Photographers get this response very often, “your hour session is how much?” or “that’s all I get?”
Here’s some food for thought: When your wedding is over, after a year of planning, all the food, all the decorations, the guests, the cake, the mess, what do you have left to show for the most important day of your life? Nothing, that is NOTHING BUT YOUR MEMORY—IN PHOTOS! I broke it down earlier today, for a “inexpensive” wedding photographer, you’ll pay around $1300-$1500+, sounds high to some people, right? Broken down into the hours spent that your photographer actually puts into a wedding, they make about $8-$10 an hour! If you want specifics, I can break it down for you. When you are on a “BUDGET” for your wedding, consider this, can’t afford that $1000 DJ, or $2000 Caterer??…..look for someone with experience that will do it within your budget… Can’t find one, look here:http://www.budgetbrides.org.

Some brides spend $3500 or more on the Venue, there’s SO MANY beautiful places to be married at a much more reasonable price. You’d be surprised at how beautiful a backyard wedding can be!

Think about what’s left when you are all said and done….NOTHING BUT YOUR MEMORY—IN PHOTOS. The photos you have left over from your big day, should be the most important thing on the list, besides your better half of course. And consider this, if you hire a photographer for $500, or a family friend to use their dlsr they bought for $400 at Best Buy, that’s exactly what you’ll get, someone with no experience documenting the MOST important day of your life. Is that really what you want? I regrettably did not have a photographer at my wedding, and every time I look back at my photos it makes me sad, yes sad, because it was a beautiful day and we only have a handful of photos to prove it. Taken by a friend, not even with a dslr…only with a point and shoot.

You really do get what you pay for.

Most people have no idea the amount of hours that go into a wedding or editing just a family session. Broken down, about 40-70 hours, yes you heard right, 1 to 2 weeks worth of work. Ask yourself this: Would I work for $8-$10 an hour? The answer is most often than not, NO!

Oh and for the mom who doesn’t want to get in a family photo because you think you are too big or want to wait till you lose 10 more lbs, {not to break your heart} but it’s NOT about YOU! YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL TO YOUR CHILDREN, and NO MATTER WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT YOUR LOOKS, YOUR CHILDREN LOVE YOU NO MATTER WHAT. When you are gone, it won’t matter to your children what your weight was when you took that photo, it WILL ONLY MATTER THAT YOU WERE IN THAT PHOTO–BECAUSE THAT’S WHAT’S LEFT OVER—YOUR MEMORY—IN PHOTOS! To them, that is PRICELESS! Trust me, they will cherish the photo long after you are gone, so when you think you can’t afford a photographer, remember this, your photos are PRICELESS!!!!!!! Oh and don’t forget to print them!