How To Choose Your Mornington Peninsula Wedding Photographer

I'm Brendan, a Mornington Peninsula Wedding Photographer and I'm guaranteed to have photographed more weddings than you've been a guest of. I get hundreds of enquiries a year and the truth is, I'm not the perfect person for all of them. It's really important to choose the right person for your day as it's someone you'll be spending a long time with and they're in charge of capturing and preserving some of the most special moments for the rest of your life.

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Understanding how to choose your wedding photographer will ensure your big day goes as smoothly as it should. Great wedding photographers should be an asset to your day! They should help problems disappear rather than create new ones, listen to what you want and do their absolute best to make your dream a reality.

Sometimes, understanding how to find the perfect wedding photographer may seem a little overwhelming or perhaps even stressful. By taking these four considerations into account, it will make sure your experience is as hassle-free as possible.

1. Style

My first piece of advice for choosing a wedding photographer is to understand their style. It’s this ‘look’ that will be one of the lasting memories of your big day so it’s very important to be happy with it. Individual photographers have their own style, so you should only consider someone if their style evokes the same look you’ve envisioned for your wedding day.

For instance, if you want to look like a model from Vogue magazine (love it, go you!) then you’ll be after a completely different photographer than if you wanted a fun, candid vibe that doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Crossover of certain styles definitely does happen, but if you’re wondering how to choose between two wedding photographers, there’ll always be a single dominant style that you need to love. Often, this look is determined by the photographer’s own preferences, experience and the events or weddings they’ve photographed previously. Some may even come from other photographic backgrounds like shooting editorial work or high fashion for a magazine which will further influence their style.

Wondering what to tell your wedding photographer? While you could ask someone to replicate a certain style, you and the photographer will have a far better time if you pick something you’re certain they can shoot, in a style that you love. If your vision doesn’t match up, you won’t be getting their best work on your big day.

If you're keen to get to know my style, head over to my weddings page and you'll get a great selection of the photos, people and moments I love to take.

2. Vibe

Photographers all have different vibes, some of which will work perfectly for your wedding while others won’t. There’s no right or wrong answer, it’s just something you’ll need to think about. 

There will often be two types of vibe you’ll encounter with a photographer (noting there's natural a crossover of both): The first will take charge of the day, organise family photoshoots, get you to pose in a particular way and structure the evening to make the most out of every last second of the day.

The other type of photographer may act as more of a fly on the wall, inconspicuous in their operation. They’ll capture those candid, little moments that make your day feel as authentic as possible. Both are signs of a good wedding photographer.

3. Budget

While it may be tempting to opt for a new, cheaper photographer, paying slightly more for someone with more experience is something I’d always recommend. I like to think of this added price as insurance.

I think it’s highly possible for new photographers to get very similar results on the day of the wedding if everything goes to plan and the light works in their favour (assuming they’re actually competent photographers in the first place). The problems start when the day doesn’t go to plan, or when the light is terrible.

If your venue doesn’t have great lighting, you’ll want someone experienced in getting the most out of what’s there, choosing photography spots within the venue and positioning everyone throughout the day. As a last resort, bringing their own lighting to ensure nothing but the best for your day is something you should expect an experienced photographer to do.

While there are many things that determine a photographer’s price, the more experienced photographer will usually have the know-how that makes your photos look their absolute best no matter what happens on the day.

4. Recommendations

The last tip for choosing your wedding photographer is to get recommendations. If they’re being referred to you by friends who’ve had an incredible experience before, that’s a great sign. If a venue recommends a certain photographer, the chances are that they know their way around the location and can ensure your photography on the day will go swimmingly.

If you check on Google, remember that most service-based industries are often ‘ranked’ or given a star rating slightly differently than somewhere like a restaurant. What you can take from these reviews is what people are actually saying about the photographers. Are they happy? How did they act during the day? What kind of vibe or energy do they give off? These are also great questions to ask a wedding photographer.

Choosing your wedding photographer is often a pivotal moment in planning your wedding. By following these tips you’ll ensure it’s as stress-free as possible. Still looking for your wedding photographer? Get in touch and let’s start planning!