The Questions You Should Be Asking Your Wedding Photographer (But Probably Aren’t)

00:00 Welcome to We Love That For You, a wedding podcast with personality, perspective and plenty of heart. We are Chris and Jackie from Lime Line Entertainment and we’re here to help you plan your best day ever, without the stress.

00:14 Welcome back to another episode of We Love That For You. In our last episode, we talked about the vendor chemistry and we revisited a moment where it really mattered.

00:23 Today, we’re gonna take that same energy and help our listeners pick the photographer who’s actually right for them. Let’s talk about the questions couples should be asking, but usually don’t think about asking.

00:35 All right. Got it. So, I’m going to ask you a couple of questions since you are the true professional here.

00:41 Okay. So, when couples meet a photographer, what’s the first thing they should be paying attention to in terms of style?

00:51 The first thing they should be paying attention to in terms of style when thinking about a photographer is how they would like to visualize or how they would like to see their wedding photos in five, 10, 20 years from now.

01:06 So there is a variety of photography styles out there and I think it’s really important to, you know, while trends are fun, think about how trendy you want you’re wedding photos to be when you look back on them in 20 years.

01:25 So, you know, do you want that classic style? Do you want something that’s different and trendy and when you look back on you’re like, oh, that was so fun.

01:34 You know, it really is a personal preference and like I’ve stated in other episodes before, it’s very important to look on a photographer’s portfolio, look at their Instagram and, you know, ask for full wedding galleries and ensure that they’re covering the day and that you can visualize yourself in 

01:56 these photos. And that’s really what I think is, you know, what couples should pay attention to the most when it comes to style.

02:05 Excellent. So it’s pretty important. Sounds pretty important, but how important is it for a photographer’s style to match the couple’s vision.

02:13 I mean, as I just said, I think it’s super important. You’re most, if you hire a professional, they’re gonna give you photos that should be very consistent with the style that they represent in their portfolio.

02:26 So your vision should match their portfolio. If your vision matches their portfolio, you’ll know exactly what to expect. When you receive your full wedding day gallery, There will be no unmet expectations.

02:41 There will be no ultra-disappointments in there, you know. There have been big online controversies in the past of, you know, people going on TikTok.

02:52 It was a whole thing about, I think they called her the sepia bride, or a sepia gait, or something like that, where this bride hired a wedding photographer who had a very like brown toned edit to their photography.

03:10 And then when they got their wedding photos back, we’re incredibly disappointed. And then we’re asking that photographer to change her editing style to match her vision.

03:21 So at the end of the day, I think your vision, the couples vision, should match the photographer’s style. And then there will be no disappointment and no unmet expectations and you won’t have to you know want to reach out to your photographer and ask them to change their entire editing style.

03:42 Make sure that their portfolio matches that vision from the start. Yeah, absolutely. And not not just like I would say don’t just look at their you know one photography page on the website like ask to look through multiple portfolios and I’m sure and make sure that there’s consistency in all of these

04:02 galleries. Yeah. Oh, consistency is huge. Dive deep. I mean, I’ve even seen on websites where you have one is kind of like a filming edit and then the next one’s like a bright and air and a bright and airy edit.

04:15 And then in my head, if I were the consumer, well, what am I getting on my wedding day? Am I getting a filming edit?

04:23 Am I getting a bright and airy edit? What am I getting? You know, so you know you’re right dive deep into full wedding galleries, portfolios and make sure that they can consistently capture photos in all lighting situations and edit them all for that consistency.

04:43 Perfect. Excellent. So some key questions for couples. Number one, how would you describe your shooting style and editing style? Yeah, that’s definitely something you want to ask a potential photographer right off the bat is you want to figure out What their shooting style is what their editing style

04:59 is And they should be able to answer that confidently for you, so Absolutely. Mm-hmm. Number two Do you give direction or keep things candid?

05:10 Yeah, I I love this question I love if you’ll ask me this question because there is a huge boom of like like really fluid movement based photography, candid photography, which is really fun and really beautiful.

05:28 But can your photographer also handle your traditional post photos from mom, for dad, for grandma? Can they handle a family formalist?

05:38 Can they dictate it well? Can they get through it quickly? I mean, these are all super, super important questions. So, you know, being able to give direction, but also capture the candidates is very important and that just is a great question to ask if they give direction, if they capture candidates,

05:56 if they can balance both and do they represent that in their portfolio. Perfect question number three that you should ask your photographer.

