amateur photographer

Whispered

Hi all

We are getting married next year but I have been let go from work. We have decided to go ahead with the wedding, but we must cut back where we can.

Would it be advisable to look for an amateur photographer to save money? If the photographer has not done weddings before, have you any tips on what I should look out for in the rest of their portfolio? Any very obvious rookie mistakes etc I need to be aware of?

Thanks

Fenster

That you'll regret using an amateur photographer for your wedding is the best advice that I can give you on this subject.

Whispered

oh really? I have heard that before but I thought it was one of those things people who don't know a lot about photography say. Maybe not.

I was looking at it from the point of view that even the best photographers were amateur at one stage. How do they get to the point of greatness?

Is there a happy middle like a semi prof or something?

If we could afford somone with a proven track record it would be great but I don't really have much choice other than to try save money there.

Ricky91t

Everybody starts somewhere..If you're on a tight budget a Amateur photographer is better than nothing..

wersal gummage

ha! everyone on here gets very touchy about this!

you'd swear photography was as complicated as neurosurgery. i'll bet nearly everyone says get a pro...

if you want a professional* looking album - yes get a pro because you'll be disappointed otherwise. if you've looked through your friends wedding albums and they were taken by pros - dont expect anything approaching that result from somebody who has never shot a wedding before.

if you really do need to save money, and if you are happy with a basic record of your day, then a competent amateur photographer should be capable of doing it.


*nice shots but also a lot of arty stuff thrown in.

Whispered

We wont need an album, pics on a disk is fine and we can gt them printed professionally at a later date.

So what do I need to look out for and avoid when talking to a potential photographer.

artyeva

why don't you post in the photographic services wanted/offered thread?

i'd say there's a few on here that'd be glad of the experience. just make sure you're happy with the examples of their work you see beforehand, and for god's sake make sure you both are clear on what's expected/to be paid for well in advance so there's no nasty surprises when you discover you don't have a single shot of the best man and 20 of the bridesmaids

Whispered

artyeva wrote: »

why don't you post in the photographic services wanted/offered thread?

Good idea. I will do that when I have an idea of what I need to look out for. I know nothing about photography and I would have to put my faith into the photographer so I'd like a few tips on how to choose someone if I'm going with an amateur.

Rb

It's a big gamble using an experienced amateur, as others have pointed out, and it'll be too late before you realise things have gone pear shaped too.

daycent

If you spend enough time looking you should fine someone eventually. There will be an element of risk, but you could get lucky.

Rb

helena.ryan wrote: »

Good idea. I will do that when I have an idea of what I need to look out for. I know nothing about photography and I would have to put my faith into the photographer so I'd like a few tips on how to choose someone if I'm going with an amateur.

Ask to see previous examples would be the obvious things.

Wedding photographers need to be confident and able to take control of their surroundings, to get the images they want and to be able to take the shot properly. I've no experience in wedding photography but have seen lots and lots of wedding photos and you can tell who has had an experienced photographer and who hasn't.

Things like the typical "smile for the camera" type photos should be in their minority, instead they should have ones where it seems they've just been a fly on the wall while the bride prepares, group shots where they've been able to get everyone together and organised and sit still until the shot is taken, good black & white conversions etc. Look for good framing, in the sense that people aren't cut off in the middle of photos, look for well focused images where things aren't soft/blurred and especially ensure that they know what the "must-have" photos from a wedding are.

I'm sure other people will have much better advice, but that's a little bit of what I can think of off the top of my head. Hope it helps somewhat.

DPRestoration

There are plenty of great amateur photographers out there, some who take there hobby quite serious but just haven't taken the chance to quit there day jobs to pursue it full time.

A good photo retoucher <SNIP> will also come into play to get that final professional look, they should also be able to a book layout for print instead of an actual traditional album with individual prints, e.g. www.blurb.com do great books, I have published 9 books through them, all with great results.

Keep searching and you will get a great entusiastic amateur photographer.

CabanSail

I keep mentioning this but I think it's important.

If you pay an Amateur they are then working as a Professional.AFAIK as they are doing a job then the Public Liability Insurance for the locations does not cover them. They need to have their own Insurance & this will be quite costly if it's just for one job. Part of the cost you pay for a photographer is their insurance costs.

Now some (probably many) will just do it anyway & the chances of something going wrong is quite low, but they are there.

Now I have seen work of some "Professionals" which I would not rate very highly & some "Amateurs" which is excellent. These titles are nothing to do with the quality of the work, but more to do with the financial status.

