Family Friend as Your Wedding Photographer - A Cautionary Tale
Toronto Wedding PhotographyWe’ve got a contact from your desperate bride who made a decision to entrust her wedding photography to her family friend instead of hiring among the Toronto wedding photographers. This is a short expert “…
I don’t determine if you remember me but we contacted your studio not long ago about potential for doing our photography, however we elect to select our family friend. I’m sorry to say but this wasn’t the most effective idea but instead a huge mistake ? on our part. We merely (8 months later) got back the images and they look terrible. You can find way too many issues to list today however i wanted to ask if there is anything that that can be done to fix them? …”
It makes us really sad once we get these kinds of emails. We’ve chose to put this little comparison why it is usually an awful idea to go with your household friend as your photographer. Let’s begin with the photography and photography experience.
Family Friend:
Wants to take pictures at various family events
Sneaked some pictures at various weddings and is building or “updating” his/her portfolio
Likes to talk about his/her brand-new expensive camera which takes amazing pictures
Loves to shoots in “Auto” setting to find the sharpest image possible
Always is checking and rechecking camera settings
Will takes snapshot of just people he/she knows
Wedding photographer:
Have been shooting 40 weddings each year within the past 5 years
Gets control 100000 pictures each year
Poses great problem-solving skills
Shoots in Manual mode because he/she understand exposure and understands how to adopt to challenging lighting and environmental conditions
Know his/her equipment out and in and doesn’t must constantly check and double check the settings but can focus on capturing those fleeting moments
Understands the foundations of composition, posing, portraiture and modern story-telling photography
Lives, breaths and sleeps wedding photography
Toronto Wedding PhotographersNow let’s observe how your household friend’s equipment measures up to pro’s equipment:
Family Friend:
Is quite happy with this brand-new $1000 camera but hasn’t master nearly all of onpar gps
His/her backup equipment consist of cellular phone or could borrow a P&S camera from another guest inside a pinch
Might have the consumer grade zoom or flash
Wedding photographer:
Invested over $20,000 within the best and most reliable cameras available on the market
Carries no less than two pro-grade camera constantly
Has multiple lenses, flashes and off camera lighting system
Makes instant backup copies of pictures taken through the wedding ceremony
Created redundant backup system including backup photographer
Here are a few other benefits that Wedding photographer offers:
Includes a proper business insurance including liability insurance
Provides contract that protects the customer
Works together high-end album manufacturers and pro print labs
Attends professional workshops and conferences
Goes into wedding photography competitions
Is associated with many pro photography associations and organizations
Has insightful experience to aid your wedding reception run smoothly
Knows the flow of the wedding day and may anticipate where you can be and what to capture during your wedding ceremony
Combines talent, creativity and experience to capture your wedding event therefore it reflects your personality not his/her
That is it - some advantages and disadvantages of hiring a family friend as the wedding photographer. Hopeful this article prevent some brides from making a mistake rather than hiring a professional and reputable photographer. Remember there are no re-does in photography as well as the final point here is that you get what you purchase - it can’t be said different.
By Avangard Photography | Toronto Photography Studio