06:06 How do you handle tight timelines or unexpected changes? Great question. That’s a great question. Timeline’s unexpected changes. It’s the name of the game when it comes to a wedding, so asking that of your photographer and knowing how they prepare themselves for your wedding day is super important.

06:25 Gotcha. Next question, you should ask your photographer, how many weddings do you shoot per year? Yeah, it’s a good question too.

06:34 It just really, it gives you a good idea of their volume, how they handle their volume, if they have a team and then also how much attention they’re going to give to you you know as as an individual couple as an individual wedding so absolutely so just really quick you know out of curiosity like what’s

06:58 the difference between a wedding photographer that shoots maybe 15 weddings per year versus a wedding photographer that shoots you know 75 weddings per year It completely depends on their systems, it completely depends on their processes.

07:13 I know of photographers who shoot 15 weddings a year, and it still takes 8 to 12 weeks to get their wedding photos done, or if not more, you know, could be a four months turn around time, and they only shoot 15 to 20, maybe they do that in their spare time, you or you’ve got somebody who shoots 75 a 

07:37 year, but they have their systems in place and they can handle that volume and turn around time as far as editing goes, whether that means that they have a private editor for their 75 year, whether that means that they are just really good at being able to concentrate attention on each individual weather

08:03 , you know. We’re up there, but we have different people in different places to maintain that level of hospitality, that level of consistency.

08:15 We have our editors in place. We have myself who’s in charge of all the timelines and in charge of all the client communication.

08:23 We have our assistants, so we’re able to handle that kind of volume, but still also who make sure that our couples are getting the attention that they deserve.

08:33 So it really, that is a loaded question, you know, and you’re just going to have to ask the photographer, like, if they do give you a high number, your follow-up question is, how do you handle that level of volume?

08:51 Yeah, absolutely. You know, or if they give you a low number, you need to ask them, well, do you do this full time or do you do this on the side?

08:58 Are you working Monday to Friday? Because if they’re working Monday to Friday, how much time are they spending on editing your photos on Saturday and Sunday?

09:07 Or at like 11 o’clock at night, when they have to get up at 6 o’clock in the morning the next day?

09:12 So that could be why a person who takes 15 weddings a year has a four or five month turnaround time for their wedding gallery.

09:20 I mean, you’re basically this brings you just back to the consistency of edits. It brings you back to the consistency of a business, check the reviews, you know, feel confident in them.

09:33 Yeah. Absolutely. So that’s a great question for any of our listeners to ask because it could really give you a lot of, you know, insight on what delivery times might look like delivery to the wedding.

09:46 Yeah. So, so yeah, you don’t want to be waiting around eight months for your wedding photos. Heck no. Check your contract, ask that question, but that’s in this list of questions to ask your photographer as delivery times.

09:59 But yeah. Cool. So last question will be, have you worked at our venue? That’s a great question to ask your photographer.

10:08 And it’s very, it’s great, you know, it’s a great question to ask and it’s really nice if they have worked at your venue before.

10:15 However, keep in mind that a trusted photographer, a real professional can walk into any lighting situation in any space and be able to create so cool yeah that’s a good question to ask yeah so are the next few questions are related to teamwork and communication so we’ve seen firsthand how photographers

10:38 communication can make or break a wedding day and what we think couples should be watching out for So in this list of questions, we want to go through and make sure that your teamwork, your communication amongst your photographers and amongst vendors is fluid and that they’re able to work together as

11:02 a team. So what does good teamwork between a photographer and other vendors look like? I stated in a previous episode, best example of good teamwork amongst photographers and vendors is introducing themselves, talking about the plan for the day, talking about the timeline, and just really making sure

11:23 that everybody’s on the same page. Again, so that each individual vendor can shine, and that each individual vendor can ensure that they’re creating the best possible wedding day for their couple.

11:37 Cool. Yeah, so questions that you should ask your photographer based on teamwork, communication, number one would be what does communication look like leading up to the wedding day?

11:52 Super important to ask your photographer, you want to know, am I going to hear from you before the wedding day?

11:59 How many times am I going to hear from you? You know, you don’t want to just ghost your client, you don’t want to book them and then just fall off until a couple weeks before the wedding day.

12:09 So it’s really important to ask your potential photographer, you know, what does communication look like throughout my planning process with you?

12:18 I like that question. We, I’m an over-communicator so it’s possible one could find my emails a little too much but I think that it’s important to over-communicate things, you know?

