With new iPhone camera specs that are more amazing than ever, and more affordable cameras than ever before it might seem like a reasonable idea to pass on hiring a pro photographer to document your wedding day. Also in the mix is how expensive professional photographers are compared to amateurs/friends.
Don't do it!
After being a professional photographer for 6 years, and shooting for 12 years, I am here to share with you some of my experiences. Not only do I understand first-hand why hiring a professional is a no-brainer, but I also have heard too many horror stories from acquaintances about how upset they are over their lackluster images post wedding day. Or about how their friend photographer lost the images, or missed important moments, or that the quality was terrible.
Please allow me to share with you the top 10 reasons to hire a professional photographer for your wedding.
10) You want your friend/uncle/aunt/cousin/llama to actually ATTEND your wedding
Not take pictures. If your mother or someone else in your family dabbles with photography and you think it will be a good idea to pass on the money of an actual photographer so they can do it, remember that person wont be able to really attend the wedding. That person will be busy taking pictures and won't be able to be mentally present for your big day, and that is important!
9) Your friend/uncle/aunt/cousin/llama has no idea what photographing a wedding actually requires.
Owning a camera does not equate to experience in managing timelines, directing large groups of people, troubleshooting weather/lighting/permit issues, understanding posing, understanding lighting, or how about just being qualified to document the most important day of your life?
8) Pros are a solid investment...
You invested in a venue, dress, rings, florist, caterer, calligrapher, graphic designer, bakery, DJ, etc. and you're not sure about the additional expense when someone you know loves taking pictures and offered to help. A pro photographer is the ultimate investment because how else will you relive the day in exquisite detail without the images? These images will be around for the rest of your life and even beyond that. Photography should be one of your most important investments.
7) ... and worth the price they charge
Pros do not overcharge you. If their price tag seems steep, it is because they are worth paying extra for. Professionals spend hours and hours deciding on how to price their market based on many factors, including:
Experience, Education, Location, Time spent booking, conceptualizing, preparing, photographing, editing, distributing, and follow up money spent doing all of the above, Travel & Insurance ,Accounting ,Gear ,Continuing education.
It is understandable why comparing a professional photographer's prices to someone just starting up might sway you to go with the cheaper option. But seriously take into consideration the reasons why legit photography is expensive and then weigh out how important professional vs. amateur services actually are to you.
6) Professional photographers add to your day in big, meaningful ways
They come dressed well, with cool-looking gear, with lots of experience in knowing how to be effective but sensitive on such an emotional and important day. They know when to be assertive and when to be a fly-on-the wall.
They will literally be with you the entire day, so having likable personalities is a must.
Plus, and most importantly, they are artists! How great is it to have an actual artist focused on YOU for an entire day?! It's amazing, just ask any couple who hired a professional photographer to document their wedding day if they regret it!
5) Pros carry loads of backup gear
If they (knock on wood) drop their freaking expensive camera? No biggie (for you, anyway), they have another one. If your cousin drops theirs? Chances are you'll have a lovely iPhone album after the wedding is over. Pros carry extra batteries for off-camera flashes, extra lenses, and tons of other technical extras that are all expensive and designed to make your day perfect even if an accident happens.
4) Professional photographers provide So. Much. More. than some pictures after the wedding is over
Like mentioned in No. 6 above, they are managing your entire wedding experience in a big way.
Of course, planners are the ones managing your day but did you know that photographers often help you design your timeline based on the kind of wedding day experience you want to have?
For every single wedding I have photographed over the last 12 years I have had conversations with my couples and work backward from the end of the night to determine the flow of the day. In fact, at DIY weddings without planners I often assume the role of managing the timeline on the wedding day simply because we need to make sure I get the shots we want at the right time of the day. They are not just snapping pictures with a camera, pros are crafting the flow and fell of your wedding day.
3) A professional understands the mental and physical toll that photographing a wedding day entails
They come prepared with (again) lots of experience in managing this, including second shooters, assistants, energy bars, Red Bull, and nerdy high-fives to other techy people like videographers and DJs. No vendor you hire is going to be as close and intimate with you on your wedding day than your photographer. He or she is going to be with you close to every moment of your wedding day. Experience makes a difference. So does personality. You should genuinely like your photographer and also know that they have the experience needed to do the job you are paying them to do. Rarely does a “newbie” have the skills to understand the ebb and flow of your wedding day. Moments happen fast, and having someone with experience assures that none of the important moments are missed in your photographs. There is a big difference in having someone confident in knowing they are going to “get the shot” versus hiring someone afraid they will miss it.
