Begin looking for a photographer as soon as possible. Photographers who provide the best service and highest value usually fill up first. Peak season dates book up a year or more in advance. In contrast to years ago, autumn dates are booking as fast as June.

How do I find the best photographer?

Shop around. Talk with at least 3 wedding photographers. In general, look to professional studios for artistic interpretation and look to weekend shooters for the lowest price. Shopping around is a big help to you in the final comparison, because no two photographers offer the exact same service. It will also protect you from fast-talking sales pitches.

Next, look for these FIVE things that define a good photographer and professional:

1. Someone who cares about you, the customer
2. Consistency
3. Quality
4. Skill
5. A person with whom you can work.

Every true artist brings to his/her craft a personal style that may or may not appeal to you. Look for the thread that binds together sample work you are shown. Ask to view albums from a single wedding and look for consistency of quality and style. Within certain boundaries, an artist can provide what you want, but ultimately their "eye" will dictate the general style of photographs offered to you. Beware of sample books that only show a print or two from each wedding. You should look at proof books or finished albums with many photographs from the same wedding.

Even if you just want simple documentary coverage of your wedding day, it's important to identify and discuss what you want from a photographer, artistically and otherwise.

What should I expect to pay for wedding photography?

There are three things you are paying for when you hire a photographer:

• the photographer's time
• the photographer's experience and skill
• the photographer's equipment and materials

Many wedding packages do not include prints or albums and mainly provide for the photographer's time and services only. When the proof book is provided to the client after a wedding, it must usually be returned to the photographer with the reprint order. A refundable deposit is usually required.

Some photographers make negatives available to their clients for an added cost. This can be valuable in later years when the photographer (or client) is harder to locate. Negatives remaining in the possession of a studio are typically destroyed after a defined period of time. In this case, make sure you are easy to contact.

Prices of wedding packages vary from about $600 to greater than $2000. The lower price might buy a very simple package (perhaps 2 hours) and/or a less experienced photographer. The high end package might provide more time, higher quality, perhaps some prints and usually a more experienced photographer. Do not expect to find a seasoned pro for under $1000.

A photographer invests a great deal of time before, during and after a wedding. This time and the benefits of his/her experience photographing weddings is not always apparent until the job is done. Controlling light, managing people, posing groups, acceding to the wills of the client/s, exposing film properly AND being creative - all at the same time - is a unique challenge, not to be underestimated. Many couples are disappointed with the results when a friend or relative shoots their wedding photos. Many professional photographers, in fact, will either not shoot weddings at all or will charge very high prices because of the time commitment and unique stresses of the job.

Consider the end product before you pay a deposit in advance.

How do I know if I'll be getting a good value?

Good wedding photographs are an investment. If the photographer you choose is a professional, then you can expect to receive professional materials and services. Good materials include quality film, processing and printing. Good service includes experienced people, caring attitudes and attention to detail.

The adage "you get what you pay for" is as common in wedding photography as elsewhere in the business world. However, price is only one component of value. Scrutinize just where costs are cut with lower priced packages and providers.

Half the cost is often less than half the product.

Since there are more and less obvious components to high quality photography, it's the buyer's responsibility to clarify what is being promised - including quality of materials and service. Ten years into the future is too late for a refund for albums full of yellowed pictures, disintegrating pages, and awkward facial expressions in the pictures.

Some valuable quality indicators are:

• professional track record
• professional attitude
• technical proficiency
• quality materials
• archival films, paper and albums

How do I recognize and compare quality?

Quality is a way of doing business.

In wedding photography, quality includes the person working for you as well as the product they ultimately deliver to you.