12:30 It’s like why would I want to leave you in the dark. And why would I want to leave you feeling unconfident in me, you know, or our team?

12:37 Well, the more you communicate with your client, the more they’re insured that, you know, they’re being taken care of. Absolutely.

12:43 They’re not, you know, sitting up at night, saying, hey, haven’t heard from them. Yeah. Where are they? Exactly. Are they going to show up?

12:53 Exactly. So another question that you should ask your photographer is, how do you coordinate slash work with other vendors? Great example or a great question to ask are your potential photographer especially if like you’re planning to hire a videography team or a content creation team, especially those

13:14 two particular vendors because you’re spending the most time with them. Usually we don’t get to the DJ aspect of it until cocktail hour receptions usually only a couple hours, but you are coordinating heavily with your photography team and your content creation team.

13:33 And depending on the venue, and depending on where they get ready, you may also be coordinating heavily with a matriety or a bridal attendant, there’s a bunch of venues in New Jersey that we work at that you can spend the whole day getting ready there, going right up until first look, and your bridal

13:53 attendant is working and communicating also with your photography team. So you know, asking that question is important because you want to make sure that your photographer works well with others and that they are able to coordinate with them to, you know, make it a great day.

14:10 All right, so I love this question because right now I’m thinking of a story that you were telling me one time about how you work seamlessly with our video team, right?

14:23 because when you pose for video, you need to have motion in mind, right? So why don’t you give us an example of how you work with our video team?

14:35 Yeah. You know, this way you don’t have to pose a couple twice for the same moment. Yeah. Well, yeah, you don’t want to have to pose a couple twice for the same moment.

14:42 Sometimes it does happen. But when it comes to working in tandem photo video, I do know that video prefers flow and prefers motion.

14:55 And I like those shots because they helped me to be a little bit more creative, step a little bit more outside of the whole traditional pose and grab a little bit more of a candid feel and a prompted photo while also creating a flow and emotion shot for our videography team.

15:19 So I do, I do really like working in tandem with video. Sometimes I’ll let them pose the couple and I’ll shoot through whatever they’re doing and vice versa.

15:30 So it just creates a lot more variety in the end result in the final gallery. And it creates a lot more variety throughout their highlight films and their, you know, all their video deliverables from us.

15:43 Cool. Yeah, it’s a great example. Thank you. Yeah, um, so next question would be what do you need from us for the best photos?

15:53 Yeah, I mean, it’s a good question to ask your photographer. What do you need from us for the best photos?

15:59 You know, I like questions when I’m Speaking to a potential couple. I love good questions, and I love questions that aren’t kind of not the normal like you know what equipment do you use, you know?

16:15 So this is a great question to ask your photographer because it really gives the photographer a chance to give you an honest answer about like what it is particularly that they need from the couple to create the best photos.

16:34 For me, I just need you to trust us. Trust us. Let us be the professionals, trust us, and be in the moment and don’t overthink things.

16:48 Because when you start to try to control your photographer, control the list, control the day, then nothing is organically happening.

16:58 Nothing’s organically happening and nothing is organically being captured and then what you’re looking back at your photos and being like, that was posed, that was posed, that was posed.

17:07 That was faked. and that was re-enacted and none of it’s natural. So, you know, that’s how I would answer that question, but I think that’s a really great question to ask your photographer.

17:18 Yeah, first thing that comes to my mind is, maybe not a wedding day, but an engagement shoot, like outfit choice.

17:24 Oh yeah, that’s a great question, or a great answer to that question. Yeah, outfit choice, colors, you know, color palettes.

17:30 Yeah. Make sure everything looks good together on camera. I mean, yeah, you definitely want to look good, so that’s a great question.

17:35 It looks good together. I mean, yeah, I’m sure you’ve been in situations where a couple was wearing clashing colors Interesting choices.

17:44 I call them interesting choices, you know, but listen, these are their photos. So But if they really want my honest opinion, that’s a great question to ask.

17:53 What do you need from us For the best photos. Exactly. So cool and if anything I need you to read your guide like just read your guide And honestly, it answers all of your questions.

18:06 So if you read your guide, you’re gonna know exactly what we need to. But this is, I love that question for an interview too.

18:13 Definitely. Last question would be, how do you handle things running behind? Yeah, it’s a good question for your photographer. You want to know how they’re going to handle.

