Second thoughts about photography budget?

afterimage

We are having a consultation with some prospective photographers in a couple of weeks.  We both love their style of photography, but will have to spend $3500 plus tax.  We looked at many other local wedding photographers' webpages as well, and just didn't like the other ones as much.  And for the price difference, it just seemed worth it to us to pay a bit more and get photos that we love.  

I know that good wedding photography costs a lot of money, but this will be the most expensive element of our wedding day!  We are trying to keep our wedding budget down.  Financially, we can afford to pay this much for photography... it just seems like SO MUCH money.  At first I had kind of come to terms with the price tag, but now I am starting to have second thoughts.  I suppose I am just seeking some advice and/or reassurance.  What are some of your experiences with wedding photography and budget?  Thank you!

OH! I almost forgot, many of you are probably wondering what is included in the photography package:  Engagement photo session, all day wedding coverage, a wedding album (they do really nice ones), 2 photographers, and low-res digital copies of our photos!

*edited to add information about photography package*

JoanE2012

afterimage said:

We are having a consultation with some prospective photographers in a couple of weeks.  We both love their style of photography, but will have to spend $3500 plus tax.  We looked at many other local wedding photographers' webpages as well, and just didn't like the other ones as much.  And for the price difference, it just seemed worth it to us to pay a bit more and get photos that we love.  

I know that good wedding photography costs a lot of money, but this will be the most expensive element of our wedding day!  We are trying to keep our wedding budget down.  Financially, we can afford to pay this much for photography... it just seems like SO MUCH money.  At first I had kind of come to terms with the price tag, but now I am starting to have second thoughts.  I suppose I am just seeking some advice and/or reassurance.  What are some of your experiences with wedding photography and budget?  Thank you!

OH! I almost forgot, many of you are probably wondering what is included in the photography package:  Engagement photo session, all day wedding coverage, a wedding album (they do really nice ones), 2 photographers, and low-res digital copies of our photos!

*edited to add information about photography package*

You pay for what you get most times when it comes to photography.  You'll have the photos forever.  I think you'll be thankful you spent the money, not only immediately following the wedding when you get the photos back, but for years to come when you look back on them.  

I do think you should be getting high resolution digital copies of your photos though!

afterimage

JoanE2012 said:

afterimage said:

We are having a consultation with some prospective photographers in a couple of weeks.  We both love their style of photography, but will have to spend $3500 plus tax.  We looked at many other local wedding photographers' webpages as well, and just didn't like the other ones as much.  And for the price difference, it just seemed worth it to us to pay a bit more and get photos that we love.  

I know that good wedding photography costs a lot of money, but this will be the most expensive element of our wedding day!  We are trying to keep our wedding budget down.  Financially, we can afford to pay this much for photography... it just seems like SO MUCH money.  At first I had kind of come to terms with the price tag, but now I am starting to have second thoughts.  I suppose I am just seeking some advice and/or reassurance.  What are some of your experiences with wedding photography and budget?  Thank you!

OH! I almost forgot, many of you are probably wondering what is included in the photography package:  Engagement photo session, all day wedding coverage, a wedding album (they do really nice ones), 2 photographers, and low-res digital copies of our photos!

*edited to add information about photography package*

You pay for what you get most times when it comes to photography.  You'll have the photos forever.  I think you'll be thankful you spent the money, not only immediately following the wedding when you get the photos back, but for years to come when you look back on them.  

I do think you should be getting high resolution digital copies of your photos though!

Yes. this is one thing that I am bit concerned about.  But if I want high res digital copies, I have to pay an extra 1000$.  Does this seem unreasonable?  I don't really get it...

emmyg65

We spent more than 30% of our budget on photography because it was our top priority, and in the end, it was totally worth it. Our photographer was a joy to work with, and our photos are gorgeous. However, I agree that you should get high-res images and $1000 is a lot to pay for those! So maybe you should keep looking.

emmyg65

cashwilmington said:

If you're looking at photographers, I would love it if you took a look at my friend, Tom Sapp. He's been doing wedding photography for over a decade and I've known him for about that long as well. He's super talented and a really great professional to know. Feel free to let me know what you think! He has a special price this year where you get all the photos from your wedding on a disk for $1500.

Tom Sapp Photography

Also, this is an international board, so you have no idea where OP is, and you can't spam these boards. @KnotPorscha

photokitty

Personally i think $4,500 to have the high res images with your package is unreasonable. I'd keep looking. Check your local board on here for recommendations. Check nearby cities. As a photographer (not weddings) myself, photography was very important, but my biggest budget item was still the food to host my guests, not my photos.

GL!

afterimage

Thanks for the help, everyone!  I will still meet the photographers that we have been considering because I'm sure it can't hurt to ask them some questions in person, but maybe I should keep looking around because there might be something better out there.  I know it will be worth it to have great photos to look at for the rest of our lives!

kjvaracalli

I agree with others that 1--you should get high res images,  2--an extra $1000 is a lot, and 3--these are what will last forever.   Have you tried negotiating?   I would keep looking around but also see if they can give some wiggle room on price.  Maybe you don't need/want engagement photos?  Or maybe you can contract them for 8hrs instead of all day coverage?  Also, make sure you get either print or full copyright release on your photos....very important. 

afterimage

Thank you! I will prepare a list of questions before we meet with them.  I am really not good at negotiating but I can try my best.  I have a feeling they won't budge much because their info package states that high res images cost 1000$ more.  I would kind of like the engagement photos but I suppose it's something to think about.  I would definitely be willing to just contract them for 8 hours or something like that because I don't see much of a need to have them around all day and I don't feel that it is totally necessary to have professional "getting ready" photos.

photokitty

Id keep looking.
Did you check out this thread ?
http://forums.theknot.com/discussion/1006886/photographer-under-2-500#latest

afterimage

Thank you photokitty - I checked out the thread, but unfortunately I am in Canada.  It got me looking though, and I am happy to say I found and contacted a different photographer that we both like for nearly half the price!!  And it includes high res copies of the photos, just not the printed album.  Oh and another difference is that you only get 1 photographer instead of 2.  It still seems like a better deal to me though.  I guess I could still meet with both, but I have a good feeling about this new one.

Just wanted to say thank you again to all of you and your helpful advice!

emmyg65

That is a better deal! Second photographers are nice—they allow you to get different angles and such—but not necessary at all. It's much more important to have all your photos with personal use rights. Then you can print them, make albums, etc.

photokitty

afterimage said:

Thank you photokitty - I checked out the thread, but unfortunately I am in Canada.  It got me looking though, and I am happy to say I found and contacted a different photographer that we both like for nearly half the price!!  And it includes high res copies of the photos, just not the printed album.  Oh and another difference is that you only get 1 photographer instead of 2.  It still seems like a better deal to me though.  I guess I could still meet with both, but I have a good feeling about this new one.

Just wanted to say thank you again to all of you and your helpful advice!

Sorry I saw you posting in the Mass area threads and assumed you were getting married there. Did you check the local board for your area? Ask the new one about the cost of adding a second shooter, they usually have someone they can get if you are willing to pay. On average I have see in be $500 to add on, but it differed from place to place and photog to photog.

GL!

afterimage

I don't post very much on my local board - in fact I kind of forgot it existed!  It is really slow, there are not many brides on there (Vancouver, Canada).  But maybe I should try to liven it up a bit!

That is a good question to ask about the cost of a second photographer.  The new photographer says he can meet with us this week or next week, which is before our consultation with the other photographers, too, so we can find out all of this information first and then make a decision.  Thanks again!