Photographer

[Caribou]

So we have a tight budget, $6000. There is one thing that I don''t really want to scimp on which is the Photographer. We might be getting married where he grew up which is more rural not as expensive as where we live now. I was looking at a photographer website and the prices looked good ($1000-$1300) but looking at the picture gallery I was not at all impressed (although I will still met with them). My FI thinks those prices are high so I have been doing research and the cheapest photographer that I have down where we are is $2000.

I love photography and one day would like to take it up as a hobby (I''m slowly working on it) which is part of the reason why I''m willing to pay more. But $2k will not fit into our budget.

So my question is, how much did you spend on photographer??

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I *think* our photographer is $1700. We actually looked at three different companies and this was the least expensive (but I felt the most comfortable with them) With that, we get two photographers (they are a husband and wife), full day of shooting, and all of the digital proofs. We will have to print the photos on our own but I think that is more common these days. Photography was in my top three (along with dress and venue). I am sure if you look around you can find someone. Where are you getting married?

 

[Caribou]

I''m not getting married until May 27, 2007 so I still have time but it''s discouraging. I will say that a lot of the photographers in Saginaw, MI don''t have websites so maybe I''ll find the same prices but better pictures.

My top three are:

Photography
Dress
Flowers

In that order.

 

[flutterby]

the photographer I really wanted was $3k and that was just for him to shoot the pics. He is very avante garde and has great pics (www.altf.com). In the end we decided it was out of our budget. We have a package that is $1200 and that is for 7 hours and all the raw footage. We will probably buy a leather bound album at $900 as well. Our photographer, steve keegan (www.accentoflight.com) is traveling from CA to vegas at no fee to photograph the wedding!!!! I am so excited about him!

 

[Caribou]

Msflutter, I like both those photographers.

The avante garde one is way cool!!!!

 

[aphisiglovessae]

I've noticed that some photographers will charge you around 1500 buck or less, but won't give you anything to make the price worth it. After you've spent money on prints and such, it ends up being almost 3 grand!! Not cool... I think around 2000 to 2500 is going to be the norm for a GOOD photographer and everything a couple would want.

We have the most wonderful photographer and we spent about $2000 - $2300 on him. I don't really remember the exact amount. I just know it's above 2K and less than 2500. I'd have to look at my contract. Anyway, his name is Brad Walters (http://[url=http://www.bradwaltersphoto.com]www.bradwaltersphoto.com[/url]) and he's a photojournalist. Our package included unlimited coverage on the wedding day, engagement shoot, bridal shoot, wedding album, dvds, parents albums, and a couple of 16x20s (one engagement photo and one wedding photo). He's also given a few other things that sweeten the pot. You should check him out! He's raised his prices recently since he got accepted into the Wedding Photojournalist Association (top 5% in the country), but he's really worth it! His photos are phenomenal and he's a great guy to work with. We've actually become pretty good friends with him and his wife.

You can also check out the WPJA members' websites to find a photographer in your area (Brad would travel, but you might have to pay some travel expenses). The WPJA website lists prices as well! I like just looking at their sites for fun. The pictures are so phenomenal!!! The website for the WPJA is: http://[URL='http://www.wpja.com']www.wpja.com[/URL]. If you do like Brad and you want to go with him, mention my name ok?

Jennifer

 

[flutterby]

Date: 2/13/2006 4:08:54 PM
Author: Caribou
Msflutter, I like both those photographers.

The avante garde one is way cool!!!!

i agree, i am still considering him for some type of bridal portraits a few days before the wedding. That would only be $400! Which will probably be well over budget two days before the wedding. I can never get enough of looking at his pics though.....

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I don''t mind having to pay for prints. They overcharge you anyways. I really, really wanted two shooters. That was what was important for me. Try asking on your local (by local where your wedding is going to be) knot board. That is how I found mine. Tons of brides used and loved them so that made me feel much better.

 

[Incognito]

Ours is $2500 but that includes a DVD of images too. Make sure you get those. Some photographers copyright and you are stuck paying them time and again. I agree this is one area you don''t want to scrimp.

 

[selflove]

I negotiated our photographer down to $700 but he cut out all the prints, which is fine with me b/c I can make prints on my own for far less. I had a small group to choose from b/c I only wanted one that was recommended by our chapel due to the 2-hour time limitation we have at the chapel--so I needed a photographer who knows the grounds like the back of his/her hand so we don''t waste any time. For that price, I get 4 hours of his time and all the digital prints but no paper prints and no albums. I met with 4 photographers but this one was the only one that didn''t have a cocky attitude and I appreciated that, a lot!

I wasn''t terribly, terribly concerned about the photographer b/c we have 2 good friends who are amateur photographers who will fill in the blanks where our photographer might miss out. I guess I wouldn''t have been so nonchalant about it if we didn''t have our friends there and then I would have been willing to break the budget.

Good luck on finding your photographer--it''s a challenge but it just means you''ll have to do some more research to find a good one that fits into your budget. Don''t worry, you''ll find him/her!!

 

[jcrow]

here's our photographer's website. braydanielle.com

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Date: 2/13/2006 4:00:06 PM
Author: msflutter
the photographer I really wanted was $3k and that was just for him to shoot the pics. He is very avante garde and has great pics (www.altf.com). In the end we decided it was out of our budget. We have a package that is $1200 and that is for 7 hours and all the raw footage. We will probably buy a leather bound album at $900 as well. Our photographer, steve keegan (www.accentoflight.com) is traveling from CA to vegas at no fee to photograph the wedding!!!! I am so excited about him!

