I Should Have Listened to My Gut
July 21st, 2008 @ 12:15 pm by Mrs. Flamingo
Our photographer is one of the first vendors that we hired. We chose this company because I knew the owner, so we got a pretty good price. We looked at their work and it seemed nice at the time. There was some imagery that I didn’t really like, so I was sure to mention what I liked and disliked that first time around. We wanted to have all the high resolution images on a DVD. We also got all the rights to the photos, meaning we don’t need permission from the photographer to use them however we want. We also asked them not to edit our photos, because I would do it myself. Basically, we were paying for the photography only.
Throughout the planning process I realized that there were so many other photographers out there that I loved more than our own. Of course, they were more expensive than our photographer, who was charging us $1100. Being a budget bride and not wanting to lose my $300 deposit, we decided to stick with our photographer. Basically, I should have listened to my gut and switched photographers.
I was unsatisfied with his work. He seemed shy and didn’t direct us to pose. Don’t get me wrong, there are some beautiful shots… but not enough. I mentioned that I wanted pictures of all the details. He took some detail shots, but none of my bouquet, or the girls’ bouquets, or of Mr. Flamingo’s Superman cuff-links. I mean, he stayed with Mr. Flamingo for 15 minutes, took a total of 20 photos of all the nice artsy pictures Mr. Flamingo asked him to take. Then when it came time to take family pictures, we stayed in the same spot. We had beautiful spaces outside but he didn’t give suggestions on what we should do. He didn’t take pictures of me alone in my dress and there were no fun pictures taken with the girls. I’m really disappointed. But that’s not the worst part.
After the ceremony, Mr. Flamingo, the bridesmaids, the best man and myself, went to take some pictures. Obviously, this was the time to take pictures of Mr. F and I alone, but that didn’t really happen. Out of all the photos from the ceremony to the first dance, we have only five nice pictures of us. Yes, no kidding, five pictures. This is so devastating because it’s our wedding, and we have no pictures of us.
On your wedding day you shouldn’t have to think about what pictures you should take because, obviously, you hired a photographer to do that, but that’s not how I felt. It was like I was telling him what to do, so the pictures I didn’t mention, I didn’t get. This is when I realized that doing photo cards was the best idea ever!
Luckily, one of my good friends just finished her photography course and is planning on starting her own business. Since she has nothing in her portfolio, she offered to redo a wedding shoot for us for FREE. She is really good, and we have the same ideas and sense of style/creativity, so I’m certain the pictures will be beautiful.
I am happy that we get to retake some pictures of Mr. F and I, plus I get to wear my dress all over again. What fun! The only thing is that I won’t have the same hair (because I did the after wedding chop), and I’m debating whether or not I should get a bouquet made. But what I’m really stoked about is that I get to wear my birdcage veil that I had forgotten at home. Hurray for birdcage veils! The photo shoot will be some time this week, so I’m excited about that. I hope things go well!
My piece of advice is to make sure you do lots and lots of research before hiring your photographer. Many have pre-wedding shoots or engagement photos. This is a great thing because you have an idea what the chemistry between you and your photographer will be like. If you feel that you won’t like the person you hired, don’t make the same mistake I did and think about hiring someone new, especially if your budget allows it. Because if your pictures aren’t done right, you can’t go back and redo them.
Were you disappointed with your photographer? Did you retake some photos to compensate?
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25 Responses to “I Should Have Listened to My Gut”
Mrs. F — I am SO sorry that your photographs didn’t come out how you expected. I wish there was something I could do! I think its wonderful that you’ve found a solution, and I am sure you’ll find a lot of brides here who were in the same boat as you.
This is such a cautionary tale to remind couples that they should ask their photographer to provide a start to finish portfolio of an event, so they can see every photo and not just highlights. Please keep us updated on how you make out — and I wish you the best of luck!!
I hope that some of your guests come through for you and provide you with some beautiful pictures. It sounds like you will end up getting some gorgeous shots of the two of you alone together, and hopefully your friends remembered to take photos of the details!
I wasn’t thrilled with our photographer either. He was very competent, and we got a lot of more traditional shots. Granted, this was all out of my control as my mother hired him from out of town, when there were plenty of photographers I liked better in town. So we never met before the wedding day, and he didn’t know any good places to take the photos since he wasn’t from there. I feel your frustration!
I think DH and I might wait a few years and take some more artsy dress-up pictures.
Oh, Flamingo. My heart aches for you! I am so sorry your photography did not turn out well; however, I am glad that you are finding resolution to this unfortunate predicament!
I think this is great advice for any bride even remotely hesitant about their photographer! Although I haven’t post about this, I am sooooo glad I fired my photographer.
We loved our photographer, but we knew he was a photojournalist, not an artsy photographer, so we hired a separate photographer to take pretty pictures of just us, the Tuesday before the wedding. Got my hair/makeup trial that day, had a quickie bouquet whipped up, and I got to try on all my wedding finery! It was great. I hope your re-shoot turns out well!
