Wedding Blog
When it comes to weddings, it seems like the most important expense for almost every bride is the photography. Finding the best photographer within their budget is an essential part of the planning process. I daresay that the photographer was not our “one thing” as it is for many brides. Don’t get me wrong, I love photography - including great wedding photography - but it wasn’t a huge part of our budget, or high on our priority list.
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Originally we asked Mr. PN’s sister to take our wedding photos - she went to college for photography. She agreed, but we could tell she was nervous having such a big responsibility. We also knew that she wouldn’t be able to enjoy the day with such a big job. After some thought, we decided to hire a “real” photographer. We booked a photographer that my dad works with at a hospital. Our photographer has a regular full-time job and he does wedding photography on weekends - about 20 weddings a year. We are flying him to San Francisco, paying for his hotel for two nights and paying him $750 (about $1500 total). For this he will take photos for us all weekend (rehearsal dinner, getting ready, ceremony, reception, after wedding and the after-party). After the weekend he will edit the pictures and burn them all to a disk for us. We have all rights of the photos and we can print them whenever and however we please. He does the job because he enjoys it, not to make a profit.
To be honest, I think his photography is average - not bad but not great either. He will be able to capture our moments and our portraits, but we won’t be doing anything too artsy. FSIL Pinot has agreed to take some artsy shots for us (like of the rings and the reception site) to overlap a little with our photographer. We are also setting up a Flickr account to collect guest photos. Finally, at the risk of upsetting some readers, what do you really do with 1200 images! I mean you can frame a couple, send some to family and friends and make an album, but then what?
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Occasionally I used to mention to people that we weren’t hiring a “professional” photographer. This always prompted responses such as “Not a real photographer?! That is the most important vendor!” or “Photography is the only thing you really take away for the day.” I quickly learned not to talk about our unusual choice regarding photographers.
When I became a regular Weddingbee reader, and then a blogger, I began to question my decision. Did we make the right choice?! Should we have booked a professional?! Is it the only thing we can take away?! I realized that I was looking at a little too much wedding porn and reading too many blogs. I took a step back and I was able to see our priorities and know that we made the right decision for us. This decision was solidified when I recently looked through my parents’ wedding. Over 35 years ago they eloped and had a small wedding ceremony with 6 guests. Their photos are amazing - even without a professional photographer.
Please tell me, am I the only bride who didn’t claim photography as that “one thing”?
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Admittedly, photography is one of my top priorities - but I’m also a photographer, so that explains why : )
Ours was middle of the pack for priorities. We hired a friend of my dad’s as well - he did my senior pics, my sister’s senior pics, and two sets of our family photos. He’s laid back and totally chill, which WAS important. 
His photos are nice, and that was all we cared about.
You are not alone, and I applaud you. Photography was not a high priority for us, and the guy we found who worked within our budget was so nice and low-key, he’s basically a friend of ours now. We had a lot of fun at our wedding, and that shows in the pictures, which is all I need.
Good move on not having your SIL do it, though: we asked my brother to do some videography at the last moment, and he did a great job but I think he felt like he missed out of the party a little bit.
Right there with you, Miss PN! I looked at photos of my graduation last year and thought, “Hey, some random stranger snapped these photos that I now have framed of my family! If I can get a handful of pictures that are frame-worthy, I’ll be happy.” Like you, I second guessed myself since just about everyone insists that photography is the be all and end all of a wedding, but we didn’t have it in the budget to have the wedding we wanted and a photographer that would run us over $3k. We asked a friend whose photography we’d always admired and, as luck would have it, he had another photography friend who wanted to tag along. We happened to luck out with our photographers, because we love our photographs so all is well that ends well
I love your dad’s sweater!!! love love love!!!!
You look a lot like your mother!
nope, you’re doing the right thing. we’re having a friend who also does weddings on weekends for the love of photography (not money) shoot our wedding. going this route made achieving our budget possible. i suppose it helps that my fiance is a photoshop wiz, so adding a cool, funky look to our photos will be easy enough. i don’t think there’s any need to feel pressure regarding the pictures. if having a worldclass photographer is not your thing, then that is just fine.
I’m one of the “top priority” girls, but to each his own! I luurve wedding photos and I want ours to be absolutely gorgeously fantastic. I started out with an ok, affordable guy, but (like many Bees) I quickly realised I’d made a mistake and went with someone I liked more (at twice the price, nearly). I’m so pleased I did. But when I was agonising over the decision, one acquaintance told me she never even looked at her wedding photos, so what was the point? I think it’s all just down to personal taste. Do what makes YOU happy.
Like so many budget choices, photography means different things to different people. It’s actually one of my top priorities, but I’m spending about the same as you because I’m on a really tight budget and just didn’t have any more to allocate. On the one hand, FI thinks it’s crazy we’re spending that much, and on the other, I have friends who spent three times that much and think I’ll regret it.
You just need to figure out what your goal is and budget accordingly, and I think you’ve done that! My goal is to get some great images throughout the day, but they don’t need to be magazine-quality. I’m hoping that I’ve found a photographer who will achieve that, and I’m also going to ask guests to upload to Flickr and hoping for some great candids that way too!
