Photography Pricing Questions

Hello!!

Quick question:

On average how much did everyone spend on their photographer?

Everyone in my family has a different opinion on this and the range is quite large. My FI is unfortunetly on the cheap side and I'm having a hard time convincing him a great photographer is worth the money. He could spend the money on a nice camera and "stick a person behind it."

So now I don't know if I am being ridiculous and having my bridezilla moment or if I'm right in what I think we should spend on pictures.

 

Thanks ladies, your input would be greatly appreciated.

Did you do a search? there are tons of threads on this already - I think someone even did a poll..

there is quite a range in prices. definitely search before starting a new thread to save forum space. Here is a pricing thread:

 

http://bestdestinationwedding.com/forum/t38961

no camera is nice enough to make a great picture without the person behind it knowing what to do.

The more i learned about photography, the more i increased my budget.

I have never seen someone happy with their pictures if they went with an inexperienced photographer or tried to depend on family to get plenty of shots.

morgan is right and its not just about a camera but also lighting, lenses, etc. to get a really nice camera to do the quality of photos you'd want you could have paid for a great photographer!

plus you'd need to get a good editing program & learn how to use it.

 

DIY photography would be a ton of work

 

I completely understand how he is feeling. I know I was shocked at the cost of photography. But, once I learned how much work it is to shoot a wedding & process all the images I get it now.

 

I started off with a tiny photography budget. The more time I spent on BDW seeing all the amazing pictures & then seeing people dissapointed by bad pictures, the more I started to increase my budget. It was a good thing my wedding was in 08, because i'm sure my photography budget would be out of control by now.

 

I have had so much happiness from my wedding pics. I love them so much I want to take anniversary pics every year.

 

But, then I love photography. I suggest doing some research and figure out what works for you. Read the "what I wish I would have done thread" and see some places to cut back on the budget that don't really matter.

I think that one thing that might be helpful to your cause is saving a few of your "favorite" photos that you come across, then comparing them to shots taken from friends, family/guests "Non-pro pics" that are posted even here on the forums. Men often (ok, ALWAYS) need a visual to get it.

 

What I did was save a few pics to my pc of resort photog photos I'd seen, as well as some from some of the really basic/no frills photogs (ok, cheaper) that I came across who were initially in the budget range I'd thought of. THEN, I saved some of my favorites I started seeing when I would go through this site as well as from the sites of some of the more expensive photographers. I sat Billy down and SHOWED him-and hell yea, I cheated and used the absolute coolest shots I could find to highlight the diffference. lol But it worked and he "gets it" now. To be fair, we aren't going with the most expensive--but we're definitely not going with the cheapest. Our photogrpahy choice is pretty much "upper middle class" if that makes sense. We're actually getting a great deal, so that helps because we aren't paying what we probably SHOULD be for work like this BUT it took a lot of research on my part to FIND this person and get a good deal.

 

I think mid range is where a lot of brides end up, and they are happy with their photos in the end if they can't afford the truly expensive pro's. Once you start researching the different styles, you'll see what I mean. Just don't cave and go with someone because they are cheap, and you'll be fine. You may not be able to afford to blow half your wedding budget on a GREAT photog, but I guarantee you if you move some stuff around in your budget you'll be able to find one that has the style you want at a price you can still work in.

I agree with the girls that DIY photography is risky. We have a few friends that are really good photographers. Here are some of the pictures taken by him.

Faces from a year on the road. - a set on Flickr

When we compared the quality of photographer's photos to his, that put us in the mid-price range. The problem was that, when we looked at a mid-range photographer we only found about 2 or 3 pictures per set that we really moved us. So we splurged and got a really good photographer. We spent most of our budget on him, but we didn't need to spend a lot because we had an amazing location. He was SO worth it. We ended up with 100 amazing pictures. And since the pictures are all you are left with after the dust settles, we are really happy with our decision.

Tulum, Mexico Wedding Photography: Malisa and Todd - Dreamtime Images

Cost of a professional and experienced photographer may be high,but it's a once in a life time event. Find a photographer or videographer you love and you will thank yourself in a few years. Many of us call our work an investment, because wedding photographs get more precious with time

I think that this quote by John Ruskin sums up how I feel:

 

“It is unwise to pay too much but it’s unwise to pay too little.

When you pay too much you lose a little money that is all.

When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was not capable of doing the thing you bought it to do.

The common law of business prohibits paying a little and getting a lot.

It can’t be done.

If you deal with the lowest bidder it is well to add something for the risk you run.

And if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better!”

 

It is much better to cut in one or two other areas of your budget so that you can have really high quality images of your day, than it is to pay too little for your photographer, and then be disappointed in the end. Remember, these images will be passed on to your children and grandchildren.

 

Best wishes,

Tod