Miss Flamingo, I am SO glad you have a wonderful friend who has offered to retake some photos. At least that goes a little way to lessening your disappointment. Hearing your story makes me even more glad that I DID listen to my gut and switch photographers. I’m not married yet, but the more I looked at our reasonably-priced photographer’s pictures, the more they seemed really blaaah and ordinary. I went through a huge mission to find someone I loved who had great pictures too. I’m not married yet, but hopefully I made the right choice! I think I did.
Hopefully your friends got some of the great detail shots, not least because I’m very keen to see them! 
I am sorry to hear that your pictures were not what you expected. Do you think that perhaps you insistance that you just wanted their “photography services” sans editing may have made them feel as though they lost creative control? When telling them that you like this but not that… and you don’t need them for this… only that- sometimes artists can feel a little stiffled and more conservative in terms of how creative they allow themselves to be.
I don’t mean to insinuate that it is your fault that the pictures came out this way… simply that perhaps you may want to give the photos a look over and determine how closely what you asked for translated into the actual photos. Are these reflective of the albums that you were shown? Are the quantities less or more than their portfolio shows?
Many times wedding photography is about telling a story - how well did they acheive this? Do you think that if you were to ask them to select the best photos from the lot, edit them, and arrange them that it would: a. tell the story in a beautiful manor and b. be simular to the other weddings that they had shown you?
I only post this so that you have a little time for reflection. I hear it time and time again that brides are dissatisfied with their photos NOT because the photos are bad but rather because the brides had unrealistic expectations or trouble communicating what their vision was. When choosing a photographer or other artistic/creative talent- brides must choose them for the artists’ style and then be ready to accept how that translates throughout their day.
(just a few thoughts…. anxious to see these photos… loving your wedding thus far.)
We hired a photographer whose background was in sports photography and was just starting in the wedding business. He was great but he didn’t get a lot of shots I would have liked. Of course, I wasn’t very specific since photography wasn’t too prioritized in our minds at the time. We were happy overall with the job he did for the amount of $$ we paid, but we did end up taking another photo shoot with a talented friend a year after our wedding. I had also lost 25 pounds so I wanted new pictures of the new bod (luckily I had a corset back dress so no alterations needed, score!) We were thrilled with the 1 year later photo shoot and we made a separate album with those shots… sort of an addendum to our wedding album. Either way I’m happy with the way it all turned out. Could have been a lot worse– someone I know had a photographer whose files got destroyed!
We haven’t even seen our photographs yet, but we already scheduled another shoot. Somehow I had it in my head that we would have photos outside, but the day of the wedding was really, really hot - and really, really hectic - and there was just never a good time for us and the photographer to disappear for that much time. So this Thursday (almost two weeks after the wedding) we are getting all dressed up again, picking up a new bouquet and bout, and meeting our photographer at the beautiful grounds outside our venue, to spend the evening just wandering around and taking pictures. We are both excited about getting to sort of do it over again - when we are both relaxed and not being pulled in 100 directions at once. Hooray for do-overs.
I was pretty bummed with our photographer too. I had booked her way in advance but then 2 months before our wedding day she called and told me she was not going to be able to do our wedding afterall because she got accpeted to some prestigious photography program for the summer. My photographer offered another friend (who is also a wedding photographer) to take our pictures while she would complete our album when she returned from her program. Being that it was an out of town wedding and so close to the date, I didnt feel I had much of a choice. Some pictures came out nice but the overall feeling and chemisty of working with your original pick was gone. It has also been a hastle getting everything back in a timely manner. I am still waiting for our wedding album. Hopefully I’ll get it in a few weeks on our 1 year anniversary and be done with it.
I feel you Mrs. Flamingo! We had a very similar problem with our photographer. We booked them over a year before our wedding. Afterwards, I found so many photographers whose work I loved more. Some of them were even cheaper than what we were paying, but we wouldn’t be getting the same extras. That and we really didn’t want to lose our deposit.
When we booked our photog, we noticed that they didn’t take many pictures of guests. We made it clear that we really wanted photos of our guests, and they assured us that it wouldn’t be a problem. In the end, the only photos we ended up with that actually included guests were the posed ones we took when we walked around the room. We’re really sad because those aren’t something that can be redone. 
Mrs.Flamingo! Can you email me at soontobemrsk@yahoo.com? I have a couple questions for you about your wedding!
My husband and I were just talking about our wedding photos this weekend. We ended up doing the same thing where we hired our photographer (who we knew through work) to take just the photos and we would do all the editing and album work.
It’s not that I’m completely disappointed with the photos, but I do have some regrets. Mainly that we did not give ourselves enough time to do the formals which we took before the ceremony.
Our photographer started with family formals, and then went on to the bridal party with us. This took up most of the time, so when we got to just pictures of my husband and I, we only had about 10-15 minutes before the ceremony was to start and I felt completly rushed. There are some okay pictures of us, but there is not the variety I wanted. Also, there is no solo photos (ie: of just me, or of just my husband).