18:24 And uh-oh, Noopsy, you know, they’re running behind and timely makeup was running behind. or transportation is running behind whatever the case may be asking your photographer how they’re going to handle that is very important.

18:40 It’s something that you want to know. You want to know that they’re going to be able to pivot, swap things around.

18:46 If they’ve created a great timeline with some cushion like we do, that really doesn’t affect us. You know, I really can’t tell you in any situation where we’ve been behind for ceremony, where we’ve ran at a time to get all the photos that they were wanting or all the traditional photos that we always

19:07 capture, you know, because of that cushion timeline. But there have been situations where we’ve run behind and we just pivot around.

19:17 We swap things, we figure it out, and we make it happen, you know. But asking your photographer how they handle it is really a great question.

19:26 Okay, next topic, technical prep and backup plans. Chris, this is where your story from the last episode is going to come into play.

19:34 How can couples find out whether a photographer is actually prepared? So these questions are going to set them up for, you know, finding out how prepared a photographer is for backup plans and things like that.

19:49 Yeah. So thinking about your story from last episode, what is a photo red flag that couples should ignore? A photo red flag just one.

20:00 Gotcha. Single photographers. Going up by yourself. Going up by yourself. That could be really tough. And also, you know, if they’re not bringing back up equipment, you know, how many, how many cameras are they whole, how many cameras do they have on themselves at all times throughout the day because

20:20 if it’s only one camera, you know, what, what if there’s some technical difficulties with that camera, either there’s going to be a huge delay in, you know, capturing the day or that camera may just malfunction for the rest of the day and now you’re out photos.

20:38 Yeah, like, if there’s one camera, I mean, I know of photographers who will shoot with one camera actively, but they always have a backup in their bag.

20:47 But I would really hope. But anyway, one photographer is also a little risky as well. Absolutely. I don’t know. That’s just a thing.

20:55 Because what happens if that one photographer gets sick also that day. Car accident. Now you have nobody. So many different things.

21:02 I love that we only go out with two photographers and an assistant and our assistants are always a photographer and training.

21:12 So they are all capable of taking photos, and that’s three people. If you’re placing all your eggs in one basket with one photographer, it’s a little risky.

21:27 But anyway, these are the questions that I would ask. These are the questions that I’m suggesting couples ask their potential photographers while they’re interviewing them.

21:37 First things first, what backup equipment and do you bring? That should be important. Also, that’s a question that should also be automatically answered on an FAQ page.

21:48 But it is a great question if while you’re having a conversation, it comes up in conversation with your potential photographer to ask.

21:56 Yeah, absolutely. Second question should be how do you protect our images during the day? That’s a good question. It’s a great question.

22:06 making sure that the photographer is shooting on a camera with two card slots is super important. I’m also not a huge fan of large memory cards.

22:16 I don’t mind changing my memory card a few times a day just because then at least I have a few different memory cards.

22:25 I’m putting I’m not putting all my eggs into one basket but camera equipment should have dual card slots, photographing and recording on two cards, and then I’m usually backing up those cards during reception.

22:39 So it’s soon as formalities are over, I’m backing up everything we shot from earlier on in the day on a hard drive.

22:46 Yep. So it’s a very great question to ask. Next question to ask, I think we kind of already answered this already, but it would be what happens if your gear fails?

22:56 Yeah, I mean back pedaling to what we said before, like if you’re if your gear fails, you should back up here.

23:02 Yeah, that’s very simple. But not everybody goes out, especially the hobbyists or the the new, newly beginning professionals. Um, next question would be how do you handle difficult lighting?

23:17 Oh, I love that question. I know you love this question. So tell our listeners about how you handle difficult lighting.

23:23 I’m big on, on, on, on lighting. I love going in a room and analyzing the room and analyzing how to light the room so and that’s something that we’re always talking about amongst the team so like I’m talking about that with my second photographers and I know my lead photographers that go out do the same

23:44 thing but be able to go into a room or a space or wherever you’re taking photos and reading the light and making the light work for you if If it doesn’t work for you, bringing in your flashes, bringing in your artificial light, making that light work for you.

24:01 But it’s a great question to ask your photographer because not everyone is well skilled or can handle artificial light, or is knowledgeable in artificial light.

24:19 There’s a lot of photographers that are natural light only. And I think that’s very risky because venues give you different lighting situations certain times of the day, certain times of the year, certain seasons, give you different lighting situations.

