The Truth About Wedding Photography

by Sean David Wright

Shopping for a wedding photographer can be a daunting task; there are so many to choose from and they often offer overpriced packages containing things you just don’t need. Here is what you need to know—about wedding photography and about the services I offer.

FOR WEDDINGS, DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY IS BEST

Don’t let any photographer con you into believing that film is best for capturing your wedding. In the 21^st century there is no excuse for a photographer to arrive at your wedding with a film camera. That is careless and unconscionable. Using film adds to the cost of photographing your wedding due to the price of the film and the processing needed to develop the images; using film means that the photographer will NOT be able to take as many photos as I do and, lastly, using film means that the photographer has to waste time reloading his or her camera and thus risk missing precious shots.

Furthermore, using a digital camera means that I can see what shots are working and which are not IMMEDIATELY and I can thus adapt right away. Do I have to increase the lighting for the formal portraits? Did the bride blink when I snapped the shutter? Is my flash creating undesirable shadows on the subject?

FACT: During a typical 6 hour wedding shoot I will take anywhere between 1100 and 1500 photos, sometimes more. This means that I will have more “keepers” to give to you.  A film photographer would have to bring 28 rolls of 36-exposure film to capture 1000 photos. When you figure that it will take that photographer at least two minutes to change rolls each time the film runs out (provided he or she is REALLY fast at changing rolls) that is 56 MINUTES of lost photography time! Nearly an hour! And what spontaneous moments could be lost during those 56 minutes?

THE MATTER OF TIME

There are plenty of wedding photographers out there who believe they can get the job done in 3 or 4 hours. That is ridiculous. A wedding is not just the ceremony and then a few events at the reception. A wedding begins when the bridesmaids arrive to help the bride prepare; when the groom is getting into his tux; when the parents arrive to help decorate the hall. And it doesn’t end until the cake is cut and the newly married couple is bidding adieu to their guests. I give you SIX HOURS of photography time—more than enough to capture unique moments before, during and after the ceremony that most photographers will miss because they won’t even be there!

FACT: On your wedding day you deserve to not feel rushed by a photographer who is constantly checking his or her watch. I treat each wedding as a story, with a beginning, a middle and an end. The ceremony is only the middle so why choose a photographer who will show up just a few minutes before the ceremony and leave just a few minutes after the bouquet toss?

THE MATTER OF COST

Why are there digital photographers out there who charge $1000, $2000 or even $3000 for their services? Take it from me…outside of purchasing the equipment digital photography has very little cost to the photographer. There is no film to buy, no time lost in the dark room, no processing chemicals to purchase…so why the high prices?

FACT:My $300 and $400 flat rate prices benefit you because you get a skilled, artistic photographer for your wedding without skewing your budget; and they benefit me because I still make a profit.

PRINTING CHOICES

If you’ve done comparison shopping of wedding photographers you’ve discovered that most of them want you to buy their expensive packages of prints. In fact, you are often given no choice. The problem with this is that, number one, those prints packages are way overpriced and, number two, you may very well end up being stuck with scores of prints that you can’t give away and which end up collecting dust in some desk drawer.

FACT: In this day and age ANYBODY can print photos so why pay hundreds of additional dollars to a photographer to do that for you? I give you your photos on compact disks and from the comfort of your home, using your home computer, you can order prints of your photos from FujiFilm, Kodak, Shutterfly, Walgreens—all at reasonable and low prices. The best part is that you will also have the control of how many prints to make and which sizes to produce! Need only one 5x7 of your wedding portrait to send to your grandmother? Then print only one! Need five 8x10s to send to your aunts and uncles? Then print only five! And in most cases you can pick up these prints from a local retailer in about an hour!

Plus, the ease and convenience of working with digital files cannot be surpassed! Instead of printing photos for your relatives and friends you can e-mail copies to them. Or you can easily post them on your family’s website or MySpace page and share them that way. Or you can easily make copies of the compact disks I give you and send those out instead.

In short, the power of choice is yours!

ACTION AND MORE ACTION

Weddings are fast-paced events and you need a photographer who won’t just stand around with his or her camera mounted on a tripod. What you need is a photographer who won’t rest during your weddings, who will stay mobile and alert and constantly be on the lookout for those wonderfully candid moments which will forever remind you of just how special your wedding was. And that’s me.

My promise to you…

Yes, my prices are low—but that is only because I am not trying to take advantage of you. I will not sacrifice professionalism nor artistry—and I believe my work proves it. My prices are not bargain prices; they are fair prices.