OK so this is what happened.
My fiancee asked me to marry him in July and we are getting married this coming July. We have about 5 friends with big gorgeous cameras that you change the lens for different things and I mentioned on Facebook that we needed a photographer and nobody offered, so I figured we'd go the professional route.
I was chatting with one of said friends and she said she would do the pics for us and I said my fiancees mom was paying and her limit is 600 dollars and our friend agreed to that price. I asked for her to do one session with us so we can put it on our save the date cards and she agreed, but when the day came it didn't jive and we never met up with her and took the pictures so we really have no "engagement" pictures. I deleted my stupid facebook account and our friend literally disappeared. She never asks my fiancee to meet up and I'm over her already. She also has fibromyalgia and I am afraid for the wedding to come and her be in pain and not dedicate herself the way I would hope she should.
My future sister in law has an uncle that took photography classes and he does photography on the side, he has 2 weddings under his belt and 2 mock weddings from the class. I emailed HIM and got NO response, and a month later emailed him again and got a response a month after that which tells me he isn't interested because in THIS economy when you're trying to get your business off the ground, you should be ON it. So his email just said he was sorry for the delay in getting back to me an he can talk to me about a package blah blah if I am still interested and I decided to blow him off because really?
So my sister in law has a birthday party for her daughter about 3 weeks later and the uncle is there only i don't know it's him because I had never met him. He says to me "I'm So and so's uncle, did you get my email?" and that took me off guard. He seemed more interested at the party so I agreed to "find" his email in my junk folder and get back to him.. and when I got home I responded with a question or 2 and... NO RESPONSE. So i emailed him a week later with a thanks but no thanks, good luck with your business. (he's gonna need it with those people skills)
I found a woman whose pics take my friggin breath away, but she is 1,800 dollars for the day so i have to skip her but I am going to plug her here because she brings tears to my eyes. http://altaredvisions.com/site/#/portfolio/2011-weddings/1/
.. and last night I found another and she called me to give me a quote. She was VERY confident and said she can be at my wedding for 2 hours and make it look like she was there all day for 1,000 dollars. Fuckin seriously? I am in the WRONG business can I get an amen?
*sigh*
All I want is someone with an EYE to come, snap pictures, maybe edit them, throw them on a disc and give them to me. No prints. No traditional the bride has a big white gown (I don't, this is our second wedding/marriage) and wants 1,000 pictures of herself pretending to be queen for the day (I don't) I just want different pics for my different wedding. Marriage and reception on the same plot of land and we're getting married in freakin jeans for christ's sake...
Can anyone in the Southeastern Mass area specifically New Bedford give me a pointer, here? Because I am like 4 moments away from finding the 1,800 woman and hiring her, and I didn't think the photographer would cost more than the food.
Wow, yeah I remember some prices that I was quoted about 6 odd years ago... and I almost died! The guy we ended up getting was ummmm I think $500 (which won't help you much as he's in Oz)... but he was someone who didn't do it FT, he only wanted to keep it as a "hobby" so he didn't lose his interest/passion for it. Turned out too, that his FIL was the man we'd chosen to be our celebrant haha... and he also used to do photography, so we ended up with a few from him too!!
Anyway, what I'm getting at is... we got some amazing pics for CHEAP as and we got a folder of printed pics (70 I think) PLUS all the pics on CD and ALL negatives. He said to us... what do I need to keep YOUR photos for. He got hired after that comment. See if you can find someone who doesn't ONLY do that for a living.. KWIM? If I was over there, I'd help you :)
@ozziehoffy thanks, sugar. It seems like when a person hears WEDDING, the price doubles or something. I guess because the pictures matter more, I know in my case this woman is well worth the 1,800 dollars and know what? I think I'm taking her. I didn't buy a wedding gown, the dress I'm buying is 70 dollars. I can splurge on this, this is important to me. I want wonderful pictures of us AND of our friends. This is the last time I am getting married, and this is the RIGHT guy, this is the important one.
we paid $1300 for our photographer 3 years ago, he was good but not the best
they were there the whole day and that included all the photos rights with them all on a CD
Oh I'm so sorry about the crap you've been through. I not able to help you as I don't live close - but I sure wish I did! I'm hoping you'll get the right person for the right price. I agree, it seems that the minute you say 'wedding' the prices get stupid. Good luck. x
Ok I totally get what you are saying I felt like this too when I was looking for a wedding photographer, however I remember reading this post and it making alot of sense. I am pretty sure that quality in general does cost. You need to find someone with a good portfolio who you can gel with.
