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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask about wedding photography

36 replies

spooniestudent · 12/02/2017 23:00

Recently got engaged and have now started planning. Trying to buget appropriate amounts for each part of the wedding and am a bit stuck on the photos. Was wondering if there were any photographers that could give me an idea of prices or anyone who has got married recently etc. Thanks

OP posts:

Cinderpi · 12/02/2017 23:05

Congratulations!

We paid about £1200 in 2015 for photos from getting ready to sitting down for dinner. This included money towards the photographer's travel and accommodation as we were getting married in a very remote area, and a memory stick of the photos.

This was the cheapest quote we got from a professional.

It was the single most expensive part of our wedding and well worth it!

WanderingNotLost · 12/02/2017 23:06

Depends where you live. Most in London are around the £2k mark.

creepymumweirdo · 12/02/2017 23:08

That's good advice. We got a flakey as fuck mate of DHs to do our wedding photography as a 'gift' and it was shit. My friends took better photos.

Before getting married I'd have said spending loads on a photographer was mental but having done it I'd rather we'd charged for the bar and got some photos of our day that don't make me squirm.

sonyaya · 12/02/2017 23:08

Mine is £1500 plus £250 for an engagement shoot - he's a London photographer but does a lot of weddings at my venue up north as apparently knows the owners. He is pricey. I would put a reserve of around £1,000 in if you're marrying on a Saturday.

It depends what package you get too - do you want them there to photograph you getting ready? To stay for the first dance? Do you want the price to include any photo albums etc?

The part of the country you're in will affect it too.

If you are on a budget, look for a photography student or someone starting out who will often do it cheaply on the basis they need to build their portfolio. They often post in wedding forums to advertise this.

Congratulations and happy planning!

OvariesBeforeBrovaries · 12/02/2017 23:23

Congratulations on your engagement :) I got married in December. We paid £650 for photography from bridal prep to after the first dance, well worth it because our photographer blended into our day seamlessly and the pictures are amazing :)

lurkymclurkerson · 12/02/2017 23:29

Congratulations! We're getting married in November and are paying £1200 for a full day package including photo booth in the evening and a pre-wedding shoot (which we're not bothered about, but as it's included...)
It's definitely the highest cost after the venue/food/etc but the photos are the things that will last and we'll have for years to come. We're based in the Midlands and all of the quotes we had were between £1000 and £1800.

raviolidreaming · 12/02/2017 23:33

Yep, totally depends where you are. We paid ~£500 until after the first dance and our photos were fab!

sizeofalentil · 12/02/2017 23:38

£1000-£2000 is about the average. Spend more on the photographer and scrimp on other stuff if you have to.

We hired this lady and she was marvellous www.annapumerphotography.com/

Mrsglitterfairy · 12/02/2017 23:40

Congratulations and happy planning
We got married last year and got an amazing deal on our photography. We paid £700 for 2 photographers, one came to me when I was getting ready and the other to DH before the church and then right through to the end of the night. We also got a photobooth for 3 hours with unlimited visits and 2 copies of each print in that. We only got the pics on a DVD and memory stick but with full copyright so we could have them printed as and when we wanted. We booked in 2014 though and looking at his website now, the same package would cost us in excess of £1500 so we got lucky.
I would say just look around, if you're on a lower budget maybe think about someone who is relatively new to weddings (as ours was back when we booked him) and consider just getting a memory stick of pictures rather than prints, albums etc

kel1234 · 12/02/2017 23:53

My husband is semi professional and charges £400 for a wedding. This includes all aspects of the day, and him editing the photos afterwards, and putting them on a cd (he's never been asked to print any).
He says that the standard price here for a professional would be £600 minimum. His friend is professional, and we were extremely lucky, because he photographed our wedding (groom getting ready, bride and family getting ready, before, dying and after the service, and all the reception. He also let us choose the final images we wanted in the album, and edited them so they looked perfect), as a wedding present. So we got it for free.
I do think a good photographer is well worth it after the disastrous job my aunt did of my mums second wedding.

