Hiring a Professional Wedding Photographer vs an Amateur

March 10, 2016

Hiring a professional wedding photographer is one of the most important decisions you can make for your big day. Your wedding day is one of the most momentous occasions of your life. It’s something you’re going to want captured to cherish for years to come!

One of the decisions you will have to make is whether to hire a professional wedding photographer or hire an amateur. Often, couples regret their decision of not hiring a professional wedding photographer when they realize the amateur delivers wedding photos which are just not to par. Professional photographers can have pricier rates than their amateur competitors, but the old adage rings true; you get what you pay for.

Here are some reasons why it is so important to hire a professional photographer over the amateurs.

Your wedding is a once in a lifetime event

The photographer only has one opportunity to capture the important moments. Most of the photos captured on your wedding day can never be re-done.

One of the few things you will have to reminisce forever have to reminisce over your wedding will be your photos. You’ll want to make sure you have someone fully capable of catching every stunning moment with the highest quality photos. Hiring a professional will get you the shots you need.

You can count on the professional photographer

Professional photographers take pride with their experience and the years of photography under their belts. They’ve invested their time, money, hearts and souls into their business. They cannot risk having an unhappy customer, so they give 110% effort from the first consultation all the way through to product delivery.

Most amateurs don’t have as much on the line. Some have even been known to disappear with files, never to be heard from again. You only get one wedding day; you don’t want to throw it all away on a gamble with an amateur.

Professionals can create the best photos of your big day with ease

There are so many variables on the wedding day a professional would be able to address and amateurs could not, due to the lack of experience or proper equipment.

There are so many things that can be difficult for even the best professional photographers to overcome, such as lighting, interference from good-intentioned guests, weather, posing, church rules and the list goes on. Weddings move so much faster than you may realize. That doesn’t leave much time for the photographer to come up with solutions to the many issues that can occur during the day, but you can rest assured, professionals keep these things in mind and come with the right equipment and knowledge to deal with a plethora of unanticipated problems.

Professionals have more experience in posing brides of all shapes and sizes to make sure she looks her best in each photo. Most amateurs don’t have the same amount of experience.

Professionals always have backup

Professional photographers will always have a backup plan for your wedding day. This means they will have at least 2 of everything they need to capture your wedding in case something breaks.

Most amateur photographers will not have the proper amount of backup equipment due to the high cost. What if they only have one camera body and it malfunctions? What if the only lens they brought broke?

The professional will also have a backup photographer, choosing someone with the same skill and style as the original photographer, to be there for your day in the rare event of an emergency or illness. The amateur might not have a backup photographer for your day if something were to happen to them. You don’t want to be left without a photographer on one of the biggest days of your life!

A professional and their team will catch everything

Hiring an amateur photographer can mean missed moments and more work for you.

Professionals know the flow of the wedding day, which shots to take, and when they will happen. They have the experience to anticipate shots amateurs might possibly miss due to inexperience.

A professional will likely have a shot list to go over with the couple to ensure everything important to them gets captured.

Wedding couples often find funny and meaningful moments they never got to see happen at the time of the wedding, because the professional photographer was in the right spot at the right moment and captured it for them. You don’t want to miss out on a once in a lifetime moment due to the inexperience of an amateur!

The professional wedding photographer is the best choice!

Even if you don’t have a huge budget I recommend doing what you can to make sure you are hiring a professional wedding photographer to capture your big day.

Be sure to do your research and check out our blog on how to pick the best photographer for you so you can hire the right professional for your wedding day! You want to make sure they have lots of wedding photography experience, and that they can produce consistent results.

Weddings are expensive. You spend thousands of dollars, expecting every little detail to be just right. Why skimp out on the person paid to capture the beauty you spent so much time and money on? There are ways to cut corners in cost but the photographer is not the best place to do so.

Most companies offer payment plans and will work with you. You can also rearrange your budget by cutting costs with smaller details such as flowers and decor.

Want more information on hiring Captured by Lorraine to photograph your wedding? Click here now!

Captured by Lorraine- Hampshire Il 60140 Phone:630-677-2291 Email: capturedbylorraine@gmail.com