Why is a wedding photographer so expensive? You show up take some photographs for a few hours and that’s it.
My job starts before a contract is even signed and ends a week or two after the wedding. Before the contract is signed there are meetings with the Bride and Groom, sometimes multiple meetings if parents are involved, or if the Bride and Groom can’t meet together. In most cases I meet with the Bride and Groom closer to their location rather than in my studio.
On the wedding day, I arrive early to scout the venue for locations to photograph formal portraits, shots of the couple, etc. Once the photographs are taken it’s on to “post-processing”. This involves culling through 1000 to 2000+ photographs and choosing just the right images.
Then the real work begins. I touch every single photograph that goes to the Bride and Groom. This can be anywhere from a few hundred photo’s to over 1,000. This includes enhancing colors, skin, etc. I also add special touches to many of the photographs to give them a unique look to match the setting, or the picture. This is where a Wedding Photographers style will truly standout among other photographers.
Bottom-line. . . you get what you pay for. Here’s one couples story from the UK.
I’d like to believe this is a rare occurrence, but I’ve heard too many of these stories from other Brides. While the couple fought back and won they will never have the opportunity to capture those once in a lifetime moments of their special day.
Whatever you do, don’t skimp on the photographer. At the end of the day it’s your photographs that will be the most important part of your wedding day.
Way back in the beginning people asked if I was a wedding photographer. My response was always a resounding no. That all changed when my daughter was married. I told her I could shoot some of the wedding and reception and it ended up being fun.
I had heard horror stories about “bridezilla” and how much stress there is shooting a wedding from a number of photographer friends both in Sacramento and around the San Francisco Bay Area, but I found it to be fun. Since then I’ve been doing weddings and love it. There are so many happy people around I find it exhilarating.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a lot of hard work. The bulk of my work is after the wedding and post processing the pictures. Regardless being a Sacramento wedding photographer is a blast. Since I’m in Sacramento I’m centerally located and can pretty much cover all of Northern California with relative ease.
The reward is meeting up with really nice people who are just looking to have some fun. The couple below were really fun. While all the action was going on around them they waved me down to take this photograph. I later took a number of photo’s of them together and gave them my favorite!
The word boutonniere comes from the French. The British simply called them button hole flowers. Traditionally, the flower was placed in the button hole of the man’s suit or tuxedo on the pocket side. Today many suits don’t have a button hole to use for the boutonniere which is why most men pin them on.
There are a number of reasons that I could find as to why men started wearing boutonnieres. Some of those reasons are to ward off disease, evil spirits, and bad smells.
Boutonnieres used to be pretty common place. So common that some suits had hidden vases built into the suit. Of course today boutonnieres are mainly used at proms, special events, and of course weddings.
There are some couples who are turning to square pocket handkerchiefsrather than using flowers. Having both a handkerchief and boutonniere would be too busy, but hey it’s all up to the happy couple.
To all you couples out there thinking about using something other than boutonnieres, please don’t. As a wedding photographer I really enjoying getting photographs of the men getting them pinned on. It’s like they can’t believe this is happening! Whatever you decide. . . just have fun on your special day!
One lucky winner will win a free engagement session up to 2 hours just by filling in our form at http://randysfineart.com click on contest. A winner will be drawn on January 4th (you know, give myself time to recover from New Years!).
I’m looking forward to next year being our biggest year yet!
Don’t under estimate the power of candles at any event, especially your reception. They offer a wonderful glow on your tables, they look great around your cake, you name it they’re simply the perfect addition to your reception.
And as a wedding photographer neither will I. Candles add that perfect look to any photograph. Take the below picture of a well used table. While it’s a mess, the candles really make it look pretty cool.
While your wedding photographer has the experience needed to photograph your wedding, don’t rely on them to think the way you do. I do find some photographers are better at reading people and understanding what they want when it comes to photographs after the ceremony. However, they may fall short of your expectations.
Talk to your wedding photographer before hand to determine what some good photographs might be. Below is an example of what I suggested, but believe it or not, this is a pretty standard photograph of the bridal party going nuts. Think about other ways to take unique photographs of your bridal party. For example, do all the Bridesmaids or Groomsmen have something in common say a hobby or sport? If the Groomsmen are into skateboarding they could all be skateboarding along side the Groom, or just be hanging out with their boards. Same goes for the bridesmaids. Into shopping bring shopping bags from your favorite store for each to hold. It may take some effort on such a hectic day, but the payout is well worth it.
Before signing any type of contract with a wedding photographer it’s best to get to know him/her. Ok already. I’m not talking about going out to lunch having everyone over to your place or anything like that. You just need to:
- Check out their website and review their work. If their website is doesn’t have enough photographs for you to get a good idea of what their style is, request to see their portfolio either in person or online. Better yet, request to see an online proof session of a wedding the photographed.
- Meet with your potential photographer. You have to deal with them all day on your wedding day, so make certain you are compatible. You don’t want a high strung photographer on such a stressful occasion. They should be relaxed and not prone to stress, you’ll have enough of that to deal with on your wedding day. Sometimes it’s difficult to meet with your photographer prior to the wedding due to locations. However, you should have several telephone conversations with them to be sure you understand how they will work with you on that special day.
Congratulations your getting married!! Now the headaches begin. You have to choose a date, select a venue for the ceremony, a venue for the reception, caterer, cake, invitations, and what to wear! Oh crap. . . I almost forgot about the photographer.
When selecting a photographer the first thing you must do is answer some basic questions that should help you, and the photographer, decide on how long you will need the photographer and if you should have one or two. So the first step is to ask yourself these questions.
1. Do you want photographs of both the Bride and Groom preparing for the wedding? If yes, will you both be getting ready at the same time, same location?
2. Will the Bride be preparing at the ceremony site or offsite? If offsite, how far away from the venue?
3. Will the reception follow the ceremony, or will there be a gap in between. If there’s a gap, how long?
4. How long will the ceremony last?
5. How long will the reception last?
That pretty much sums it up. These answers will help determine how long you will require a wedding photographer and how many.
These two wedding photographs were fun to shoot. Of course the kids wanted to get into the mix, but by the time they were up on the pedestal everyone was breaking up and heading to the reception. . . Photoshop to the rescue!
