Selecting your photographer.

This was inspired by brides and grooms who have shared with me their stories of the 'oger that shot their wedding'. This guide should help you sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to selecting your photographer and the package/coverage you want.

There are two things you need to be happy with when selecting the photographer for your wedding.
1> You like the images on their gallery.
2> You are happy with the package.

Image galleries - Galleries can be misleading, I know of very few photographers that will give you a full gallery of images to view including the bad ones like the gallery on this web site. So in general take it that the images show are the best that they can do.

Know the package - I meet a lot of people who don't understand the packages I offer, even after reading all the FAQ and Information that is provided. I know what you may want as I have covered many polls on wedding forums to find out what it is that you really want and deliver some great packages, even if you do not find the package that you are looking for why not build you own wedding photography package.

Prints - Know how many and who selects them, pay attention to the sizes of the prints also.
Proofs - How are these delivered? DVD slide show, prints, what size and any other questions like do you have to return them?
Image disc - These can be high resolution for large print sizes. Are the images the finished/retouched images or are they RAW images from the camera?
Cover - How long they will stay, what if things run over the time you had scheduled?

Packages - you should know the times that your photographer will be with you, often many photographers will leave by the time the speeches are done. They whoosh you off at the reception to fake the cake cutting and this is the end of the coverage they offer. This is quite normal, as you can read you will see that we don't offer fakes but are packages are fully flexible and cover the essential times that you need a photographer. As I often say, would you like to remember the real thing or a fake?

The next thing is, do you like them? Its not the end of the world if you don't really like them, if you cannot stand to even be in the same room then there is an issue. You should ask about the person that they work with. A assistant is a sign of a seasoned pro for weddings, they will us a assistant at more or less all weddings, this can be good as they may be the opposite sex, I am male my assistants are females so that the preparation shots are covered in comfort, I have been in the company of lots of ladies in my work, but many may think that it is still intrusive.

Ask the photographer if they have worked your venues before, this is neither good or bad, but if they have ask to see some images and you will see what you will get.
Ask about rain, what happens, do you need to provide cover (most venues do offer this)

Pre shoots - a pre shoot at the location is great for both of you, the photographer meets you again and you get to see the photographer in action before you wedding day. this help with poses and helps to relax you before the 'big day'. I used to include these into the packages but have now stopped as clients would prefer to have the preparations covered. we have kept it as a add on to all the packages.

Reception and evening receptions - Often you will not find that a photographer will cover this time, the package two from us just covers the up to the speeches and then the cake and we leave. Package one does not cover these at all. The evening reception is where you will have the most people at your wedding, common domestic cameras will not take great pictures even with the flash so a pro is needed to get the images of the event even if its just some candid's, some of the shots of dancing and chatting can look really good. This will include your first dance! Many clients who dont book for the evening have expressed regret, often reliing on disposable cameras they only get one or two shots that are any good.

Your photographer should have all the necessary skills and cover when it comes to insurance.
Professional liability and public liability insurance is essential. I say skills as many photographers who are qualified in photography cannot take photos. So I think its safe to say that a person who is qualified, doesn't mean that they can shoot a wedding let alone use a camera. This may sound extreme but I do hear and read about it so much - I also train people in photography and have had qualified photographers work for me, so I am in some autority to say.

Albums -Do you select your images? how many? can you add to the album if you need too? will you need to upgrade the album to contain the photos? This is a common mistake, for example package two cannot take many more images it will add a maximum of an additional 18 images. On the other side, package one will hold allot more images but its lay out is different.
Package 3 and above use different types of albums these can have more images added but cost more than prints to have them added, this is also limited to the amount to around 100 images.
The photo books are the same they can be added to but this will cost more and this is about £15 per page plus image which you purchase. This isn't the same fee as actual prints, but its worth checking with whom ever you select.
You need to look at the album and then the requirements you need/have. Your guest may offer you there pictures and you may want to add these to the packaged album, can you do this? do you want to or would you like another album?

Presentation - When the day is over you will be going away on your honeymoon and come back to see your close family and friends photos, many of them will show you the shots they have from the set up shots of the photographer. This will give you some Idea of what the photographer/s have taken and you should disregard these images. The photographer will have the best angle to get the shot so take a close look and the more casual shots, friends and family always relax more with people they know and can result in better images than the photographer.

Your photographer may have a proof or preview available for you, you even may be able to view images on the day and in some cases take away prints! There are few photographers that have this available and we only offer this service on package 3 or above.
You may find that you can view your wedding images on line, a web site can give your and family who couldn't make it on the day a chance to look at your wedding. You will need to check with your photographer to see how they offer the preview presentation.

Web site - A simple look at your images, they may not be very big due to the transmission of large files over the internet can take some time.

Side show - A slide show of your wedding is similar to web site gallery with maybe moving pictures, these can also be online or on DVD disc. You will need to check weather they play on a DVD player or on a PC. Often when we shoot a all day wedding, we cannot offer a full web site as the size and the amount of images will take quite some time to build for you. We offer a DVD disc which you can view the images, If there is video shot on the day by us we will always provide a DVD disc as we are unable to stream high quality video over the net with out causing issues with our other services.

Album of proof - Today's world is digital and many photographers offer digital proofing of your images. We offer as an addition a proof album that you can keep, this is an additional charge and its worth checking how you images will be presented to you for viewing. Some photographers will loan you the proof album which you will need to return. We also carry this out with digital proof services.