Wedding Photography - The Professional vs the Amateur

If you are planning your wedding this year, firstly, CONGRATULATIONS!

You are however probably in the midst of planning and budgets and to-do lists. Although there are many things that make the perfect wedding, the dress, the flowers, the food and of course the other half! The one thing that will last longer than the wedding day is your wedding photographs. They will capture the magical moments of your day and provide you with treasured memories for you and your family to look back on in years to come. I appreciate that wedding photography can be one of the larger expenses on the day and can sometimes cause debate as to whether it is worth the cost when budgets are tight. So, what are the differences between hiring a professional and using an amateur or friend?

The Pros and Cons of an Amateur Photographer With the technology behind DSLR cameras improving so fast and the cost of the entry level models being attainable, almost every family has access to an entry level DSLR camera. So, do you ask a family member or a friend to capture photos of your day in order to keep the costs down? The Cons: This is a huge responsibility for your friend/family member. You only get once chance to capture a moment at a wedding. Re-shoots are not an option. As a guest at your wedding the friend/family member will also end up missing out on some of the celebrations of the day. Or if participating in the celebrations, they may miss out on some of the photos you would have liked captured As an amateur, they may not have a large back portfolio of images for you to vire prior to the wedding Their style of photography may not be exactly what you want

You may need to book a long time in advance to secure the photographer you want

The Pros: You could save hundreds of pounds You could contact someone from a photography college to take your photos. They will have training and light awareness so you could get some excellent images for a fraction of the cost All professional photographers were amateurs at one stage and you could be very lucky to find a very talented photographer

The Pros and Cons of Professional Wedding photography: Hiring a professional photographer may seem like a large expanse, especially when you have so many other things to pay for. But, unlike the cake, the food and the flowers, your photographs will last forever.

The Cons:

The cost

The Pros: You are hiring a professional who has expierence of weddings. They know how to capture the images while blending into the background The professional will know how to organise group shots efficiently The professional will have editing and post-production skills to fully enhance your photographs You will have a large back portfolio to view so you can be confident of the photography style and images taken at previous weddings A professional will have the skills to pose you to ensure you are only shown at your best A professional will not only be skilled with their camera but also with lighting. A must for indoor and winter weddings. A lot of professional photographers will have a range of packages to suit all budgets. This can be length of coverage or post wedding print and album packages.

If you would like to view someof my recent wedding photography, please visit the weddings page of my website. I also have a range of wedding coverage packages to suit every budget, so if you would like to meet me for a chat, please get in touch. Happy planning, and I wish you a very happy wedding day!