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Arizona-Phoenix

Average photographer price

I have just started looking for a photographer for my April 2010 wedding. We are having a morning ceremony with a brunch reception, so I thought that we would get a price break on photographer fees. It seems that the going rate around the Phoenix/Scottsdale area is $3000. I can't spend that much! Is this how much I need to plan for photography or am I just looking at really expensive companies? What are other people spending on photography?

Re: Average photographer price

  • edited December 2011
    Are you having a wedding on a weekend-day? If so, you're probably not going to get a break on pricing, as photographers are generally needed and booked for the entire day for a wedding. This means that they're not going to be able to shoot your wedding and then book someone else in the afternoon. Brides are many times shot in the prep stages of the wedding day, and if a photographer isn't available for part of that day, they lose that business. (They would have lost mine.)My photog was with us from 9:30am - 10:30pm, and our package was $3k. I'd say that's probably average, though I have seen packages for a lot less and a lot more. Also, April is still high wedding season in Phoenix, so there's really no reaon to slash their prices. July is another story. Sorry if this isn't the news you were hoping for, but I'll bet you get a couple of recs for some lower-priced photographers on this board. Good luck!
  • edited December 2011
    I wanted to spend $2000 for 2 photographers, whole day, engagement session, and the disc of edited photos for a Saturday high-season wedding.  I met with a number of photographers who were willing and able to match that price and who had great photography on their websites.  The three i met with Keri Doolittle (she wanted extra for the 2nd photographer)Brides for Brides PhotographyAndy Andrews at Muse Photography I went with Andy and am really excited.  He's been easy to work with, love the vibrancy of his photos etc.  He is newer, but was recommended by some of the top Scottsdale photographers who i contacted first.  He's been a second shooter for them.  I figured that if top (talking $4K-$6K) photographers could recommend him, that was a good endorsement.
  • nzg1983nzg1983 member
    Knottie Warrior 10 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    Try Moments In Film photography.  We got 2 shooters, a CD and copyright, 8 hours and some other stuff for $1700.   www.momentsinfilm.com
  • nycegrrl99nycegrrl99 member
    1000 Comments
    edited December 2011
    I'm working with Tiramisu Studios. Their work is lovely and they are so nice! Right now they are offering a special that allows you to tell them what you're looking for and what you want to spend and they work out a package. It's been a life saver for us!
  • edited December 2011
    I was running into a similar problem.... but lots of research, they are out there.  i searched on onewed.com and weddingwire.com and allwedding.com.  but we went with a newer company, just starting out.  Its a newly married husband wife team.  Both will shoot if available and the most expensive package is still under $1000.  They have a great eye for photography, we just had our engagement shoot, the shots came out great!!!!  its az sphinxx photography.  hth, good luck :)
  • edited December 2011
    This is one of the issues my fiance and I struggled with. We were trying to stick to a $10,000 budget. After searcing for wedding photographers and other vendors we realized that this wasn't going to happen. We decided to spend the money on the photographer because the pictures are so important. At the end of the day they are all that you will have. You can't go back and take the pictures over. We found a photographer that we love. We were able to keep it under $3000 (this included engagement pictures). After taking our engagement pictures I have to say that I couldn't be happier with the decision that we made. They have an amazing eye for capturing a couple. If you want to check them out their website is simplyknotphotos.com Good luck!
  • edited December 2011
    There are several photographers you can get under the $3000 price range.    If you wish to email me, I have one that I can highly recommend ... asmallonetoo at yahoo dot com
  • edited December 2011
    We found the same about the same prices when we were looking for our photographer.  We were very selective because my fiance does photography as a hobby so he knows how to tell the a good photographer from a bad one.  After contacting about a dozen photographers we finally found one that would work with us (Visionyard) so that we could stay within our budget and still get what we wanted.  The way we got the price down was by eliminating items in the photography package that we didn't care about such as a wedding album (we will create our own).  If I were you I would give Visionyard a call and see if they can work with your budget.
  • PrettyshellsPrettyshells member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We have contracted Deluxe Photography and our photographer is Gabriel Candiani.  www.deluxephotographyonline.com He and his wife Hadassa are amazing.  They are very professional and prompt in communication.  There are packages listed right on the website but they can work out a package to fit your budget.  We are very happy with the $2k we are spending that included an engagement session, all copy rights to images, 3 wedding books and 6 hours of photography on our wedding day.  We have already done the engagement session and the photos are fabulous. 
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