Looking for a potential photographer or videographer can be hard. Trust me – I get that. I want you to find the PERFECT photographer/videographer for you. I want you to really find someone that you love. So what is the key to finding a photographer/videographer that you love?

THE PHONE CALL.

Consider it a mini interview for you both. As much as you want to see if they are a good fit, they also want to see if you’re a good fit as well. So hear me out- your photographer/videographer are the ones you will spend most of the day with- even more than your partner.

Having a phone call will make sure you vibe well before booking them for your big day.

So what questions should you be asking?

1.How many weddings will you be shooting that weekend?

This is important because the photographer could be taking a 3 10 hour wedding days and this can cause burn out and them not to be as excited for your wedding day as they should be!

2.What does your backup system look like?

Let’s dive into this one!!!

Instead of asking them what gear they have (because honestly you really do not need to ask them this anyway), ask them have several camera batteries, an extra camera body, how many SD cards they are shooting on during the day- meaning do they have a camera with dual card slots, when do they back up your photos ( right when they get home, the next morning, within a couple days, within the week ,etc). It is important to make sure you’re hiring someone that either backs up your photos right away or the next morning. Where do they back up the photos? Do they only back them up on 1 hard drive, 2 hard drives, etc. How long do they keep the images on the SD cards? Do they delete them right after they back them up, after the sneak peaks are sent, after the full gallery is sent, or longer?

3.What is your culling process?

Let’s get into this!

A lot of you probably have absolutely no clue what culling even is so let me explain… Once we get the images on our computers, we use some kind of culling/editing software. What we do is we will go through each individual photo and zoom into them to make sure that there’s no blurry ones, blinking, awkward faces, and making sure everything and everyone is in focus and you are looking flattering. There will be lots of duplicate photos from your day and we want to give you the BEST ones. You won’t need endless images of the same photo anyways-trust me! So please don’t listen to the posts/influencers stating that you need every single photo and to ask if you will get the raws. You really don’t want them anyways! But don’t worry your photographer will let you know how many photos you will receive from your wedding day and if they’re anything like me they will over deliver on that.

4.What happens if you get sick?

Instead of wondering what would happen if your photographer/ videographer end up getting sick, just ask them this!! Make sure there’s also a clause in the contract on this. Do they have someone they can contact/ resources for them in case they are sick or do they just leave you blind sided and cancel? This is very important and you will be able to tell the photographer/videographer vs the professional photographer/videographer.

5.What is your turn around time?

Okay here it goes…

You really need to ask this. Let’s be honest, you can’t just ask others how long it took them to get their photos back because EVERY photographer is different. Between their process, editing style, client load, experience, client experience, the season, etc. All of these things make the turnaround process different and unique for each photographer/videographer.

6.Do you have experience photo shooting in low light?

Okay so let’s get into this one now…

You really don’t have to ask them if they have shot at your venue before. This isn’t really necessary because there are so many unique venues. Also, there are so many similar venues. Instead, ask them if they have shot a wedding with similar lighting before.

7.Can you send me an example full gallery?

ALRIGHT….

You should definitely ask your photographer for a RECENT gallery. You should be asking them to send a gallery that was shot in similar lighting as your venue.

8.How much of a deposit do you require?

This is important because some require 50% down but others only require 30% down.

9.Do you include an engagement session with your packages?

Some photographers include engagement sessions in all packages, some only include it in their most popular packages, some include it at a small fee, and others don’t include it at all so it’s definitely important to ask this!

Best of luck asking all of these questions. Good luck with wedding planning and enjoy the engagement season!

Get in touch HERE