I think expectations are the key. You are realistic about what you are getting and are trying not to be swayed by “wedding porn” and the horror-stricken reactions of others. I agree that you run out of uses for the images and there is such a thing as excess. I didn’t need my every move documented, as I am paranoid about having my picture taken in the first place. Having said that, I think my expectations for our photog were too high, which is why I was dispppointed. We had the wedding we could afford though, and that sits well with me. Also, my husband has edited a few of the better ones, so it’s not a big deal anymore.
P.S. Love the picture of your parents!
We are having a friend (who is a photographer, but not professionally) take our photos. No frickin’ way would I spend most of my budget on photography. I hate having my picture taken, and even though I loved our professional engagement photos (the compromise for not having a pro wedding photog), I’d rather my pal take our special day photos. They will mean so much more.
You know by now photography is top priority for me- but that’s because I have a long history with it (from yearbook editor to entering photo contests)… that being said, a lot of other things I could really care less about, like hiring a band, or having custom linens, or even having a bridal shower. To each their own! Glad you’re sticking to your priorities despite the pressure from the WIC.
I hear ya. I booked our photographer before jumping into a ton of wedding blogs and I’m kinda glad I did. I’ve sometimes second guessed our decision after looking at so much wedding porn day in and day out but when I think about what our budget is and that the average photographer around here is literally half our wedding budget I’m brought back down to earth. We booked with someone who mainly does commericial photography and is just getting into weddings. Her work is decent and she and was willing to give us exactly what we wanted and that was good enough for us considering some photographers wouldn’t even return our calls when we said ’small’ wedding and ‘images on cd only.’
love that picture of your parents. your dad’s sweater is awesome!
you’re definitely not alone. i am a bride-to-be barely in the beginning stages of the planning process, but i do know that photography is not one of our top priorities either. i love wedding photos as much as the next person, but i can’t imagine what i would do with 1000+ photographs of one day. if we can just get that one classic shot that captures the emotion, mood and era of that day (like your parents’ wedding photo!), one that we can frame and keep for our children and grandchildren to look back on, i’ll be satisfied.
To be honest, nothing was a top priority for our wedding. We just concentrated on finding the best quality for our budget. Like you, I couldn’t imagine framing more than 4-5 photos from the wedding. Plus, the hubby is pretty photoshop savvy and can make just about any picture look good. That being said, we lucked out and found our awesome photographer for $1300 so we ended having the best of both worlds.
My friend chastised me for valuing photography as much as I do. She said, “we didn’t spend much, and it doesn’t matter because we never look at the photos anyway.” Except for all the posed wedding photos on her walls.
For me, I’d scrap the whole reception and do a photo shoot with FI & and our families before I’d go with a photographer I don’t love. I’d rather have too many photos to choose from than not have a single one that captures the emotion.
But I do understand where you’re coming from and completely respect your decision! Love the mom and dad photo!
I think every bride is entitled to her own opinions about what’s important for her wedding and shouldn’t need to hear it from everyone else! So as long as you and your FI are happy, don’t waste time second guessing your decision just because other brides are aghast! It’s the memories that are beautiful and everlasting!
Anyway, that aside, photography and paper products are my two priorities…I’m in the creative industry so I just can’t help myself ;). But videography? Nope, probably will just ask a friend to at least film the ceremony so we have something, but nothing fancy. Over the top florals? No thanks! We’re having a local florist do the bouquets and I’ll be DIYing the reception florals. We’re going the ipod music route as well. But I can still admire the other weddings which put their priorities in these places and enjoy it through the internet :)!
It’s not one of our priorities, and we weren’t going to have one, period. FH and I sometimes wonder how much documentation of any major life event is too much, where does it start to erode beauty of a slightly fuzzy memory. Our photographer friend of ours offered us a fantastic deal to shoot our ceremony that we couldn’t turn down. Otherwise, there would be nothing but the shots taken by guests. I appreciate knowing we aren’t the only ones aren’t there.
I didn’t hire a photographer. I guess I was kind of all or nothing, and being unable to afford the quality of photographer I would want were I to pay for it, I preferred to designate a couple of friends to do an amateur job for a gift than pay for a lesser photographer.
Photography was one of our top priorities, but we spent about half what you did, PT. So I guess cost isn’t a good indicator =P There’s nothing wrong with not putting a lot of emphasis on photos though, especially if you won’t be looking at them much!
charmedbride said it perfectly. If it’s not your priority, you can admire it on the internet. Fun!
We’re in the same boat you’re in. Our friend’s step dad is an independent filmmaker and photographer on the side.
I would much rather have 10-15 pictures I love than have a whole box of pictures that don’t mean anything and I think he will be able to capture them.
Photography was up there in priority for us, but we were able to find a very talented photographer that fit into a moderate photography budget for us. Like you, I wondered what I would do with so many photos. But I can tell you now, after the fact, I totally cherish all 1200+ of the photos. No, I won’t look through them all all the time, but everytime I do, I find new photos that totally capture emotions and moments of the day that I had forgotten. It all goes by in such a blur that the photos I have are priceless to me. That said, I think like others have said, it definitely is all about expectations. If you’re not expecting each and every shot to be frame-worthy, I’m sure you’ll still end up with priceless photos that capture your wedding day for you
Photography to me is as important as the wedding venue. That being said, I think a bride should try to find the best possible photographer within her budget. I found a great photographer but will not do a package deal, I am simply paying him for the time he will spend and the cd of all our pictures. I plan on getting the album and re prints with him later on so I can have the best of both worlds.
