Help! What should i ask potential Photographers??

Our photographer charges $3500 for 2 shooters, an engagement session, full day coverage (getting ready to dance), and 700-1000 edited photos on a USB. That is what sold me on them because some other photographers only offer 80 edited photos.

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I took my fiance to a wedding show about a week ago, and for the first time, he saw the prices at the photographers booths. He was in sticker shock. Of course, he's "ooh-ing" and "ah-ing" over the beautiful photos... as long as we are willing to pay $4000-$5000 for the day... YIKES!

I found a photographer in Vancouver that has his "best deal", for $1600, 8 hours coverage, one photographer, 2 hour engagement session included, over 500 edited photos, guaranteed delivery in a few weeks. And his photos are good. Not oh-my-god magazine quality amazing... but I would not be upset whatsoever if my photos looked like his portfolio. Plus his reviews online are that he's great to work with.

I can't justify spending 4 months rent on one day of photos... but at the same time, I know I need to spend enough not to hate my wedding photos for the rest of my life.

Thanks for all the input! My Fiance and I have had a few good meetings and love one of the duos we met with but they seem so expensive to us. If you dont mind sharing how much are some of you spending on your photographer and what are you getting for that price? My Fiance's a videographer and cant believe what some of these photographers charge.

I started with 5 photographers I was thinking about and ranked them. I eliminated the bottom 2 and then analyzed the top 3. So I looked at how well their photos/videos came out, if I liked their work, how much their packages were, and if I could see myself working with them. Price wasn't always a factor with us because you honestly pay for what you get. I have friends that settled for their photographer and they hate them now that the wedding is said and done. Their photos turned out so bad all because they cut corners with pricing! We are crazy and are spending $8,000 on both video and photography but we know we are getting good work and will be taken care of. We also asked people we knew for their opinions, especially if they worked with them previously. Good luck!

Don't know if that has been mentioned but I would ask the what if question: What if you are no longer able to do my wedding due to any unexpected emergencies what would happen?

My photographers are husband and wife pair, they also have kids. They told me it would be their responsibility to find replacements.

Apart from what has already apart from being able to reprint it is also about the size. Some photographers will let you reprint up to a certain size. Also another thing to think about is the photographers who sell albums and print products have to mark up their prices.

I know I can make an album online by myself and I don’t feel like paying an extra thousand dollars for someone to put the pictures in the album and sending it back and forth to edit. I would rather do it myself and not pay for editing a photo book that I can do myself.

So exciting! We have you covered with 14 questions you need to ask and how to find a photographer. Have a great meeting!

I looked at their portfolios to see what their shots look like.. ie. Is the framing good, do I like the style of editting they do, do I like how the couples look in the photos, are the poses different?

Price then obviously.

What's included in their price - How many hours, two shooters?, how many images do you get.

Just chatting with them helps you figure out if you mesh with their personality as well.

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I am with Breanne. I want to access to all the shots and able to print as many as I want. But to me personally, there are 2 more factors. First, go check their galleries. Every photographers has their own style. When I surfed their galleries, I had to have the feeling that it was us in those pictures and poses. Second, I have to have a 'good click' with the photographer. Imagine spending so many hours with her/him on your wedding day. You have to feel comfortable with that person.

One thing that was important for me was how many photos they take & how many we actually get. I found a lot of photographers were offering between 200-500 shots (which isn't a lot for 8 hours and 2 photographers) but our photographer gives us full access to all shots and estimates there will around ****. From there we get 500-600 edited images but still have access to the rest. This was important to me because my best friends photographer only ended up giving them around 400 photos but there were a lot that she remembered him taking that weren't in the ones he gave her. She asked him about it and he ended up sending her a few 100 more that he hadn't bothered to include because they weren't edited. They ended up being some of her favourites.

I also wanted a photographer that didn't restrict use (ie. we can reprint), all they ask is if we use in a magazine or for advertising, that they receive credit.

Do you have my date available? How many weddings have you shot? Have you done many that were similar to mine in size and style or at the venue? (THIS WAS A MUST FOR US! there is a lot of grounds around our venue available for photos and we wanted someone who has done photos there before who knew the area)Do you have a portfolio I can review? What type of equipment do you use? Can I give you a list of specific shots we would like?What information do you need from me before the wedding day?May I have a list of references?Do you have more than one photographer?How do you ensure that you capture the key moments? (we wanted someone to capture my fiance's reaction when he saw me walking down the aisle as well as my own reaction to seeing him)

I agree with Bianca, those are great questions, and also if they have a contract, work with second photographer, if you like a certain type of style ask if they do that, I don't like black and white so I always ask is this something your focused on before I tell them I don't like it. I ask how many photo's I get out of it, waiting time, I like to meet in person for consultation to see if I click with them or what they are like (awkward or not)

See their portfolio, how many years experience, what happens if they can’t make it, what style do they like to shoot, ask for reviews, etc.