Increasingly at wedding fayres we hear couples say that they have a friend or relative who is “getting into photography” who is going to take their wedding photos OR we want to keep our costs down so will ask a friend who has a nice camera to do it.

Would you let you friend fix the brakes on your car or repair your central heating just because they have a set of spanners? Errr NO!!

This is fast becoming a disturbing trend. Now we know that everyone is tightening the purse strings these days and some of us are facing difficult times BUT do you really want to cut out one of the most important aspects of your wedding – the photographs?

Photography in its purest form is all about emotion: wedding photography has become its own art form – it’s about seizing the moment, capturing emotion and creating memories. Often the “designated photographer” is also there as a guest so it’s easy for them to get distracted and miss important parts of the day; memories of your special day could be compromised and end in disappointment and tears.

An experienced wedding photographer knows the flow of the wedding day. They know when to anticipate those special candid moments, and how to pose a large wedding group. They are experienced at knowing where to be and when to be there to get the best shots and angles. It also takes a certain personality and finesse to deal with the many people that the photographer will interact with during the day.

A professional wedding photographer does more than just take pictures. Most will spend anywhere from 10 to 20 hours or more carefully editing your wedding day portraits. The beauty of a wedding photographer’s work extends into the way they process their images, not just showing up on your wedding day. They have pride in their quality of work, and their ability to produce images you’ll cherish. They will have also invested a large amount of time and money into they own training keeping up with the latest trends and photographic techniques. A professional will be able to provide you with the high quality images that you will want, not the random, often inferior photographs that should never appear in your wedding photo album.

Proper planning and a focused effort in choosing your wedding photographer will allow one of the best moments of your life to be captured perfectly. So how do you know a photographer is right for you?

Before you hire a photographer check their website and have a look at the quality of their work. Do the images should catch your eye? Do you want to see more?

Arrange to meet up with them and ask questions – you can never ask too many questions. Ask questions about equipment, do their sample albums contain full weddings or just ‘bride and groom’ shots which may have been taken on portfolio building days, other products, travel fees, how long they’ve been in business, do they have any qualifications, are they insured etc. The best method to find out about your photographer is word of mouth and former clients.

It’s a tough market out there at the moment and every photographer will be vying for your business and offer something different so as to be competitive but look at each package and make sure it is what you really want. Regardless of what each photographer offers don’t ever make your decision to hire a professional photographer on price alone. If you hire a budget wedding photographer, you’ll get budget wedding photography. Remember, “cheap is not always good and good is not always cheap!” Beware. There are many hobbyist out there that claim to be full-time devoted wedding specialist.

Your wedding photographs will become permanent reminders of what should be one of the best moments of your life. A photograph has the power to move us to smile, laugh and even cry. Make sure your photographer shares your vision. If you don’t feel comfortable with a person you interview to photograph your wedding, don’t hire them; sometimes personalities just don’t “click”.

Your wedding day is one of those days in your life that can never be repeated, making your wedding photographs are a precious keepsake. They are simply too important to leave to amateurs so hire the best wedding photographer you can afford because those pictures are very important.

This is hopefully a one shot deal, so don’t take any chances.

And when you see the photographer nearby – don’t forget to smile