Look critically at the package features and the materials used to sell a photographer's services. Use these guidelines:

• Ask for examples of a typical and complete wedding as it was presented to a customer before you. It's not completely helpful or fair to see a display album with only the choicest examples of a photographer's work collected over many years.
• Ask how many photographs will be taken and how much time is included in each package.
• Ask who will actually be photographing your wedding. The principal photographer of a studio may provide another, less senior photographer, during some or all of the assignment. You should ask to see samples of their work, too.
• Ask what format of film (and camera) is used. Typical film formats (in order of increasing size) include 35mm, 6x4.5cm, and 6x7 cm. Each fornmat has its benefits. The larger format films are best for fine art and group photographs. Candids are best shot with a 35mm film. If the entire wedding is shot in medium format beware of the number of photos you get and the (lack of) spontaneity in those pictures.
• Ask about the paper and processing quality. The easiest thing a photographer can do to cust costs is use cheap proofs, amateur quality film processing and inexpensive albums. An enormous proportion of higher priced wedding packages is usually direct costs like film and processing.
• Ask what you will get to keep for the price you pay a photographer up front. Ask for a reprint price list, make up a realistic mock reprint order and then compare on the basis of these costs.
• Ask about the availability of the negatives. Although most photographers do not sell or include negatives in their wedding packages, if they do, the value of these should be taken into consideration when comparing costs. Few professionals include negatives, but then few hobbyists offer the experience and quality that professionals do.

How well do those "disposable" point-and-shoot cameras work at a wedding reception?

These simple plastic cameras, usually left on tables for guests, can add a few nice candid shots to your chronicle of the day, but shouldn't be counted on for more than a small supplement to professional coverage.

There are significant technical limitations in the flash, optics and film used in these gadgets, so be aware that the quality will be noticeably low and enlargement will not be practical. When in use, it's a game of roulette chancing who will shoot the pictures and how seriously they will take the job. Whether you buy one camera per table or one per person, consider the cost and how many pictures won't turn out. Also think about your expectation for quality in your wedding photos and then think of all the snapshots people have shown you over the years - most probably exposed wrong, or with backs turned, blurry, etc. And those are typically shot with more advanced cameras.

If you use leave these cameras out on tables at the reception, try to find a way to limit use by children. I've seen countless pictures taken with these cameras by small children, usually stopping only when the film is out.

How should I schedule my wedding day?

First, make sure you know how much time the photographer is providing. Then decide what photographs are most important to you. Look for picture lists in wedding planning guides. There may be tradeoffs of time or film frames, so be selective. If you want photographs of the bride and bridesmaids dressing before the ceremony, that might leave less time at the reception. Similarly, if you want outdoor location photographs, you must leave adequate time between the ceremony and reception. These are the most common tradeoffs, but also consider others. For example, if there is a private celebration or special wedding party activity planned between the ceremony and reception, consider how this might take valuable time away from your photographer.

Next, decide whether the bride and groom will see one another before the ceremony. Most formal poses require both the bride and groom in the same shots. Therefore, most of the formal pictures can only be done after the ceremony if the bride and groom cannot see one another beforehand. Whether separate or together, consider what photos can be done before the ceremony. This will save time later, and provides for a "fresher" and less nervous appearance on everyone. It may seem counterintuitive, but my experience is rthat almost all brides and grooms are more enthusiastic and romantic about pictures before the wedding than after. If you've ever served in the wedding party at a friend's wedding, you probably remember the chaos and pressure after the wedding. The bride and groom are usually pretty grumpy and/or too excited to get to the reception.

Finally, leave plenty of time for group photos! After adding together travel time, miscellaneous delays, receiving line, and the normal "chaos" of any big event, leave enough time for a relaxed photography session with the wedding party and relatives. In our experience, this session usually lasts 1 - 2 hours. The receiving line works best after pictures or at the reception. Remember to leave the candles burning and decorations up on pews and the altar. Designate someone who knows your family and friends to be your helper, to gather everyone together for the next picture. You want the photographer photographing - and also you don't want the photographer trying to gather together people he's never met. Use your time (and the photographer's time) wisely and recruit the help of an organized family member.

Additional location work requires additional time and planning. Coordinate location shoots well with your photographer. Think ahead and look for locations that won't be crowded on the day of your wedding. Outdoor locations require a backup plan in case of rain.

Once I've made a decision, what do I do next?

1. Sign the photographer's contract after agreeing on: