How to choose a wedding photographer
Your wedding day is among the most important moments in your life. Capturing these with momentous photographs is a way to treasure these memories forever. There’s nothing worse than getting back from your honeymoon and finding that the pictures don’t match your expectations. What if you wanted candid photographs, but the photographer took posed ones? Sometimes the photos are perfectly okay, but you’re not fond of the style of that particular photographer. If you don’t know where to start, don’t worry! This blog will show and tell you about all of the different styles of wedding photography and how to choose your wedding photographer.
The 3 main styles of wedding photography
Reportage photography– This photography method is also described as documentary photography or photojournalism. This style of photography mainly focuses on telling a story via an emotional journey. Reportage photography captures candid photographs in the moment. This is the most popular type of photography as the photographs seem more realistic. The photographs capture raw emotion which makes them nostalgic when you look at them on your anniversary. Although these photographs tell a story, they might not get those posed photographs you’re after. This can be annoying if you want the perfect photograph for your new profile picture!
Traditional photography– These photographs tend to be much more posed and well thought out. The way the photographs are structured means that nobody gets left out and everyone can get themselves into their ‘best’ position for the photograph. These photographs look beautiful with the right background colours and natural subjects. The only problem is that some people feel uncomfortable in front of the camera, which can ruin the natural beauty of the photograph. As well as this, these photographs are far from candid, which can make the photograph too rigid and structured. Taking these photographs can also take a while, meaning important moments from the wedding may be missed. This used to be the most popular style of wedding photography, but in recent years the tradition has started to decline.
Contemporary photography– This type of photography is staged, but comes across as candid. This differs from reportage photography because everyone in the photograph will be ready and the background will be set up, but the subjects will act more like models striking a ‘candid’ pose. Because of this, the style feels more like fashion or editorial photography with a hint of pure emotion. The only problem with this style is that sometimes the personality of the models isn’t clear enough as it’s all about the personality of the photograph.
The budget
Generally, with wedding photography, you get what you pay for. To give you an idea, the average price for a wedding photographer is £1500-2000. If you have a bigger budget, you could possibly afford more than one photography style, giving you a wider variety and more photographs. If you have a smaller budget, there are still photographers out there who will do a range of different styles in a package.
You thought it! Why do I need to spend this much on photography? Ultimately, you want your wedding photographs to be right. When you look at the photographs you should be taken back to your special day.
The photography style
Do you like black and white photographs or vibrant, eye-catching photographs? There is a wedding photographer for everyone, it’s just choosing the one for you.
How to choose a wedding photographer – Choosing the right photographer
Ask for recommendations– Know any friends who have been married? Ask who they chose and whether they recommend that particular photographer. You could ask them to elaborate on what they would have preferred and what they loved about their photographer.
Look on social media– The best advice we can give is to follow a few different social media pages for wedding photography, about a year before the wedding to decide whose style you like best. By following social media pages, you can also see whether the wedded couple were happy with the photographs by looking for responses in the comments. This will give you a better understanding of their personality and work ethic, which can all play a huge role in your big day.
See a portfolio– You could even ask for other photography shoots in their portfolio as it could give you some more insight and ideas about how to capture your special day.
Ask if they have taken photographs at your venue before– If the photographer already knows the venue, they’ll know where the best spots are to take the photographs and they’ll have the experience to know what looks good. If they don’t know- it’s no problem, just tell them where the venue is so they can do a bit of research.
Arrange a meeting
When it’s for your big day, you want to make sure everything goes smoothly! Arranging a meeting is a great way to get to know your photographer and to see if you gel or not! Will they add to your wedding, or dampen the mood? Have a phone call before the wedding begins so you know you’re both on the same page.
If you’re looking for a wedding photographer in Norfolk, take a look at our website to see the photographs I have taken, I would love to be a part of your special day!
