Choosing to have a wedding photo and video team might be one of the best decisions you make for your wedding day. Imagine that 10 years have passed and you’re celebrating your anniversary. What do you think you’ll look at to remember your wedding day? Well, probably your photos and video. We want to make sure that you have all the information you need to pick the wedding photo and video team that’s the best fit.
Why Wedding Photo and Video Both Matter
More and more couples are choosing to hire both a wedding photographer and videographer. Why? Well, these are two very different mediums that document a wedding day differently.
Traditionally, wedding photography has been the way to go. Wedding portrait photography has been around since the 1840s so this concept isn’t new.
With the rise of video—due in part to the rise of video content in social media—wedding videography as an artform entered the scene intriguing many couples.
Photography freezes time to capture beautiful moments before they fade. Videography keeps these beautiful moments alive and full of movement.
“The best decision I made was choosing Vallosio Photo + Film for my wedding. So organized and so kind. Listened to what we wanted and remembered – even if you sent them something random from Instagram. The photos told the story, but the video truly brought the day back to life. It was important to me that I could hire one person to do both photo and video so everything was coordinated. They 100% delivered! Excited to look at these pics and videos for the rest of our lives.”
-Hank + Carrie
Hiring a Team
Should you choose to hire both a wedding photographer and videographer, consider hiring the same team to capture both mediums. Doing this will save you a lot of stress with coordination because the team will know how to work together. They know how to get the best images and footage and how to stay out of each other’s shots.
Having a team that’s a couple is even better because you have two people to model a prompt for you. This is something Jonathan and I have a lot of fun doing for our couples. We usually end up laughing trying to show a prompt while having all our gear strapped to us, haha.
With a wedding photo and video team, you receive a seamless editing style where your photos and videos match. In our case, your photos and videos will have a similar story, editing, and overall vibe.
“Jonathan and Ashley make the most incredible team! They know just how to put everyone at ease and their presence brought peace to our wedding day. They captured priceless beautiful moments that we will treasure forever. Every time I look at the photos, they bring tears of joy to my eyes because they capture the emotion of the day, with every beautiful detail preserved for a lifetime. When we saw the final video, I was moved to tears. It was like our wedding day was coming to life all over again. I look forward to watching our video often and showing it to my kids and grandkids to come. This is the most personal and professional team I’ve ever worked with!”
-Rachel + Josh
What you need to know before contacting any photo/video vendors:
- What style or aesthetic are you wanting for your wedding day? And therefore, what vibe you want your images and video to have?
- Every photographer and videographer has a different style so know what you hope to have as a final product before reaching out to a team with a similar style. (Ex: candid/documentary style, posed/editorial style, light + airy editing, dark + moody editing, true to life editing, cinematic/romantic style, home-video style, etc.)
- Do you have an approximate date and location for your wedding day?
- See if the wedding team you reach out to is available on that day and in that location. If finding the right team is most important to you, then you can have a flexible date/location so you can book them when they are available.
- What price range are you wanting to stay within or are you flexible?
- If you have a specific budget, be up front about this with yourselves and look for teams in that budget.
- How much of a connection do you want to have with your wedding photo and video team?
- If connecting with your team is important, pay attention to the personalities of those you reach out to. You can understand a lot about people through the way they speak on their websites and on social media. From there, reach out for a video call and see who makes you feel most comfortable.
What do the best wedding photography and video teams have?
When you have made the decision that you want a wedding photography and video team, there are some things you should make sure that team has. From your inquiry until you receive your photos and video, you want to have a positive experience with them. These are the things we fully believe the best wedding photography and video teams have.
- A contract that will protect clients as well as the photographer/videographer team. Contracts include important dates, refund policies, payment plans, delivery timeframes, model releases, copyright/personal right information, and so much more.
- They have up-front pricing without hidden fees. It helps when they have their starting prices on their website so you know what the approximate pricing might be.
- When reaching out, they are organized and communicative. They respond to you in a reasonable timeframe, communicate clearly, and answer your questions.
- Part of their inquiry process involves hopping on a call with you so you can meet. These calls are for answering questions, getting to know one another, and allowing for both parties to see if they connect. Let’s be honest, it’s less scary to consider hiring someone if you meet them first which is why we have calls with couples that inquire.
- They have experience and can show you FULL galleries and videos—not just website and social highlights. You want to see what a real couple’s gallery or video looks like to know what you will get.
In addition to the items above, they should also be able to answer your questions like:
- What’s your backup plan if you can’t be there?
- What’s the entire process like if we decide to book with you from inquiry to gallery and video delivery?
- Is there a certain number of weddings/elopements you do each year?
- This helps you to know how personalized an experience you get and how busy they are.
- Do you have a shotlist that you work from so that you know everything we want captured?
- What rights do we have to the photos and video?
- Typically clients will get personal rights for the images/video while the photo and video team will retain the copyrights. This is usually shared in the contract. In our case it is also covered in a sub-contract sharing an explanation of rights.
- How will we receive our images and videos? Will they be high resolution?
- How many photos and how long of a video will we receive with your packages?
- How do you work with other vendors?
- This way you know if they will connect with your vendors or if you will be the go-between.
- If images/footage are lost or files are corrupt, how do you mitigate the loss of these items?
- Weddings are high-stake events and they need to have a plan for backups should something like this happen.
What are red flags to look for?
If a wedding photo and video team does not have a contract, that’s a red flag. You want to have a legally binding contract to keep everything up front and in writing when it comes to weddings.
If you ask to see their previous work and they have nothing to show, this is a bit suspicious. They might be new and if you want to go with someone new, that’s your choice. It’s a little bit of a risk as you don’t know exactly what you’ll be getting.
Newer photo and video teams starting out might have lower prices and, if that’s what you want, go for it! Just remember that you get what you pay for.
When reaching out, you should hear back from them within a reasonable time. Now, sometimes there can be a delay in response due to vacation or something. Make sure that whoever you’re considering makes time for you and you don’t get lost in the shuffle.
For newer photographers and videographers, they might not have a website and only be on social media. Proceed with caution as we know there can be bots and scams on social media. You want to be sure they are real people with a real business.
If you decide to reach out and they are unable to answer your questions, they might not be the right fit. If your question is outside of their expertise (not photo/video related), they will direct you to the right resources. As the professionals, they should be able to answer your photo and video questions.
Photo and Video for Wedding
We hope this information gives you peace of mind as you figure out what is best for your wedding day. We personally believe that wedding photo and video is one of the best things you can spend money on for your wedding day. When all is said and done, this is what you have left to bring everything back to life. These are the heirlooms that get passed down-they are truly priceless.
Of course, if you have questions, you can reach out and contact Jonathan and I here. We would love to talk with you about your wedding day and any wedding photo and video needs you might have.
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