Granted, we had an informal and very small wedding with only two parents and two guests in attendance, one of them the best man, the other one being the "photographer", a cinematographer by profession. So what could possibly go wrong one might wonder?
Our photographer showed up to the ceremony dressed in a long-sleeved, hooded sweatshirt with a scene from "Dungeons & Dragons" printed across the front. Yes, we had an informal wedding with me wearing a nice summer dress but his outfit was more than just casual.
The ceremony was short and sweet – I don’t remember half of it as we were standing on a little bridge across a river and I was petrified of dropping the ring into the water. I did, however, see our photographer moving around, he was taking what appeared to be enough photos to fill an entire wedding album. Well, we did have plenty of photos but the prints we received were overexposed, underexposed, blurry, distorted and not a single one was usable. Did you ever watch the movie “Natural Born Killers”? Remember the LSD sequences? That’s what our wedding photos looked like. Nothing like seeing yourself blur through a triple-exposed photo.
The only photos we actually have of our wedding day are two images taken before the ceremony as well as the 10 images the professional wedding photographer provided by the wedding chapel took. Unfortunately, you can only see my husband's face in the photos. ;-( My hair and my back look great, though.
Pre-Ceremony photos taken by my Dad as well as my husband.
Up until this day, I want to kick myself for trusting a friend with our wedding photos and for opting for the basic photography package listed on the chapel’s website. We were thinking small & fun wedding, no big fuss – it was about us getting married, not the flowers, not the dress and not about a fancy cake. Well, seven years later, I wish I had more photos of our first kiss, of us walking down the aisle, photos of us hugging my parents afterwards … and the list goes on. My point: With wedding photography, the old saying holds true "You get what you pay for.". It is also not something just anybody can do. And when it goes wrong, it ain’t pretty.
Photos of our ceremony:
You can read the entire story of our wedding day in this week's (Febr. 10th, 2010) edition of the Barton Chronicle, pages 2-3 of the Wedding Supplement.
Professional photographers are artists with an eye for the tiniest of details such as your bouquet, shot of shoes/veil/rings, your place cards ... just to name a few. A professional wedding photographer knows about posing, camera angles, the flow of the day and much, much more.
Pro photographers pride themselves on their equipment and generally they have the best gear available. People who dabble in wedding photography on the side can’t justify the expense of professional gear, reliable backup gear, and proper business insurance. And then consider experience – an amateur can show you a few good images, but can they do that day in and day out? Do they have the experience to deliver high quality images on a consistent basis? Probably not, or else – they would be in the business themselves . And one last point, when you hire a Pro – they are indeed putting their reputation and their livelihood on the line. You have trust, you have references, and you have a proven track record.
In addition, your wedding photographer is there for one reason and one reason only: to photograph your wedding. Your “Uncle Bob” is there to enjoy your wedding. Have your guests celebrate with you and have them take photos because they want to or because a moment presents itself – but don’t have them take photos because you don’t have a professional wedding photographer.
Still on the fence? Read this article!
Kingdom Wedding Photography
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