so... i studied film and photography in school, and whether i am any good or not i think i have pretty high standards for visual imagery (maybe i'm a snob - but whatever,) so when we started looking for photographers i was in heaven looking through all of the gorgeous pictures - but shortly redirected to the hell that is the lack of a budget friendly happy medium when it comes to wedding photographers.
i found that the first number of photographers i inquired about were way out of our price range - like more than half of my entire budget out of my price range - i had no idea. especially now a days when everything is shot digitally so you aren't even factoring the price of film - i was just shocked that $5,000 seemed to be the low end of the spectrum, really? before getting too discouraged i made some appointments with the associate photographers of some of the fancy shmancy studios i was drawn too... except they were still out of my budget and that didnt even include rights to digital files or anything - ridiculous! since photography is something that is really for us and not part of making sure our guests enjoy themselves we were not willing to sacrifice food or any other of the major expenses so we could have a $6,000 photo on our mantel 30 years from now.
so i went back to the hunt and found some more photographers that did fit in our budget, but after meeting with them and going through their books i found myself even more upset. how do some of these people manage to have careers? i've started to seriously consider upgrading my camera and starting to shoot some weddings myself! i was just so frustrated that there was no middle ground...
but then my internet search and blog obsession skills brought me to Sophie of Rise Photography in Portland Maine. a year later i really couldn't tell you how exactly i came across her, perhaps from a local caterer or florists vendor recommendations? i'm really just guessing. well i had a hunch she was the one after checking out the work on her website and seeing that she is not only a wedding photographer but she is a portrait photographer, a fine art photographer, and a gallery owner that brings together local artisans.
what first caught my eye were her gorgeous landscapes. after seeing the cheesy thoughtless line-em-up-shoot-em-down portfolios in my price range i felt like if we could find someone who had the skill to create a beautiful landscape at our sprawling farm location and place us in it i would be a happy girl. well, then we met Sophie and i instantly wanted to just hang out with her, she was easy going, professional, stylish, surrounded by art - really - she couldnt be more perfect. she was the first of our fabulous team of vendors we've come to assemble and i just can't wait to show her our location and have her play around the farm with us. i want to show off some more of her photos so i have broken them up into groups based on what we were looking for in a photographer...so first up, are some more landscapes from some of her recent weddings...
I totally agree that wedding photographers seem to be either amazing or amateur. But the mediocre ones get away with it because not everybody has an eye for visual detail! They just see a sunny day and red flowers and think "oh, pretty, sure I'll hire you."
ReplyDeleteWhen I was looking at albums with my mom I'd say to her after "the composition/lighting didn't impress me" or "I can't believe how blurry the pictures were," and she told me she just does not see what I see. No difference between the ones I like and the ones I don't. Kind of amazing how people's perspectives differ.
amber - you're totally right, someone must be hiring these people right?!
ReplyDeleteYAY for finding someone who's work you adore.
ReplyDeleteI had this problem after i had to re-find a photographer a few weeks ago, my parents (thankfully silently) I don't think understand that I wanted a certain style and standard of photography, and that on top of an all digital package, within a certain price! the ones mum sent me i sort of mentally binned immediately.
ReplyDeletein the end we have come up trumps I feel, but it wasn't without several nights of looking feverishly for someone who would be free 5 months before.
After I had re-booked a friend said to be that she would never have thought of looking further afield for a photographer as you'd think the costs would be too much but I'd recommend it to anyone. the travel costs are the least expensive part of it!
well done you for finding someone you love :)
nice!
ReplyDeleteditto about the photogs, tho. i think when it comes to any sort of arts or service type industry, it's usually a pay-for-what-you-get kinda scenario.