I really wished I would have asked our photographer if she would do another session after the wedding day. I’m sure she would have at no extra charge, and then I would have more photos to go with. I’m still considering it, but it’s been 9 months since our wedding, and I’m not sure how to approach it now.
Aw. I’m sorry about the photog. But hey! At least you had some snazzzy pics of you guys taken by your guests right? Not only that, your video is bound to be amazing! Keep ya chin up
bummer! hopefully you get the shots you want from the second shoot. while we have faith in our photographer, we are planning a second shoot with a friend who is building her portfolio, so we figure it will be a great way to have fun, get some more mileage out of the dress and augment our photo stock.
I’m so sorry to hear that Mrs. Flamingo but YAY for your photographer friend and shoot #2, that should be a lot of fun and more relaxed than all those pictures would have been on your wedding day
Ah thanks everyone for the feedback. Whats done is done, really… Ill keep you posted on the other shoot. Hope that goes well!
I am so sorry to hear of this but hopefully there are some out there that will learn from this as well.
As a photographer, I’d like to throw out there that you bride-to-bee’s need to make sure to convey to your photographer what you want. Did the photographer know about the cufflinks? Did he know you wanted detail shots of the bouquets and such? If we don’t know about the details like that, it’s going to be difficult to get pictures of them. Sometimes the brides tend to forget that we haven’t been with them their whole journey and there are items we don’t know about.
Also keep your photographer in mind when drawing up your timeline. Most brides think/assume that an hour between the ceremony and reception is enough time for formals and the “fun” shots with the bridal party as well as couple shots when it very very rarely is. Run your timeline by them before things are set in stone and that may eliminate the issue of only having 10 minutes for couple shots! If you do run late and only have a small amount of time, see if your photographer is willing to do some couple shots during the evening at the reception. I love to (when it’s possible) steal my couple after the reception is well underway when every “big” thing has been done to get some shots of them together - especially if I hadn’t got a lot of time with them earlier in the day.
Bottom line is always make sure to voice what you want! We try to do everything but we aren’t mind readers Especially if we are in a time crunch, we need to know what is a must-have to you and what you are willing to give up.
Like you, I wasn’t happy with my photographer either. I was disappointed after waiting for the pro pics, to see that the “details” weren’t captured the way I asked for, plus he just wasn’t very creative when it came to posing us, and my mind was too scattered to tell him how to pose us. He did get some really good shots, but not enough for my liking. You can be specific with your photog ahead of time, but if they’re not creative enough on their own or have a specific “eye” to start with, then I don’t think it matters. Trust me, the disappointment will fade. Like other brides who posted including yourself, I decided immediately that we would need other pix, but I am going to wait for our 1 year anniversary, which works out well since we didn’t take e-pics. I think that once your second session is over, you will feel a lot better!
Hi Mrs Flamingo,
First of , felicitations!!!!! i too am from Montreal, and i am so lucky to stumbled upon this site, and even luckier to find a crafty bride from montreal. My wedding is in November, and right now, I also have this iffy feeling with our photographer who happens to be our DJ and videographer. Their photo site seems decent but again, you never know until after that big day, however my fiance refuses to
change our photographer.. because well, that one is cheap… would you mind telling me who your photographer is? Thanks.. also are you selling anything that you may not need anymore? :):) merci infiniment. Cant wait to hear from you.
[...] Friday, we had our day-after wedding shoot because we felt that our wedding photographer didn’t deliver. I went all out - I went to the hairdresser and I got my makeup done like we were getting married [...]
@missm:
Miss Dee says:
Hi Mrs Flamingo,
First of , felicitations!!!!! i too am from Montreal, and i am so lucky to stumbled upon this site, and even luckier to find a crafty bride from montreal. My wedding is in November, and right now, I also have this iffy feeling with our photographer who happens to be our DJ and videographer. Their photo site seems decent but again, you never know until after that big day, however my fiance refuses to
change our photographer.. because well, that one is cheap… would you mind telling me who your photographer is? Thanks.. also are you selling anything that you may not need anymore? :):) merci infiniment. Cant wait to hear from you.
Mrs. Flamingo, Montreal, Canada
Age and Occupation: 25, Graphic Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 30, Nursing Student
Engagement Date: December 2004
Wedding Date: June 21, 2008
Venue: Imperia Hotel (modern chic hotel)
About Me: I am a passionate designer who loves anything pretty. I heart all paper products (eco-friendly of course). My passion revolves around anything considered glamour; vintage and modern. In my free time, I love reading Martha mags, designing jewelry and making a pit-stop at Starbucks for a chai latte. I'm also a chocoholic at heart and my family drools over my homemade truffles.
I am sorry things didn’t go well with your photographer
The new shoot though sounds like a blast! You and Mr. F will be so much more relaxed and I am sure they will be lovely.
I don’t know your budget, but as far as your bouquet how about having one created by Diane, the clay flower artist of DK Designs Hawaii? She can re-create your bouquet and you can keep it forever. (Of course you wouldn’t have it by this week)