24:37 And being able to walk into any space and feel confident in your technical skill is important. So, you know, being a natural light, only photographer or interviewing natural light, only photographers is a little risky just because you have no idea what do you do when you walk into a barn that’s really

24:59 dark you know it’s just candle lit you know so just being able to walk into any space and handle difficult lighting is I think is super beneficial a virtual trait to have of your photographer.

25:16 Excellent. Next question, do you bring extra batteries, memory cards? I mean, seems like a no-brainer, right? Yeah, this is a repeat question, I feel like.

25:28 Yeah, this is backup equipment. Yeah, this is basically backup equipment. Yeah, this is backup equipment. Anyone hiring a friend, which I’ve heard before, they definitely need to ask this question.

25:39 I would definitely ask this question. Um, I don’t know. I’m in I’m in some photography groups where I’ve seen like left the house only of one battery Is anyone in the area with an extra battery and I’m like really?

25:51 Yes, I swear. I swear my bag has 11 camera batteries I have two cameras and then a backup camera that never gets touched and I carry 11 camera batteries 11.

26:04 So I don’t know. I mean, I guess it happens accidents happen, but it just goes back to backup equipment, making sure you have enough of everything.

26:17 I don’t even know how many memory cards we have. It’s endless. They are 15 to $15 to $20 in memory card.

26:25 If I’m running low, so something I do with our memory cards is if we shot your wedding, I put your memory cards in a little tackle box and I label it with your name and your date on it.

26:40 And I don’t touch those memory cards until your wedding gets delivered. So sometimes in the height of the season, we have a lot of memory cards in my little tackle box that are just sitting there and cannot be touched.

26:51 So I’ll just go online, go to B&H order 15 more, $15 memory cards and stock them up. So I think we’ve got a really good amount of memory cards.

27:04 Cool. So all right, next let’s talk about deliverables and expectations. So deliverables would be when you’re delivering the photo galleries, when you are delivering your albums or your tangible products and all of that.

27:17 Yeah. So basically, you know, the questions here or what should couples expect when it comes to delivery timelines? Yeah, that’s a good question to ask your photographer not to like you know circle back to the beginning of this conversation where we’re talking about you know how how many weddings a year

27:39 they do but you know knowing that delivery timeline is really important so asking if they can if you can expect from them in six weeks if you can expect them in eight to ten weeks what what the delivery time is is something you want to know so you’re not just sitting around waiting or wondering or emailing

28:01 and asking. What’s a delivery time couples should be expecting? It varies. It really does vary based on the photographer, you know, but we’re at about six weeks and I know other professionals are at about eight, some are at about four.

28:19 It really just depends on the photographer, it depends on how much attention they’re giving each individual photo and you know how what the quality control is you know you’re getting a gallery back in like a week and a half like it depends you know like are you getting a consistent gallery can you say

28:39 that that gallery is consistent from start to finish you know eight weeks is fair also you know especially if you’re talking to somebody who does like you know 50 60 70 weddings a year so you know and also ask them if they’re if they’re giving you any sneak peeks.

28:55 What are they offering you to hold you over? In my opinion, anywhere from six to 12 weeks is totally fair.

29:03 That’s totally fair. I like to err on the side of six weeks because I know how excited a couple is to get their photos back.

29:11 But 12 weeks is totally fair, especially if you’re, like I said, if that’s just your turnaround time, if that’s what your clientele is used to, you know.

29:22 But once we’re getting past 12 weeks, I think it’s a little long. I wouldn’t want to see it going past 12 weeks.

29:26 I mean, you lose the excitement at that point. It’s gone, right? Yeah. I mean, it was three months ago. Hopefully you’re getting sneak peeks if that’s if you’re delivery times past 12.

29:36 But, you know, I’ve heard situations where it was like five, six months now. To me, that’s a video turnaround time.

29:43 That’s a fair video turnaround time, but six months for photos is wild and wild. Cool. Yeah. That’s a good question.

29:54 Make sure you ask that question to your photographer like, you know, what’s your delivery timeline? All right. Now, I was just going to kind of dive into the key questions that our listeners should be asking for.

30:04 Yeah. Yeah. So, first question would be, again, this goes back to questions about deliverables and expectations. So first question should be how many images did we get?

30:17 Yeah, that’s a great question to ask too. Like again, right now what we’re doing is helping couples out by giving them questions to ask to set the right expectations.

30:26 Exactly. Set your expectations and then hire your photographer based on those expectations. Exactly. So how many images do we get is a great question.

30:36 You know, are you the type of person who wants 2,500 photos and you’ve got a set of 20 of them and they’re all about a similar pose but tiny little slight differences in each.

30:49 You want that many photos or are you the type of person who wants a nice beautifully curated gallery of like 700 to 900 photos of the best photos.

31:01 You in the best light of of each best moment, ask yourself what type of a couple, type of client you are, you know, and then ask your photographer how many images do we get, and can you elaborate on the types of images we’re going to get, like if it’s, like I said, a larger number, a lot of similar poses

31:22 , a lower number, curated, beautiful, you know, unique images throughout the entire gallery. Absolutely. Cool. And then next question to ask your photographer would be what’s your turn around time?

31:37 Yeah, ask that. We already discussed that. We already talked about this. Ask your photographer that. No ahead of time. Next question would be do you offer sneak peeks?

31:47 Ask them if you get sneak peeks, especially. That’s a great follow up question to what’s your turn around time. So in that particular order, what’s your turn around time?

31:58 Do we get sneak peeks? And, you know, like I said, if their delivery time is like the longer end of 12 weeks, sneak peeks are great because you have that.

32:10 And ask about how many to expect, you know, some people give 10, some people give 50, you know. Yeah, that’s what I was curious about, you know, what should our listeners be expecting when it comes to you know how many sneak picks do you deliver?

32:26 Yeah that’s an individual photography you know or an individual photographer’s personal preference or you know business model you know so I like to touch on a little bit of everything you know so we’ll you know do like a couple from ceremony a couple from portrait time like maybe one or two of wedding

32:48 party like just a little bit of everything. Yeah. When it’s my own wedding, I mean, I think it’s when everyone, anyone who shoots here, I’ll go through and find like some pretty epic ones and I’ll make sure I make those a sneak peak too.

33:02 Absolutely. You know, those really wow ones. So next question would be, do you store or backup images after? Immediately. Immediately.

33:13 Immediately. Like I just said, we’re backing up photos. I’m backing up photos at reception, you know, they’re being backed up immediately.

33:21 Yeah, but how many photographers just go home and just leave the photos on their memory cards and probably don’t even back them up right away, right?

33:27 So that’s an honest, that’s a really good question that you know, you should be asking your photographer. I guess too, like this question can be asked in a different way as well.

33:38 So how do you store or backup your images? So for example, we store like I said earlier in the memory cards go in a tackle box and then the images like anything from the memory card is then stored in the cloud.

33:55 And then on a hard drive and then on my, I always say this wrong, my NAS, my NAS, my NAS, my NAS, my my NAS.

34:06 I don’t know, I don’t even know what it stands for, but I’ve got a tech guy who takes care of my backup.

34:12 We got him. We got him. So they’re backed up with three different ways and they’re stored in three different ways.

34:17 And then when the images are delivered, I never set galleries to expire. So that’s a backup for me. I always encourage our couples to back up again.

34:26 So that question can be asked, it’s a great question for our couples to ask a potential photographer, and it could be answered in a couple of different ways.

34:35 Cool. So last question, when it comes to your deliverables and expectations, would be what’s included in retouching? Yeah, it’s a good question to ask to set that expectation.

34:45 You know, what are you expecting from your photographer? Are you expecting, you know, blemish removal or are you expecting body shaving?

34:55 So it’s something you should know ahead of time. check the contract as well. We do not body shape here, so we are focused on exposure, color correction, and you know, light, light retouching, you know, and then anything else is additional, of course.

35:14 But we’re always aiming to put you in great light so that we don’t have to retouch anything anyway. So we’re thinking about posing, we’re thinking about lighting, we’re You’re trying to be ahead of that anyway, but ask your photographer so that you are not expecting something to happen, and then it doesn’t

35:32 , and then you’re disappointed. Next is personality fit. So you want to make sure that your photographer and your personalities mesh well.

35:43 This person is going to be with you for nine to ten hours on a day. You want to make sure that they can bring you the calm.

35:50 You want to make sure that they have compassion and empathy and that they don’t have ego and That their personality meets your personality.

36:00 So you know that I think is a huge thing. So You know this is definitely something that could potentially be overlooked You know and the reason personality matters is you don’t want somebody coming in and really kind of disrupting your day, you know maybe they have great photos, maybe they’re portfolio

36:23 wowed you, but maybe they walk in like a diva, you know, like or kind of like a dictator where they’re like just like you there you there you do this like yeah they kind of make it stiff yeah uncomfortable or just not fun they’re just they’re just they’re are I feel like we have less and less of this

36:43 in the industry now but I feel like 10, 15 years ago, it was not to say anything about the men, but a lot of men have this stigma when they go out that they’re just like, you know, either they’re kind of like, they’ve been in the industry for a while, and they’re just, you know, their photos are like

37:03 award-winning, and this, this, and that. And if you don’t do what they say in order to get that photo, then, you know, forget at you.

37:11 So they kind of come in with this ego and this attitude, like, you know, you got to listen to me.

37:19 And if you don’t listen to me, you know, you’re forget about your photos. Like, I don’t know. To me, I’m just very encouraging.

37:27 I’m very like, you look great. This is wonderful. I don’t care if we’re running behind. I’ll make it work. I’ll figure it out.

37:33 You know, I don’t care if the videographer steps into my space or needs you for a minute. I’ll figure it out.

37:41 Like I’m very like go with the flow and easy to work with. And so is the rest of our team.

37:46 And I think that I feel like there have just been stories. I’ve heard stories of other couples or other photographers working with other photographers or videographers that walk in and are just their energy is just abrupt and demanding.

38:05 I think that’s the best way to describe it. their energy is just abrupt and demanding. They rub, they rub the bridesmaids the wrong way, which is huge.

38:13 Why would you want to upset the brides best friends? I think that whole go with the flow mentality also helps make, you know, the couples and the wedding party feel more comfortable in front of the camera, which is great in the end for the results.

38:32 Right, right. You don’t want to feel uncomfortable. So a personality on a wedding day is huge. You want somebody who’s just kind and, you know, relaxed and easy to work with.

38:47 You know, I, and has a very, is not, is not in their ego. I think the ego is the biggest problem.

38:54 You know, when you got somebody in there with their ego, they can, they, they kind of don’t care how difficult they’re we’re making the day for everyone else.

39:01 Which is a shame. Yeah, it’s a shame. It’s definitely a shame. So personality, long story short. Long story short. Long story short.

39:10 Long short. What are the key questions? Customs should be asking about personality. Yeah. What’s your ideal couple? Yeah, ask the photographer.

39:19 That’s a great question. I honestly have never had a photographer have an ideal couple. I mean, I would just ask the question and see how the photographer answers it.

39:30 Yeah. That’s what I would do, you know, because, you know, my ideal couple wouldn’t have anything to do with anything other than their energy, their attitude, and they’re, you know, they’re, it’s so hard to describe, like, just the way that they go with the flow.

39:51 So like I’m a go with the flow flexible person I want to make sure that I work with people who are also go with the flow flexible people I mean you should want what you want and you should get what you want on your wedding day So don’t get me wrong there like You know take a stand for the things that

40:07 you want but like just be kind be kind be in love Yeah, be be adaptable. Yeah, you know those are my ideal couples kind and love if the photographer answers that question kind of weird, it’s like, hey, dude, no, I don’t know about this.

40:22 Yeah, like, I mean, that’s how I would genuinely answer that question, like, but if you trip somebody up, like you can kind of tell, you know, even if you’re on a phone call, I mean, if you’re on a virtual call with them, you can really tell.

40:33 Oh, yeah. They’ll probably be squirming in their seat. But if you’re on a phone call with them and you ask them, hey, what’s your ideal couple?

40:40 And like they’re like, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh, ugh. You know, like they, I don’t know, and maybe they just aren’t the right one for you.

40:48 You’re done. You want to feel good about their answer or that question. That’s a great question. Next. What do you love about photographing weddings?

40:55 That’s a great question, ask a photographer. Yeah. That’s a good general question, I mean. And then lastly, how do you help us feel comfortable?

41:04 I think that that’s a really good question that you should be asking your photographer. Yeah. Especially if you’re not used to being in front of a camera in those professional environments.

41:14 Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, these are great questions that’ll really get you a good read on their energy and a good read on their personality and if you’re going to drive with their personality.

41:22 For sure. Mm-hmm. Cool. Red flags. Red flags. That’s just we’re going to run through this really quickly. Red flags that you should be looking out for when you are interviewing photographers.

41:35 One, vague about their backup equipment. We’ve been talking about that all day, so if they can’t honest you quickly and if they can’t answer you honestly and quickly.

