Cont. Planning Your "Picture Perfect" Wedding

CALENDAR: The first thing you should inquire about is availability to be sure the photographer has your wedding date available. If the date is open, ask who will be physically taking the pictures. If it is not going to be the person to whom you are speaking, ask to review actual photographs taken by the staff member who will be taking your photographs and request to meet that person before you make a decision. Some studios, but not all, use "contract labor" to cover weddings on popular dates. Associate photographers (sometimes contract labor) are perfectly permissible, but you need to see exactly what you are getting. Do not look at one photographer's work and hire another. You could be disappointed.

CREDENTIALS: When meeting with your perspective photographer, inquire about experience, degrees, awards, etc. Find out how long this prospective wedding photographer has been in the photography business, and how long he/she has been "shooting" weddings" and taking bridal portraits. This is important! If a studio has been in business for 20 years, it is not likely it will go out of business before you get married. Additionally, wedding photos hold special memories for a bride and groom.; and for many, it is a once in a lifetime event. You want the best your money can buy to capture this special time in your life. Photographers are not required by law to have a degree or any type of experience. Anyone can buy a camera, place an ad in the phone book, and call themselves a "professional photographer." Ask if the studio belongs to any professional organizations at the local, state and national levels. Membership in such organizations is a good indication that this studio uses the latest techniques in the photographic industry. Look on the photographer's walls to see if he/she has won any special awards, ribbons or trophies for photography. Look at the photographs on display. Ask if this person has ever had a wedding at your church. If so, ask to see any examples of pictures taken there. Also ask to see examples of photographs taken at your reception location.

COMPETENCY: When visiting with your perspective photographer, look at as many photographic samples as are available. How do the photographs look? Although you are probably not a judge of fine quality photographic masterpieces, you do have a sense of quality and know what you like and do not like. Are the photographs properly exposed (don't look green or faded), and well composed? Do all the subjects look good? Are the photographs sensitive and romantic.Are the formals taken at the alter well arranged? Are the backgrounds in the photographs well lit or, for example, are the alters too dark to detect any details? Are all phases of the wedding covered - before, during and after the ceremony? Are all phases of the reception captured- cake cutting, toasting, eating, partying, dancing, bouquet/garter tossing, and leaving? It is very important that your photographer have at least a few sample albums that cover a wedding from beginning to end, and not just an assortment of different weddings. Any one can get a good image now and then, but what you want is someone who gets good, consistent results time after time. These complete wedding albums should tell the wedding story of those clients. You want professionalism. You may want to ask what kind of camera your photographer will be using. Most good photographers will boast that, "It is not the camera, but the photographer that takes the photograph." Within reason, this is true. Some bridal guides suggest that a professional should use a "medium format" camera, which produces a larger negative. But both medium format and 35mm cameras are acceptable for quality photographs. Today, you can get beautiful, big enlargements from 35mm film which was not possible just a few years ago. So, with the many recent improvements in lenses and films, 35mm is just as accepted and successful in wedding photography and fine portraiture as larger sizes. Do not get hung up on format. It is only a measurement. A really competent photographer can very successfully use either format, or both at the same time, for a combination album. Remember, the photographer's ability is much more important than the size of the film used.

CREATIVITY: Some photographers are just born with creativity and others work at it. Look at the sample albums. Does this person know how to pose subjects and make them look good? Are the poses many from the back of the church. Are you interested in double exposures, selective focus and/or soft focus ? Ask if you are. Does this professional know how to capture those "Special Moments" and the spontaneity of all the excitement? Creativity should also be considered when inquiring about a pre-wedding bridal portrait. This formal bridal portrait is important to many brides. This is a very special time in their lives, and for most, it is when they are the most beautiful. Look at the bridal portrait samples. Are they taken inside the studio, outdoors and/or at other locations? A competent photographer can take your portrait anywhere you so desire, although indoor and outdoor photography require different types of techniques and skills. If Mother Nature cooperates, a full-length portrait taken outside at a location of your choice can be breath-taking. However, if you are not willing to contend with the possible elements (heat, wind, humidity, grass stains, etc.), you may opt for a more classical studio-type portrait. Many professionals can create beautiful images equally well using studio lights or using God's light outdoors. Some specialize in either one or the other. You choose.

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