2) Professional photographers are 100% invested and excited (it's true!) about your wedding day.
Chances are, they are in this field because they love it. (I mean, how many parents are like "Oh wonderful! You're going to be a wedding photographer instead of a lawyer! Yes! All my dreams are coming true!!!). They either love weddings, or photography, or both. For me, it's definitely both with a really big connection component in there as well. My job allows us me to see beautiful, emotional, connecting experiences. Brides and grooms spend so much time with me on the best day of their lives that they tend to remember me with a lot of fondness and love. And I LOVE that!
Great wedding photographs happen, not because the photographer “staged the moment” but because she was setting the stage for the moment to happen. That tear in Mom’s eye, that look in Dad’s when he sees you for the first time. All of those moments need to have a plan of when and where it happens. All of that rarely happens with your “cheap” wedding photographer or one with less experience.
A good wedding photographer is going to plan every moment of their day based around the events of yours. Instinctively they know where to be and the plan tells them when to be there. That great photographer that wants $1500 is going to visit your venue, walk through the events of your day, and help create a timeline of events. When you pay less you almost always get less in return.
10) You will literally not be able to handle how gorgeous your wedding looks when your pro photographer gives you your images
We are talking crying and blubbering, calling your parents, holding hands with your new spouse for the rest of the day kind of happiness. Pros document things you didn't even know were happening while you were looking deeply into your lover's eyes all day. They show you your wedding day again from the perspective of all your loved ones. They affirm your amazing decision to marry your best friend. You will feel like it was worth every single penny and you might even email your photographer and tell them they should charge more money (true story, more than once).
11) You Gotta have a Licensed and Insured Photographer
Now I told you all the equipment and hours of perfecting the craft weren’t important. Well, not as important as this is.
Far too often those “cheap” photographers aren’t even licensed in the State to operate a business. Probably close to 80%. Maybe less, maybe more. Without being a “legitimate” business, are you ready to plop down several hundred dollars and NOT be sure they are a legitimate business? If you are willing to take that risk, then go for it. Just be prepared to not have the best of endings should something happen and they not show up. Or you need to go to court when you don’t get what you paid for or any images whatsoever.
So what about this insurance you mentioned?
Every Professional Photographer, that operates a legitimate business will carry Liability insurance. Without it, if one of your guests trips over a piece of their gear, YOU could be held legally liable. Not a very pleasant thing when that lawsuit comes.
An Insured photographer will be able to prevent you from having to “pay” since their insurance covers these things.
What about if one of your guests has a bit too much “fun” and knocks one of the photographers cameras to the floor and it breaks? An insured photographers carries coverage for those types of things.
12) You Gotta Have a Contract
Last week I was contacted by a couple who had hired one of those “cheap” photographers. They were very upset since their “hired photographer” had cancelled on them.
So it looked like “no photos for you” was about to happen. My first question was “did you have a contract”. Answer- “no, he said it wasn’t necessary”.
Next question- “did you get a refund?”
Answer- “No, and we don’t know what to do about it since there wasn’t a contract”.
Come to find out, this “photographer” had no business license, gave them no address, and basically, took their money and ran. Sure, they got a business card with their name on it and a phone number, but nothing to really track them down for any reimbursement for their deposit they paid.
A couple of months ago, similar situation. This couples wedding photographer and her husband were in a fatal car accident. There was no deposit to be refunded from the photographers estate since there wasn’t any contract.
A contract spells out the details and what happens when unforeseeable things happen. They protect you. They also protect the photographer too. Everyone knows what to expect and what expectations will be delivered. Just avoid like the plague any photographer who doesn’t use one or doesn’t offer one.
“ALL those things you say- It’s NOT Really True, is it?”….
Well, if you think it’s not, just ask someone who failed to do these things.
Then ask one of the “smart couples” who did and have 100% of everything they wanted and even got a whole lot more.
It’s still “your money” and I hope you invest it wisely in your wedding. Having great images, professional made and cared for, will be more valuable tomorrow than the money you spent today.
Ask your Grandma.