Wedding photography is an extremely personal endeavor from start to finish. There are few other wedding vendors who spend the entire length of a wedding day with a couple from makeup and hair to the grand exit, which is why it's so important to really know who you're hiring - to know the why behind what they do!
Often, when I have an initial meeting with a bride, we begin by talking about the relationship - how the couple met, how they got engaged, what they've planned so far for their wedding day, etc., and then jump straight into packages and looking at photo albums. Every so often, I'll find an extremely prepared bride with a list of questions from "The Knot," titled "Questions to Ask Photographers Before You Book." Let me be honest for a moment - I LOVE these brides... seriously. Staying prepared and organized with a list of questions is the best way make sure I don't miss any important information that should be shared about photographing your wedding day, and it lets brides get a good feel for all facets of what I have to offer.
However -
While many of these questions cover important logistics, such as shooting on film vs. digital and what's included in my packages, none of the questions seem to take things a step further. None of them seem to probe for things that are just as important - like how I help my couples feel relaxed in front of my camera, or even why I do what I do. None probe for a why. And though, if you're meeting with me, I'll be sure to tell you my why, it's so important to ask your other vendors their why, too. And why is that? Because you want someone who cares about your wedding day. (Well, maybe I can't speak for everyone. But I know I wanted people surrounding me on my wedding day who truly cared for Nick and I! Not just people who were showing up to perform a job and leave.)
I recently came across an article titled "Ten REAL Questions to Ask Your Wedding Photographer: Written by a Real Wedding Photographer," written by Kay from Kay English Photography. I love the idea of answering these questions so much for my brides that over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to release a weekly blog post answering a few of these questions, plus a few of my own, and a few from "The Knot" article! (Just to keep things interesting ;) ). My heart through this segment is to give my current brides (and future brides) the ability to get to know me, my services, and my heart behind what I do a little better! So without further ado - here is the first question and answer!
