Wedding photographers are not generic — they’re very much an individual “brand” you need to know and trust — before the wedding! You can look at their samples, check out their prices, their references and contact the B.B.B. But what will they do to get to know you before they start shooting photos at your wedding? How well they know you can mean the difference between ordinary wedding photos and truly memorable ones.
Engagement Photo Session is an Icebreaker
Professional photographers I know recommend an engagement photo session as a way to not only capture precious memories in the couple’s relationship, but also to provide a time for the photographer and couple to get acquainted before the wedding day — which is generally a high stress day for the bride and groom. Follow along as I explain why you need a day for your photographer to get to know you.
The pros I work with believe that your wedding photographer should know you pretty well long before the wedding day arrives. An engagement photo session offers that opportunity and it provides you with very special photos capturing the love and enchantment of the engagement period.
Let your personalities shine at an engagement photo session.
This is where your photographer really gets to know you, your style, your preferences and your personality. A real pro develops a relationship with the couple at this session which makes him/her an “insider” at the wedding and better equipped to capture you during your best moments.
You and your photographer gain a comfort level with each other and he/she gets a sense of when you’re really smiling and when you’re putting on a happy face for the camera. This “insider” knowledge helps create more natural and beautiful photos on the actual wedding day.
- Pick a location that is meaningful to you. Maybe it’s a university
campus where you met. A favorite spot at which you’ve shared special moments. Indoors or out — make it “your” location where you both feel comfortable. You can even choose several locations if those are spots that help define your relationship - Have fun — be silly, serious, goofy and loveable.
Let your hair down, wear your favorite clothes and just relax. - During this session, you’ll get to know your photographer better and, most of all, the photographer will get to know you. When the wedding day arrives, the camera will pick up your best side, bring out your personality and create photo memories that you”ll absolutely love for a lifetime!
How Much Will Engagement Photos Cost?
A good photographer will include an engagement photo session in their wedding package. If you want an engagement photo book — often used as a wedding guest book — put together by the photographer, you can expect prices in the $200- $400 range. They design a creative book just for you with your photos.
But you do have an option. If your photographer will permit it, purchase the rights to the photos and get a photo CD. Then create your own digital prints, engagement photo book, wedding guest book and other photo gifts from the photos on lifephoto.com. Try to get the photo CD included in your total wedding package.
Professional Photo Lab at Affordable Prices
Lifephoto offers a variety of online templates that make it easy for you to create your own engagement photo book or wedding guest book — and at a fraction of the cost you might otherwise pay. Best of all, Lifephoto gives you the same professional quality photo processing that you would get through your photographer.
Lifephoto’s lab is staffed with well-trained photo technicians who take the quality of their work — the quality of your photos — very seriously. They work on state-of-the-art Kodak presses with professional quality Kodak photo paper and high quality inks. Lifephoto truly is a professional grade lab. Other online photo services and “big box” stores with photo services do not provide quality that will last. Their technicians may be high school students; their paper and inks are inexpensive every-day quality. Photos may “look” good at first, but the color, clarity and brightness will fade, perhaps in as little as six months. Do you really want to pay thousands of dollars to have your engagement/wedding photos taken by a pro only to have mediocre quality processing?
Lifephoto.com — a win-win for couples on a budget.
You want terrific high quality photo memories, but can’t quite afford to purchase all the options available from your pro photographer. Buy the photo CD and create your own wedding guest book (and other great photo memory products) on lifephoto. NOTE — in this close-up photo of a wedding guest registry (using engagement photos), Lifephoto’s lay-flat book features professional binding. The right side of each 2-page spread is ideal for guest messages to the bride and groom, featuring a low-opacity photo of the couple on which personal notes can be easily written and read.
Don’t Skimp on Photography Costs
People won’t remember what they ate at your wedding, but they will remember the memories when they’re beautifully captured by a good professional photographer. If you must cut costs, look at the menu or other less memorable items. Your photos are a once-in-a-lifetime item that you will want to share with family and friends. Make those memories the best they can be. If you feel you can’t afford memory books and other photo momentos ordered through your photographer, get them made by the professional photo lab team at lifephoto.com.