@chasingwishes I know someone who would shoot your wedding! I really don't know how pricing but I have a feeling it might be in your price range. She is like my cousin and she is amazing at photography!
@cazink Thank you for sharing that. It makes perfect sense... I think I am going with Altared Visions. I just love her eye and in my heart she is worth it. sigh...
Wedding photography prices can be high, but there is some justification.
Weddings can very hard work. To be a consistently good event photographer requires loads of practice and skill in the first. But in a wedding the added stresses for both the participants and the photog make things more difficult. Cooperation and coordination are rare commodities, but expectation is very high. Very much like herding cats at times. Understandable, yes, but no less difficult for that.
On the reverse, some of the pricing is due to opportunism. Sucks, but there you have it.
Luck on finding the right combination of skill, price and availability. That is a tough one.
It all depends on how important these photos will be for you. If it is important, then I suggest looking at a photographer's portfolio or body of work to get a sense of their photography style. Then if you love their "art" and way of capturing moments, go with them at their rate. Good wedding photography is hard work plus there is so much work to do editing afterward.
@kalexa YES I agree 150% that photography is art... and I dont want traditional FLOWERS, CAKE, GOWN pics... ME I think the money is worth it, I can justify... it just sucks that the pics are going to be the highest expense...
Since starting this project, I've had a few requests by friends of friends to shoot their wedding at a "not professional" price. I've declined the offer because, frankly, it doesn't interest me, and also because if I'm charging - even at a discount rate, I know I'm going to spend ages processing the photos to perfection, because I wouldn't feel good about it otherwise. Which kind of cheats pro photogs that are just starting up a business out there, when someone can just go to a "non-pro" and get great work done at half the price, but the same amount of work.
Anyways, I asked a photographer friend of mine if she still does weddings (to recommend her to people that asked me) and she said no, but honestly, if you're looking to save money on a photographer - someone you know that's coming to the wedding has a DSLR, and that someone most likely has a bit of a hobby and knows how to use it. So just request that they snap away and odds are good you're going to get something you're happy with. You can always process them yourself later if your friend/relative is ok with that.....
I for one personally think it is a crying shame when someone charges that much especially when they only do it on the side. I know so many families that would love just a simply family portrait and can't afford it because of prices like the ones quoted above. I charge $25.00 an hour and sell the files on a disc for $5.00 a file or my prints on my site are very fairly priced starting at $4.75 an 8x10.
Even with prices this low I know families who can't afford it so I went to our local community action (services for food,utilities and shelter for low income households) and am donating my time and services. In February I will be photographing 6 sessions with 5 poses in each for 6 different families for free, and I can't afford myself to give out prints but they will get a disc and I got the local drugstore to donate 8x10 prints to the families.
I did a wedding this summer for $100.00. I was there for 2 hours and they bought 10 poses on a disc.
I can understand if you have a studio to pay for and it is your full time job to charge more, but if it is on the side (which for me also qualifies as fun) I don't see the need to charge so much, ouch.
I know that the cost of wedding photography is very high, but I'm going to tell you that it's some of the most difficult work I have ever done. You are out there for 8 hours, standing, running to and from, dealing with bitchy brides (I'm sure you aren't a bitchy bride) mean mother's, demanding bridesmaids, grooms and groomsmen that can't behave for the life of them (seriously, in more weddings that I photo'd than not, the men we whooping it up, couldn't get them to behave during pictures, or even the wedding ceremony) then you go home, you HAVE to edit the pictures and usually I always ended up with around 1100-1500 pictures and I like to cull through them and give them memories) of course, I would also do best of the best, but the reception pictures are so darn boring to a photographer because it's not your family or friends, but you want the bride and groom and everyone there to remember every little detail about the reception so you do your regular editing (I shoot RAW, so there is a raw processing on top of your regular) and even batching takes time. It usually takes me a week to edit. Then you back those up 2-3 times, let them view their galleries, put them on disks (if you are that kind of wedding photographer) or then if you aren't the disk type, you work out the package, set their package up, order their prints, all the meanwhile, the excited bride, though she doesn't realize how obnoxious she is being, is bugging you ever so sweetly about how much longer will it be when her pictures are ready (even though you told her it would be at least two weeks and you are a week ahead of yourself) then there are the complaints - I look fat in this picture, can you liquify that, or this, the flower girl is frowning in this picture, can you swap her head with that other picture, where I look cross eyed, can you change picture number 674 to a sepia? How about number 895 and only make my flowers be color and the rest black and white, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!!! LOL!!!