41:47 That’s a red flag. And and then slow and dishonest communication. They leave you hanging. They’re slow to answer you back.

41:57 And their communication to you doesn’t feel honest. That’s a red flag. There’s no contract. If there is no contract, you are running in the other direction.

42:06 Please do not do that. Like do not do that. Just doing that. That’s I mean, I’ve seen it, I’ve seen it in group groups.

42:17 I know, they’ll even preface the post. I know I should have contracted, but we didn’t have a contract, it happens.

42:24 It just happens, but don’t do it. That’s a red flag, an inconsistent portfolio where every image has a different color or a tone where I filtered look to it.

42:35 If you are looking through a portfolio And you can easily distinguish that each photo in that portfolio was either photographed by a completely different photographer, or was in different lighting and had to be edited differently to handle that lighting situation.

42:55 That’s a red flag, inconsistent portfolio. And if you want me to take a look at the portfolio you’re interested in, and I’ll let you know if it’s consistent or not, I will.

43:05 So overly edited images that are on natural red flag, unless that’s your style. If that’s your style, to have an overly edited image that looks unnatural, go for it.

43:17 But for us here, we want classic timeless. And then talks poorly about other vendors. That’s a huge red flag. Like, if they’re talking smack about other companies and other vendors run and they don’t listen to you.

43:36 So that’s the final one. If they don’t listen to you, it’s a huge red flag. You want someone who’s going to hear you and not talk over you.

43:43 Do you want to go through the green flags or do you want me to? Green flags. All right, cool. So these are green flags that make you instantly trust a photographer.

43:52 for. Yeah. Um, the quick list is backup gear for everything, uh, clear and consistent communication and check ins. Consistent work amongst their portfolio.

44:06 Um, they ask thoughtful questions. You know, they, they really want to know more about you and understand you and understand your vision and then take that vision and bring it to life and put it into the portfolio.

44:19 Um, their team oriented. Yes. And confident, calm and organized. Mm-hmm. Confident and calm. Those are all green flags. Pro tips for couples.

44:32 Alright, so I’m going to ask, if you could give couples one tip to save them stress, what would it be?

44:39 If I could give one tip to a couple to save them stress, I would say to, again, to not have to keep pedaling backwards to the beginning of the conversation, but make sure that you feel good with your photographer and your photography team.

45:00 Just feel like you can trust them and if you can feel like you trust your photography team, and then you are in great hands.

45:12 That kind of relieves a lot of other stress. And then why is looking at full galleries, such a game changer versus just looking at someone’s website?

45:22 You can look at a portfolio or a website and then what are you getting from that? You’re getting their best of the best.

45:28 But being able to scan a full wedding day is gonna show you how they handle every lighting situation, every different part of the day, every different venue, And it just gives you a good full, like, a full view of, or expectation on what you can get or what you will get by hiring them.

45:50 Yeah. And professional photographers that will share full galleries openly are confident are confident. They’re confident in their consistency and consistent.

46:00 So, you know, I think that it’s a game-changer, you know, make sure that they’re not hesitating to send you a full gallery or more, you know, not just one, show me them all, you know.

46:15 And if you have a team, let me show you a bunch from each photographer on our team. Perfect. Alright, let’s do a quick recap.

46:23 All right quick recap on the episode when hiring your wedding photographer one always ask to see full galleries look at their full galleries not just their Instagram and portfolio to choose someone you feel comfortable around you can spend the entire day with three ask them if they are going to help 

46:46 you with timeline planning this is very important it just helps relieve a lot of stress on the wedding day for make sure that their editing style matches your long-term vision and then five look for consistency in all lighting scenarios.

47:06 Make sure that they can handle all the lighting scenarios and do that by checking their full galleries. And remember wherever you’re planning and whatever you’re dreaming, we love that for you.

47:19 We’re looking forward to seeing you next time. Thank you so much for hanging out with us today. If this episode was helpful, make sure you follow or subscribe so you don’t miss what’s coming next.

47:29 We love hearing from you, so if you have a question, a planning struggle, or an episode idea, email me at Jackie at LimelightEntertainmentNJ.com.

47:38 There’s a really good chance your question becomes a future episode, and if you’re planning a New Jersey wedding and want vendors who truly care, you can find us at LimelightWedding.com.

47:47 And remember, wherever you’re planning and whatever you’re dreaming, we love that for you.