While finding a wedding photographer seems as simple as a Google search, there is so much more to the process of finding a reliable and trustworthy wedding photographer. Trust me, you don’t want to hire just anyone to photograph your wedding. A wedding photographer will spend almost 100% of your wedding day by your side, so you’ll want to hire someone you love to be around! When you’re selecting your wedding photographer, of course, you should love their photographs. But, you should also love them as a person! If your personalities clash or you have different communication styles, your wedding day may not go as smoothly as you’d like. So today in this blog, I’ve rounded up 5 ways to help you find a wedding photographer that you can love and trust to capture your dream wedding day!
A personal recommendation from a friend, family member, or those that follow you on social media just might be the most helpful and reliable suggestion. If you’ve been a bridesmaid, groomsman, or some part of the wedding party in a friend’s wedding and loved their wedding photographs, I encourage you to ask your friend about their experience with the photographer. If you receive a wedding photographer recommendation from someone you know, you should ask the person recommending some of the questions below, before you inquire with the photographer.
I recently shared a blog post on wedding photography styles, so if you’re currently in the process of figuring out what you prefer, head on over here to read it! Whether you prefer light and airy, dark and moody, traditional wedding photography, or editorial wedding photography, it’s important to narrow down your wedding photographer choices by style, before you even consider them.
As a wedding photographer myself, I’ll share a tip for you! I would encourage you not to reach out to a wedding photographer and ask them if they can accommodate your preferred style of wedding photography if it’s not the style they specialize in. We spend years and years perfecting our craft, our style, and our editing skills. If a photographer that specializes in light and airy photography agrees to accommodate a dark and moody request, I’d be highly suspicious that they’re simply in it for the payment… Not because they can offer what you want.
Whether it’s a virtual Zoom meeting, a phone call, or even a coffee shop meetup, I highly recommend scheduling an introductory call with the wedding photographer(s) you’re considering booking for your wedding day. Not only does this time allow you to get to know the photographer’s personality (and vice versa), but you can discuss all of the details in terms of what it is you’re looking for. I’ve included a few questions below that you should absolutely discuss with your photographer(s) upon meeting them.
Many times, wedding photographers will include an engagement photo shoot in their wedding photography package. If you’re unsure whether this is the wedding photographer you want to proceed with and you’re hoping to see them in action, schedule a ‘test run’ photoshoot with this photographer. While it will be an additional cost, it will absolutely be worth it in the end. You don’t want to shoot with your wedding photographer for the first time on your wedding day. Otherwise, it feels like a first date! Awkward, and introductory, and sometimes, everyone can be a bit shy. You want to feel as comfortable and confident on your wedding day, and knowing your photographer well will help this.
If you’re ready to sign the contract with a wedding photographer, congratulations! As a Seattle-based wedding photographer myself, I can promise you we get just as excited when we book a new wedding. My true passion lies in capturing memories for the couple I’m working for, and I love nothing more than photographing your love story. Before you sign your contract, make sure you understand everything within the contract. From content usage rights to cost, timeline and deadlines, photographer rights (typically this refers to things like breaks throughout the day, meals being served for the photographer, etc.), and all that’s included in the deliverables. If everyone is on the same page, you and your wedding photographer will feel confident working together.
There’s plenty that goes into booking a wedding photographer, but if you’re able to cover the 5 steps above you should be in a good place. I promise you, wedding photographers are not intimidating at all, we just like to see if we’re a good fit! I always book calls with my couples to make sure we have similar vibes. Otherwise, it’s a lose/lose situation for both parties involved. I hope these 5 steps helped you throughout the process of booking a wedding photographer! It’s truly one of the most important – and exciting – parts of wedding planning, in my eyes at least! 😉
WOW… I do not know where to start! I did not know Lessie before our photoshoot but I am so glad to have met her and chosen her to capture our engagement pictures! She was so easy to communicate with and so so helpful from start to finish. I am absolutely obsessed with the photos she captured of my fiancé and I! Not only do the photos look beyond amazing but our experience with her throughout the photoshoot was out of this world! She is extremely talented and was amazing at capturing natural and real moments!
- AMANDA + THOMAS
Lessie is the most compassionate, easy to communicate with , professional photographer I have ever had the joy of working with. Lessie has a skill set the surpasses many others, her attention to detail, her willingness to try new things and her commitment to the highest quality photos and experience for all who have the honor of booking with her is unprecedented. Lessie has a soul that is so invested in producing authenticity that many photos seem to lack.
- EMILY + DANIEL
Lessie was awesome! We are so happy she was the one that captured our special day! She was so professional. She was great at communicating with us in a timely manner and was extremely flexible when we had to reschedule our endgame to pictures. And my husband and I absolutely loved our wedding pictures as well. Lessie was able to captures so many great memories that we get to treasure forever!
- YESENIA + ROBBIE
Lessie is the most compassionate, easy to communicate with , professional photographer I have ever had the joy of working with. Lessie has a skill set the surpasses many others, her attention to detail, her willingness to try new things and her commitment to the highest quality photos and experience for all who have the honor of booking with her is unprecedented.... My gosh I am so grateful we booked with her! Lessie has a soul that is so invested in producing authenticity that many photos seem to lack.
- EMILY + DANIEL
Lessie is an amazing photographer. We could not be happier with our wedding photos. I love that she included many unique shots that I wouldn't have thought of but that I really love. Also, along with the photos of my husband and me and photos of both sides of the bridal party, she captured many of the wonderful smaller moments and details that are hard to notice amidst the busy-ness of the wedding day. We loved seeing those smaller details and the candid photos of friends and family as well. They're all very special to us.
- ABBIE + TONY
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