[three_fourth last=”yes” spacing=”yes” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” background_position=”left top” border_size=”0px” border_color=”” border_style=”” padding=”” class=”” id=””][imageframe lightbox=”no” style_type=”bottomshadow” bordercolor=”” bordersize=”0px” borderradius=”0″ stylecolor=”#000000″ align=”none” link=”” linktarget=”_self” animation_type=”0″ animation_direction=”down” animation_speed=”0.1″ class=”” id=””] [/imageframe][separator style_type=”shadow” top_margin=”” bottom_margin=”” sep_color=”#0c0c0c” icon=”fa-camera” width=”” class=”” id=””][fusion_text]By: Steven Hicks

We really want this month’s issue to be a valuable resource worth saving for planning that special day. First wedding or third, big bash or small intimate affair, we want there to be something here to make a difference. The images you cherish after the event, and sometimes before, are an extremely important part of entire package. Like they say, if there aren’t pictures, it didn’t happen!

What can SpaceCoast Living offer you as a service regarding your wedding photography?

I’m going to take off my senior editor hat for a few sentences and offer you my advice. Before moving to the Space Coast years ago, I photographed weddings, actually hundreds of them, back when you had to put lm in cameras.

A simple Google search of “wedding photographers” yields over six pages of listings in Brevard County. Limit it to those with above average ratings, and it only cuts o one of those pages. at’s great news! ere are a lot of really great photographers in this area. We checked with the Professional Photographers of America website and got 30 “wedding photographers” within 30 miles of ZIP 32901. at’s not a recommendation over any other way to locate a photographer, unless you value an association of photographers vetting themselves and paying to use that title – PPA – after their name.

Get To Know Your Photographer

Use a combination of websites, referrals and Facebook pages you like, but when you’ve picked one or have the choice down to a couple of candidates, go meet them. Better yet, ask them to come to you. Assuming this is likely one of the most important events in your life, please be comfortable with the man or woman who is capturing it for you for eternity.

Certainly, check out the portfolio and ask for references, but also be sure your personalities mesh. If the photographer offers engagement photos, do that. It will, at the very least, get you familiar with the photographer’s style and personality, and the photographer with yours. Have lunch before. Have a beer or glass of wine together (just an idea…), and get comfortable. On the day of your wedding, if the photographer is learning the bridesmaids’ names, why the groom is calling two different women “mom,” or why this aunt can’t be photographed with that uncle, your day could go less smoothly, image-wise. Ask the photographer to stop by casually and take a few snaps at the rehearsal dinner. Anything you can do to help make the photographer part of the day will work to your advantage. A good photographer will only need a little help in this regard, but it is always appreciated. If you are not comfortable with your photographer, it will show in the photos. You should open that wedding album and remember what a great day it was, not that the photographer was aloof and stiff.

Used Cars,Lending Money and ….

There is another way to know who’s shooting your wedding: ask a friend. Be careful here. Much like not buying a used car from a friend, or lending a friend money, you are trusting a singular event to this person. If that friend has experience shooting weddings or group events, this might just be the perfect fit. If not, consider asking that friend who always has a camera just to take a few extra shots that day. Oh, and tell the person you do hire that you’re doing this. Some photographers don’t like that; it never bothered me. The more the merrier.

At my wedding (and you can imagine the expectations a photographer puts on the shooter of his wedding), I hired one of my students. I taught photography at university at the time of my wedding, and thought it was a great idea to give my star pupil the gig. He did a great job, and got an A that semester. A non- standard solution that worked just fine.

The point is, this is more than a service. You might be an accountant, physical trainer, or a rocket engineer, and your photographer is a photographer. You’re both just regular people trying to do the best you can on that one special day. Get to know each other; you’ll get better photos and you’ll likely have that person back for those first baby portraits.

Okay, putting the senior editor hat back on… below is a QR code which takes you to a listing of the Professional Photographers of America website search results for PPA members in our area. Don’t forget to use your preferred search engine to search locally as well. You’ll find pages and pages of photographers to explore. Pick a photographer and start a conversation.

“Do I Hire a Wedding Photographer or Videographer?”

We’re going to start this brief article with the ending, and then the “why?”

You’ll want both, and you’ll want both done well. These are two similar professional services, but provide totally different results. As we discussed in the article at left, it is vitally important to the success of your photos that you have a connection with your photographer. at also holds true for your videographer, but the additional dynamic is that these two professionals work well together. Once you’ve chosen your imaging team, be sure they meet each other as well.

You may find that a company can o er you both services, and that might make it simpler, but at least meet all the people who will be actually shooting the video or taking the photos. Just because they o er both, doesn’t mean both the videographer and the photographer will suit you, but they may. Stay away from one individual who offers to do both, your day deserves the 100% attention to detail to each of these services. If hiring one company is an attractive alternative to you, consider each aspect completely separately. Don’t be afraid to offer to hire one, but not the other.

When looking at a portfolio for your videographer, if you like what you see, ask if you’re getting the same cameraperson, and equally as important, the same editor. It is very likely your videographer makes his or her own edits, so it should be an easy, “Yes!” If not, your result might not match the quality of what you’re seeing. Both skills are key to a successful video, so ask to see 20 or 30 minutes of a single wedding rather than a five-minute “highlight reel.” While you’re watching, pay close attention to the quality of the video and the audio, as well as how smoothly the transitions (from scene to scene) are edited.

What’s the latest trend in wedding videography? Drones. Yes, drones. Don’t be surprised to see one buzzing around the next wedding you attend. Drones capture awesome sweeping panoramas of the ceremony and reception like no other medium. If you haven’t considered this for your wedding, ask your videographer!

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