Your photographer is not just 'a vendor'! He or she is a person that you allow to have an intricate insight to your personal life, more than that, they are documenting it for you! You don't open your doors to just anyone if you don't feel comfortable with that person and trust them, do you? It is very important that you 'click' with your photographer - that you both feel good about each other! We have all been in situations where we have given our camera to a complete stranger to take a snapshot of us and found it hard to conform when our 'appointed photographer' told us 'smile'.
For most of us its the first time that we stand in the limelight and have our photos taken professionally. A lot of people 'freeze up' or behave unnaturally when they find a camera pointed at them. Some are so worried about wanting to look their best that the fear shows in their photo. It is important that you choose a photographer who can make you feel at ease and make you behave 'naturally', someone who can bring out the best in you and recognizes your strengths and weaknesses and uses it to his advantage. Many articles advise couples to give the photographer a list of the photos they want. I strongly argue against it!
You will have been in contact with your photographer and you should have already discussed what is important to you. He or she would have given you some pointers as to 'Do's and 'Don'ts' and explain everything to you.
A professional photographer will always cover everything possible to be sure nothing is missed. It should go without saying that he or she take a group photo, family shots or 'stills of the set up' for example.
Communication is vital between you and don't ever hold back. If there are delicate matters, (bride being pregnant and nobody knows yet, or you may have divorced parents who don't want to appear in the same photo) it's also your responsibility to let the photographer know and vice versa.
Photography is an art form and a photographer therefore needs a certain freedom to display his creativity. Its like giving a painter a canvas and material and giving him strict instructions as to what he can and can't do and then expect a masterpiece. He may do a reasonably good job, but it will lack creativity and his 'signature'.
Your photographer will be working very close with you for most of your wedding day so its vital that you feel comfortable with each other. He or she is not just a 'fly on the wall' as many claim to be. A great photographer should be calming you down when you feel stressed, motivate you and your guests and make the photo shoot enjoyable and fun, whilst keeping in the background and still get the shots he wants. Some photographers keep working their 'models' to a point of exhaustion and start getting agitated when they don't get the shot they want. Your photographer needs to sense when to back off, when its time to move in and still be tactful throughout the session.
He or she needs to keep an eye on the time so you are not late for your ceremony or miss an important part of your wedding - not an easy task! Unfortunately there are many photographers who have little or no interpersonal skills. Their conversational skills go as far as "Look over here" or "Stand over there..." If you feel stressed, it can be annoying and even the most relaxed person will come to a point where they freeze up and start being bored and it will definitely come across in your photos.
Your photographer will be first and foremost what you hired him or her for, - a photographer - but in reality he or she is much more than that, an entertainer, a motivator, a director, a counsellor, time keeper, reporter, etc. and at least for the duration of your wedding day... he or she should be as approachable like one of your closest friends!
For most of us its the first time that we stand in the limelight and have our photos taken professionally. A lot of people 'freeze up' or behave unnaturally when they find a camera pointed at them. Some are so worried about wanting to look their best that the fear shows in their photo. It is important that you choose a photographer who can make you feel at ease and make you behave 'naturally', someone who can bring out the best in you and recognizes your strengths and weaknesses and uses it to his advantage. Many articles advise couples to give the photographer a list of the photos they want. I strongly argue against it!
You will have been in contact with your photographer and you should have already discussed what is important to you. He or she would have given you some pointers as to 'Do's and 'Don'ts' and explain everything to you.
A professional photographer will always cover everything possible to be sure nothing is missed. It should go without saying that he or she take a group photo, family shots or 'stills of the set up' for example.
Communication is vital between you and don't ever hold back. If there are delicate matters, (bride being pregnant and nobody knows yet, or you may have divorced parents who don't want to appear in the same photo) it's also your responsibility to let the photographer know and vice versa.
Photography is an art form and a photographer therefore needs a certain freedom to display his creativity. Its like giving a painter a canvas and material and giving him strict instructions as to what he can and can't do and then expect a masterpiece. He may do a reasonably good job, but it will lack creativity and his 'signature'.
Your photographer will be working very close with you for most of your wedding day so its vital that you feel comfortable with each other. He or she is not just a 'fly on the wall' as many claim to be. A great photographer should be calming you down when you feel stressed, motivate you and your guests and make the photo shoot enjoyable and fun, whilst keeping in the background and still get the shots he wants. Some photographers keep working their 'models' to a point of exhaustion and start getting agitated when they don't get the shot they want. Your photographer needs to sense when to back off, when its time to move in and still be tactful throughout the session.
He or she needs to keep an eye on the time so you are not late for your ceremony or miss an important part of your wedding - not an easy task! Unfortunately there are many photographers who have little or no interpersonal skills. Their conversational skills go as far as "Look over here" or "Stand over there..." If you feel stressed, it can be annoying and even the most relaxed person will come to a point where they freeze up and start being bored and it will definitely come across in your photos.
Your photographer will be first and foremost what you hired him or her for, - a photographer - but in reality he or she is much more than that, an entertainer, a motivator, a director, a counsellor, time keeper, reporter, etc. and at least for the duration of your wedding day... he or she should be as approachable like one of your closest friends!
If you are planning a destination wedding, there are also other factors that you have to take into consideration, apart from the fact that unless you make a pre-visit, you won't be able to meet face to face.
Many photographers are keen to travel and happily advertise the fact on their website, yet few couples check if their photographer has a work permit if they work outside their country (unless there is a mutual agreement between the two countries concerned). Despite assurances that 'it's a gift' or that they are 'a friend of the family', there have been several occasions where wedding photos ended up in a court case or at immigration, because the photographers just assumed that they could work at a private event without submitting the necessary paperwork. Please save yourself the heartache and check beforehand!
You may have a wonderful photographer at home but please remember that circumstances are different in another country. It is vital to scout out locations before a photo shoot to find great and unusual backdrops. Part of the scouting is to look at those locations during various times of the day as some settings only look great during a particular time of the day.
One of the major 'tripping points' is often lighting. Many photographers just assume that they have a so called 'golden hour' with beautiful light before sunset and badly miscalculate the timings for their photo shoot. Imagine the horror of planning a sunset wedding and you run out of light? The most beautiful beach is not going to show up in your photos if its dark... and wasn't that one of the points why you picked such a romantic location in the first place for your wedding?
After all is said and done, just make sure that you feel comfortable with each other, that you are both on the 'same track', speak the same language and feel free to talk openly with each other. Do your research well and follow your 'gut instinct' and you should be fine!
One of the major 'tripping points' is often lighting. Many photographers just assume that they have a so called 'golden hour' with beautiful light before sunset and badly miscalculate the timings for their photo shoot. Imagine the horror of planning a sunset wedding and you run out of light? The most beautiful beach is not going to show up in your photos if its dark... and wasn't that one of the points why you picked such a romantic location in the first place for your wedding?
After all is said and done, just make sure that you feel comfortable with each other, that you are both on the 'same track', speak the same language and feel free to talk openly with each other. Do your research well and follow your 'gut instinct' and you should be fine!
