Anyone can take photographs.
Anyone can take photographs at a wedding.
BUT not everyone can be a wedding photographer.

There is a very subtle difference but the most difficult part of being a wedding photographer is not the taking of the pictures its the controlling of the people. The point of this article is not to teach what the subtle differences are but to inform potential buyers of wedding photography not to miss the most important things by getting hung up on the irrelevant points.

If your first question to a wedding photographer is “how much do you charge for a wedding?”, the chances are you are going to be unhappy with the reply! Would you say that over the phone to the bridal shop where you hope to buy your wedding dress? No, you would probably go and have a look to see if you liked the style and possibly the ambiance first.

It should be the same with the photographs. Ring the photographers of your choice and ask if they are available for your wedding date first. Then ask the price if that is your first consideration and then ask to see some examples of their own work and meet them. Don’t let a high price put you off looking at the work – you might REALLY like the work and find some extra money from somewhere! Remember its just like buying the dress or the shoes only the photographs are going to last you for a lot longer.

A quick guide on the competence of a photographer is to check if they are members of a professional association. The Master Photographers Association, the British Institute of Professional Photographers, the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers and the Guild of Photographers all have qualifications which their members can take. They run training seminars for their members to improve photography generally. Drew McWilliams has been awarded an Associate Level qualification of the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers and bears the initials ASWPP. Drew gained his LSWPP (Licentiate of the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers) in 2008 and was awarded ASWPP in 2011. At Associate standard, images should not only display a high degree of technical ability, but also portray imagination and creativity in execution and presentation. This qualification is held by only the top 10% of practitioners.

Arrange to meet to look over the photographer’s work, checking that the samples you are looking at have been taken by the person who will be taking the photographs at your wedding. Drew will take time to discuss your arrangements, show slidshows of his work and discuss his albums – all over a coffee or a glass of wine. He will explain how – and why – he took certain images so that you will know what to expect.

Don’t let detail about how the pictures were achieved confuse you. Today, many photographers have “gone digital” – they are both taking and printing images using some form of digital process. Some non digital, film based photographers may tell you that the quality is not good enough or some such thing and try to rubbish the medium. This is much like the people who said that the human body wouldn’t stand up to going more than 3 miles per hour when cars were invented! Professional digital equipment is every bit as good as film and in many cases better as there is no perceivable grain caused by the silver halide in film.

However, again it is easy to become tied down by irrelevancies because if you look at the photographer’s work and like the quality then it matters not how it was achieved, providing he achieves it with your wedding. Drew hand prints all his portraits and wedding albums so you can be sure of superior images.

The most important thing at the meeting is – do you like the photographer? Do you think you will like him/her almost running part of your day, as they will surely have to, to get good photographs, or are they overpowering or something else which grates on you? How long have they been doing weddings is possibly irrelevant providing you have seen some of the weddings they have done.

If so, book them and have great memories of a wonderful day – remember that photographs convey the atmosphere of the day so if you enjoy your day you will enjoy looking at the photographs later. If you have a bad day the photographs might remind you of that but it won’t be the photograph’s fault – they are just doing their job!

So, a brief check list to look for is:-

Do you like the photographer?
Do you like their previous work?
Do you like their presentation?
Can you afford their fees? (yes, they are in business to make money)

If so – book them and have a great day.

Footnote
It’s worth considering insurance – the photographer’s and yours! If a photographer is offering super-cheap coverage it may be a sign that he or she has not completed all business licensing and insurance requirements. Unlicensed businesses leave little for unhappy consumers to fall back on if they had a bad experience. Make sure to verify that your photographer is fully licensed and insured. Drew carries full Public Liability Insurance and Professional Indemnity.

With the average wedding now costing on average £21,000, can you really afford to go without your own wedding insurance? As with any insurance, it is there to protect you from the unexpected. If you need to cancel your wedding due to an unexpected illness or extreme weather conditions, then having wedding cancellation insurance will help cover the costs to re-arrange the wedding. Not only that, but it will cover the cost of wedding vendors such as caterers, photographers or car hire companies who fail to supply. You will also find cover to protect the most important parts of the wedding, the wedding dress and the wedding rings.

Credit
This page is based on an article by, and with thanks to, Paul R G Haley.
Paul is has been in the photographic business for more than 40 years – many as a press photographer, including being one of only three civilian photographers sent with the task force during the Falklands War. He won the Fashion and Glamour Photographer of the Year award presented in 2006 at the SWPP (Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers) convention. He is a Fellow of the Master Photographer’s Association and the chairman of the Yorkshire region. He was awarded a Presidential award for services to the Association in October 2007.

Contact him now and find out how he can help your photographic business – from digital software to general day to day running a diary, setting up studio lighting to Ink jet or Dye sub event printing – and everything else in between!
You can contact Paul at Photographic Training by PRGH.