I'm telling you - when you break down that $1800 for all of the time spent at the wedding (8 hours), all of the edit time for all of the 1500 photos, back up to several different places so your photos don't ever get lost) Print costs, etc... you break it down to a few dollars an hour when all is said and done. That is why most people don't do it for $500. But if you can find a great photographer who is willing to just plain shoot and burn, then that's not so bad.
So I can totally see it from the bride and groom side, but I can also see it from the wedding photographer side (I no longer do weddings - it is NOT worth the money for me and I tended to get the families that had spawned bridezilla's!)
But seriously - I do not mean this in anyway about you - your wedding sounds low key and very nice. I do hope you can find someone who will do it justice!
@jenp wooo very informational... thank you!! I'm not a bitchy bride yet. No wedding gown, no wedding party. No maid of honor. How's that for ya? We're wearing JEANS. Well at least HE is, I found a dress... :) All I want is pictures on a disc, no prints... we're going to a bridal expo today but I think I found my girl and will have to think of how I can raise 1,200 dollars for her because it's worth it, in the end.
@chasingwishes - truth be told, if I lived close to you, I would come help you out! :o) I totally understand how frustrating it can be. I was not a photographer when I had my own wedding and the cost just blew me away and that was almost 13 years ago, I paid $1000, but I got the most amazing pictures from a couple who was just starting their own wedding business. They now charge $2500 for the most basic package and all I can say is that I'm glad I got them when I did!!!
I agree though - in the end, you'll be happy to have really nice pictures. Also, beware - you get what you pay for too. So if you do find someone that is charging $500 for a disk, make sure you look at their pictures very critically before signing on. Some people genuinely do it to keep the cost low out of the goodness of their hearts and do very well, but there are also greedy people out there who think since they have a DSLR that they rock it right out of the park when they don't. So when you find yours let us have a look and approve them for ya! LOL!!!
I can't imagine howsomeone can shoot a wedding for two hours and make it look like she has been there all day- the whole purpose of shooting a wedding is capturing special moments and memories- If you are not present throughout the entire wedding and reception how in the world are you going to do that. Wedding photographers are usually shooting between 6-8 hours which include pre wedding during the wedding after the wedding and then the reception and any post "routine or special shots of the bridal party" It is a long day for them and not easy- so the monty they are asking doesn't sound unreasonable to me. Remember they are not just "taking pictures" they are bringing their creative eye and specialty to the actual photography and that is what you are paying for- and after the shoot they are then editing and correcting your images to make them perfect for you- this is time consuming. So if you are not willing to pay for all of that Maybe you would rather buy a bunch of disposable cameras and hand them out to all your guest to take pics for you- that could be fun also. I know it sounds like a lot of money to pay but please don't minimize the talent it takes to be a great wedding photographer- when you look at the entire picture $3000.00 would be a small lifetime investment.
Why don't you ask around, check out a local photography school or craigslist or something, and see if there's any photography students that are interested in gaining more experience? You can check their portfolio... and everybody wins... ?
I shoot weddings, and they are way more difficult and expensive and stressful than you can fathom. Hear about the man recently who sued his photog 10 years later to recreate the pictures of his failed marriage? A real photog will carry over $10,000 worth of equipment on your day, never mind the equipment and software at home, studios, lighting etc. hellos insurance and license, plus you may receive prints or products or negatives. Plus time shooting, that's backbreaking work. One hour of shooting may be equivalent to 5 hours of editing. Still think $2000 is expensive? Not at all, if fact wedding photogs are underpaid. 60 hours of work for 10 hours of pay. We have families and mortgages and yet people slander our industry. You get what you pay for. If you want a cheap photog then you get cheap pictures. End of story.
i don't know anyone up there, but maybe search for a photojournalistic style photographer. that's all I do with portraits and events (aside from studio boudoir). it's less money for sure, and you get more intimate portraits because we don't pose people :)
Look at the local art college for students in the photography program. Review their work and see what you can get.
