Christchurch Wedding Photographer - Hot Tip #2 The Photographer

This is the second post on how to find a Christchurch wedding photographer.

Read the other posts here:

Hot Tip #1 The Photos - was about what to look for when viewing a photographer’s work

Hot Tip #3 Pricing - wedding photography pricing and what you may not have thought of

Hot Tip #2 The Photographer

After determining whether you like a photographer's body of work, I believe the next most important thing to evaluate with your potential photographer is their personality.

The reason for this is simple.

Your photographer - particularly if they shoot in a documentary style like myself - will spend a lot of time in and around the bride, groom and immediate family on the wedding day. Whoever you hire as your photographer has to be a person that you feel relaxed being around.

To gauge a photographer's personality from their website, the first place you should go to is their About Me page. Whether written in the first person or the third person, this page will speak volumes about the photographer in question.

We've all read the stock standard About Me page. You know it two lines in. It is from the cookie cutter school of About Me pages. A photographer has to write something about themselves and cobbles together a couple of paragraphs, without really taking the opportunity to tell you what really makes them tick.

Good About Me pages have an energy all their own. Not only do they reflect the photographer's passion for life and what they do, the good one's will provide glimpses into the photographer's own life and personality.

A truly great About Me page will clearly reflect the photographer's personality, to the point you feel like you know them in some way.

So if you like a photographer's work and their About Me page treads the fine line of being interesting and insightful, then there is one more thing you need to check before getting in touch with them - their prices.

Next Up: Hot Tip #3: Pricing

Thomas.

Christchurch Wedding Photographer - Hot Tip #1 The Photos

Hot Tip #1 The Photos

If you are a bride and groom looking for a Christchurch wedding photographer, then I feel for you.

Since returning to Christchurch and starting my wedding photography business, I have learnt that there are more Christchurch wedding photographers than you can poke a stick at. Head over to Google, type in Christchurch wedding photographer and you'll be presented with 192,000 results, with page after page of photographers offering their wedding services. It seems everyone with a camera wants to be a wedding photographer these days.

As a bride it must be daunting just trying to find a photographer whose work you like, who sounds like a decent person and whose services are within your price range.

Given this, I want to offer some tips on what to consider when trying to find your wedding photographer.

Tip 1: It Begins with the Photos

The two questions you have to ask yourself when looking at a wedding photographer's work is this:

1. Do I like their wedding photographs? (no-brainer I know, but bear with me)

2. Are the photos on their website the best shots picked from a variety of weddings or does the photographer show images from a single wedding?

Question 1 is a no-brainer. If you are looking at a photographer's site and you don't like their photography, then keep on searching. Easy.

Don’t ever hire a photographer whose work you don’t like, just because they are cheap. All you will end up with are photos you don’t like.

If you do like the photographer's wedding photos, then it is time to be a bit more critical of what you are looking at.

Wedding portfolios are not created equal

There is a trend with Christchurch wedding photographers of cherry picking the one great photo from each wedding and presenting these as their wedding portfolio. The only problem with this approach is that it doesn't give you a good understanding of how that photographer photographs an entire wedding day.

It is because of this, that I currently have a variety of weddings on display.

Each wedding day story helps show you how I think visually and the type of work I will create for you. This is a far better way of gauging the type of photographs I am likely to produce for you, than just seeing the best shots picked from a variety of different weddings.

Next Up: Hot Tip #2 - The Photographer.

Thomas.

Christchurch Wedding Photographer - The Wet Weather Plan

As a Christchurch wedding photographer, there is a question I always ask my wedding clients during the planning phase: what is your wet weather plan?

The responses to this question are varied, but usually fit into one of two categories.

First up is the 'it won't happen to us' approach, which I like to call the Hail Mary Wet Weather Plan.

While I would never recommend such an approach, I have had a couple who pulled this off. Just days out from their wedding, the forecast was for a cold, wet weather. Talking with them, I asked what the wet weather plan was going to be? The response: it'll be okay, we'll just roll with it. It should clear up.

On the day it dawned wet and overcast. By the time we left the bride's house for the journey to the ceremony, it was a hot and sunny. Though I couldn't believe their good fortune, I wasn't complaining. Hot, sunny weather versus cold, wet and miserable? That's a no-brainer.

The second approach is the 'if it rains, we'll move the ceremony into the marquee we have rented.' I like to call this the Boy Scout Wet Weather Plan.

Couples that answer with a plan B are clearly rationale people or former boy scouts / girl guides, who are happy to entertain the reality of a wet wedding day.

If you subscribe to the Hail Mary Wet Weather Plan, then just trust me on this. When it comes to a once-in-a-lifetime event like your wedding day, don't let the weather potentially ruin your day. If you are having an outdoor ceremony, come up with a plan B during the planning phase.

Not only will it keep your stress levels down on the day, it'll help keep you and your guests dry.

Thomas.

Christchurch Wedding Photographer - Photographing the Reception

Since returning to Christchurch to set up my wedding photography business, I've looked at a lot of Christchurch wedding photographer web sites to gain an insight into what type of coverage photographers are offering clients. And do you know what I've noticed?

The majority of Christchurch wedding photographers either finish up shooting prior to the reception or cover just the start of the reception, which typically includes a fake cake cut.

All of which means, you the client, is missing out on photographic coverage that I would argue you should get.

When I first began photographing weddings in Christchurch, I was like the herd. I arrived on-location usually an hour prior to the ceremony, did some pre-ceremony photographs; then covered the ceremony before doing some bride and groom shots; before heading to the reception. At the reception I'd cover some speeches (if they were prior to the meals) and then do a fake cake cut before leaving.

As I photographed more weddings I changed my approach to my match my visual story telling philosophy, which can be described as documentary wedding photography.

Instead of leaving at the start of the reception, I stayed on. I did away with fake cake cuts, I began photographing the first dance, guests' letting off steam during the post-wedding party and the real cake cut.

Staying on to photograph the reception has allowed me to photograph the real moments as they happen. The thing about real moments is this - they can't be scripted, they can't be faked and they can't be planned.

Real moments will happen throughout your reception, so if you hire a photographer who is going to leave before the reception or at the start of the reception, you are missing out on a lot of great photographs of your wedding day.

Hire me and I'll be there to capture those unscripted moments, which every wedding reception has...

Christchurch Wedding Photographer FAQ - Formal Family Photos

As a Christchurch wedding photographer, one of the questions I'm asked from time-to-time by prospective clients is this: Do I mind if guests take photographs during the wedding?

My answer is two-fold.

I have no problems with guests taking photos during the wedding day, with one exception. The formal family photos.

The formal family photos are the group photos containing a pre-determined list of family and closest friends. The thing about these photos is they are important to get, but on the wedding day no one ever wants to be a part of them.

Now the problem with guests taking photos while I'm taking the formal family photos is the fact that when there is more than one camera present, the people in the photos don't know which camera they should be looking at.

The result?

Formal family photos with people looking in various directions, but not at my camera (remember, I'm the actual wedding photographer here and you get all the formal photos, which you can then share with guests). As a result, the formal family photos can look a bit kooky for the simple fact that people are not all looking at my camera.

There is one other exception that I haven't mentioned...if you have a guest like the young photographer in this video clip. And just so you get the joke in the video, David Bailey is a famous British photographer who has worked for Vogue. And no, I don't use a camera like the old guy wedding photographer...nor do I dress like him.

Need a Christchurch wedding photographer for your wedding day? Contact me by phone - 027 934 9139 - or via email. Thomas.