographer and how good of a fit their personality is for you and your wedding as a whole.

Their Approach

Every Wedding Photographer will have their own approach to your wedding and it’s key to understand what your prospective photographers’ approaches are. There are some key ones that a lot of photographers use: Documentary or Reportage Photography involves your photographer acting very much like a fly on the wall, capturing natural and candid moments as they happen from a distance. Traditional Photography sees your photographer posing or staging some shots to create some of the more traditional imagery captured at Weddings. Contemporary Photography has roots in fashion photography, they will be heavily staged and directed, similar to a editorial photoshoot.

Finding out a bit more about what style and approach your photographer takes will be really helpful in working out if they’re the right one for you. Typically, most couples aren’t used to being photographed so closely for a long period of time, so having a photographer who’s approach helps to make you and your partner feel at ease in front of the camera is super important. It’s best to steer towards the approaches that make you feel comfortable, that you’ll feel happy to participate in, and that will achieve the photos you’re looking for.

Their Style

It’s important to look at the style of photos when deciding amongst your potentials photographers. As touched on in the Their Approach section, different styles will produce different wedding photography results. Documentary or Reportage style results in photos that are very candid and natural, and can feel like the photos captured the day exactly as it unfolded. Traditional photography produces traditional imagery and classic photos, ones that feel timeless and that you’ll be used to seeing online. Contemporary Photography creates highly creative and artistic photos, and have a strong high fashion and/or editorial feel to the images - something you’d see in a magazine.

Think about the types of results you want and assess which photographer will fit what you’re looking for. Take a deep dive through their portfolio and see how it feels. Would you be happy being delivered these types of photos? And can you see yourself comfortably being shot in this style? Not all photographers will have every wedding that they’ve shot in their website or public portfolio, so if you can’t see what you’re looking for, send your prospective photographers an enquiry and ask them to show you any particular styles you’re looking for.

Their Pricing & Policies

One of the key determining factors in many couples’ choice. Ultimately, your Wedding Photographer should fit within your budget - it’s important that your photographer is priced at a figure that is reasonable and affordable for you and your partner.

Make sure you bare in mind some of the key aspects that will affect the pricing of your prospective photographers. The style of photos will influence the price: if you’re looking for more contemporary and artistic photography then this is likely to come at a higher cost for example. The amount of hours will impact this too – some couples want the whole day photographed which will cost more and some couples choose to go for half day packages which will cost less. Certain elements of common Wedding Packages will also affect the pricing, such as having a 2nd Photographer, Photobooks and other print products, as well as your photographer having to travel outside of their base location to name some of the common ones.

Their policies surrounding cancellations, rescheduling and payment schedules is also an important one to take note of. Make sure you read your contract in full before signing and ask your photographer any questions before finalising your booking with them so you are fully clear on your ability to cancel, reschedule and your options for paying their fees.

Their Package Flexibility

Every Photographer works differently and therefore offers different packages. Some will have fixed packages, some will allow you to add on optional extras and some will even work on a completely customized package basis for each client. As Wedding Photography is one of the biggest investments you’ll make for your Wedding Day, you really want to make sure they can provide you with everything that you need. If you have a prospective photographer that you like but their packages don’t include everything that you’re looking for, ask them! See if they are able to add things for you so you’re getting everything you desire for your big day.

It's best to take a bit of time really nailing down everything that you’d like for your Wedding Photography, focusing on your essentials and necessities, and then identifying any “nice to haves” that you would like to look for as well. Seeing who can give you the best price for a package that has your essentials as well as your “nice to haves” is a good way to advance through your decision making process. This will help you narrow things down when looking at who to go for within your photographer shortlist.