Also it seems that some charge a flat fee which includes a package and their editing time for your wedding, so find out all that is included in the package.
Do realize also, that the cake, the reception hall/garden area, decorations, clothes/attire, etc. are only there ONE DAY. Your wedding photos will be there for you 10, 20, 50 years from now. Just one more reason that a true wedding photographer charges what they charge and do all the editing that they do.
I myself have been a second shooter on a couple weddings and don't particularly care to do them for many of the above mentioned reasons. Just not worth the headache (for me).
Pretty much depends on how much importance you put on the one keepsake from that day.
Backyarders are tearing the guts out of the industry, by lowering expectations. They have no overheads (read: insurance, amongst other things), and end up being responsible for the vast majority of the horror stories we pro photogs get tarred with. Charity is one thing, but telling everyone (clients) that pro photogs charge way too much is highly insulting (not aimed at the OP - just a general rant).
I am constantly amazed (stupefied, more like) at comments such as, "Maybe I should become a photographer - it is a license to print money!" Yes, I do charge (minimum) $3k for a wedding. It involves around 100 hours of work. I pay insurance - you'll be thankful for that if something goes wrong, like if you fall over while I'm taking your photo, or your wedding album vanishes in the mail (or I'll be thankful, as I'll be able to afford to replace it). I pay high end printing costs - an album costs me $500-$1000 just to get printed. I have $30k of equipment, that breaks, or simply wears out. I also have contracts - you will always get what you pay for. I am accredited - something always lacking with backyarders in our unregulated industry. I am lucky if I make a 24% profit. Yeah - $800 odd for 100 hours of work means I'm rolling in cash, if clients spend the minimum. I make far more off portraits than I do from weddings, on an hourly basis, but if I charge $6k minimum I'll never book anything.
Stacey - go with the pro. There won't be any surprises. That said, no-one can get a whole album in 2 hours, unless it is just pretty pictures you want recorded (rather than actual memorable moments).
The other thing that isnt being considered is the ongoing pressure on the photographer to make sure security / backups are SAFE in their home
I heard a story (friend of a friend - yes they always are) who used to work as a wedding photographer in South Africa. He did back to back weddings during the week and on the weekend. After this one wedding on saturday, he was so exhausted he went home and just passed out. Something happened the next day and the crux of it is that someone broke into his place and stole his cameras and memory cards BEFORE he downloaded them / backed them up to his computer.
He put out newspaper articles, flyers etc just asking for the memory cards to be returned and letting the robber keep the camera equipment but no joy. The couple turned out to have a few connections, went on national TV and ensured that he couldnt work in the industry in SA anymore.
I agree that it was totally his fault for not taking precautions - download, backup. backup again etc but it does highlight expectations and therefore costs that would be involved. I can honestly say that if i paid tens of thousands for my wedding and didnt get any images, i'd be pretty upset too.
For my moneys worth, if you like the pro's images, pay her and have images that you'll love every time you look back at them. I mean the whole day one, not the 2 hour one... I fail to see how someone can capture that much in 2 hours
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Anyway, what I'm getting at is... we got some amazing pics for CHEAP as and we got a folder of printed pics (70 I think) PLUS all the pics on CD and ALL negatives. He said to us... what do I need to keep YOUR photos for. He got hired after that comment. See if you can find someone who doesn't ONLY do that for a living.. KWIM? If I was over there, I'd help you :)
they were there the whole day and that included all the photos rights with them all on a CD
Here is the link to the original post
http://365project.org/discuss/articles/5092/why-pro-photogs-charge-lots-of
Weddings can very hard work. To be a consistently good event photographer requires loads of practice and skill in the first. But in a wedding the added stresses for both the participants and the photog make things more difficult. Cooperation and coordination are rare commodities, but expectation is very high. Very much like herding cats at times. Understandable, yes, but no less difficult for that.
On the reverse, some of the pricing is due to opportunism. Sucks, but there you have it.
Luck on finding the right combination of skill, price and availability. That is a tough one.
Anyways, I asked a photographer friend of mine if she still does weddings (to recommend her to people that asked me) and she said no, but honestly, if you're looking to save money on a photographer - someone you know that's coming to the wedding has a DSLR, and that someone most likely has a bit of a hobby and knows how to use it. So just request that they snap away and odds are good you're going to get something you're happy with. You can always process them yourself later if your friend/relative is ok with that.....
