Seriously, who knows where to start with this? There are so many to choose from and so many different styles of photography, such varied prices and packages – it can really be difficult to know who to trust and who to book. Hopefully I can help you with booking a wedding photographer.
A good place to start – as everyone will say – is Google. What did we do before Google – the yellow pages would just not cut it for me. Google is great because of course, you can search by location and have the photographers website in front of you within seconds, but its always great for reviews. I really pride myself on the great reviews that I have. I feel the luckiest to have such sweet brides who take the time to write a review for me.
Read the reviews on Google and check websites for their reviews too to see if any of the names match up. The reviews on Google always match up to the reviews on my site. I rarely post reviews to my website that can’t be easily found online – it shows validity of the client in my opinion.
Websites
Look out for decent websites. I was very lucky with my website. A good friend of mine is a web designer and my housemate is a graphic designer. I’m also double lucky as they managed to put up with me being super fussy! A good website shows care over an artists work. Thats not to say that photographers or other creatives without websites aren’t good – websites are expensive! But investment in your business is something that I really look out for when I am looking for any sort of vendor.
Facebook and Instagram
Facebook and Instagram are also such a great place to look. My favourite place by miles is Instagram. I love seeing other artists work and checking out my favourite photographers. its also a great place for me to interact with brides.
Usually, I tend to upload a lot of my own photos to instagram and leave the professional images for my website. Its great that my brides can see what I’m up to and see unedited images of my work – I’m definitely no photographer so check out my portfolio to see the real deal in the photography world!
I love using Instagram stories also. It really helps for brides to see who I am and who they will be working with. Head up though – I do like to sing along with brides or get involved with a good playlist!
Images
Check their images – obviously. Its a good idea to look at a few portfolios to see what sort of images you’d like and what you’d like your photographer to capture. Do you like casual/candid shots? Or images that are a little more posed? Is fine art photography your thing or do you like bright and colourful? Has your photographer shot at your venue before? Look for images that they have done that you love and ‘Pin’ them to a board. You can always send a mood board to a photographer. Most photographers that I love have their own unique style so if you can find one that edits in a way that you love – snap them up, because the chances are, they may get booked fairly quickly.
Price
Price is also something to consider. Photographers definitely aren’t the cheapest part of your wedding but they are definitely an important part so I always think that its best to invest your money in a great photographer. These images are going to literally last a lifetime so you want them to be the best they can be!
It can be so confusing but they are some really great ones out there and they are great for a reason. They have taken the time to perfect their skills and will take care of you on your day. If it feels like a minefield then get in touch with me and I’ll happily recommend some that I have worked with over the past 10 years!
Some of my favourites can be found here, here, here and here. My favourites can also be found in my portfolio
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