Would you hire a wedding photographer like this?

Question

would you hire a wedding photographer who has a good camera, an eye for great photos, has references, but who didn't go to school for photography? you would buy a memory card and he/she would take the photos and give you the memory card--no editing or altering, etc. if so, how much would you pay--would $25/hr sound okay?

Answer 1

It depends on how important good pictures are to you guys. We spent a great deal on the photographer, and pictures, because to me and my husband, it was one of the most important details of the day.  And I think we paid her like $1250 for the entire day.  

Like someone previously said even the best pictures need edited.  Some of my favorite pictures from my wedding are some of the black and white ones (our first dance one comes to mind in black and white as my favorite).  $25 is cheap, but for that price and not editing, you can have a family member with a good camera do it for free or a lot less.

The really good thing about hiring someone is that they have an eye for detail..(i.e, the brides train doesn't look right, the MOH's  bra strap is showing.) little things make quite a difference in photos you will be looking at for years to come.

Answer 2

call the references, and ask to see his work, he or she should have some kind of portfolio to show you, even if they didnt go to a photograpny school. if your happy with what you see, then go for it....$25 an hour is CHEAP!!!!!!!!! Wedding photographers these days charge a minimum of $600.... and that is considered extremely inexpensive and does not include copyrights to the photos, nor an album or anything. just simply the services of the photographer. on average, a decent photographer charges about $900 - $3500.

so if you like his work, just go for it!

My friend became a professional photographer last yr. He never studied it, it was simply a hobby and he was so gifted that an agency just took him on as he was and began to train him from scratch. one yr later i see his photos and they are amazing. we are having him for our wedding :-)

Answer 3

yes and no

good references, portfolio and experience is key

no

because if something were to happen (the person disappears, bad album, not the pictures you wanted) you would be risking it vs. doing it with an accredited photographer/company - you would be protected somehow

Answer 4

in my opinion vr poor families will take that sort of a photografer cz no1 wants 2 be unsure 4 his wedding

Answer 5

Call their references.  If that pans out okay then yes I would hire them.  Photography is an art.  There are people that have gone to school for it and are really no good at things like weddings.  Specify what pictures you want for sure.  Ask to see some of their photos.  If they are good then yes 25/hr is a good price.

Answer 6

It would completely depend on his portfolio, and I would be wanting to see untouched photos (since that's what I'm getting). It would also depend on other parts of the contract: could I hire another (more professional) photographer to take photos during part of the day, would I have full rights to the pictures taken, would I be allowed to edit or have the images edited?? Would you have printing/editing resources available to me??

So, my answer is possibly, especially if I could maybe hire this photographer for the reception and another photographer for the more classic photos at the ceremony. It would also depend on the quality of  his work. I have a lot of friends that could successfully maneuver a rented camera for the day and i wouldn't have to pay them anything.  

Answer 7

just remember with photography you pay for what you get...if it turns out badly..well......

what kind of camera does this person have? is it a professional camera? thats important for the quality of your images

it doesnt really matter if you went to school for it, the portfolio should speak for itself...it's basically a judgement call on your part..if you are confidant in your pick then ok

and can you edit all your images? do you have the programs for it? you will have no specially altered pics unless you can do it or kno someone that will keep that in mind

as for price..how many hours do you want them there? maybe just do an overall price like 300 i mean with wedding photography thats still a steal

Answer 8

If they had many examples of their work and it was the kind I was looking for, yes, $25/hour is cheap. Plus most wont give you the originals but charge you a butt load of money for prints. Most won't even let you keep the rights to your photos. If they have a good portfolio, go for it. Anyone can go to school and learn how to use a camera, not many have a good eye and talent for wedding shoots.

Just be sure to look at the references and examples of their work.

Answer 9

Yes, it sounds like they are a credible photographer. If they have great work samples and good references, then I would say they're probably a safe bet. However, I would talk with them before agreeing to anything...talk with them about any concerns you have, any special poses or locations you would want, particular prints you want to have made, etc. and see how well they seem to handle it. If they seem to accommodate your needs well, then they're probably worth hiring. Then you should also discuss a price for them. For professional photographers, $25/hr is way below normal, but for an amateur, I'd say just talk with them. Good luck!