Even with prices this low I know families who can't afford it so I went to our local community action (services for food,utilities and shelter for low income households) and am donating my time and services. In February I will be photographing 6 sessions with 5 poses in each for 6 different families for free, and I can't afford myself to give out prints but they will get a disc and I got the local drugstore to donate 8x10 prints to the families.
I did a wedding this summer for $100.00. I was there for 2 hours and they bought 10 poses on a disc.
I can understand if you have a studio to pay for and it is your full time job to charge more, but if it is on the side (which for me also qualifies as fun) I don't see the need to charge so much, ouch.
I'm telling you - when you break down that $1800 for all of the time spent at the wedding (8 hours), all of the edit time for all of the 1500 photos, back up to several different places so your photos don't ever get lost) Print costs, etc... you break it down to a few dollars an hour when all is said and done. That is why most people don't do it for $500. But if you can find a great photographer who is willing to just plain shoot and burn, then that's not so bad.
So I can totally see it from the bride and groom side, but I can also see it from the wedding photographer side (I no longer do weddings - it is NOT worth the money for me and I tended to get the families that had spawned bridezilla's!)
But seriously - I do not mean this in anyway about you - your wedding sounds low key and very nice. I do hope you can find someone who will do it justice!
I agree though - in the end, you'll be happy to have really nice pictures. Also, beware - you get what you pay for too. So if you do find someone that is charging $500 for a disk, make sure you look at their pictures very critically before signing on. Some people genuinely do it to keep the cost low out of the goodness of their hearts and do very well, but there are also greedy people out there who think since they have a DSLR that they rock it right out of the park when they don't. So when you find yours let us have a look and approve them for ya! LOL!!!
Also it seems that some charge a flat fee which includes a package and their editing time for your wedding, so find out all that is included in the package.
I myself have been a second shooter on a couple weddings and don't particularly care to do them for many of the above mentioned reasons. Just not worth the headache (for me).
Pretty much depends on how much importance you put on the one keepsake from that day.
Backyarders are tearing the guts out of the industry, by lowering expectations. They have no overheads (read: insurance, amongst other things), and end up being responsible for the vast majority of the horror stories we pro photogs get tarred with. Charity is one thing, but telling everyone (clients) that pro photogs charge way too much is highly insulting (not aimed at the OP - just a general rant).
I am constantly amazed (stupefied, more like) at comments such as, "Maybe I should become a photographer - it is a license to print money!" Yes, I do charge (minimum) $3k for a wedding. It involves around 100 hours of work. I pay insurance - you'll be thankful for that if something goes wrong, like if you fall over while I'm taking your photo, or your wedding album vanishes in the mail (or I'll be thankful, as I'll be able to afford to replace it). I pay high end printing costs - an album costs me $500-$1000 just to get printed. I have $30k of equipment, that breaks, or simply wears out. I also have contracts - you will always get what you pay for. I am accredited - something always lacking with backyarders in our unregulated industry. I am lucky if I make a 24% profit. Yeah - $800 odd for 100 hours of work means I'm rolling in cash, if clients spend the minimum. I make far more off portraits than I do from weddings, on an hourly basis, but if I charge $6k minimum I'll never book anything.
Stacey - go with the pro. There won't be any surprises. That said, no-one can get a whole album in 2 hours, unless it is just pretty pictures you want recorded (rather than actual memorable moments).
I heard a story (friend of a friend - yes they always are) who used to work as a wedding photographer in South Africa. He did back to back weddings during the week and on the weekend. After this one wedding on saturday, he was so exhausted he went home and just passed out. Something happened the next day and the crux of it is that someone broke into his place and stole his cameras and memory cards BEFORE he downloaded them / backed them up to his computer.
He put out newspaper articles, flyers etc just asking for the memory cards to be returned and letting the robber keep the camera equipment but no joy. The couple turned out to have a few connections, went on national TV and ensured that he couldnt work in the industry in SA anymore.
I agree that it was totally his fault for not taking precautions - download, backup. backup again etc but it does highlight expectations and therefore costs that would be involved. I can honestly say that if i paid tens of thousands for my wedding and didnt get any images, i'd be pretty upset too.
For my moneys worth, if you like the pro's images, pay her and have images that you'll love every time you look back at them. I mean the whole day one, not the 2 hour one... I fail to see how someone can capture that much in 2 hours