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As a new bride, you’re likely to read wedding blogs, magazines, and advice from friends and family. Some of the information you read might possibly be supporting the several wedding photography myths out there. Today I’m sharing what I feel are the most common myths about this industry and explaining why many of these aren’t quite true!
1. “We’ll Just Get an Album Later”
With digital being the norm for viewing photos these days, many couples think that they’ll just purchase or make an album down the road and enjoy the digital images until that point. Sadly, that doesn’t usually happen. I have friends who’ve been married for 1…3…5+ years who still haven’t gotten around to ordering an album. With ever changing technology, there’s no guarantee your wedding images will be viewable in 50 years. An album and prints will be.
The truth is that if you don’t order an album when you book your photographer or when you first receive your wedding gallery, you’re not very likely to do so in the future. It simply won’t be on your mind, making it easy to forget.
If you haven’t yet purchased a professional album and have an intention of doing so, do it now! Put it on your to-do list or calendar and it will be much more likely to happen!
2. Fix it in Photoshop
While I don’t hear this as much anymore, sometimes the subjects of a photograph will just say “Oh, you can just fix that in Photoshop.” Usually they’re referring to unwanted background objects. True professional photographers would rather take the time to remove said object from the back of the photo or choose another location, as it is so much faster than having to spend several minutes to several hours “fixing” the image.
I would always rather get my image correct in camera and enhance it in editing, rather than relying on Photoshop to “fix” what I don’t like. Doing so saves me so much time, which means you get your wedding images back much sooner!
3. Income Made From 8 Hours of Work
This one tickles me pink! For many people who aren’t educated on the likes of wedding photographers, they sometimes think that the price we charge for a wedding reflects the 8 hours of work we do on the wedding day. While I wish that was the case, there’s so much more work we do outside of the wedding day that our wedding prices must pay for.
For example: With each couple I book, I can typically expect the following workload from the initial inquiry to the wedding gallery delivery:
- 5+ hours of email, communication, meetings, etc.
- 1.5 hour engagement session + travel time + 1-5 hours editing
- 2-3 hours prepping for wedding
- 8 hours of wedding photography + travel time + 2.5 hours downloading and culling + 4-10 hours editing
- 1 hour gallery set-up and delivery
- 1 hour choosing album images + 30 minutes designing + 1 hour emailing and revisions
- Even more than that!
You’ll see that’s at minimum around 30 hours per wedding job :-)
4. Shot Lists are Helpful
While sites that will go unnamed might suggest you hand your professional (expert) photographer a shot list with dozens of must-have photos, these are not only unnecessary for your photographer, but also detrimental to the creativity of your wedding photos. Having many weddings worth of experience, your photographer knows how to photograph a wedding day and doesn’t need a list of anything but your family groupings and any special details you have.
In fact, if I were to show up to a wedding and read off a list which photos I was to stage and shoot, I would miss so many beautiful, genuine, and unique moments happening in front of me. In the end, consider whether you’d rather have copies of other brides’ photos or gorgeous one of a kind images that other brides will want to pin from your wedding. I’d rather have the latter!
5. Venue Experience is Extremely Important
While having a photographer who has shot at your wedding venue might be helpful, it isn’t a guarantee. In reverse, it is more than acceptable to hire a photographer who hasn’t shot your venue before (and sometimes better because they have a fresh perspective).
Why? Your photographer can become extremely familiar with the venue simply by visiting the site and spending an hour walking the property. There have been venues I’ve shot before that I honestly couldn’t say I’m that familiar with because I had no time to explore. There have been some venues I’ve visited that I learned like the back of my hand without ever taking my camera to shoot it.
Don’t let this wedding myth be a dealbreaker for any photographer you love. Can it be a plus for your shooter to have experience at your venue? Certainly. Should it be one of your biggest points of consideration? Probably not. Any expert photographer can make magic at any wedding venue!
6. You Don’t Need Engagement Photos
Let me stop you right there. Yes you do. Already have photos from a friend or amateur? Doesn’t matter. Engagement sessions are more about the experience of getting to know your wedding photographer, becoming more comfortable with them and their camera, and building trust and a great relationship with them. The photos become secondary, although they are absolutely lovely to have!
I very strongly believe in taking advantage of engagement sessions. I am convinced that booking an engagement session with your wedding photographer is one of the most vital ways to ensure that your wedding images are successful. That’s why I’ve made them complimentary in my wedding collections, as I couldn’t possibly recommend them any more!
Enjoyed reading about these wedding photography myths? You’ll probably also enjoy my other wedding planning tips posts!
