How to Hire a Great Photographer | 5 Pro Tips
One question that makes me cringe, every time, is: Do we really need to hire a professional wedding photographer? After all, we have friends or a family member that knows how to take pictures.
And I get it. Professional photographers can be expensive and usually take a good chunk of the wedding budget. And sure, your cousin Mike might be happy to do it. Besides, he’s taken pictures at a few weddings and done a few portraits. What could go wrong?
My parents made the common mistake of hiring a friend to photograph their wedding. Turns out, the camera was using bad film and none of the photos ever saw the light of day. A tragedy for them, as well as future generations.
Why You Need To Hire A Professional
I hear about many people making the mistake of hiring someone with less experience ALL THE TIME. I also hear about the regret that comes along with it. Photos don’t turn out or it took forever to get them. It was a bad experience due to the photographer not acting or dressing professionally. Or maybe they just plain didn’t listen to what the couple or family wanted. It happens time and time again.
Being a great photographer is more than just mastering your camera or owning the latest and most expensive camera gear. It’s about having a natural talent in seeing beauty in the most unexpected places, capturing that beauty in a photograph, and creating an amazing experience for your clients throughout.
So, if you’re on the fence about whether or not you should hire a professional photographer for your wedding, here are 5 things to look for that a great photographer will always get right on your big day!
1. Creativity & Eye for Detail
A great photographer has an eye for detail and knows to check all of the elements within the photo — lighting, composition, YOU, and everything in between. They know to make sure everything works together.
A professional photographer knows to check everything from your hair and jewelry to your body posture. They’ll look at the background as well as your emotion. Great photographers are constantly scanning the scene while composing — even for candid photos!
2. Patience & Flexibility
No matter how much we try, things just don’t go our way sometimes. We can’t control the weather, crying babies, dogs, and when it comes to weddings, often the lighting. So hiring a photographer that knows how to handle any situation, remains calm, and has a few tricks up their sleeves is paramount so that your photos will turn out no matter what life throws at you.
3. Good People Skills
Great photographers know how to work with everyone — you, your family, even other vendors. Thus, being a great photographer requires good people skills. We have to be able to connect and communicate effectively. Helping you feel relaxed is in our job descriptions so that we can draw out the right emotions from you and your guests.
4. Experience & Training
This probably seems obvious, but experience is more than the number of years a photographer has been taking photos. Having a degree or certification is just as important in photography as a license is for a contractor.
You want to hire someone with the training and experience in the TYPE of photography you want as well as someone who cares about your experience. Going to college for photojournalism prepared me to be a newspaper photographer, but it wasn’t until I’d photographed over 100 weddings that I had the experience to be a wedding photographer.
5. Passion
When you’re passionate about what you do, it shines through in your work. It takes a lot of time and effort to make it as a professional photographer, and the ones who succeed and make a name for themselves are those who are truly passionate about their craft. We work a little harder, push a little further, and are always striving to be better than the day before. Lots of people enjoy photography, but the great photographers are obsessed with it and never stop learning.
The Proof Is In The Pudding
The truth is, at the end of the day, hiring a professional wedding photographer could very well make or break your big day. These photos will act as memories of one of the best days of your life! The last thing you want is to be disappointed that the right photographer wasn’t there to capture them.
If you’re still unsure as to whether or not to hire a professional photographer, I’m here to help! Any questions you may have, I’d love to answer. Feel free to get in touch with me and let’s figure this out so that you can have the worry free wedding you’ve been dreaming of.
