During the meeting or the call there are questions that you must ask if the photographer hasn’t mention them already in his/her pitch.
1- Have you shot in the venue before? If not, and that’s no biggy, will they visit the venue before the wedding. I always do unless I know the venue extremely well. You don’t want your photographer not knowing the best spots in your venue of photo location.
2- Ask to view a full wedding album from start to finish. It’s very easy to have show album with only your best shots. A photographer must able to deliver great photographs at all stages of the wedding.
3- What packages are available? Packages makes things simple but you might be sold something you don’t want/need. So make sure you know what you are getting and for what money.
4- If a USB or downloads are included, is there a watermark on the picture (logo of the photographer), can you print the images yourself and how big?
5- How many images can you expect? This will vary greatly and don’t be too impressed by someone telling you you’ll get 700 images as they are likely to be very similar. Quality over quantity should be your moto.
6-Will the images be edited? This is should be a yes of course and at no extra charge. Walk away from anyone saying no to this.
7- Is there a payment plan? This could make it easier for you to book the photographer you want. I offer payment plan that suit couples individually.
8- How much is the deposit and when is the balance due to be paid. You need to know when you have to pay what. Some like to be paid on the day, others, like me, prefer to be paid ahead of the wedding, that way there is less cash to be carried by the best man. Piece of mind.
9- Are engagement shoot available? These are a good way to get used to the camera.
10- Do they work alone or with a second photographer/assistant? Unless you want 2 photographers I would not recommend having 2 the whole day. You will feel crowded and might not enjoy the constant attention.
That’s 10 but there are more to ask. Cancellation, cut off time for the evening, delivery time for photos and albums, who chooses the photos for the albums, back-up plan if the photographer is ill, is he/she insured?
I know it’s a lot but most professional photographers will have these covered. Just beware that what is too good to be true generally is.
The best option is to trust your gut feeling and do the checks.
