3. His or her experience: this can be seen from two different perspectives.
You can either look at the amount of wedding that he has documented, or the amount of years he has been doing this. But, you can also be more interested in one experience he offers. For example, has he already done some beach wedding, or mountain elopements? Or even from a cultural point of view, has he already documented a Jewish wedding, for instance? Does she know your culture, your traditions and rituals?
4. His support or mentoring until DDay. Some photographers offer multiple meetings and/ or calls to help their couple planning their wedding. A photographer has seen a lot of weddings. He can give you a lot of advice on venues, on timing etc. They will guide you trough the whole process of preparing your wedding. But not all photographers do this. Is this important for you?
5. Your budget. Of course we would all love to skip this part, but you need to be realistic. It’s important to have a look at the different offers that he has, but also what is included in them. You’ll see that behind the number, there is a whole experience and a lot of work before and after the wedding.
Is it important for you to get your preview pictures after 24hours? Some photographers offer such and experience or such options on their offers. So be mindful when it comes to compare the whole experience. This might include the way the pictures are delivered, in how many days? Is an engagement session included? What about prints and albums?
Of course, your perception of the cost of a photographer will depend on your global budget, but also on the importance you put in the pictures and on how bad you want your dream photographer by your side.
6. Their offers : this goes side by side with the budget of course. How many hours of coverage do you need? What option are important to you? Does his website not suggest your dream package? Don’t be scared to ask him.
Most of the time you can have a custom made offer that matches 100% your needs. Well, at least that’s the way I do it. I only offer custom-made estimates.
7. The amount of photos delivered and the way you receive them might matter.
For instance, I find it very important that the couple gets an HD full gallery that is perfect for them, but also that is easy to share to their guests.
8. His location: This matters a lot. Even if most photographers will love to document your wedding in exotic venues, they will charge you for the travel.
9. The publication of your photos on the internet, might be a condition sine qua non for some wedding photographers.
Others might charge you an additionnel amount if you don’t want them to publish your photos. This is an important detail you don’t want to miss before hiring someone.
10. Testimonials are the best way to know if the person is up to your expectations. You want to be sure the image someone can give trough socials and a website matches who he/she really is and if his work is consistent.
Bonus : Demandez à votre photographe l’accès à une galerie complète et évitez ainsi trop de surprises.
So, there was my little advice to help you getting ready for your wedding day.
Please share to your friends who are getting married, this might be useful to them!
Please contact me if you have any question about my way of working, or if you want me document your wedding day!