Yuan + Marcos [Boston Country Club Wedding]

BOSTON WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

How many hours do I need a photographer for at our wedding? Four hours? Less? Eight hours? More? You’re saying to yourself: I have no idea. And yet, here you are, reviewing packages and pricing for photographers, and they (myself included!) are asking you to select from a Six Hour Package, Eight Hour Package... how do you decide, especially when you’ve only just begun your wedding planning?.

I’ve been a photographer for all duration of weddings, and when it comes to deciding how long you should hire your photographer for, I find it’s best to start with answering: what’s the first moment you would like to photograph on your wedding day and what’s the last? For example, let’s say you would love to capture images of you getting ready in the morning with your bridesmaids and groomsmen. This would be your starting point — your first moment — and you’d ask for your photographer to arrive then. Next, consider the last image of the day you’d love to see captured. If that last moment is your cake cutting, this would be your photographer’s end point. If you want to document some of the dancing that follows at the reception, then that would be your end point. Or, are you leaving the reception in a fancy getaway car at the close of the night and that’s a must-have picture moment for you? Then that’s your end point. From there, tally up the total duration from start to end, and that’s how long you’ll need your photographer for.

All this might seem evident, but when you’re just starting to plan your wedding, it can be misleading to select your photography package based on how long you have booked your venues for. Because, more often than not, you’ll want to capture moments prior to the venues (such as getting ready), and, just as common, you might conclude photography before your reception comes to a close. A good example of this is dancing at the reception. You’ll often have two or three hours of dancing and mingling to close out the festivites, but a good hour of photography is honestly all most need to capture the spirit of that chapter in the evening. By shaving hours off the end of the day, you could then start your photography earlier for those really unique moments like putting on the dress, portraiture time together, and greeting family and friends.

Again, when you think in terms of images and the moments you’d like to capture, you can select a package better suited for your needs and event. When I meet clients for an initial consultation, we’ll have this very conversation, and I’ll work with you to create a custom package that accommodates your photography timeline. If I think you need more hours, I’ll explain why. But if I think we can be more economical , I’ll share that as well. And as your planning evolves, it’s very easy to add more time to your package as needed.

Good luck with your planning, and please do reach out if you’d like to consider me being part of your day!