The other day on my Instagram stories, I posted asking those who have been married, “what is one thing you regret from your wedding”.  Kind of surprising, yet not so surprising at the same time is that almost everyone answered with was, their photographer.    They didn’t click with their photographer, Their portfolio was completely different than the photos they received from their wedding, they wish they would have put more money into their photography budget, etc.  Heartbreaking, right?!

I’ve been there.  Wedding planning is exciting and super confusing when you’re looking for your vendors.  I remember racking my brain online looking for the perfect photographer.  The response from my Insta story the other day totally inspired me to help give you all a few pointers on how to choose your wedding photographer.

1.  Do you like their website?  Take some time and look through the different pages on their website.  Is it interesting?  Does it seem like they’ve put time into their website?  Does the wording sound like someone you would want to spend time with?  Is their style what you’re looking for?

2.  Are they someone you would want there on your wedding day?  Let’s face it, besides your future husband or wife, your photographer is the next person you will spend the most time with on your wedding day.  Along with looking at their website, does the wording sound like someone you would click with?  When you meet with them, is their personality similar to yours?  Additionally, make sure you are meeting with the actual photographer that will be there on your wedding day.

3.  Don’t get hypnotized by their amazing album or portfolio.  Their album is an album with a Downtown Detroit wedding with a budget of $100,000 and the couple looks like fricken Jennifer Aniston + Brad Pitt (i’m still holding out hope for them).  It’s ah-mazing!  Of course it is!  But if your wedding isn’t going on be in a castle or if you have a budget to stick to, the castle wedding might not look like your wedding (and that’s totally ok!).  But when you’re looking through their albums, envision your wedding and see if their style fits what you’re looking for.  Do they capture emotions and by looking at their photos, do you feel like you get the vibe of their wedding day?  Don’t be afraid to ask questions.

4.  Ask to see it all!  Don’t be afraid to ask to see a full wedding from your photographer.  This should be a simple request.  If you’re having a wedding at the DIA, ask if they have a museum wedding you could see, or a barn wedding or whatever.  Can they capture emotion?  Do you like their poses?  Are they able to photograph well at night with no natural light?  These are all very important things to look for when looking through a full wedding.

5.  Do you trust them?  I know it seems intense, but seasoned photographers are able to show you their work, be chill during your meeting and are confident.  Their work is consistent.  Check out their reviews on wedding websites such as The Knot + Wedding Wire.  What are couples saying?

6.  It’s expensive.  Yeah wedding photography is expensive.  And there’s a good reason for that.  Those who put time and care into their photography careers spend money furthering their industry and technical knowledge, their equipment is expensive and we need a lot of it.  We have to have insurance to cover our gear, as well as insurance to shoot in event spaces.  We have to pay to back up your photos in several ways, some need child care and so on and so on and so on.  Yup, we’re expensive, but when you head home from your wedding and you zip your dress back in it’s bag and the cake is all gone, all you have is your photos.  As photographers, we are able to freeze time.  We save memories.  They last forever.  If you are going to push your budget anywhere, it should be here.  I know everyone has budgets (I had a tight one too), but there are fantastic photographers at many budgets.  Just make sure you do your research and then do even more.  Your memories are so, so precious.

Want more wedding tips?  Check these out!

Why should you have a First Look

Top 5 wedding planning tips from someone who’s been there

How much time do you really need your wedding photographer?

How to choose your wedding photographer