What Does a Wedding Photographer Actually Do?
Since you have limited contact with your wedding photographer prior to the wedding day, it can be easy to think they don’t do a ton of work. You may feel like they’re super overpaid. I mean, $3500 for eight hours? That’s almost $440 an hour! In reality, most of a photographer’s work is unseen by clients, from education and training to planning and editing.
Most photographers have been told that their job is “just pressing a button,” that it’s easy or something anyone could do. But photography takes skill, talent, and a solid business foundation. It requires starting your own company from scratch and building it into a full-time career.
What are you actually paying a wedding photographer to do? So much more than just taking photos of your walk down the aisle! Here’s all that’s involved in preparing for and capturing a wedding.
Before the Wedding
A photographer’s work starts long before the wedding day. Most brides or couples reach out 12-18 months before their intended wedding date. After the obligatory first conversation via phone call or email, the photographer will coordinate a meeting— whether at a restaurant or their own business location. During this meeting, plans are discussed— including the size of the wedding party, the venue, wedding day portraiture priorities, albums/ heirlooms, etc.
After this first consultation, photographers put together a contract and documents for the clients to review and sign. Most professionals stay in touch with clients after the contract is signed, continually gathering details about their wedding day as their planning progresses. There are typically at least two other formal meetings/ appointments: an engagement session and a timeline consultation.
The Wedding Day
Your wedding photographer will be present most of your day. From the first moments of getting ready to your exit from the reception, they work hard to capture every memory and moment of your day. A wedding day is often anywhere from seven to twelve hours of work, organizing and posing the wedding party, family, and the couple for portraits, as well as capturing candid moments as they happen.
After the Wedding
Once your wedding day is over, they get to work on culling and editing your images. They may be in contact occasionally as your final gallery is prepared. It may take several weeks to process and edit your images—a time-intensive process that means going through thousands of photos, choosing the best ones, and editing/ re-touching each photo individually.
All the Other Details
In between weddings and sessions, there is so much other work that goes into providing amazing wedding day portraiture. Images must be backed up and gear must be maintained/ replaced. Photographers also take time to continue their education, attending workshops and training to stay on top of the latest trends and skills.
Another Way to Look at It
If you consider the big picture of the hours involved, your photographer is assuredly not overpaid. Consider the estimated hours shown to the right. (Note- These figures do not include travel, random communication via text/ email, etc. That could easily add up to six more hours.) This equates to $59-$73 per hour— significantly less than the $470 hourly rate originally assumed.
Price aside, there are things you pay a professional photographer to do that are often taken for granted.
answering your questions about weddings/ planning
providing recommendations on wedding day logistics, area vendors, timeline
sharing their vast knowledge and experience to help make your wedding day amazing
their professional commitment to you (i.e. showing up, coming on time, well-prepared, etc)
insuring their business and gear so that they will always have the tools to capture your wedding day
backing up and archiving your wedding day images
planning for redundancies in case of technology failure
guiding and supporting you while you’re uncomfortable in front of the camera
respecting your privacy needs
peace of mind
So, while it’s easy to see dollar signs and imagine your photographer rolling around in piles of cash, you are investing in so much more than what you see on the wedding day.
PS- While this blog post focuses on the role of the wedding day photographer, this is all very relevant to any wedding professional. They all do a ton of work behind the scenes.
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