meet the photographer what ?'s to ask

I think one of the best things to do is to just get a feel for the person and how you are around him/her. If they make you nervous or uncomfortable, see if you can just talk about stuff to get more comfortable with them. You never want to feel uncomfortable around your photographer because it's so important for you to be natural around them on your special day.

Some questions you may want to ask:

- How much experience do you have?
- What do you enjoy most about being a photographer?
- How do you shoot? Digital / film? (I prefer digital) jpg / raw?
- Who retains the rights to all the pictures you take of us?
- Will you give us full size images?
- Will they be watermarked?
- Can we order prints from another service once you give us our pictures?
- Do you alter the coloring at all?
- Is there a limit to the number of photos taken?
- Do they have pre-determined pictures? If you want pre-determined pictures, will they do that?
- Do they work alone or with assistants?
- Do you get to meet your actual photographer before the day of?
- Do they do an engagement session or preview session to get comfortable with you beforehand?
- How many cameras do they bring with them on the day of or what is their backup plan if the camera fails?
- How long does it take to get your photos?
- Have they ever worked at the venue?
- If not, are they comfortable working there without having been there before?

There's a zillion follow-up questions, but I hope that helps

(Sorry -- I started typing this at about 10 am today and it took me 4 hours of work in between to finally get it done, so I don't know if someone else already responded with all this.)

This is the list I have:

Questions to Ask a Wedding Photographer

1. What’s your primary style? Posed and formal, relaxed, photojournalistic, creative, artistic, candid, traditional?

2. What kind of input can we have on the direction of the shots?

3. Can we give you a shot list to work from?

4. Are you the wedding photographer who will actually take our pictures? If not, can we meet the person who will be?

5. Do you have an assistant?

6. Can we meet any assistants who will also be our taking pictures?

7. How many other events will you also photograph that weekend?

8. What kind of equipment will you bring with you? How intrusive will lighting, tripods, other equipment or assistants be?

9. Has he/she worked at your event locations before? How did it work out?

10. Should your event last longer than scheduled, will they stay? Extra charge?

11. How many photos come in each package? What is the breakdown per photo?

12. What types of photos will be taken (B/W, Color, Antiques, etc..)?

13. What attire will they and their assistants wear?

14. How long after the event will the proofs be ready?

15. What type and how much assistance will they provide in planning your album?

16. Does he/she have liability insurance?

17. Do you have backup equipment and is it the same quality as the primary equipment?

18. What time will you begin and how long will you stay until?

19. What are your policies regarding proofs?

20. What are your policies regarding negatives?

21. When will the proofs be ready?

22. Do we get to keep the proofs?

23. Do you mark your proofs?

24. How much extra for unmarked proofs?

25. Can we buy the negatives from you?

26. Do you work well with the other vendors? i.e.: coordinators, caterers, videographers.

27. Will you personally be the photographer for our wedding?
28. If the answer is no: When can we meet the photographer whose work I'm seeing so I can see if I feel comfortable with that person/ see if we are on the same wavelength?
29.
Are you a full-time photographer?

30. How long have you been a wedding photographer, and how many weddings have you photographed?

31. What are the reasons you think we should hire you?

32. Is this your recent work that I'm seeing?

33. What are your criteria for choosing what you would photograph at my wedding?

34. How do you know how many pictures to take?

35. What makes your photographs better or different than anybody else's?

36. Why did you choose wedding photography as a career?

37. What time do you arrive to setup your equipment?

38. Hours of service:

39. Do you bring backup equipment with you?

40. How many people will cover the event?

41. Do you provide a written contract and guarantee?

42. What are your policies regarding delivery times?

43. Is a deposit required? If so, how much?

44. When is the deposit due?

45. May I make partial payments?

46. When is the final payment due?

47. Is gratuity included in the price?

48. If not, what is the percentage of the service charge?

49. What percentage are the taxes?

50. What is the overtime charge?

51. Are there any additional charges not mentioned? (i.e. travel)

52. What are the refunds/cancellation terms?




Questions to Ask Yourself After the Interview

1. Has the photographer addressed your personal concerns satisfactorily?

2. Do I like this person? Do I get along with them or get a good feeling from them?

3. Do I like their work as a wedding photographer? Is it well lit, focused, well framed? Looking at their books, do I feel like I have a good feeling for the wedding?