Finding a Sydney wedding photographer is just one of many things to organize on an elongated list of everything needed in preparation for getting married.
With today’s advancements in technology, the latest smartphones can take some astonishingly high quality images; but they won’t cut it for your big day. You most definitely want to find a Sydney wedding photographer with an all-singing, all-dancing Canon camera that is going to take snaps that you’ll love.
After all, these photos are a pretty big deal. They’re going to be displayed somewhere in your house, maybe even in your relatives’ houses, and could well be unboxed by those who come after you as they sort out their loft space or garage in future decades. Unlike the cake, music, and flowers, you don’t exactly know what the finished product will look like when you hire a Sydney wedding photographer. This makes it even more important to do your research and hire a respected and trustworthy option.
While most of us probably fancy ourselves as competent photographers and preside over an aesthetic Instagram profile, photography is a skill that requires patient and gradual development. Indeed, it is a subject at college and there are even Bachelor’s degrees in the skill. So, there must be much more to photography than a simple outstretching of the arm, lining up the image you want to take on screen, and hitting the take-picture button.
Terminology such as aperture, exposure, bokeh, and cameras that look more like telescopes with their protruding noses, are evidence that there is much more to photography than meets the eye (no pun intended).
The Royal Weddings in the UK see Chris Jackson behind the camera, or several cameras in his impressive artillery. While this would be the ideal choice for your special day, his schedule is probably too booked up to be able to fit you in, and his prices to astronomical to justify, unfortunately.
So if you’re not blessed with a professional lensman in your family and instead want to find the perfect Sydney wedding photographer, there are some tips that you should keep in mind during your search.
Style
The first thing you should consider when choosing a Sydney wedding photographer is style. For this you’ll need to do some digging around Instagram and flicking through magazines until you have a collection of styles you particularly love. Then try to isolate the features of such images that particularly engage and attract you.
Don’t worry if you can’t zone in on a particular style. A Sydney wedding photographer will be qualified in a range of styles so you can mix-and-match.
Research
The power of the online review is your best friend. Visit the websites and social media profiles of different options and see what newlyweds had to say about them as well as examples of their previous work and costings.
Bear in mind that the photos they showcase on their website will, understandably, be them at their best. Ask to see a full wedding album to get an idea of consistency in quality.
You should particularly focus on the moments captured and see if there are any important scenes not recorded by a camera. The look on the face of the groom as his partner comes down the aisle, the exchange of rings, the throwing of the bride’s bouquet; these are some of the most important intimate moments that are a must-capture and any Sydney wedding photographer worthy of their salt will have these areas covered. It will also be useful to prepare a list of shots you’d like captured.
Lighting
The venue you choose to get married in will provide the conditions a Sydney wedding photographer will have to work with. When researching, consider the quality of photos shot when inside a church with limited natural light.
Interview
This is the fun part. You get to pretend to be an employer by inviting your shortlisted options for an interview to help you whittle it down to the one. This is a great opportunity to experience the personality of your potential paparazzi; you want to establish a connection with your personal shutter bug as this will affect the quality and warmth of images taken on the day.
Before inviting to interview, make sure they are available on the day you have set to get married to avoid wasted time later on.
In this initial outreach to them, it would be useful to provide the images you selected in your research stage and briefly summarize the story hitherto of your relationship with your husband- or wife-to-be.
Delivery
Your newly wedded self is going to be restless to get your hands on the snapped goods as soon as the ceremony has finished; but the reality is development and delivery can take up to 6 months, and the period quoted by a Sydney wedding photographer shouldn’t be taken as a judgement of their quality and reliability. Someone who takes 2 weeks to get photos back to you is not necessarily better than someone who takes 2 months in regard to quality of work, since the one who takes 2 months could well be a lot busier than the one who takes a fortnight.