Choosing the right professional for your wedding photography can be rather challenging. This is because you never really know what your wedding photos are going to look like until you actually see them. All you can do is select a photographer whose portfolio matches your chosen photography style and hope for the best. Below are a few tips to help you do that.
Choose your Photography Style
Before you can begin interviewing wedding photographers, you need to know exactly what style of photography you prefer. There are four main photography styles for weddings:
Classic / Traditional Photography
Classic or traditional wedding photography refers to highly posed photos such as those of the bridesmaids holding their bouquets or the couple with their parents. This form of portrait photography is important when it comes to capturing various combinations of the couple, their parents and their wedding party. Unfortunately, these shots often lack passion and raw emotion.
Contemporary/Modern Photography
In this style of photography, the photographer doesn’t need to intervene or tell you how and when to pose. He or she can take candid and spontaneous shots of the couple and the wedding party laughing, dancing and generally having a good time. The only downside to contemporary wedding photography is that you could end up with an unusually large number of photos.
Artistic photography
Artistic photography gives the photographer the freedom to include his or her own style in the photos. The photographer will need to interfere quite a bit as he or she attempts to frame the photos artistically. Artistic photographers usually include photographers who only shoot on film, take black and white photos, shoot from unusual camera angles or use filters.
Most brides have a hard time picking a single photography style because they want a little bit of everything on their wedding day. If you find yourself in this situation, you will need to choose a photographer who has experience with more than one style of photography.
Look at Portfolios and Wedding Albums
Now that you have chosen your preferred wedding photography style, it’s time to look at portfolios and wedding albums. Most of the time when you ask photographers to show you samples of their work, they will give you their portfolio. A portfolio is usually a collection of the photographer’s best pictures from different weddings. Never base your decision on a photographer’s portfolio. Instead, if you like the portfolio, ask to see a complete wedding album as this will give you a better idea of what your wedding pictures will look like. As you look at the wedding album ask yourself:
- Are the photos in line with your chosen style of photography?
- Do the photos tell a story?
- Are the photos creative and full of energy?
Although getting the right kind of wedding photography involves a lot more than selecting the right style and looking at portfolios of potential Perth wedding photographers, these two steps are extremely crucial. They determine the quality and type of photos you will end up with in the end.