Here's an article for soon to-be-married couples. The list will below will give you an idea if your prospective wedding photographer will be the right wedding photographer for your wedding day.
Portfolio. Ask the wedding photographer to provide you with a url of his or her website and meet him or her in person to see actual prints and/or albums. Better yet, ask him or her to show a complete portfolio of a single wedding.
Scope of coverage. Will the coverage start from your preparation up to the end of reception? Or just the ceremony or reception? Again, your choice, as this may impact on the cost.
Coverage Style. Ask the photographer what's his style. Photojournalistic, traditional, or mixed?
Will the photographer personally shoot your wedding. Because some photographers sometimes assign the work to others. Ask him or her to put it in writing, together with alternatives if he or she can't really personally shoot your wedding.
Unique and personal photos.What's the photographer's plan or M.O. or S.O.P. with regards to making your wedding photographs unique and personal to you?
Prenup and postnup photography. Does the wedding photographer offer an engagement photo session or prenup? How about postnup? Ask him or her how much, and if there's a discount for any of these services.
Photographer's experience. Ask your prospective wedding photographer how long has he or she been in business?
Costs. These are the different packages. Does the wedding photographer have different wedding packages to choose from. Most wedding photographers will spell out the things included in a particular package.
Overtime fee. Will there be an overtime fee? Ask beforehand and request that it be put in the contract if the wedding photographer has one.
Travel Fees. It's customary for photographers to charge travel fees for out-of-town weddings. Negotiate if you can.
Discounts. Will he or she give you a discount for duplicate prints, albums, enlargements, thank you cards, signature frames, etc.?
Proofs for the album. These may be in the form of contact sheets, CD /DVD, online gallery, or 3R prints. From theses proofs, you will select the pictures that will go into the album. It's seldom now that photographers provide contact prints and 3R prints. Wedding photographers and couples today prefer a CD/DVD or an online gallery because of convenience. The photographer may likewise opt to send you the pictures thru email (slow and laborious) or send the photos to a cloud storage service (easy to use and fast), like Dropbox, which I currently use.
How long will the wedding photographer give you the pictures for selection after the wedding. 3 days, 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month?
How much time will the photographer allow you for picture selection. I usually give my clients all the time they need to choose. But, as a rule, you should make the selection within 2 weeks, at the most, because after a month or two, your wedding photographer may be busy with other shoots.
Picture selection. Will the photographer help you in selecting, like give you a short list of his own choices to make the process easy for you? In the Philippines, most couples like to choose themselves from the thousands of pictures I give them. Your choice, really. There are pros and cons to both.
Prints/Reprints Orders. Would the prospective wedding photographer have a system that will make it easy for your friends and relatives to order reprints for themselves?
Picture quality. How long will the printed pictures and album last, in terms of fading.
Viewpoint or attitude towards photographing weddings. For instance, is it just a job for him/her? More often than not, the answer to this question will tip the scale for or against your decision in hiring the photographer.
Assistant. Will he/she have an assistant or assistants?
Backup equipment. Another basic and yet very important so that your photographer can continue shooting even if his or her main camera or other equipment decided to take a rest in the middle of your celebration.
Film or digital. Again, there are pros and cons to both.
Payment policy. This is another item you and your photographer should be able to agree on beforehand, preferably in writing.
Availability. Is the wedding photographer available on your wedding date?
Guarantees. This is important as you are paying with your hard-earned money. Ask him or her if the service comes with some form of guarantees.
If you feel that the wedding photographer is right for you, you can now relax and make the commitment with the confidence that you've made a well-formed, smart decision.
Tony Oquias is a professional photographer and writer based in the Philippines. You can visit his website at http://tonystill.com/ or read his blog with more photography articles and tips at http://tonystill.com/blog.
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