RhodaBorrocks · 13/02/2017 00:15

In the SE you should be expecting to pay at least £1k for a decent photographer.

And you should never scrimp on a professional videographer either if you want one.

Neither are as simple as picking up a camera and pointing it. They are skilled professionals and spend hours and hours editing afterwards.

I used to co-run a wedding photography and videography company with my ex.

Original poster

spooniestudent · 13/02/2017 00:56

Thanks all we're happy to put a fair amount of the budget for it, it's basically going to be the most expensive day in either of our lives and the photos will be the thing we get to take away, so willing to spend on them. We're looking at se on a Saturday in august, and I would quite like pics o me and the bridesmaids/ my mum getting ready so I know it's going to cost quite a bit

OP posts:

AudreyBradshaw · 13/02/2017 05:42

Agree with everyone else about spending the time to do the research and the money for the right photographer.

I was talked into having a relative do our photos. I literally don't have a single good/nice/in focus/in shot photo of me on my wedding day. Literally, not one. And it's gutting. I cried for a week.

meeerkat · 13/02/2017 05:56

I would say budget a minimum of £1500, them see what different packages are available with different photographer.

The cheaper the cost I would expect you get less coverage of the day, or digital images only, no album etc.

Mouse510 · 13/02/2017 06:07

We paid £1500 and that was all day from getting ready to the final dance. As with PP it was the most expensive element of the day but completely worth it. We have a beautiful album and hundreds of wonderful photographs.

ellesbellesxxx · 13/02/2017 06:35

We paid £600 for 3 hours so from when I arrived to when we went in for dinner.. different packages were available but this worked for us and I love our photos :) came on a memory stick

LongtimeLurkerNowPokemonHunter · 13/02/2017 06:41

We've been quoted 1400-1800 for a double photographer in Scotland. 1200 for single. Digital images only.

Mamabear14 · 13/02/2017 06:50

We are paying £795 for bridal prep to evening but we aren't having an evening so will just find somewhere to have nice photos. Also will have put some money behind the bar for him to eat and have soft drinks. We are in Devon so probably cheaper than big cities etc.

yellowsun · 13/02/2017 06:55

A relative did ours and I totally regret it as the photos are such an Important part of the day.

One of my best friends is a wedding photographer. Having seen the hours and commitment that goes into the job, they are worth every penny.

She is amazing and here if you are interested- www.michellewaspe.com

PigletWasPoohsFriend · 13/02/2017 07:04

In the SE in August you are looking at about 2k.

DSIL is getting married there about that time and that was roughly the price she has paid.

You may find quite a few are now booked though.

HeCantBeSerious · 13/02/2017 07:11

We spent about £2k 13 years ago.

TheresABluebirdOnMyShoulder · 13/02/2017 07:13

We paid £1250 in 2015 for photos from getting ready to first dance. Photographer was amazing. Really incredible. He's won a ton of awards since then and I believe he charges £1750 now for the same package.

I don't regret a penny of it. Aside from each other, the photos are the only thing we'll keep from the day and we look at them often. I've seen friends' photos where they've paid £300 or whatever and the difference in quality is vast. They have better pictures from their guests.

StumblyMonkey · 13/02/2017 07:17

We're having this guy in Surrey in December:

www.nealejames.com

On the expensive side but we love the photofilms he does where he adds parts of the vows and speeches and background music.

He is £2000 plus £500 for the photofilm. That's from the 'getting dressed' shots through to an hour or so after the first dance to capture a bit of the party.

MrsPringles · 13/02/2017 07:18

I got married in December, as it was off peak and not typical wedding season, we found a photographer we loved and managed to haggle a bit.

We had 4 hours of photography, 12.30-4.30 (from guests arriving at the venue to speeches - we had our speeches at 4pm and mean immediately after) and it was perfect. It cost £600.
We got all the shots we wanted, just received the USB back with the photos back and we have 150 edited and altogether she took 900 photos

Was so happy, if you happen to be in Kent and need a r commendation. Happy to PM you OP.

Liverbird77 · 13/02/2017 07:35

We are paying 600 for a July wedding in Liverpool

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