#1 “Can you shoot my wedding like”… Another Photographer
If you’re talking to an established/experienced photographer, you’re hiring them for their particular style and creative eye. Never ever ask them to shoot like anyone else, they may take offense to that. And in some cases, I take that as a red flag that you don’t know what you want and working with you on your wedding will be a very challenging experience.
I had 1 prospective bride say that to me and referenced a $10-15k photographer in NYC. I asked, “Why don’t you hire them?” Bride Responds, “B/c I cannot afford them. I like your photos and I can afford you, but I’d like you to photograph my wedding like them.”
Do you see the disconnect? Moreover, there was a stark photographic difference in style and approach to the wedding day. Our photos are/were nothing like the other photographers.
If you’re hiring a photographer, you’re hiring them and their particular style/brand. If you like a particular photographer’s style but they are out of your price range, maybe you can ask them for recommendations on someone with a similar style who might be cheaper. Or maybe they have “junior” photographers that work with them or in their studio.
#2 “What camera do you shoot with?”
Now, I know all of the blogs, websites, magazines and maybe even other photographers say that you need to ask this question, but let’s be honest, unless you’re a camera geek or you’re into photography or videography, does it really matter what camera we use? Any reputable/professional photographer with a great portfolio will have all the necessary gear. If I say 5Ds or d800, are you going to know the difference? The end result of beautiful photos will depend upon the skill of the person behind the camera and their ability to use the tools that they have to maximize the beauty and tell the story of your wedding day.
Don’t get me wrong, having professional camera equipment is very important! And all professional photographers rock out with professional gear!
#3 “Can you Photoshop that?”
This is a very common question. We at Esvy believe in a certain amount of posterity and integrity to our photos. Our job is to photograph and document your wedding day, as it happened, looking through our camera(s) and lenses. We believe only in photoshopping an image if it enhances the image or fixes something really needs to be fixed. But to be honest, 99% of the photos on our website are NOT photoshopped.
Now, if you have the unfortunate incident a glaring blemish or pimple on your forehead and make up cannot cover it up, we can definitely do something about that. But the one caveat is that we will only photoshop it out in a select number of images that may end up being printed out or blown up into a canvas or large print. We are capturing over 1000 images on your wedding day and delivering several hundred. Photoshopping is a very time consuming process and specialized skill set. Additional charges may be applicable.
In Conclusion…
So, yes, ask your questions, but make sure you’re asking them for the right reasons, not b/c some magazine told you to. Check out our post on
How to Choose Your Wedding Photographer for more tips.
Bonus:
“Can I give you a (detailed) shot list?” — You can ask this, but with a few items to consider
Yes and No. I’ll take a shot list of the group portraits that you really want, particularly if they are some strange combinations of family. So for example if you want Aunt Susie with Cousin Sam with little baby Jessica, because they all have the same eyes, yea, that’s cool, we can photograph them as that’s not very typical.
But, I will respectfully not accept a 3+ page photo shot list. And this is for a number of reasons:
(1) Most of those shot lists are pretty much the same and are standard across the industry. I mean, you don’t need to state the obvious such as.. a photo of the bride and groom kissing, after announcement of “man and wife” or “photo of bride walking down the aisle” or “bride and groom cutting the cake”. Those are all standard. So, rest assured, if you hire the right photographer, they know what they are doing. But yes, on occasion, some weddings have unique details or moments that may not be obvious, so you can bring those up with your photographer.
(2) Shot lists, for many photographers, stifle creativity and hamper our ability to get real candid shots through out the day. Oftentimes the best and most beautiful photos of your wedding day are not the ones that you put onto a list or you even expected to get. Plus if we are looking down at a piece of paper, we are not looking through our camera capturing all the great moments.
