Most of you who follow my blog or know me in person probably know 2 things about me. 1. I’m not from Illinois. I’m from Miami, Florida. 2. You might also know that I’m a very curious person. I constantly what to know HOW things work or WHY they work that way. Well this experience…
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If you’re one of my brides, you’ve probably heard me say this. If you’re another professional, you’ve probably heard me say this. If you live in my house, you’ve probably heard me say this. THE #1 question ALL clients/brides MUST ask all potential photographers is this: “Can you show me several weddings from beginning to…
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I agree with most of this, but I don’t necessarily think price should be the #1 consideration. (I’m assuming you’re saying it’s #1 since it’s listed as that in your post.) When I got married over a year ago I hired Ever After Photography out of Peoria (everafterlove.com) and when I initially emailed them just looking for a price I was shocked that package that would work the best for us was $4,000 (there were other packages more and less expensive than that) 4 grand?! I could practically buy a car with that! Or go on a dream vacation! But once I got over the initial sticker shock I realized 4,000 was actually an ‘investment’ because there are no re-do’s for our wedding photos and never another day to ‘reschedule’ it. I also felt comfortable just knowing I had contacted her in Jan 2009 for our wedding in Oct. 2010 and she was already booked on the initial day we were thinking of, so we made our set plans based on when she was available. I was in love with her work and felt another photographer’s wouldn’t be as good so I ‘sucked it up’ and paid $4000 but I (we) couldn’t be happier! I truly agree when you say you get what you pay for- and we paid a lot (in my opinion) but we also got a lot- a lifetime worth of beautiful photos! In my opinion if any couple is going to splurge, splurge on the photographer, and if they’re going to budget- budget a lot for the photographer and cut in other places!
Thanks for the info!
Hi Rachael. Thank you so much for stopping by. I agree with what you said 100%. I don’t recall why “Price” ended up being number one, but it wasn’t because I think it is the most important qualification. In fact, I certainly don’t. However, I can absolutely see why it would seem that way since I did list it first. I think the four important qualifications are all important in their own way. Honestly, I can’t really say which one of the should be #1 in regards to importance. I think that’s up the client.
Again, thank you SO much for sharing your story.
I always share my story because I never want a bride to turn down a photographer based solely on price. I’ve known too many people who didn’t go with a photographer they wanted because it was ‘too expensive’ and ended up with a cheap photographer and weren’t happy with their photos! Hope you didn’t mind me including my photographer’s info. I just thought some people might want to see the work I thought warranted 4,000.
Rachael, I couldn’t be happier that you took the time to share. I’m being 100% sincere when I say how grateful I am that a bride expressed the same sentiments as so many professionals often express, but it means so much more coming from you. Potential clients expect me to say, although price is important, it should certainly not be the main factor. I obviously have a bias. However, for another bride to share the same sentiment, the impact is that much greater because it is coming from someone who isn’t necessarily in the industry.
For the record, you are always welcome to share your experiences here on my blog.
Hugs,
erica
I’ve been wanting to blog about this for some time now. My motivation for finally getting my butt in gear was my friend, Sarah. Sarah is a truly amazing photographer in her own right. *minor plug for my friend: find her on FB, here or her gorgeous blog, here.* Sarah focuses primarily on families and…
The cake was verrry dry.
Thanks again Erica! We are still trying to decide which prints we want and trying to take orders from our parents so I will get back to you soon!
No problem at all, Whitney. It was my pleasure. Take your time and let me know if you need anything.