Go with my gut? Nervous about a great photographer.

doyoucopy

Hello again to the frequent helpers on this board! (Also, is this the right place for this stuff? Please let me know if I should be posting on another board.)

I've found a photographer whose style I am enamored with. After my initial email, which she didn't respond to, and a voicemail she didn't seem to listen to, I messaged her on FB and got an immediate reply. She was then able to email over her brochure. This took about a month total.

After a short back and forth a week and a half later, I still hadn't gotten resolution on the last email. I called her today and finally discussed details. The whole saga has lasted almost two months.

Long story short, she seemed like she could take or leave my business, though she has my date open. She has excellent reviews on The Knot and has a lot of exposure in blogs and magazines in our metro area—all in all, she seems totally legitimate. I'd love to chalk it up to her being busy, but I still feel as if I were almost annoying her.

I know I should probably go with my gut and decline to sign with her, though her work is exactly what I want. I haven't found anyone in my budget and I'm apparently exceptionally picky. Has anyone had a rocky beginning with a vendor but had it all work out in the end? Do our personalities need to mesh super well for me to get the type of photos I want from her (and know she's capable of taking)? Any other advice?

charlotte989875

doyoucopy said:

Hello again to the frequent helpers on this board! (Also, is this the right place for this stuff? Please let me know if I should be posting on another board.)

I've found a photographer whose style I am enamored with. After my initial email, which she didn't respond to, and a voicemail she didn't seem to listen to, I messaged her on FB and got an immediate reply. She was then able to email over her brochure. This took about a month total.

After a short back and forth a week and a half later, I still hadn't gotten resolution on the last email. I called her today and finally discussed details. The whole saga has lasted almost two months.

Long story short, she seemed like she could take or leave my business, though she has my date open. She has excellent reviews on The Knot and has a lot of exposure in blogs and magazines in our metro area—all in all, she seems totally legitimate. I'd love to chalk it up to her being busy, but I still feel as if I were almost annoying her.

I know I should probably go with my gut and decline to sign with her, though her work is exactly what I want. I haven't found anyone in my budget and I'm apparently exceptionally picky. Has anyone had a rocky beginning with a vendor but had it all work out in the end? Do our personalities need to mesh super well for me to get the type of photos I want from her (and know she's capable of taking)? Any other advice?

Are you comfortable moving forward with her even if her behavior doesn't change? Do you feel confident she will deliver on her promises based on your interactions with her?

I will say my photographer was flaky at the beginning, and while she showed up and took beautiful pictures, she screwed up our package, took forever to get things back, and was flaky throughout the process. Our pictures were gorgeous and I'm happy with them, but it was fairly annoying. 

Shes probably not going to change much once you book her so consider if you're okay with having to track her down for information, or send multiple messages before you get a response. 

ernursej

If you go with her, get a written contract for exactly what you expect from her. List specifics like time frames for replying to communication, method of communication to use, time spent at the wedding with you, expected pictures you would like, if she is to edit the pictures, time frame for receiving unedited photos vs. edited photos, if you get files or just the pictures etc.

You could also flat out state that you really would like to work with her but you are not sure if your needs are being met because of the communication gaps and see what she says.

doyoucopy

Thanks for the advice!

I should probably mention that I'm not in a position to do any demanding. She's accommodating my smaller budget with a shorter timeframe, so she's already working with me in that respect.

charlotte989875

doyoucopy said:

Thanks for the advice!

I should probably mention that I'm not in a position to do any demanding. She's accommodating my smaller budget with a shorter timeframe, so she's already working with me in that respect.

But you're still (potentially) paying her, so you should have all the terms explicitly written in your contract. Just because it's not her usual budget or timeframe doesn't mean you don't deserve to have a clear understanding of what you can expect from her. 

Heffalump

I don't know that I can answer this for you, but I have some thoughts:

- If you get quicker results from FB than phone or email, maybe that's just her preferred/best method of communication?

- Is it possible that she's been swamped with events recently? 

- It's possible that she can take or leave your business, if she's in demand.  Which is not a great attitude on a vendor, IMO.  I think professionalism requires that you treat customers (and potential customers) as if you value their business.

- I hate to say it, but it's possible that she sees your shorter event as a hedge: if it's not currently booked, maybe part of her thinks that it's better than nothing, while the other part of her thinks if she waits, she may end up being booked at full price.  Again, I don't think this is a good excuse, it just may be a factor.

- What are the excellent reviews about, specifically?  The quality of her work?  Responsiveness?  How quickly she delivered images after the event? 

- If she's great artistically but challenging in terms of her customer service skills, is that a trade off you're willing to make?  Can you live with having to manage her more hands-on in exchange for the work she produces?  Or will that annoyance outweigh the rest?

- One of my best friends is an event photographer, and she does weddings and quite a few bar/bat mitzvahs.  She is flaky as anything.  But she does great work.  I don't want to overgeneralize, but sometimes I think there's a right brain/left brain thing at work, and sometimes the more artistic temperaments aren't as into the practical nuts and bolts. 

- If it were me, I usually have a baseline (budget, work quality, whatever), and once they've cleared that threshold, I tend to pick the people I work best with.  I feel like it just makes life easier.  But if she's the only one who's met your baseline budget so far, then (assuming you've been looking for a while) maybe she's your best fit?

doyoucopy

Heffalump, thanks so much for your insight.

You make a great point about the baseline/threshold idea. I've come to the realization that I'm picky in spite of a limited budget, making for a difficult time finding the right qualities at an affordable price. I'm thinking this may mean that I'll have to compromise (or sacrifice) on the customer service aspect of the relationship.

In terms of her reviews, there are excellent recommendations for her communication, artistic direction and insight, personality and professionalism. I'm thinking I should give her another chance (well, really, I think I'm going to book her), and take the good with the bad (since the good is so, so worth it!).