I LOVE your wedding photographer! And it's so cool that he's not charging for travel- our wedding is in Temecula, which isn't far, but I've automatically been overlooking L.A-area photogs, 'cause i figured that they wouldn't be interested.

Bonus- he lives very near my FI in Woodlhand Hills (and where I will be moving to in a few months), and is also reasonable. We'll have to chat at the L.A gathering!

 

[somethingblue]

here''s our photographer... www.jesseleake.com

 

[monarch64]

I managed to find a photographer who didn''t charge for travel time (some actually do if they have to drive more than a few miles to get to your sites), and I think his total was $700. That didn''t include pictures or proofs, of course. I gave him $100 for a deposit and paid the rest 4 weeks before the wedding...but the $700 was applied to whatever package we chose after the wedding. We waited a couple months to order and ended up spending another $2,300, lol!

 

[MINE!!]

Nada... we are passing out those little disposable cameras and family hobbist are taking more ''professional pics.'' But I do admit.. I feel a litte bummed about no being able to afford a real professional photographer.

 

[aphisiglovessae]

Date: 2/13/2006 5:28:32 PM
Author: selflove
I negotiated our photographer down to $700 but he cut out all the prints, which is fine with me b/c I can make prints on my own for far less.

I thought I could do that, but unfortunately the proofs on cd and online were not the high quality resolution we would've had in our prints, so printing them myself would've turned out awful. Our photographer warned us that they would be great for emailing and websites, but printing anywhere would be a waste of money (cuz they would've sucked). I tried printing some of our engagement pictures off of the website, but it was hit and miss. Some turned out tolerable and some turned out plain awful. The good thing is that he's given us unlimited montages which means we can fit TONS of pictures in our album and they will be of the highest quality. He will also edit the photos professionally to get rid of any imperfections.

I know I spent a lot of money on our pictures, but it was the most important thing in my wedding. These pictures will be with me for my entire life and the rest is only for the day. I didn't want to look at my pictures ten or twenty years from now and think "What was I thinking?!" I wanted the pictures to be perfect, so I can relate to you not wanting to scrimp on your photographer.

 

[Rebemdee]

I'm spending about $1200; my photographer is by the roll and I also get a CD and proofs to keep of each roll. I think we are getting 12 rolls and 4 hours of time. Her reprints are reasonable. She isn't in the phone book under photographers, I found her by word of mouth. I asked a coworker who got married recently. The photographer works out of her home and does a beautiful job. She's in Santa Cruz, CA, if you are anywhere near here (http://www.melanie-arndt.com/). Maybe ask other brides in the area who they used, ask the caterer, ask the reception hall, ask everybody! You may find resources you didn't expect! That's how I found my seamstress and florist as well.

 

[Caribou]

Thanks everyone for your opinions.

So what I''m getting from most of you is that printing your own photos is cheaper than having the photographer do that. Where do you print them?

I''ll keep all this in mind.

 

[dani13]

I cant believe these photographers prices! In NYC area- avg cost to hire ONE photographer to shoot your wedding is $4 G!! It is crazy in this area...the photographer I really want charges $5800 to come shoot the wedding with 2 photographers, and all it includes are proofs and the negatives- no albums or other photos. Insanity!!! I really just want to elope...

 

[lovelylulu]

dani - that is absolutely insane -- you could literally find an out of area photog -- pay for them to fly in, put them up, feed them and pay less than $5800. wow!

my photographer is http://www.lauradecapua.com/

she uses a photo journalist approach meaning less posed shots, more natural moments captured and so far she has been amazing to work with -- i love the fact that she'll shoot both color and B&W photos

 

[appletini]

I found mine on craiglist.org, that is a great resource, and she is normally $895, but since I have a Friday wedding I get a 15% discount.

www.estrellaphoto.com

 

[selflove]

Date: 2/14/2006 9:32:51 AM
Author: Caribou
Thanks everyone for your opinions.

So what I''m getting from most of you is that printing your own photos is cheaper than having the photographer do that. Where do you print them?

I''ll keep all this in mind.

If your photographer shoots digital, it will be really easy for them to put all the pics on a disc and you could take them anywhere, but you probably want to go to a good quality shop for prints. Just make sure they''re printed on good quality paper so they last.

Dani--I feel your pain. In LA the average cost also is about $4K. But the good news is that there are better prices out there with good quality, it just takes forever to find them.

 

[flopkins]

caribou- most photogs charge for their wedding day services, then you have to pay add''l for each print beyond any album that might (or might not) be included in the package. read the contracts/package deals carefully. I think they make a lot of money off the prints, and some photogs don''t even let you have thenegatives or hi res copies of the pictures for a year or two...

It is definitely cheaper to print on your own, mpix.com has professional quality printing, but I *think* it is only from digitals... I don''t know for sure.

We are paying a lot for our photog, around $3k (w/a family discount!!) but that is actually reasonable around here, where cheap is $2k...

But I think you can find cheaper photogs if you take the time to do your research, check craigslist, or the local art college/school and usu the newbies will charge a lot less and might be very good!