Photographers for Your Wedding Day in Washington
Taking a few pictures with a camera doesn’t seem that hard, but hiring a photographer with the right balance between personal and professional skills for your wedding in Washington is a little more complex.
If you don’t think it’s worth investing in a professional photographer for your wedding day, perhaps you haven’t really considered the importance of your wedding day photographs.
The memories of your beautiful wedding can sometimes start to fade with time. However, if you capture the day with professional photography, the memories will remain with you for a lifetime.
There aren’t many events more important than your wedding. It is essential to have a skillful photographer who understands how to capture the important details and to document everything to look back on for a lifetime.
[static_block_content id=”1853″]
The Importance of Wedding Photography.
When you look at your list of priorities for your wedding in Washington, the wedding photographer may not necessarily be up there at the top.
You should invest some time in planning your wedding photography though. You need to set a budget that is sufficient for the task and get your photographer booked in Washington up as far in advance as possible. It is important to have a talented wedding photographer who has the skills and experience to perfectly capture all the precious moments of your wedding day. Your wedding photos and your wedding album will come out in the future with friends, family, children and grandchildren to help you tell the story of the day.
Your wedding photographs will take on a special place in your heart, as they have the power to resurrect those happy memories and feelings of that special day. After your wedding day in Washington, you’re unlikely to be wearing your dress and shoes again, the flowers will be cleared away and all the cake will be eaten. but importance needs to be placed on your wedding images, because they will be with you forever, to browse through and perfectly recapture those emotions from your wedding day.
Why engage a wedding photographer for your big day?
If you’re getting married soon, you’ve probably done the majority of the necessary planning. The venue is all booked and planned, the cake is being made and your catering is sorted. Your wedding dress is getting its final alterations, your flowers are all on order and the decorations and table centrepieces are all in hand.
Your mind is now turning to how you are going to capture the big day photographically. Perhaps you’re considering asking your nephew to do it since he’s an amateur photographer.
It wouldn’t cost you anything and you can save yourself some money to budget for other things. This is a route that has been tried by many, but in truth has worked for very few.
You should hire a professional wedding photographer
The savings you make by using an amateur photographer are not worth the risk you are taking of being left with poor quality images to look back on. There are dozens of special moments that happen on your wedding day and in a flash they’re gone and forgotten if not captured in your photos.
The benefits of having a professional wedding photographer
When you hire a specialist wedding photographer in Washington, the images you are presented with at the end will be of the highest quality and taken with the best photography equipment available.
When you hire professional photographers for your wedding in Washington, you get privileged access to the best photography knowledge and skills, together with the best equipment and software to produce the best quality pictures possible.
The physical equipment such as cameras, is just part of the equation in terms of capturing the best photographic images. The advent of camera phones has for some become a tempting way to try and save money on wedding photography. This could probably be one of the biggest mistakes you make. Everyone wants beautifully composed and captured photographs of their wedding day. I’ll explain some of these benefits in greater detail, to help you understand the value in paying a professional wedding photographer for the day in Washington.
Knowledge with the latest camera equipment and the use of it in varying situations. A photographerís resultant images will not be as impressive as they could be if they don’t have a variety of camera lenses and the knowledge and skills to use them, together with various lighting options. Professional wedding photographers are better, not just because of their skill and experience, but also the equipment that they use. Anyone can buy a DSLR camera, but it takes great skill to unlock the potential of the equipment. Both the camera equipment and the photographer are equally important in creating and capturing great photos. Ideally, you want to go for high end gear, as well as an expert photographer who has the knowledge and expertise in using that equipment optimally. The lighting available at your venue, in the church and outside the church or in any other outdoor setting will vay markedly; it takes skill and appreciation to consistently take great photos in different lighting situations.
[static_block_content id=”1852″]
[static_block_content id=”2470″]
The Photographerís Role
Another reason to hire a professional wedding photographer in Washington, rather than trusting a family member or a friend with the task, is it they will be less distracted. A relative will likely expect to enjoy the day and become part of it, whereas a professional photographer will know that their role is very clearly defined.
They wonít miss important shots while eating a slice of cake, drinking alcohol or chit chatting with relatives. They will be fully concentrating on the job, taking every opportunity to capture the special moments of your wedding day, whilst keeping it very low key.
Something else that is a factor is that wedding guests tend to respect photo opportunities much more when they are gently marshalled by professional photographers. If a relative is trying to organise a photo session, it might end up far less organised than if a professional were doing it.
The Photographic Style
If you have in mind a particular photographic style, then you should hire a professional that is an expert in that area or style. The majority of amateur photographers would stare blankly if asked to tell you the difference between photojournalistic, traditional, fine art, or contemporary photographic styles.
