Here's How to Find the Ideal Photographer for Your Wedding
A step-by-step guide to help you find the wedding photography team that perfectly aligns with your and your partner's wedding vision.
Long after you have tied the knot and the thrill of your wedding party has faded away, your wedding photos and videos continue to be a beautiful reminder of your once-in-a-lifetime celebration. This is why choosing the ideal wedding photographer is as important as choosing the right wedding venue and the taste of your wedding food.
If you want a dreamy wedding photo album or a wedding film that captures the story of your wedding event and makes it a timeless memory, then it’s important to book the right team that not only fits into your wedding budget but also understands your vision and can be trusted with this Hercules task on your wedding day.
Here’s your ultimate guide to finding the ideal wedding photographer for your big day. Follow these steps to ensure your journey is stress-free.
- Decide Your Wedding Budget
- Decide Your Wedding Theme
- Book Your Wedding Venue First
- Figure Out Your Preferred Wedding Photography Style
- Contact Top Rated Photographers in WWI Marketplace
- Schedule Face to Face Meetings
- Discuss the Fee and Keep Track of Your Budget
- Review and Sign the Contract
Decide Your Wedding Budget
Before you start looking for the ideal venue and wedding vendors, the most important step in your wedding planning journey is to decide an upper cap of your wedding budget. Once you have discussed this with your partner and family and aligned on the same, it’s time to head to our free wedding budget calculator and start managing your wedding budget. Ideally, your wedding photography budget should be around 10-13% of your total wedding budget. This applies to packages that cover pre-wedding shoots, wedding photography, wedding videography, and wedding albums.
Decide Your Wedding Theme
Pre-deciding your wedding theme can influence your wedding photography booking. Here’s how:
- If you decide on a destination wedding, you can avoid planning a pre-wedding shoot separately and shoot it at the same venue or city two days before the wedding day. This could save some costs, especially if you are travelling to a picturesque destination for your wedding.
- Many couples choose different themes and venues for each wedding function. For example, you could plan your engagement party in a banquet hall and book an open-air outdoor venue for the wedding ceremony. When you know these details, communicating and planning the photography fee will be easier.
- If you are planning a destination wedding on the outskirts of your city, then you can look for a photography team in your town and discuss the travel cost with them. If you are planning a wedding in a different city or country, finding a photographer from your destination is advisable.
Book Your Wedding Venue First
I have already made a case for this in my article so far. But here’s the most important reason you need to book a wedding venue first: Your wedding venue covers the most significant cost in your wedding planning journey. Ideally, 45-50% of your wedding budget will be spent on your venue and catering. Book your wedding venue first to ensure you have clarity about the following factors before you start looking for a photographer.
- Where are you getting married?
- How much can you spend on your wedding photographer? (Use the WWI calculator here: add your wedding venue and catering cost to the tool and see how much is allotted on average to the photography and videography category)
- Will you be hosting your functions in different venues or one venue?
- Do you need to cover your photographer’s accommodation?
Figure Out Your Preferred Wedding Photography Style
Do you know what your wedding photography style is? If not, take time with your partner to discuss and decide what your wedding photography style is. You can head to WeddingWire India’s Instagram feed and save the photos that resonate with you. Different wedding photography styles are being explored in weddings, like editorial photography, traditional wedding photography, blurred wedding photography, aerial shots, Bollywood-inspired viral couple photography and more. Ensure you add your favourite poses, photos and wedding films to a Pinterest board or Instagram folder before shortlisting your wedding photographer. Once you have this board to refer to, you can look at a photographer’s storefront on WeddingWire India or check out their social media feed to see if their portfolio resonates with the photography style you are looking for.
Contact Top Rated Photographers in WWI Marketplace
You have your basics in place now, so download the app or visit the WeddingWire India Photography marketplace and select the location of your choice. This helps you find photographers whose services are available in your preferred location. It’s now time to look at the ‘filters’ section. Choose the price filter that fits your budget, the services you need for the wedding, and the occasions you are booking. Once you choose these filters, the marketplace will automatically feature the most relevant vendors to you. The photographers with the best ratings and reviews are at the top of the list. You can click on each of their pages and visit their storefront to read about their services and check their gallery or portfolio of work. You can contact them and drop a query if this aligns with your vision.
Schedule Face to Face Meetings
The easiest way to communicate after you have sent them a query is the WWI inbox or WhatsApp. Wait for the vendor to respond to your query first; they will reach out with any questions that they might have to create a quotation for you. Once you have responded and the basics are in place, they will share their deliverables and the quotation. If the price aligns with your budget and you like their portfolio, plan a face-to-face meeting before sending the booking amount. Meetings can help you assess the lead photographer or manager of the team, allowing them to build a rapport with you. I highly recommend choosing a photographer with whom you vibe! It will make your overall journey so much easier! And make sure you ask the shortlisted wedding photographers these questions before you book them.
Discuss the Fee and Keep Track of Your Budget
By now, you should have found one wedding photographer or team that checks all of these boxes: they are within your budget, they are available on your wedding date, they have a fantastic portfolio that covers the wedding photography style you are looking for, they are well-mannered and easy to communicate with, you and your partner would love to collaborate with them.
Voila, it’s time to close the final payment discussion. Check if payment instalments are available. And what is the final quote (keeping any travel, accommodation, or miscellaneous costs in mind)? Once you have booked your wedding photographer, note this cost using the WWI wedding budget calculator. You now know how much you are spending on the venue, catering, and photographer, and you can move on to your next decision - to book the hair and makeup artist.
Review and Sign the Contract
The last step is one of the most essential steps in your wedding planning journey. When you have given a booking amount, don’t miss signing a contract with any of your wedding vendors. This contract should mention all the necessary payment instalments, terms and conditions for working together, deliverables, quantity, and completion timeline.
