Next on your Wedding Planning list is your photographer! Well that was next on our list after we’d decided on our venue (we chose Rockingham Castle for those who read my last blog post about Northamptonshire venues).
I spoke to a bride the other day about her wedding plans and surprisingly she had booked her wedding band first as she’d had her eye on that particular band for years! So there’s not a right way to plan your wedding, it’s all dependant on what is most important to you as a couple.

The main reason for booking your venue and then photographer as early as possible is that they get booked up fairly quickly. Particularly on the peak Saturdays during Spring and Summer.

I know there are so many questions you can ask your wedding suppliers. To keep it simple, when looking for your photographer, you may want to consider these few points:

Do we like their style?
Are they within budget?
Do they have enough experience?

Style is important as it draws you into a photographer’s images. Although there are a lot of wedding photographers available, they are all different and unique. Not only are you hiring a photographer for the images they can produce, but also you will be spending all day with them! So it’s always a good idea to meet them before your big day, whether that’s over a video call, meet up for a consultation, to arrange timings of your day (if it is possible) and even have a pre-wedding photoshoot. I like to offer both a consultation and pre-wedding shoot as I get to meet my couples before their wedding. That way I get to hear more about their plans, potentially visit their wedding venue and help make them feel as comfortable as possible in front of the camera.

Wedding photographers prices range on average from £500 to £2000, depending on the package you choose. The price incorporates all the prep work before the wedding day (emails, messages, meetings and consultations), the wedding day itself (10+ sometimes!) and then the hours of editing and culling afterwards.
Any packages cheaper than £500 may be from an amateur starting out so be sure to look through portfolios and ask as many questions as you can think of!

The amount of brides and grooms to be I have seen online ask for photographers with little experience or still studying in the hope they will save money on one of the most expensive parts (after venue and food) of their wedding day. Though you are saving money initially, is it worth it? Typically suppliers ask for an initial deposit to secure the date and the rest of the payment a month before the wedding. So there’s usually a lot of time to save for an experienced, good quality photographer with beautiful images that you love and will cherish forever.

It can become overwhelming when looking for suppliers and some may start to look the same as the next. So make a list of your top 5, then revisit these after a week or so and see if your top 5 still looks the same. Or has your favourite changed?
I saw our wedding photographer via a friend’s Facebook post of her own wedding. I looked through a number of other wedding photographers, no idea exactly how many, but narrowed it down to our top three. I couldn’t stop looking through our photographer’s images. Once he confirmed he was available. That was it!

Hope this has made your search for a wedding photographer a little easier.