We have users here who are Profesional Wedding Photographers. I am sure if you want a simple package some of them will be able to put together a package that will suit your budget. As said above a post in the Services Thread in the Stickies is the way forward.

***Mod Note*** No offers in thread please. PM Only.

Whispered

Thanks. I will post there now, if you know of any good amateurs please pm me. A recommendation from another photographer would be excellent.

On the insurance note, is this to cover them if they actually cause damage or somehow hurt someone, or do you mean some sort or insurance to cover them if they do a dismal job? (probably a ridiculous question )

Rb

helena.ryan wrote: »

Thanks. I will post there now, if you know of any good amateurs please pm me. A recommendation from another photographer would be excellent.

On the insurance note, is this to cover them if they actually cause damage or somehow hurt someone, or do you mean some sort or insurance to cover them if they do a dismal job? (probably a ridiculous question )

Both, iirc.

CabanSail

There are two types of Insurance that most Professionals will carry.

Public Liability (PL) - This covers someone falling over a tripod or tripping on a Gear Bag etc.

Professional Indemnity (PI) - This is to cover things like the images being deleted or poor quality work etc.

Most Pro's will also have back up gear, so if a camera, lens or flash stops working then they will have at least one spare of each (often more)

Whispered

thank you,

An amateur is looking less like a good idea I think.

CabanSail

You may want to put some more information in your post in Services.

It would help if you let people know a date and which province of Mongolia the wedding will be (location )

Whispered

:eek: sarcasm!! (good point)

ThOnda

Don't forget that "pro" photographer could have also experience with such whole day event and could be ready for it - knows where to go, from where to shoot, has backup gear...
There are more things to be taken into consideration.

njburke

Hi,
My brother did the photography for my wedding. We were on a tight budget as we were saving for a house etc. At the time he was doing the photography degree course up in Mountjoy. He did fine, he hit all the set piece shots, most were excellent. He has the personality for it too, which is key.

Now at some point during the day, one of his cameras calved, I also think he ran out of colour film as we ended up with more B&Ws as the day progressed. Only complaint I had was that my mother in law had a collection of the family wedding shots hanging her living room wall, of course ours is in B&W, which to be honest I don't mind.

16 years on, my brother is a full time pro photographer these complete with studio /van/ gear, he's even got a few of those SWPP prizes under his belt. I've seen him shoot several weddings since ,he's good at it.

He gets repeat wedding business from couples who remarry, and is professional enough to respond only with a smile when the grooms mother insists she's met him before but can't recall where.

Anyway, it comes down to how important the wedding album is to you. If you feel like giving a keen amateur or someone just starting in the business, go ahead, its your wedding day after all.

eeyore2502

To be honest with you going with some professionals is a gamble too! My cousin used a so called professional for her wedding in May and only got her album last week! Alot of his pictures where desperate, he was constantly checking to see what angles I was taking shots from and following me about and I am far from a professional. I did up a photobook for my cousin while she was waiting on her album and she prefers my pictures I took of her day then the professionals!

Just my two cents worth, good luck with what ever decission you make.

smelltheglove

I shoot weddings and I have to say, we all start somewhere. I decided to get into it after my own wedding, I had been fearful before of getting into it. What happened with us was our photographer ended up in hosp the evening before our wedding so we had to search for someone else. It was this weekend 2 yrs ago, many photographers we called must have heard the ca-ching going on because the quotes were ridiculous, the highest at around 4k the lowest over 2k.

In desperation I called my hotel, the organiser gave me numbers of a few photographers but also mentioned that the local videographer had a son trying to get into weddings so I called him. He was dear enough for a beginner but I had little choice and I have to say that I really was delighted at the results, there were some lovely set ups and most importantly the guy was lovely, everytime I looked at him he put a smile on my face as he was sooo chirpy.

CabanSail

eeyore2502 wrote: »

To be honest with you going with some professionals is a gamble too! My cousin used a so called professional for her wedding in May and only got her album last week! Alot of his pictures where desperate, he was constantly checking to see what angles I was taking shots from and following me about and I am far from a professional. I did up a photobook for my cousin while she was waiting on her album and she prefers my pictures I took of her day then the professionals!

Just my two cents worth, good luck with what ever decission you make.

Once again the title "Professional" is not a mark of quality, only that of their financial status.

If your cousin is not happy with the quality of the work then claim on his PI Insurance. That is what it's there for.

eeyore2502

CabanSail wrote: »

Once again the title "Professional" is not a mark of quality, only that of their financial status.

If your cousin is not happy with the quality of the work then claim on his PI Insurance. That is what it's there for.

I might get her to look into it as she was sooooo upset when she seen her pictures.