Can an amateur really deliver the pictures that are going to inspire you forever? In most cases, they will fall short. Donít rush into a decision; think about the style you want and get a photographer that can match it. Once you have a style in mind, hire a photographer that can picture what it is you want.
A Reliable and Communicative Professional
A professional photographer is normally a much better choice than an amateur photographer or enthusiast and weíve already touched on a few other reasons so far. Any wedding day has tough moments to overcome, whether it is getting a large group together while meeting a deadline with a photoshoot in session and a professional brings a mass of experience to help deal with this.
A professional wedding photographer will get people where they need to be for each photo and plan all the photo sessions to ensure no one gets missed out, or no opportunity is missed. They will be able to use signals and body language, as well as their voice, to get people where they need to be in a pleasant way, enhancing the atmosphere of your celebration in Washington. Getting the perfect picture often involves striking a balance between being distant, but also being encouraging and supportive, humorous and amateurs rarely have the skills to do it.
Professional Wedding Photographers Provide More
The wedding photographer is around all day, spending time with you on your wedding day. They will photograph you getting ready and spending time before the event and perhaps be around all the way until you leave the venue.
Your wedding photographer is always near you, having been engaged to capture the emotion and style of your day in its entirety. If theyíre good at their job, youíll hardly notice theyíre there. The photographer will notice if a picture is being spoiled by a lipstick stain on a collar, or a wonky handkerchief.
Your photographer will help you try and fix anything that could spoil a quality photo. Your photographer will be your shadow all day in Washington, not your wedding planner. The photographer will help the wedding party and guests be where they need to be and help to calm any emotions.
Patience Is the Key
As a wedding couple, you should engage the services of a wedding photographer that helps you feel comfortable. This is a person you are going to be around a great deal on one of the most special days of your life. That decision needs to feel right.
The wedding photographer should be technically excellent, patient, empathetic and a great planner. Your personality needs to be captured through the lens and itís their job to help you to be at ease throughout the day in Washington. A professional will remain calm and in control even when things donít always go exactly to plan. An experienced wedding photographer will flow with the event and will be quick to adapt, always remaining professional.
What to Expect from Your Wedding Photographer?
Often people have never been in front of a professional camera before their wedding day. This can cause anxiety, especially if you are camera shy or tend to look awkward in photographs.
Having spent some time considering the best professional wedding photographer in Washington to match the styles you want, you can now rest assured that they will do certain things to make the process run smoothly.
[static_block_content id=”2471″]
A Professional Attitude and Good Time Keeping
After looking at a photographer based on their reputation, the passion for their work and their portfolio of previous work, you can feel comfortable that you will have hired someone who is professional. Your photographer should be friendly, polite, punctual and appropriately dressed for the event. Your photographer should get to your wedding venues earlier than the guests so that they can get a feel for the environment; they will probably have been to some of the venues already in order to understand the limitations and possibilities.
The Day Before the Wedding - the Rehearsal
Church wedding ceremonies normally have the custom of a wedding rehearsal a day or two before the wedding. In many cases you photographer will choose to attend this event and to speak to the presiding minister about where they can and cannot stand and what they can and cannot do during ceremony. If you choose to have a civil ceremony, then it will most likely be a chat with a registrar on the day of the wedding in Washington.
The Big Day – the Wedding
Your photographer will be there to take pictures of bridal presentations, or at whatever time you have agreed beforehand. He will stay with you for the entire day and will mirror you through the day without interrupting. Jeff Woodall photographyís ethos is to be very subtle, at staying in the background without interrupting the day, but being available to keep spirits high and answer any difficult questions, making sure that every single memory is captured in digital format. Itís crucial to the team at Jeff Woodall photography that every precious memory is captured on camera and that we remain unobtrusive, so the day can play out naturally; we are of course available for any questions and we strive to raise the spirits of everyone in the party.
Your wedding photographer will have a discussion with you sometime after the first dance to find out if you need any more precious moments captured. If you are satisfied that your photographer has captured the day, he will begin the process of backing up all of the photos. Every photo will be stored on a reliable backup storage device and kept safe until such a time as the photos have been through the full editing process and have been delivered to you to your satisfaction. We fully understand that your photographs are precious and need to be looked after.
Getting Your Wedding Photos Edited
Editing is a large part of the work and will be done in the days following the wedding in Washington. At the start of the editing stage, the photos need to be sifted through so that the best ones can be selected. The pictures that have been chosen, then go through a subtle editing approach, with light touches to enhance the images.
