1. Connection
A strong connection and relationship with your wedding photographer ensures that you are all on the same page. This also helps if you or your partner aren’t used to being photographed. Having a strong connection and good relationship will help your photographer to feel more like a friend capturing your special day. With the pressure that can come with a wedding, having people to help keep you grounded and feeling safe is always important.
2. Communication
Communication is important not just during the consultation but during the day. I would recommend paying attention during the engagement session to see how the photographer communicates with you. This also transcends down to the initial meeting, are they clear in setting your expectations for the quality of their work? It’s good to know the limits of your photographer. For example, I’m always very clear with my couples that I don’t do any extreme Photoshop work and generally leave you looking like yourself.
3. Organization
Nothing is worse than a train wreck of a photographer who can’t seem to get a handle on things. Oh the physical side of things, look at your photographer's camera bag. Is it organized? When they direct you are they clear in what they want? The organization should also extend to the business side. Their contract should be well written with plenty of subsections that explain exactly what you’re signing. These are legally binding documents and you should take the initiative to understand something if it isn’t clearly stated.
4. Easy to find pricing
At the time of writing this, it’ll be my second year having all of my packages on my website. It has meant less inquiries but most, if not all, of the couples that have contacted me booked with me right away. Overall, when I looked at the traffic of my website the first place most people go is not to the portfolio section, about me, even the blog section. They go straight for the pricing because the question couples want answered before anything else is “can we afford you?” I hated the idea that my couples had to jump through hoops just to know what their investment would be.
5. Transparency
My goal as your photographer is to be open and honest with you about my prices and offerings, but also my level of experience and what my capabilities are as a photographer. If you find that your photographer is not being open and honest, I would use that as a good reason to find another.
6. House in order
At the end of the day, I’m not just a photographer but I’m also a business owner. It’s important to make sure that whoever you pick to capture your special day is a legal business. It is important for them to have a clear and easy to understand contract. They should not only go over with you and answer questions about but also provide a copy for you. They should give you invoice receipts on payments so you have proof of payment. This also helps you keep track of your payment history. All of these are running a business 101 and also helps to develop that trust element between photographer and client.
7. Experience
I have hours upon hours of stories from weddings where I’ve been a vendor or a guest. The wedding industry is one I know very well. When I was first starting out, I can remember those few couples that took a “risk” on me and I know their gamble paid off; however, experience is important. I always hope for the best during a wedding day but I know that I’m as prepared as I can for when something does go wrong. You don’t just get me and my knowledge of photography but you also get years of experience.
8. Good reviews
Take the time after you’ve looked at their pricing and their work to check out any testimonials on their website, google reviews, Facebook business rating, etc. Do you know someone who has worked with them before? Ask them about how their experience was working with them. Get a good idea of who they are and how they work.
9. Well made website
This is what we like to say in the industry as the first point of contact. A website connects you with the photographer and how they work. A lot of us set up our websites to be a little piece of who we are. Most will take pride in it being a portal into their work and passion. Even more so sharing little tidbits on our lives and other interests we may have. This is a window into the organization of the photographer. If the website looks clear and easy to interact with, that's your first sign that things are looking promising.
10. Ease of Use
At the end of the day, if your photographer isn’t easy to work with and be around then they’re not the one for you. A wedding is one of the most important days of your life. Whether you’re booking them for a short three hours or a full twelve hour day, you should be confident in your photographer's ease of use.
I wish you all the very best in your hunt for a wedding photographer. I hope these points help you narrow down the right photographer for you!
