It’s the day after Christmas and that means two things.
One: A whole bunch of couples just got engaged + will get engaged in the next two weeks,
Two: I am totally going to see Into the Woods later today.
So! While that second point doesn’t really mean anything in the grand scheme of wedding photography, the first point totally does. The next two months is what photographers call Booking Season and, you guys, it is just as good as Christmas. While some couples book their weddings a year or more in advance, lots of other couples who will get married in 2015 are just now popping the question, basking in their newly-engaged status, and prepping for a crazy year of wedding planning and celebrating and having the most amazing year. Being engaged is one of the most amazing, unique experiences and, for y’all who are just engaged or who have been engaged and are just starting the planning process: This post is for you.
Being engaged is one of the most exciting times in anyone’s life – when I think of the time Andrew and I were engaged six years ago, I still get butterflies – and, because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I think that it is so important to make wedding planning as easy as possible. Planning a wedding can be stressful! There’s so much to do on a limited time table – whether that time table is two months or two years – and, because of this, I thought it would be fun to put together a short list to help newly engaged couples decide on a wedding photographer.
So! Without talking your ears off any more than necessary, here’s three reasons to tell if you’ve found the right wedding photographer!
One: You love their work.
Loving your photographer’s work is one of the very most important parts of finding a wedding photographer. If you feel lukewarm about a photographer’s work, move on. If you love the photographer’s work, send them an email. If you see a photographer’s work and are totally swept up in it, book them on the spot! Choosing a wedding photographer can be stressful – most everyone has a friend of a friend who’s a photographer or maybe a friend of your parents who offered to photograph your wedding as a wedding present – but, unless you are totally in love with the photographer’s work, it’s best to pass. Find a wedding photographer whose work you love!
Two: It’s easy to communicate with them.
It’s often said that the photographer is with the bride and groom more than anyone else on the wedding day and that saying is absolutely right. On wedding days, photographers are everywhere – they’re there for the first look and the moment you put on your dress and they’ll see the look on your mom’s face before she starts to cry and they’re there for the first dance and the cake cutting and they are responsible for capturing memories for not just the couple but the couples parents and grandparents and, eventually, the couples children and their children and their children and their children, too. A wedding’s not just about a couple but about their entire family!
Because of this, it is so important to find a photographer who is easy to communicate with. From emails to phone calls to texts to in person conversations, it is super important to find a wedding photographer who is open and honest and easy to get ahold of. Which brings me to the last point!
Three: You’re on the same page.
If you love your photographer’s work and they are easy to communicate with, chance are that y’all are already on the same page. But! If you’re trying to book a photographer and it feels like they are not communicating how you need to be communicated with or if you like a photographer’s work but still wonder what else is out there, it might be best to keep on looking. Wedding photographs last forever and, because of this, you want your wedding photographer to be on the same page as you – if you want photographs full of candid moments, the last thing you want to do is hire a photographer who only shoots posed moments. You can’t bite into an apple and expect it to taste like an orange, y’know? Because of this, it is so important to find a photographer whose work speaks to you and reflects the kind of photographs you want to see in ten or fifteen years. So! If you love a photographer’s work and are able to communicate with them easily, don’t let them get away! But! If you’re hesitant, move on. The last thing you want is to be talked into wedding photographs you do not want.
Congratulations to all you newly-engaged lovebirds! You’re in for a wonderful year!
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* Lissa Chandler is a creative portrait and wedding photographer in Northwest Arkansas who specializes in lifestyle family, senior portrait and wedding photography. Lissa is known for creative and emotive photography in Northwest Arkansas and currently lives in Fayetteville with her family: a husband whose favorite present yesterday was Chipotle gift cards, a four year old who stayed up until one on Christmas Eve (!!!) and a two year old who has been carrying around his brother’s Darth Vader since yesterday morning. Lissa is currently booking 2015 Seniors, 2015 Weddings, and 2015 Lifestyle Newborn and Family Sessions in Fayetteville, Bentonville, Siloam Springs, Rogers, Springdale, and all of NWA. She is available for wedding work nationwide. *