Jeff Woodall photography only use beautifully sharp images. Images are cropped and have their colours balanced where necessary, but is limited to minor adjustments. Some of the pictures may be converted to monochrome and other style filters may be applied to further enhance the overall effects of your images.
The images are then exported and uploaded to an online password protected gallery, ready to be viewed by you, your friends and family as you wish. You will also be given all high resolution images on a USB stick. If you want to share access to your wedding photos on your own online gallery, weíll give you instructions on how to do so, as well as providing a high-definition backup of all your photos on a USB stick.
After care
Jeff Woodall photography will be available for everything else you need; to talk about albums, or the types of bespoke wedding photo books that can be designed for you. Early on you’ll probably decide if you want a digital photo book album and the different colours and styles that you will require, but it’ll probably take you a while after your wedding ceremony to decide which of the images you are going to want to include.
Your photographer will guide you through how many photos to choose and how best to tell the story and we’ll probably suggest around 80 photos. The design process will then begin, as your photographer works on the album.
Stunning Washington Based Wedding Photography
What do you get when you choose a wedding photography package
Below is a list of the what is included in a wedding photography package. Some of the details are given, others you may need to pay careful attention to. The number of wedding events you want photos from.
From the engagement party, the bridal shower, the wedding ceremony, reception and after party. Some of the events the photographer will almost certainly be at, include the wedding ceremony and the after party, but you need to decide whether he attends the bridal shower, the engagement party and how long he stays on during the after party. Following discussion and decisions you need to get the dates organised and communicate them to the photographer.
[static_block_content id=”2472″]
How many hours you want the photographer for the shoot in Washington
Generally, a photographer will use time as one of the main methods to price an assignment. Each wedding is individual, with exact timings that differ and ad hoc things that happened during the day and so we work a little differently on wedding packages in order to remain flexible.
If you have looked around already, then you probably know that photographers frequently have different packages that they offer such as a ëPlatinumí, ëgoldí, ëSilverí and a ëBronzeí package in Washington. It all gets quite complicated, especially if different photo album packages are also added to the mix. I find it works better to have a set price for a full day’s coverage. I understand that there may be an extra hour here or there due to delays etc. We know you don’t want to have an extra hour billed after the event, just because your schedule fell behind and the eight hours you paid for in the ëSilver packageí didn’t cover the full day. In cases where weddings are overseas, or in remote locations, there would need to be some negotiation regarding fuel or flights, food and accommodation.
[static_block_content id=”2474″]
What are the differences between all these different styles?
Fine Art Photography
Similar to photojournalistic photography, fine art photographers rarely take traditional shots. Instead, they use an artistic approach to capture elements, people and events, with a subtle use of effective lighting techniques. The Fine Art photographer in Washington prefers to pack their photos with art and drama, often using black and white as a filter.
Vintage Style Photography
The diversity and popularity of vintage photo filters has helped to drive this style of photography. More and more weddings are seeing photographers using a vintage photography style. This style of photography can bring with it an ageless, timeless quality and has the power to stir emotions and maybe this is why more and more people are seeing the appeal in it. Vintage photography done well in Washington, transforms ordinary images into artistic work of art using colour filters and various props and lighting tricks.
Traditional or Classical
With traditional or classical photography, details of shots are considered staged, even those that you may think look spontaneous. With traditional or classical wedding photography, it’s unlikely that you’ll get lots of action and movement in photos, but the images shouldnít feel unnaturally forced either. The goal of photographers who prefer the traditional style is to take pictures that reflect the artistry and dignity of the wedding ceremony, with stunning lighting techniques.
Photojournalistic or Reportage
This style involves the recording of events as opposed to the staging of them. As always, the necessary formal shots will be taken, as well as a number of spontaneous happy shots group shots during the day. The photojournalistic wedding photographer tells the story of the day, using a mix of close-up and candid shots, showing spontaneous reaction and recording the atmosphere of the event , rather than orchestrating the scenes.
Black and White (Monochrome)
With black-and-white photographs you get a timeless and classical feel to images. Many clients appreciate how the nostalgia and mood of images can be enhanced by removing colour. It’s all about preference. Not everyone prefers monochrome images, but there’s no doubt that photographs can be made more compelling by emphasising areas of focus and the composition with this method. Black and white photographs have the capacity to really enhance the atmosphere of an image, that is sometimes lost in the colour option.
Colour Popped and HDR Techniques
Attention to detail during the shoot and excellent editing skills are required for this type of photography technique. The photographer that uses HDR and colour popped techniques will use them sparingly, only with the right images, to maximise the impact of those colour popped or high dynamic scenes.
Related Blogs
What Questions To Ask Wedding Photographer
[ultimate-faqs include_category=’wedding’]