Congratulations on the engagement! (By the way, you can also book me for this ; )
You have decided to get married. No matter how big or small, whether with church and Trallala or just the two of you on a mountain top; my clear recommendation is: let yourself be accompanied by a photographer.
In my opinion the photos are one of the most important things at a wedding (completely unencumbered by my profession). They will last for decades, maybe even show the grandchildren what a lavish party was celebrated back then. And the wedding photos also capture flowers, decorations, cakes and maybe the last picture of your grandmother.
But now to the informative part:
What’s the best way to search for “Wedding Photographer”?
Do you have friends who already have experience? A personal recommendation can be worth its weight in gold.
Google seems to be a good first choice, but the flood of results almost overwhelms you. Also, the local results are often listed near the top. There’s nothing wrong with searching regionally, but if your dream photographer is a little further away, it might be worth skipping a bit of travel costs.
You’re already looking for pictures anyway, click on the links and see who took the great photos.
When do you start looking for “wedding photographer”?
Quite simply: immediately! Some start creating Pinterest galleries of their dream wedding years before they get engaged, others start after the proposal. Every idea for the design of your wedding is also an indication of which photography style you like. Are you looking for rustic barns with pictures that are really dark & moody?
A free ceremony in the spring garden surrounded by white cherry blossoms? Rather bright & fresh.
With this process you slowly work your way forward. Now you can look for a wedding photographer who fits this style.
And when do I definitely book?
From personal experience – as early as possible. If you know 18 months before the wedding, go for it. At the 12-month mark you will notice that other couples also want to get married, because photographers cannot keep your appointment free forever. Anything under 12 months is a matter of luck and may involve compromises.
I’ll add here that I recently flipped through a wedding guide and the photographers search was listed as 6 months, which made me livid and was the cause for this text.
What should you pay attention to?
Whole stories in the portfolio: Photographing a wedding from start to finish is a physical and mental effort. Sometimes you’re there for 12 hours and you can’t lose focus or miss a key moment. That’s why it’s important to know that your photographer is able to handle it.
We photographers produce so-called “styled shoots” for advertising purposes & also just for fun from time to time. Models are often shown here in spectacular settings & we have all the time in the world to photograph every angle perfectly, or to try out new & crazy things. But that has nothing to do with the reality of a wedding. If a photographer only shows absolute “highlights”, he is either world class or suspect; ) Let them show you a whole story with the “real” pictures.
Nobody likes being written to with an impersonal standard text that only asks for the prices. We are humans and we want a connection with our couples, so if the service and the person behind it is important to you, then here comes the charming wedding request:
Hello Lara
We are Sandra & Tobi. You have been recommended by dear friends and since we are getting married in autumn 2023 and we really like your style of photography, we would like to ask you for an offer. Here are our most important key data:
Date: 10/24/2023
Location: Chateau So-and-So
Accompaniment: We would like to be accompanied photographically from getting ready to the beginning of the dinner, after which we have a photo box. That’s about 8 hours in total.
Number of people: 40 for the wedding ceremony and dinner, around 80 for the aperitif
Of course we would also like to get to know you personally, but this way you already have some information.
Best regards
Sandra & Toby
My thoughts on the cost of a wedding reportage:
Yes, it costs a shitload of money. But it is an investment that is worthwhile. How much does a cell phone cost these days? The hairdresser visit? How long do these things last, thirty years? Hardly. Make a good budget plan and see how much you want to spend on photos. Is the dream photographer not in yet? Can you shorten somewhere else? Is it possible to simply ask the guests to make gifts of money if possible (this is now more of a custom than giving away mixers)?
Personal savings tips:
An example I always use to annoy smokers: 1 packet per day at CHF 8.20 = CHF 2993 per Year
Or do you like going out to eat? Whether it’s a date night or lunch at Migros -> simply cook and prepare at home the year before the wedding.
Vita Parcours instead of a gym, subscriptions are expensive.
Road trip instead of Maldives.
It all sounds better than regretting later on not capturing your fondest memories, right?
And a clever quote:
“There is hardly anything in this world that someone cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper. And the people who only look at the price are the lawful prey of such machinations.
It is unwise to overpay, but it is equally unwise to underpay. If you overpay, you lose some money, that’s all. On the other hand, if you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything because the purchased item cannot fulfill its intended purpose.
The law of business forbids getting a lot of value for little money… It doesn’t work. If you accept the lowest bidder, you must add something for the risk you run. But if you do that, then you will have enough money to pay for something better.”-John Ruskin
