Why You Should Chose A Professional Wedding Photographer

Let me preface this by saying that if wedding photography is not high on your list of priorities, you can stop reading right now.  Honestly, this article isn’t for you, and it’s perfectly fine having Uncle Gary shoot your wedding.  If you just want a dozen or so pictures to hang on your wall, Uncle Gary can most likely handle it just fine, and would be cheaper too.

But if having a complete record of your wedding matters to you…then you may want to continue.

Wedding Photography isn’t cheap (although we always strive to keep our prices reasonable and affordable to our clients).  I know how tempting it is to just ask your nice uncle Gary, who always has a camera handy and takes snapshots of everything to shoot your wedding.

And I will admit, Uncle Gary does have a good eye.  And he takes some magnificent pictures of your aunt Linda and the boys.  But I beg of you, unless Uncle Gary has actually photographed weddings.  Do. Not. Ask. Him. To. Shoot. Yours.

The same can be said of the “friend you had in college who owns a nice camera“,  or “that one cousin of my mom’s“.  They may have done some very nice work, but unless they are prepared to shoot a wedding, and have experience doing so, you are going to get less then professional results.

Shooting a wedding is an extremely stressful event, and unless you are prepared to deal with it, it can overwhelm you.  When everything goes smoothly, it can feel like the easiest job in the world.  However when things go wrong, you do not want someone without the experience of dealing with everything that can go wrong staring doe-eyed while you walk down the aisle.

I’ve had cameras break during a ceremony.  I’ve had flashes crash, I’ve had memory cards go bad, I’ve had Chandlers shatter due to a bouquet toss.  I’ve had mothers of the bride go on the warpath just before the ceremony.  I’ve had drunk uncles puking on me at a reception (well…near me)  I’ve had those experiences and I know how to navigate them.

I’ve had friends and family in tears, because Uncle Gary only shot 40 pictures, and they had nothing to remember their wedding day with.  They had no pictures of their first dance because Gary’s flash wasn’t firing and he had to wing it.  He didn’t realize that he had his white balance set wrong, so everything has a weird blue or orange glow to it.  I’ve heard 1001 horror stories about people to whom photography mattered, but they thought they could trust Uncle Gary.

You don’t have to chose me, chose someone who’s work you love (if it’s mine, all the better), but chose someone who does this professionally.  Bad things happen, make certain that the person who is responsible for those memories has done this before, and has proven themselves capable of doing it again.  Uncle Gary can still shoot your wedding if he wants to, but at least you can be certain that those wonderful shots that he did get arent’ the only ones you’ll have for the rest of your life.