5 Reasons Why You Need A Professional Wedding Photographer
Playing second fiddle on the big day is fairly normal for the groom, and lets be honest, virtually all of the attention will be lavished onto the bride. And rightly so! But as the groom, you still have a huge part to play in the proceedings. And believe me, you won’t have much time to relax! There’ll be guests to meet, family members to chat to, making sure everyone has a drink. and is having a great time. Basically, you’re the compere for the day. Any little thing that’ll make the day easier for you is a good thing, right? And that’s where having a professional photographer can make a big difference. Here’s 5 reasons why:
Photo’s
Sounds self-explanatory, but let me paint you a picture… You ask your guests/brother/Uncle Fred with his fancy camera to take the photos of the big day. Six months after the wedding you finally get the pictures back from the online printing lab, having waited five months for Uncle Fred to actually download the pictures from his camera. You sit down excitedly with your wife, rip open the packaging, and dive in. Half the photos are blurred/over-exposed/wrong angle/missed the key events. The other half are okay, but you can’t help feeling that with a bit more preparation they could have been amazing. You turn to your wife, and she’s crying, devastated that the only chance to capture the most incredible day of her life has been missed. She’ll never get that chance again… A risk worth taking?
Memories
These can fade fast, and as a groom, you’ll spend so much time running around that the day will pass so quickly, it’ll be over in a flash (pun intended!). The photos are one of the few physical products that will remain from the day. The dress/shoes/jewellery etc. will be packed away safely, rarely to be seen again. But the photos, they’ll be displayed on the wall, in an album if you choose to have one, and probably at your parents houses as well. Surely you’ll want these to be the best quality possible?
Subject matter
We’ve all had the thought ‘I don’t need a proper photographer, I’ll just dish out a few cheapo cameras to the guests. They can take the pics’ instead. And in principle it sounds good. However, as we all know, weddings are one of the few occasions where drinking alcohol is encouraged, nay, expected to happen. So after a few of France’s finest bubbly, the photos will become more and more shaky, and the subject matter will turn from out-of-focus shots of the bride, to a shoe/finger covering the lens/something unrepeatable…
Advice
Weddings can be a rather large and confusing affair to us chaps, but it’s the little details that we tend to overlook that can make a big difference. For example, the back of the wedding dress can have an elaborate design, a real show stopper. But would you or Uncle Fred know to make sure there are photos of this? And what about when you or your wonderful new wife are posing for photos after the ceremony. Who would notice that if you just dropped your arm by 10cm, and opened your hips very slightly, that the balance of the photo would look so much better? Its little things like that which make the difference between a good photo, and picture worthy of mantelpiece space.
Pressure
Imagine this… You invite all your special friends and family to a once in a lifetime event. You want everyone to come, let their hair down, and have a great time. But as part of the deal, you want them to take the photos that capture the day? Would you want that pressure, knowing that if you forgot to use the auto-focus, or run out of memory space as you took far too many pictures of that rabbit that ran into the hotel reception, that the wedded couple don’t have the photos they so desperately want?
Location
Not only does a professional photographer know which angle at which location works best. They know which way to point the camera (i.e. that sunset may look amazing, but will you and your wife be in darkness without a flash?). Also the photographer may get into places a normal guest can’t. Would you want Uncle Fred in the bridal room whilst your future wife and bridesmaids are getting ready? Thought not!
Hang on, I said five reasons, not six! But weddings can be very much like this blog post, they don’t always go perfectly to plan. However, with a professional on your side, they can advise and help, and keep a cool head throughout the drama.
Believe me, having a professional in your corner on the day can make the difference between good, and perfect.