When it comes to securing the perfect wedding photographer, timing is everything. In this post, we guide you through the process of when and how to book your wedding photographer to ensure you capture the essence of your day. From the initial consultation to the Big Day, discover the optimal timeline for securing the photographer who will turn your wedding dreams into visual reality.
OK, so the first question is when should I book. The first choice is the day you decide you're going to get married. If you're reading this, you probably already missed that day, but it's not too late.
The second best choice is as soon as you've picked a date, even though it's tentative. Also, a lot of this depends on when you're getting married. If you're planning a June wedding on a weekend, the right answer might be two months ago. While that's a joke, you already know that many more couples want to book in June than any other month. On the other hand, if you're planning an outdoor wedding in New York in January, you probably have a good chance of having your pick of photographers, assuming you can find one willing to go there and do that. Eeek.
More seriously, there are fewer weddings in the winter, even here in the Valley of the Sun.
But whenever you're planning on tying the knot (an admittedly silly phrase), the sooner the better, and there are all kinds of reasons for this. First, of course, you want to book your photographer for your date before someone else does. Second, if your first choice is unavailable and your date is "written in stone," you want to find someone else who's available. Additionally, sometimes something will happen with your first choice and when that photographer lets you know you have to find another one, the more time you have, the better.
Also, you want to meet with your photographer as much in advance as possible so s/he can get to know you and the kind of wedding you're going to have. You may decide you want some engagement pictures, but even if not, you might want to take some "set-up" shots that are ultimately going into the wedding album.
When you meet in advance you might also find that your first choice no longer seems like the right choice.
While most of us (professional photographers) will jump into doing wedding photos at the last minute if that's what you need, because the photographer doesn't know you and doesn't necessarily know what you're going to like and may not be able to make a realistic "shot list," that will satisfy you as much as can be done well ahead of time.
If you don't know immediately who you want to hire to do your wedding, do some over-the-phone or email-based interviewing. Remember this is YOUR day and you want it to be right. Technical skills are important, but as we've pointed out in a prior post, your perception of how good the photos are, will be colored (pun intended) by your view of The Experience not only of the Big Day, but your interactions with the photographer, So choose cautiously and PLEASE book early.
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