Why should I hire you?
A particularly legit question when you consider the investment involved in hiring a wedding photographer. Investment financially, yes, but also an investment in trust. Why should you hire me to tell the story of one of the most meaningful days of your life?
First of all, if a photographer’s work slays you, then by all means, choose that person. There’s nothing I’d want to say to pull you away from another shooter if his/her makes your insides feel like exploding butterflies. Rather, I’d suggest you do anything you can to ensure that *that* person is photographing you — save save save if he/she is expensive, or change your date if he/she is booked. I’m serious! Photos are the tangible remnants of your experiences — never scrimp on the chance to have breathtaking keepsakes.
But, if you’re here to learn more about me, I’d love to tell you! Please read on below for the key elements that differentiate me from other wedding photographers. You can also catch my bio here.
Five crucial points differentiate me from other photographers:
- I have a professional background in photojournalism and still cover events, places, and people for magazines & publications. I have also shown my work at fine art galleries. So when I write that my style is ‘fine art photojournalism,’ I mean that literally (and have the experience to back it up).
- I’ve assisted on National Geographic assignments [that’s pretty cool, if I do say so myself!], my work has been featured in 100+ publications, such as Wall Street Journal, InStyle, Martha Stewart Weddings, Forbes, Harper’s Bazaar, E!, USA Today, Huffington Post, Variety, Travel Channel, Style Me Pretty, and Ruffled, and I’ve been hired by Big Name clients such as Canon, Dove, Bose, Tinder, Minted, Refinery29, Boot Barn, Deer Valley Resort, Sundance Film Festival, Sunshine Sachs, the Olympic Committee, and OC Tanner.
- Weddings are only a part of my repertoire. Since my body of work and professional experiences constantly vary (commercial, editorial, lifestyle, event, architecture, food), I bring a breadth and depth of perspective that sets me apart from other photographers. You’ll find my work in magazines & blogs and on billboards & websites & ad campaigns. I think this is an important point to emphasize: because my business is not solely wedding photography, I bring an exclusive outlook to everything I shoot and can offer a wider scope of technical and stylistic perspectives.
- I shoot with professional lighting. I don’t mean that I whip out huge lights & umbrellas & reflectors and unnecessarily overcomplicate a natural light shoot. I’m saying that, with me, you’ll have the option to explore any type of photography style you’d like. Do you want to do your engagement or bridal shoot in a studio? You got it. Is your reception in a low-light setting? No problem. Important to note: when you fall in love with a photographer’s wedding coverage, don’t forget to check out how he/she shoots the reception. Are the photos sharp, bright, and true-to-color? Or does he/she use a lot of filters & photoshop editing techniques to cover-up a lack of professional lighting experience? A lot of photographers take beautiful portraits & ceremony images but don’t always nail the reception shots due to a lack of experience shooting in low light. And, your reception photos are an important part of your Day! Everyone you love, kicking back & being silly & having FUN — you don’t want to miss out on those photo opps because your shooter doesn’t have a lighting plan.
- I photograph real people, all the time. Allow me to explain: I’ve noticed a huge trend for even the most talented of wedding photographers to put forth on their site all kinds of gorgeous styled shoots to attract clients. Don’t get me wrong, those images are beautiful. Magic, even. But it’s a bit of a bait-and-switch. Those few photos are the result of several hours of perfectly staged photo shoots, complete with models that pose for a living, a stylist for every single detail, florists & other vendors who are wholly invested in these images seeing publication, and soft, glorious lighting that was timed to the minute. Unless you are REALLY committed to getting idealized photos on your wedding day (most often at the expense of spending time with your loved ones and inconveniencing your guests), you won’t have that type of access to perfection. While I love staging shoots and will happily kill a styled bridal session for you, I just want to take this moment to acknowledge that my advertised imagery and portfolio is, at least 99% anyway, from a Real Wedding Day. Complete with perfect imperfections. 🙂
I’ve come to this five-point conclusion by clicking around through wedding photographer’s pages, so I figured it was worth a FAQ on my own site. Please, feel free to view my comprehensive, not-just-weddings gallery for ideas about your own wedding coverage!
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