Photographer Recomendation

meagandal

Hi I'm in Elmira, getting married in Geneva next September and I am stressing over photography.

Pictures are a high priority to us and we are willing to spend $3,000-$4,000 we want 2 photographers and at least 10 hours if not unlimited coverage.  I want to do first looks, and would like a high quality flush mount album.  Its important to us to have the rights to our photos and hope to have an engagement shoot included.  Nice but not must haves would be a day after or trash the dress session, some prints or a canvas, and a proof book.  We want to gift our parents with albums as well, if included or discounted that would be great.

The problem I have is that there seems to be hundreds of photographers that have great prices under our budget but no one really stands out, and all the pictures look the same to me.  OR there's only one photographer or only 8 hours of coverage. 

I've fallen in love with a couple photographers that are way over our budget like $6,000ish but I cant seem to find a happy middle??

Any recommendations??? I like a mix of artsy editorial photography with candid photojournalism. 

peaches105

Ayres Photography!! They pretty much do everything that you've described. I'm not sure when your wedding is, but contact them quickly because they are busy and they fill up quickly! Also, they will travel!

cmccreedy

Kracke Photography our of Rochester.  I would have loved to use them but we don't have the budget that you do- I've had lots of friends use them and they are great!

meagandal

I LOVED KRACKE, unfortunately they're booked!

I haven't loked at Ayres yet though!


Thanks for the Replies ladies!

rkm6

I would check out Neal Urban.  He does AMAZING work.  A really close friend of mine used him this past May and the pictures honestly turned out great.  He would be my first choice but he is out of my budget unfortunately.  

AZMagnini14

Knight Studio had all that for us!

[Deleted User]

Knight Studio is AWESOME

kat22885

We're using Empire West.  It was $2500 (I think, I have taxes, etc added on my spreadsheet.)  Rights to all photos, husband and wife team.  No albums included (but available for a reasonable cost.)  Engagement session was $250 extra.  

I love them so far, our E-Pics turned out really well and they're super responsive.  

[Deleted User]

I second Neal Urban.   He was out of our price range too, but I loved his pictures!

epag

We are using Michelle S. Rose Photography and we LOVE her work- she is also reasonable, she even worked with us on the price a little bit.  She has done headshots for my fiance and I for our work and was just great to work with.  Her website is msrosephotography.com 

Based on the packages she showed me, she should fit really well into your budget.  (She is based in Utica but has done a lot of Rochester- Finger Lakes area weddings). 

We are getting married next October!  It's a beautiful place.  Good luck! 

gymbugmj2k

I'm also chiming in with Neal Urban -- he was the first vendor we booked! =D

His work is OUTSTANDING and artistic.  Aside from albums, he doesn't offer prints -- he says he'd rather see you print on canvas or make creative things with his photos, and to go wherever you want to order them.  He'd rather provide the best quality photos, not the best print packages like school pictures/JCPenney. lol  With that said, you get the digital rights to ALL the photos that day (even the 'pointed at the floor' mis-fired shots).  You also get to pick a certain number for him to professionally edit - definitely worth it!

The part I like best is that you are guaranteed to have HIM (and his fiance as a second shooter) on your wedding day - not a company stand-in like a lot of larger photographer companies. He also does ALL DAY coverage - no matter how long the day is.  You can choose packages that have engagement and 'trash the dress' shoots included as well.

Personally, when you consider the quality of photos, coverage time and digital rights, plus his easygoing personality - there's no question that he's one of the best in the area.


..... He's good friends with FCI photography, who also does some great work. maybe check out them as well?  I don't know anything about their packages/offerings though.

PattyandAlan

We went with Priceless Studios...so far we have loved working with them...if you PM me a reminder, I will let you know how things go after our final meeting tonight and our wedding next Saturday.  They are a husband and wife team...here is their website if you want to take a look!
http://www.pricelesstudios.com/

I also loved the work of Heather Neckers photography (another husband and wife team) but she was slightly out of our price range, but within yours!  Here is their website if you want to check it out!
http://heatherneckers.com/

Good luck!

meagandal

thank you ladies so much for recomendations!  I feel like I need to meet with these people its too hard to get a grasp online.

I'm working on a pro's and con's list to compare everyones packages and offerings and we're gonna set up meetings with our top 3 or 4 and go from there.

PattyandAlan

meagandal...I totally agree with you...we met with several photographers and ended up paying a little more than we had planned on, but we really felt we "connected" with Jennifer Price.

RachelAdam1011

We just used Alec Maslowski from AJ Photo.  He is amazing, fun, laidback and just a great guy...very reasonable too.

sbryant46

On a budget can anyone recomend a photography that is not so pricy

sbryant46

Thank you!

hnihart

Hello Ladies,
I don't know if you are still looking for someone but we got a really good deal with our photographer. We did our engagement photos a couple weeks ago and she is amazing. She doesn't have much wedding experience but has done a lot of other work. She is in Geneva and her website is http://www.teresahooverphotography.com/ Also, since she is just getting into weddings, her all day package is only $1200.