Everything You Need To Know Before Booking Your Wedding Photographer
- Find A Wedding Style You Love
One of the first things to consider when choosing a wedding photographer is their photography and editing style.
Wedding photography styles can include:
- True-to-color (Balanced skin tones, and colors that are edited to stay true to how your wedding day actually looks.)
- Light & airy (Soft, bright images with creamy skin tones and soft colors.)
- Dark & Moody (Rich color, with deep shadows, and bold contrast.)
- Film-inspired (Soft colors, muted tones and slightly faded images with subtle or heavy grain that creates a timeless, vintage feel.)
- Bright & Colorful ( Vibrant lively tones that make colors pop, with overall light and bright images.)
- Very Warm ( Rich golden highlights and overall warm tones for soft glow images .)
You don't have to know exactly what your preferred wedding photography style is called. Instead, look through photographers' portfolios and pay attention to the images your naturally drawn to. Look at skin tones, colors, lighting, posing, movement, and how the photographs make you feel. Most importantly, look for consistency within that style.
If you love the photographer's work across different weddings, seasons, venues and lighting conditions, that's a great sign that you know what you can expect from your own wedding.
2. Consider Their Approach to Posing vs. Candid Wedding Photography
Editing style isn't the only difference between wedding photographers. You should also consider how a photographer documents a wedding day. Some wedding photographers are very hands-on and provide direction throughout the day. Others take a documentary approach and focus heavily on candid wedding photography. and some like me, combine the two.
There are moments when direction is incredibly helpful. Family portraits, wedding party photos, and couples portraits often need some guidance. But your entire wedding day shouldn't feel like a photoshoot. Some of the best wedding photographs happen when nobody is paying attention to the camera: your mom tearing up, your partner laughing with friends, your grandparents dancing, or your flower girl doing something completely unexpected.
When choosing your wedding photographer, ask yourself whether you want someone who will direct every moment or someone who knows when to provide guidance and when to simply document what's happening.
3. Look at Full Wedding Galleries. Not Just Instagram
One of my biggest tips for choosing a wedding photographer is to look beyond social media. Instagram, Facebook, and even a photographer's website portfolio.
A full wedding gallery tells you so much more!
Wedding photographers have to work in constantly changing light conditions throughout a wedding day. Your photographer may go from photography photography: Getting ready in a dark hotel room to a ceremony in harsh afternoon sunlight, to family portraits under cloudy skies, to a reception with very little light available to golden hour portraits.
Looking through a full wedding day gallery allows you to see how consistently a photographer handles an entire wedding day, not just the perfect lighting conditions you see online.
4. Make Sure You Actually Connect With Your Photographer
Your wedding photographer will probably spend more time with you on your wedding day than almost any other vendor.
That's why personality matters.
You want a photographer you feel comfortable communicating with, especially if you or your partner feel awkward in front of the camera. When talking with potential wedding photographers, pay attention to how the conversation feels.
Do they answer your questions?
Do you feel comfortable around them?
Do they understand what's important to you?
Do you trust them?
Feeling comfortable with your wedding photographer makes it much easier to relax in front of the camera, which ultimately creates more natural photographs.
5. Compare Wedding Packages Carefully
Wedding photography pricing can vary significantly, which can make comparing photographers difficult. Instead of looking at price alone, compare what your actually receiving.
When comparing wedding photography packages, consider things like:
- Hours of wedding day coverage
- Engagement sessions
- Second Photographers
- Travel Fees
- Sneak peeks
- Gallery turnaround time
- Digital image delivery
- Printing Rights
- Albums or prints
- Photographer experience
Two photographers may both offer eight hours of wedding photography coverage but provide completely different experinces.
Your budget absolutely matters, but the cheapest wedding photographer isn't automatically the best value and the most expensive photographer isn't automatically the right fit either.
Look at the overall experience, quality, consistency and services being offered.
6. Read the Wedding Photography Contract Before Booking
Before officially booking a wedding photographer, make sure you receive and understand their contract.
A professional wedding photography contract should clearly explain important details such as payment schedules, retainers, cancellations, rescheduling, image delivery, turnaround time, usage rights, and what happens in unexpected circumstances.
Don't be afraid to ask questions before signing!
A contract isn't only there to protect the photographer, it should also clearly explain what you can expect from them.
7. Ask Yourself What You Want Your Wedding Photos To Feel Like
This is probably the most important part of choosing the right wedding photographer. Think beyond Pinterest and Instagram of a moment.
Imagine sitting together 20 years from now looking through your wedding photographs. What do you want to remember?
Of course you'll want the beautiful portraits and detail photographs. But you'll probably also want to remember the way your partner looked at your during the ceremony. Your Dad's reaction when he saw you, Your best friend's laugh. Your grandparents on the dance floor. The hugs, tears, chaos, and little moments you didn't even realize were happening.
Those photographs become more valuable with time.
Choose a wedding photographer who photographs the things you want to remember.
Finding the Right Wedding Photographer in West Michigan
If you're planning a wedding in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, or anywhere in Michigan, you'll find plenty of talented wedding photographers.
The goal isn't necessarily to the "best wedding photographer" It's to find the best wedding photographer for you.
Look for someone whose editing style you love, whose galleries are consistent, whose personality makes you comfortable, and who approach matches the ay you want your wedding documented.
You don't need to understand every photography term to know when you've found the right fit. Sometimes you simply look through someone's photographs and think "That's how I want my wedding day remembered."
West Michigan Wedding Photographer | Audrey Jo Photo
I'm Audrey, the photographer behind Audrey Jo Photo. I photograph weddings throughout Michigan with a focus on real color, real connections, and the moments that make your wedding day uniquley yours.
My approach blends timeless portaits with candid and documentary-style photography. I'll give you direction when you need it, while also giving you space to actually experieence your wedding day. Because your wedding day shouldn't feel like a lenghty photoshoot. It should feel like your wedding.
And your photographys should bring you right back to it.
If you're currently searching for a Michigan wedding photographer, I'd love to hear what you're planning and see if we're the right fit!
