Top Ten Questions to Ask Your Boston Wedding Photographer
Whether you’re meeting in a café or over zoom, here are 10 questions to ask potential wedding photographers from your favorite Boston wedding photographer, Ryan Richardson Photography.
You are almost constantly immersed in photography from the movies you watch to the ads you glance at on the subway, but most people have never hired a photographer before they started planning their Boston wedding. Finding a photographer whose work you like isn’t hard, but finding a photographer that’s right for you is a lot more complicated. To help you out, here are ten important questions to ask potential wedding photographers and why they matter.
Can I see a full wedding gallery? Most photographers can put together a decent portfolio, but the real proof of their ability to deliver beautiful, consistent photography is going to be found in full wedding galleries. It’s also helpful if your photographer can show weddings similar to yours - a wedding on the beach, a wedding in a dark indoor space, etc.
What’s your backup plan? Maybe this is more than one question, but a photographer that is taking their business and your wedding seriously is going to have plans for failure. What happens if they break their leg three days before the wedding? What if a camera gets broken? What if a card gets corrupted? You want to know that your event is going to be in good hands, this is part of how you find that out.
What happens if my plans change? The past few years have been chaotic and stressful, which is tough because that describes the wedding industry even at the best of times. You want to have a clear idea of what will happen if your plans have to suddenly change - if you need to reschedule a date or cancel entirely. To be very honest, you won’t always like these answers, but you want to see some degree of empathy and understanding in how they might handle things going wrong.
How long does it take to deliver my photos? I know a lot of couples have gotten frustrated because their photographer didn’t set clear timelines for delivery or do a good job setting expectations. This gives you a chance to understand your timeline and set expectations for things like ordering prints, or getting something retouched.
What if I don’t like my photos? Ideally you’re going to love your photos, but art is subjective and sometimes things can go wrong. How will a photographer handle potential complaints? Knowing that there’s a real answer or at least a process to get you satisfaction can take away some of the stress before the wedding, even if everything goes right.
What’s it like to work with you? There are as many different ways to shoot a wedding as there are photographers and it can have a bigger influence on your wedding than you’d expect. Are they very hands on and take charge? Do they just let the moments happen and shoot them as they come? Does the photographer try to blend into the background? Or are they extroverted and fit in like the best friend that you just met?
What gets delivered with the package? A great wedding gallery is more than just hitting a certain number of photos - anyone can do that just by holding down a button. You want to understand the journey a moment takes from the instant it’s captured to when it gets delivered to you. How much judgment does the photographer use when selecting images for the gallery? How are they processed? What level of retouching is involved? Are you allowed to have input into that process?
How do you handle second photographers? Many photographers will offer an additional photographer either as part of a package or as an add-on. Ask your photographer why they’d recommend having a second photographer and if it changes how they shoot a wedding if they’re flying solo. Ideally if you’re looking at adding a second photographer, ask if you can see a gallery that includes a second and one that doesn’t.
What’s Your Favorite Part of Photographing Weddings? When you’re interviewing photographers, you’ll want to ask some questions that get a sense of who they are as an artist or a person. This is someone that’s going to be right there for most of your wedding day, so it’s great to get a sense of who they are and what drives them. Asking the opposite, what do they like least, is also a good way to get some insight into what they might see as weaknesses in their approach to wedding photography without putting them on the spot.
How do I secure my wedding date? The ultimate question when you’re looking to move forward with your photographer is of course the easiest way to get them booked. What does the contract look like? What are the payment terms? What happens if you want to upgrade your package? Downgrade it?
There are plenty more questions you could ask, but these will be the best foundation to start your search for the photographer that will capture the moments in your life that will last forever. If you want to make it even easier, why not hit up our contact form?
Ryan Richardson is a wedding and engagement photographer serving Boston and beyond; including Cape Cod Weddings, New England Weddings, Massachusetts Weddings and Rhode Island Weddings.