I got married in 1992, seventeen years ago to the love of my life. My wedding was beautiful and so many details went into the day. You plan your wedding for years, heck some women plan it their entire lives as that day is all they dream about as a young girl. Almost two decades later, there is only one part of that day that matters to me. That’s right, the photos! I know it sounds like I say that because I shoot weddings, but that is definitely not why I feel that way. All my closest friends feel the same way, the memories of that day slips away over the years and all that remains are what you can see, touch and feel that bring back the splendor of the happiest day of your life.
I hear it all too often, “I don’t have the budget for photos really, I just can’t spend that much.” Times are definitely challenging lately, people are out of work and everyone’s belts have tightened. I have received phone calls from too many brides at this point who are in tears over the photos that “Uncle Bob” took at their wedding to save some money. They ask me if I can save them somehow, restore them in some fashion. Restore what? You can’t take a bad photo and make it good. You can certainly enhance images, but if you did that to several hundred photos you will have spent more than if you have spent the proper amount in the first place for a professional.
There are many arguments in the wedding photography industry about rates and how they are all over the place. I won’t enter in that discussion right now because it is true and there are many reasons for why that exists. BRIDES……you get what you pay for. Please research the photographer you are thinking about hiring. Get referrals, check their websites, blogs, portfolios, etc. to make sure they are who they say they are. Mostly, go on your instincts. Remember, you aren’t just hiring the photographer, you are hiring the person. I believe my personality, work ethics and how I care about people is 95% or more of my talent. Yes, I have the skill, the eye, whatever it is you want to call it, but “who I am” is in my opinion why I get hired over hundreds of other potential photographers. I treat every wedding as if it’s my own. I shoot based on what I want to see today, in 50 years and mostly what would my grandchildren and great grandchildren want to see decades from now.
I emphatically urge you to cut your budget wherever you can in other areas, but make sure your memories will be handled by someone who cares as much about your wedding images as you do.
