Your wedding day is just that, one day. There are no do-overs. In 20 years' time your photos and most likely your dress are the only visual memories of your special day you will have.
So I'd love to offer some advice, as I've heard of so many disasters and disappointments over the years and I want you to have your beautiful photos forever.
What to ask the photographer during booking consultation, and Why....
Have they been a member of the AIPP (Australian Institute of Professional Photographers)? AIPP photographers undergo an extensive process to be accepted into the association.
Are they fully insured? Do they have liability Insurance specific to Photographers. For obvious reasons.
Do you carry back up equipment? Despite our best efforts, care and servicing, electrical/computerised equipment often fails. Carrying back up cameras is essential.
Do they shoot using two CF/SD cards in their camera in case one fails resulting in all images lost? So many times I have read photographers posts pleading for anyone who knows how to get information off corrupted cards.
How many backups of your photos do they keep and how do they protect against theft until they are delivered to you? Are the photo’s kept on hard-drives, in the cloud or in more than one place until they are safely in your hands.
How long do they keep your images stored in case you have a USB failure before you've printed all your images? This also happens. Your USB only has to sit near a magnet and it’s at risk.
Ask them which Professional Lab they get their photo's printed at and is it possible for you to print your photos at the same lab after the wedding? Big W, Officeworks etc. are very ordinary quality.
Will they size and send to a professional printer, any photos you would like to print after the wedding for family, friends or framing etc.
Are they equipped to shoot in low light? Shooting in low light is very difficult, if you have no experience in low light or your gear is only very basic the images can be very grainy and will not reproduce sharp clear images.
Are the Photos high resolution? If your photographer is cheap and just starting out do they know what file type to shoot in, do they know how to colour correct, are their monitors calibrated weekly using external calibrators for life like colour representation.
Do they have experience printing? It’s one thing to be able to produce nice images for the screen, however preparing images for printing is a whole different learning experience.
Do they have a backup photographer in case they are unwell? Covid for example. Imagine that, 3 days before your wedding they get Covid. In the past if you got a cold or flu you could just take some Codral and soldier on!! I was at a friends wedding and the photographer had a heart attack…..he survived luckily.
Do you have an assistant? Every photographer needs an assistant. Especially when things are moving at a fast pace and you need to rush and get equipment etc.
Print, Print, Print.... digital storage devices fail. I see it often and have had it happen to me. Not at a cheap retail store. They don’t use archival paper or inks. Are you photos being printed at Professional Lab.
Do you have a cancellation policy and what is it? Again obvious reasons. Every photographer has a different policy.
And finally, ask to see galleries, albums and slideshows. You want a photographer who can take consistently artistic and documentary photos of your special day.
Hope this helps a little...
A little bit about Me. I have spent 30 plus years perfecting my photography and saved to purchase the best professional gear to photograph and edit your beautiful photographs. All my packages have been painstakingly created to provide you with great value for money and the highest quality photography and heirloom albums and Wall Art.
I hope you have a wonderful Wedding. It’s so much fun preparing and then the day is so exciting, only problem it goes way to quick. I did everything myself. With help from Mum. Cake, flowers etc. I sold a pony to buy my dress, ha ha. It wasn't a fancy wedding (Bunyip Chapel) however we loved it. We couldn't afford all the photos at the time, unfortunately, so we only have printed proofs, and now the photographer has closed his shop and gone which is a bit sad. We look at the photos now and think wow look how young and skinny we were, so funny.
There are many more questions specific to your day you could ask. Write a list before your consultation. If you join my mailing list and put a note in the bottom. I’ll send you a PDF copy with all the questions.
Cheers Katie xxx
Our Wedding Mar 2002 - Photographer John Moore
Photo of a photo, no digital back then.