Most photographers base their package rates on time, so how will you know the number of hours that are actually needed to capture your BIG day?

Your wedding is a full day affair. Determining what parts of the day that are most important to you will help you decide how long you need your photography (and video) team to stay. Why is this important? First, you can potentially save a decent chunk of your budget (to be applied elsewhere…like for your wedding album or another aspect of your wedding altogether) if you can answer the following questions:

1. What traditions and details of your celebration matter most to you? Being able to identify what elements of your day you are most excited about will help you decide where to put them on your timeline. By grouping the important moments of your wedding closer together will save you time with your photographer. Saving time = saving money.
2. When you think of the pictures that will hang in your home or that you will put in your album, which moments stand out most to you? Will this be mostly portraits? First dance? Cake Cutting? Often times when I am going over these details with my clients, getting ready (ahem curlers in your hair and no makeup) and excessive dancing shots are not a high priority. Therefore, my team and I usually plan to arrive during the last 30 minutes of getting ready (which could potentially save many hours of coverage). This way, we get cute pictures of the ladies (& sometimes gents too!) in their robes, fully done up and ready to shine. We also get the groomsmen already showered, prepped and doing their final tux details. These moments tend to be more important and photo worthy. Additionally, for the reception, smartphones are a great way to get candid dancing photos (and easily shareable too!) and can save 2+ hours of coverage time with your photography team.
3. What traditions will you include during your reception? Do you plan to do every single one including: first dance, parent dances, garter, bouquet, cake cutting, honeymoon dance, toasts and so on? Or, do you plan to keep it simple with just a few traditions? By knowing what you plan to include can determine the length of time your photographer needs to be present at your event. For my company, we generally suggest staying 30-60 minutes after all traditions are completed so that we can get a few dance captures, group photos and candid mingling. Then, we leave the rest of the evening for our couples to let loose and hang with their guests, paparazzi free.

You might be asking why as a photographer are you advocating for less hours? The answer is simple. You should be hiring a wedding expert that will guide you in a direction that best suits your needs. Saving money is usually one of them. My company standard is to provide a first-class experience, always. And part of that experience is making sure our clients feel like they are well taken care of. So, my advice to you is to make sure you ask yourself and your vendors thoughtful and appropriate questions. By being able to determine your biggest wants and needs will help you to make smarter choices for your dream wedding. Your biggest desires for your big day might not be too far off and hiring the right vendor team for you will help make your wedding wishes come true!

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