There’s big news at Driftwood Photography Studios–I got married just the other weekend! Leading up to/during the big day I found I was constantly asked, “as a photographer, who do [I] hire to photograph [my] own wedding?” I realized that’s a fantastic question, and deserved a fitting answer.
I’m based out of Orange County, California, and the wedding was nearby in Long Beach. The quick answer is I hired local photographer Michael Lallande of Michael Lallande Photography. Of course there’s more to it.
Before I get into why I hired Michael in particular, I think it’s important to discuss some truisms for wedding photography, whether you’re a photographer yourself or not.
General thoughts on hiring a wedding photographer
When looking for a photographer for any wedding, you should be looking for a photographer whose style and body of work you like, whose portfolio showcases work in multiple lighting conditions, who has a solid reputation, and who is professional. Anything and everything can happen on a wedding day, so you want someone equipped and knowledgeable to handle whatever is thrown at them.
Keep in mind the time you set aside to do a zillion posed family portraits will never seem long enough to complete every desired shot, yet paradoxically will keep you away from your guests far longer than you ever want or imagine. From bridal party preparations to separating/gathering your extended family for photos before or after the ceremony, to actually getting them to stop talking and pose for a shot, taking these photos will start later and run longer than you expect.
Odds are you won’t get through that 40-shot portrait list you prepared, in addition to your own wedding portraits. If getting every single possible combination of family portraits is the absolute most important thing for you on your wedding day, just expect things to run very late, and for your other guests to get restless.
In the end are you really going to be that bothered if you have a photograph of yourselves with your aunt, uncle, and cousin, and not separate shots with just your aunt and uncle as well as one with just your cousin plus another with yourselves and them as a family unit? A good wedding photographer will know how to manage time and groupings to ensure you get the most important shots you’ll want in an album and for prints, while also ensuring you’re guests aren’t waiting around for an additional 30 minutes after your cocktail hour ends/before the reception actually starts.
My recommendation is to hire your photographer for their style and ability, then trust they’ll get the core of what you need.
Why I hired whom I did
I do a large portion of my work in the surf industry. In comparison to many other sectors of photography, we’re notoriously underpaid. As such, it was important to me to not only support one of my friends in the industry, but also hire a photographer within my primary professional community.
Most all action sports photographers have the ability to capture the peak action or significant moment in nearly any difficult lighting situation; it’s what we deal with on a daily basis. Many are also great lifestyle photographers, and experienced at composing portraits. A number will shoot weddings during the off-season to supplement their action sports income. Not all will have experience with flash and strobe photography.
When looking for a photographer within the action sports and surf communities, I primarily wanted to hire a photographer whose style and creativity I admire, who has experience shooting not just a multitude of natural lighting situations but flash/strobe photography as well, and who has experience shooting weddings. Before launching into freelance photography Michael was the staff photographer for a major surf-clothing brand. He has experience shooting action, studio, and product photography for international ad campaigns, as well as major events. Since venturing into the world of freelance photography he has added weddings to his repertoire. I didn’t think I’d be able to afford him, but his rates were very reasonable, and I’m happy he was available.
Of course I had a few shots in mind, but for the most part I held my tongue. Nobody likes to be micromanaged. I hired Michael for his style and creativity. It would show in the final photographs if I tried to force him and his second shooter to photograph things along my own style or vision, or to copy photos which my wife had seen online somewhere; I wouldn’t be utilizing him for the very reasons I hired him: his style and vision. That’d be an incredible waste. I also wanted to check out for the day and enjoy my wedding, comfortable in the knowledge that my photographers knew what they were doing.
It can be hard to let go, but you’re (hopefully) not going to tell the band how to tune their instruments, control their soundboard, and exactly which order to play songs. You shouldn’t put similar impositions on your photographer.
I’m used to seeing and knowing what I shot right away, but I’m enjoying the anticipation of what is to come, and can’t wait to see Michael’s final images (though he did send me a few which I’ve shared here!).
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