Your wedding day is one of the most important events in your life, and choosing the right photographer is crucial to capturing those special memories. If you’re planning a wedding in Spokane, Washington, you have many talented photographers to choose from. However, asking a few key questions can help narrow down your options and find the perfect match for your big day.
Here are 10 questions to help you choose the right Spokane wedding photographer for your special day
Planning your wedding can be stressful, but finding the right photographer doesn’t have to be. Before hiring a Spokane wedding photographer, here are 10 important questions to ask:
1. What is your style of photography?
This is probably the first thing you’ve looked at as you start to narrow down your search. How do the photos look? How do they feel? What do you love or hate about the photos? Here at CBP you will see a mix of photojournalism and fine art influenced wedding photography techniques. For more about our wedding photography style and approach, chekc out our About Us page.
2. How do you approach a wedding day?
There is a lot of prep leading up to a wedding day! Of course, we can’t control everything, and being a wedding photographer is all about adapting and problem-solving.
We do a few different things to ensure we’re as prepared as possible before heading to a wedding.
- Have our couples fill out a questionnaire: This is a very detailed questionnaire that we study AND carry with me throughout the entire wedding day.
- Communication: Communication is truly key with couples. Having an outdoor wedding, but the forecast looks rainy? We’ll be talking to you and researching solutions to develop a backup plan days before your ceremony.
- Backup Photographers: Just in case anything unexpected would occur that would limit us from being able to shoot your wedding, I have a network of photographers who can fill in so you would never be left hanging.
- Shooting style: we use a variety of equipment that prepares us for any situation. We are prepped for tough lighting, tricky spaces, and most of all able to be discreet when necessary. But don’t worry, we will be there to give you plenty of direction when the time calls for it.
3. Can you show me examples of full weddings you have shot?
Every wedding photographer should have a portfolio that is easily accessible on their website. A gallery is the best way to see if your photographer’s style matches your overall vision for your wedding day.
If you are getting married in a popular location that the photographer has shot before, also ask if they have an example for your specific venue to view. If couples ever ask to see additional photos, we’re always happy to help out!
This is also a great way to get an idea of the photographer’s experience level. Just because a photographer has been doing weddings for 5 years, they may have only shot 25 weddings. As wedding photographers who have photographed over 100 weddings, we have developed our own way to guage experience when we are hiring second photographers and associates as lead photographers (aka not under our direct guidance) using the chart below:
- 1-5 Weddings – Inexperienced
- 6-10 Weddings – Amateur (Qualified as a second photographer)
- 10-20 Weddings – Knowledgable
- 21-30 Weddings – Experienced
- 31+ Weddings – Professional (Qualified as an associate photographer)
4. Do you offer engagement photo sessions? Are they included in your package or add-ons?
Some photographers include an engagement session in their package, and some choose not to. If you are also interested in an engagement session, ask your photographer if they have a package that includes it. Even if they don’t have a package, you can almost always add it as an a-la-carte option!
We love including a complimentary engagement session in our wedding experince, because it gives us the opportunity to meet our couples and help them feel more confident in front of the camera come the wedding day!
Looking for some engagement photo inspo? Check out this gorgeous downtown engagment session!
5. How many hours do you provide in a typical package and what is the cost for additional hours if necessary?
Knowing up front the photographer’s policy on coverage and overages is critical. You don’t want to be surprised when your wedding photographer asks for an additional $1,000 before they release your pictures to you. Even worse, you don’t want your wedding photographer to just pack up and leave when their time is up.
Want to know what our wedding photography experience includes? We’d love to send over our wedding price guide. Head over to to our contact page to get in touch!
Want more wedding ideas and inspo? Check out this gorgeous spring wedding boquet inspiration!
6. Will I receive all the images from my wedding day? If so, in what format will they be provided – raw or edited version?
When a photographer delivers images to you, it’s important to consider how you will be experiencing your wedding day gallery. You may hear the term “RAW” thrown around and wonder if you need that. RAW photos are simply the photos directly from the camera, and shot in RAW format rather than JPEG. Many photographers do not deliver these because 1. they are very large files that require a special program to open them and 2. they are an unfinished product. Think of it like getting an uncooked meal.
Here at Caleb + Britt Photography, we color correct, crop, and straighten every single image to make sure each one is professional quality. Keep reading the next question for more information on how many images you should expect!
7. When will we receive our photos and how many should we expect to receive?
Each wedding photographer varies in the time it takes to produce and deliver your pictures. Studios that do not do any post production or color correction may try to entice you by saying your photos will be ready within the week, or even the next day. However, most studios that develop and produce their images will take anywhere from 2 weeks to 6 months.
We have developed a consistent production schedule in order to deliver an amazing product in an exceptionally quick manner. Our turn around times are listed below:
- 3-4 Weeks for Engagement, Family, Newborn, and Anniversary Photography Sessions
- 6-8 Weeks for Weddings
The number of images will also vary by photographer. While we do go through the images to remove any duplicates, blinking, etc. we do love to include enough images to tell your story. Our wedding galleries typically include 800-1000 images.
These questions can help determine whether the photographer’s vision aligns with yours and also give insight into their working style, professionalism, and pricing structure before making any commitments.
Are You Having A Wedding In Spokane And Want Us To Photograph It?
Head over to our contact page and fill out our form and we’ll be in touch ASAP!
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