I am a “top priority” kindda gal. FI and I decided early on that if it got to be too much we would scrap everything, get married in the park, and use the entire budget on photography and an ice cream reception- seriously. But this is because I’ve been tainted by the many wedding blogs and magazine spreads of GORGEOUS wedding photos- so I would be really hurt with anything less. You, on the other hand, have placed importance on other elements of the day. You have swooned for a different “vision”… so no, you are not crazy for not holding the photos in high regard- just be sure that you REALLY REALLY mean it when you tell yourself that you will be happy with mediocre pictures….
I’ve seen so many wedding photos NOT taken by professionals that were just so utterly superb. They still captured the feeling of the day. I think seeing so much professional photography online is raising our standards to something that’s not always easy to live up to.
This is the one topic of my upcoming wedding that I’ve been agonizing over. Our budget for our photography was low - I’m embarassed to even mention the number, because I now realize how unrealistic we were for our photography budget (everything else fell into budget pretty smoothly, but we were WAY off on our guess for what a professional photographer would cost). That being said, I LOVE artsy photography, and both my fiance and I didn’t want a bunch of the stuffy, posed, “pretend you’re doing this” and “pretend you’re doing that” shots. We wanted shots that captured the day. So we ended up asking one of my co-workers to be our photographer. He is not actually a professional, as in he does not own his own business and has only done a handful of small weddings. However, he is MUCHO talented. Very artsy, very creative with his angles and lighting, etc. His price was right - we’re also paying for his hotel room for both Fri and Sat nights. And…he has an assistant - a friend of his who is also a photographer on the side, but he has done more weddings than our actual photographer has. The great thing is, we’ll have two photographers for the price of one and they’ll be working together for the group shots that are “posed” to make them look as natural as possible. So it is a high priority for me to have great pictures, however I don’t think you have to kill your budget to do it. Sounds like you did the right thing for you, and I applaud you for sticking to your guns.
We wanted some pretty pictures but given our budget I was not going to do like my collegue and pay $1000 for it.
Our civil wedding had no professional photographer. I handed my camera to my brother and my godsister had one too. Not all the pictures are perfect but most of them are great and tell what happened and they are a few great keepers.
I even took some pictures.
For our big family wedding we hired the friend of friends who just got married. She does wedding photography on the side. The way she thinks matches our way of thinking. She’ll take some portraits and a few shots, will be there for 3 hours and for the rest, our friends will take pictures too and I know we’ll be happy with it. While her work is not necessarily artistic there is creativity and I love it.
We’re completely on the same page. Personally I don’t feel the need to have dozens of pictures of my mom buttoning up my dress or me looking through the window with a staged “hopeful” look. Having a few dozen good shots that capture us, the feel of the day, the guests, and some of the details is perfectly enough for me.
We’re planning a small wedding but we’re marrying in NYC where photogs apparently make a *really* good living, given that their prices are to-the-roof for apparently no sensible reason.
So I’m looking for an outside-the-box solution just like you did, maybe a student that’s just starting, or a pro that would be willing to come for a few hours only, thus covering the ceremony and a few portraits. For the reception (a dinner party, in fact) and the rest of the day, I’m perfectly comfortable with relying on a few guests who are good at it and have good equipment.
Thank you for posting about this. We are keeping everything at our wedding to a reasonable price to get the whole thing in under £4000 ($7000). There was no way we could spend £1000 ($1750) on a photographer - that’s a quarter of our budget, but it’s the starting price here. Luckily my colleague’s cousin is a photographer, although he’s never done a wedding before and I have no idea if he’s any good. We’re paying him £200 ($350). I have felt embarrassed about this at times, because it is so many brides’ “one thing” but you made me realise this isn’t really a top priority for us. If it were, we could have found a way to prioritise it. Thank you.
I’m so surprised that everybody, who said, that they are on a tight budget, have never looked into Craigslist. There TONS of talented photographers, that are just starting out and that’s why they charge less than 1500$ - and that’s with California crazy prices!!
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Mrs. Pinot Noir, New York/Napa Valley
Age and Occupation: 24, Health Educator
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 31, Market Researcher
Engagement Date: November 10, 2007
Wedding Date: October, 2008
Blogging Since: June 25, 2008
Venue: Auberge du Soleil
About Me: I am a Minnesota raised, NYC transplant planning a destination wedding in Napa. I'm balancing my love for the environment and my hubby-to-be's love for tradition to create our "green wedding in disguise." Our wedding will include local food and wine, antique touches and lots of love and laughter. When wedding planning isn't taking up my free time (and money) I love to read, cook, workout, watch baseball and travel! Follow along in my adventure as I attempt to plan an eco-friendly and socially responsible wedding (with eco-oblivious Mr. Pinot Noir).
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