Wedding Videography Advice

Wedding photography can eat up a huge chunk of your overall wedding budget, simply because the best wedding photographers tend to charge both for their time and their services. When you're creating your wedding budget, keep in mind that your attitude toward snapshots and home videos should determine how much money you end up dropping on your wedding photographer and wedding videographer.

So how do you decide how much to spend on your wedding photographer (or videographer)? Consider your preferences and your lifestyle. Are you the kind of person who regularly pulls out photo albums to browse through your well-organized and cataloged photograph collection? Or do your family photos sit unloved in boxes that haven't seen the outside of your attic for a decade? How would you feel about sitting down to watch someone else's wedding video?

If pictures mean the world to you, hire the best shutterbug you can afford-cut back on the hors d'oeuvres if that's what it takes. On the other hand, if the thought of looking through your photos bores you to tears, you may want to consider stocking your reception tables with disposables and calling it a day. The same goes for wedding videography -- if you think that you (or your spouse-to-be) will treasure your wedding video for the rest of your days, spend more money on it so you get a superior product.


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Wedding Photography Tips

Here are five tips to help you look your best in front of the camera on your wedding day:

1. The bride is under a lot of pressure to look perfect on her wedding day. As a consequence, you may be tempted to overdo your makeup. DON'T! The best wedding photos feature a bride who looks naturally beautiful, not made up. Slather on the cosmetics if you want, just make sure you choose natural shades that will highlight your unique features.

2. Give a designated helper a list of your must-have posed wedding photographs so you don't forget any of the important ones. Even if your wedding photographer has a list, there's no guarantee he or she will remember to bring it along! Your helper can get everyone together and remind the photographer of the shots you want, leaving you free to fuss with your bridal bouquet or hair style.

3. Take your wedding photographer's suggestions to heart. He or she has probably shot scores of weddings, so they have a good idea of what works and what doesn't. That said, if you really want photos of you and your new spouse in the atrium, but it's too dark, have your wedding photographer take the shots anyway. They may turn out all arty and cool, or they may not turn out at all. Nowadays, photogs shoot digital, so it's not like you're wasting film.

4. Relax! You're going to look great in your wedding photos no matter what, so don't put a lot of pressure on yourself to mug for the camera or pose. Some of the most beautiful photographs of the bride and groom are candid shots in which the couple hasn't had a chance to pose or put on a staged smile. Just do your thing and let your photog do his or her thing. Your photos will be all the more memorable for it.

5. That said, smile! If you do feel nervous on your wedding day, smile anyway. Smiling releases feel-good hormones that will make you happy, thus causing you to smile more. It's a happy cycle, and one that can contribute to great wedding photographs!


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Choosing a Wedding Photographer

When it comes time to choose your wedding photographer, you should think about more than just the eventual photographs. Yes, you should love the pictures your chosen wedding photographer takes, but if they're sketchy in other ways or they simply disappear without ever giving you your prints, you're out of luck. It's better to protect yourself from the very beginning, by getting a vendor contract and choosing a photographer with great references.

That said, there's nothing wrong with wanting to save a little money. After all, the wedding photographer you love more than any other might just be out of your price range, forcing you to compromise by choosing a second or third favorite. Here are some tips that will help you get the best wedding photography possible for the least amount of money.

• Ask your photographer to limit the time they spend taking pictures. Consider a "ceremony only" package where the photographer takes pictures before and during the ceremony, but not at the reception. Your wedding photographer will take all of the formal pictures of the bride and groom, family and wedding party, and photograph the ceremony. How many pictures of Aunt Edna eating cake do you need, anyhow?

• If you go that route, ask friends and relatives to take candid photographs at the reception. Some brides and grooms even provide a laptop with memory card readers at the reception venue so wedding guests can download their photographs before they leave.

• When using disposable cameras or rented digital cameras, think twice before placing one at every table. The film cameras themselves are inexpensive, but the cost to develop 20-30 roles of film is not! And while digital photos are all but free, renting a camera for each table can get pricey.

• Choose a photography package rather than purchasing individual shots and print sizes separately. If there is something that you really want that is not included in a package, ask the photographer if something can be swapped without increasing the price.

• Sometimes choosing the smallest or least expensive photography package is not the most cost effective option. One bride chose the least expensive package and afterwards spent $700 to buy additional prints that were not included in her original package. A more comprehensive package would have cost her only an additional $250 more if purchased up front.

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Houston Wedding Photographers

Janine Stoddard specializes in wedding photography that captures and beautifully revitalizes all of the precious fleeting moments of your wedding day. Her emotion evoking candids, combined with a journalistic style, elegantly and completely illustrates your wedding day, in digital photography, for a lifetime of wonderful memories. Visit her website today for more details, frequently asked questions, and to view her online gallery.  http://www.photographybyjanine.com

Philadelphia Wedding Photographers

LP Wedding Photography & Videography - Capturing your wedding day to give you years of incredible memories is what we do. For more then twenty years it has been our passion and privilege to be the wedding photographer for brides and grooms in and around Philadelphia. Let us capture the essence of your special day, capturing who you are, your feelings, the emotion, and your love for one another. We are also experienced, professional wedding videographers. Visit our website today for more information or call 267-312-2387 to schedule an appointment with us.