Answer 10

I would and just talk to them about a reasonable price some people do prices per event!

Answer 11

Even great photos need some editing, especially for things like red-eye.

Answer 12

Yes, I would hire that person.  About price?  You and the photographer will have to talk it over.  Something agreeable to both sides.

If you do any photo editing on your own, you can easily turn each shot into a really good one.   If you don't know how, I am sure you know someone who does.

Answer 13

Suggestions:

1. Look at their portfolio, if you haven't already.

2. Check their references (I have heard of a lot of people getting scammed because they were given references but never actually took the time to check their references).

3. Make a list of what photography shots you want. This is very important. I find a lot of people who are disappointed with their wedding photography didn't fully communicate to the photographer what they wanted. If you give your photographer a list of everything you want, there won't be any "missed shots" to complain about. Also, keep an eye on your photographer at all times at the wedding. My main concern was the photography at my wedding, so I made sure the wedding photographer was nearby at all times, so I could make sure she didn't miss anything. Of course I made her a list of all the formal shots, but it was great to have hear nearby to get a lot of the candid shots I wanted (the best man proposing to the maid of honor, yay!!!). Anyway also make a list of what kind of shots do you want, and about how many. For me, I wanted mostly formal shots. But I also wanted some artistic shots (there is one of us with our wedding rosaries that is very artistic), and some fun shots (there are some adorable fun cute shots of us playing around an authentic Irish wishing well). Just make sure you communicate what you want to a T, because so many people don't, then turn around and blame the photographer for not getting what they wanted in the end.

Lastly, yes, I would hire someone like this. $25/hour is actually very, very, very cheap. Ask them what they have worked for in the past, because $25/hour seems very inexpensive. If its in that price range, then, great, that is a deal for you. Talk it over with them.

As for not having gone to photography school, for me, this is all hogwash. Photography is an art form, and its something you 1. have to have an eye for (which you said they do), and 2. have to practice a lot at (which you said they have reference). There is nothing that they can teach you in school about photography that you can't learn outside of school, through experience, through networking, etc. Photography is an art form, and it isn't something that can be taught through school. Just like there are many photographers who DID go to photography school, but still, even after years, just don't have the eye for it at all.

Lastly, the digital transfer of pictures is really common nowadays. It is up to you if this is right for you. For me, it was a good choice. But I knew from the get-go that our wedding pictures wouldn't need any editing. So, you really have to be very honest with your (and your fiance's) looks. Look at yourself in the mirror, and ask yourself if you would want a picture of yourself to be edited. If your eyes get red when you cry, if you're prone to breaking out, if your face turns red, or if you have skin problems, etc. Chances are with things like these, you will not be happy with them showing up on film, so ask yourself if editing is important to you. For me, I have a very pale complexion, that always comes off looking good in pictures, very porcelain-like, like a china doll, so I didn't think editing would be an issue for me. As for my husband, he didn't care one way or the other. So editing was not an issue for us. However, digital altering was something we were interested in. We did want some pictures to have a few different effects in the end, just something interesting. So we decided to take digital copies of our wedding photographs to a friend of ours with photoshop (you can do amazing things with photoshop these days). She helped up add some interesting effects to a few of our pictures. She added white and black fading effects on some pictures, she made montages and collages of several pictures, and she did some really cool things with color (like a picture of me in black and white, but my red rose bouquet was in full color). It was actually very easy, and since we had the digital format, we had the originals, but we could still play around with some effects! We ended up with some great pictures that way also. Anyway, getting the pictures through a digital format is a great way to save a lot of money. Most photographers charge you per print, which is very expensive, and if you ever want more prints, you have to go back to them for them, or buy a license to be able to print the pictures freely. That is a lot of money! With the digital format, we could print as many wedding pictures as we wanted. That was what we really loved about getting the digital format, was that we didn't have to pick and choose what pictures we wanted to print, we got to have them all at our disposal. Just make sure you get a signed letter of permission allowing you to freely copy, print, distribute, and enlarge the pictures!!! Most places will not mind, but I have been to a few photograph printing places that would not print the photographs until I showed them that let