One of the most costly parts of planning a wedding is your photographer, and that’s where you have the most flexibility to save money on your wedding photography. In order to do so, though, you need to be proactive and start saving now. In this article, I’m going to give you five ways to do exactly that.
1. Buy Photo Credit Card
With more photographers starting to move away from making a commission on their wedding photography, there’s been a lot more money shifting from the photographer to the client, and it’s no surprise that photographers are raking in more and more in the industry.
It’s important to keep track of all expenses throughout your wedding. That way, if your photographer doesn’t submit a specific receipt and they’re paid up on their contract, you can still give your guests a photo credit card that you know they’re going to use for their social media pages or blog posts.
You can buy photo credit cards from major photography vendors to save even more, like WhiteLightCollective, Shorelight Photography, and the Wedding Photography Company, and take photos, for instance. Each has its own deals, so look into that for your wedding photographer as well.
2. Save Money with the Save On Us Credit Card
The same thing applies to photographers selling wedding photography through their own websites. Get your wedding photographer to sign up for a special discount card that can save you even more money.
Use it for your sitters, flowers, decorations, catering, venues, and photographers. If you can get a discount on your wedding photography, that can definitely save you money.
My personal recommendation is to use the Save On Us Credit Card. You can get $40 off your wedding photography services, and it comes in handy in a lot of situations. For example, you could pay off your photographer for a week or two in advance of your wedding day.
We’ve heard about photographers getting their own wedding credit cards in the past, so you might want to check out their websites. Some are even offering special wedding photography packages with discounted pricing.
Some photographers have even gotten discounts from their clients in the past, so keep an eye out for that if that’s a possibility in your situation.
3. Find Smaller Photographers for Your Wedding
Smaller photographers might not be the right fit for your wedding, especially if you need lots of space and multiple photographers. You’re probably in the position where you’re trying to decide if you can afford to hire one photographer, but if you think your photographer is just too expensive, check out different photographers.
Don’t go crazy and spend a lot of money on one photographer. Find photographers with smaller businesses that might give you a different kind of experience on your wedding day. If you have an average wedding day budget of $10,000, it might be a good idea to pick up two photographers for a few thousand dollars less.
Keep an eye out for photographers who are selling their weddings for around $10,000 and start talking to them. You’ll be surprised by the talented photographers you find out there who don’t charge that much.
Just make sure to take the time to actually look at their photography portfolios. Make sure that you’re comfortable with the photographers and their services. After all, you don’t want to lose your money to a photographer who’s not actually skilled enough to capture your big day.
4. Save Money with a Photography Assistant
Another way to save money is to have someone else handle your photography for you. You’ll find that a photographer and their assistant is going to be an expensive combination. It’s too much for one person to handle, so the photographer may end up charging you even more.
Instead of paying the extra money to have a photographer and their assistant on your wedding day. Get their services for the day beforehand. You can hire an assistant to help you figure out what’s best for you and your wedding day. Like what size venues you need to book, what flowers to get, what photography techniques you want to do for your photography, and even how to schedule photographers to do different things.
Find out how much your photographer is going to charge for the day before your wedding day. Depending on the length of your wedding. You can save a lot of money by having an assistant handle your photography in advance.
You can also save some money by going with a photographer who already has experience of photographing lots of weddings. That can help save you time on the day of the wedding. And it could help the photographer get you in and out of the venue without going through as many pictures.
Just keep an eye on how much your photographer is charging you. And if it seems to be a little much, find out if they have a lower price or a different package that might be better for you. You might be surprised what that will bring.
You can save big on your wedding photography by going with a photographer who has done a lot of weddings for a lot of people. Look around for photographers who have a lot of experience and recommend them to people. Most photographers want to know what they’re doing and get business from other people.
5. Look for Discounted Photographers
When you’re trying to save some money on your wedding photography. It’s best to look for photographers who will offer discounts to their clients. If your photographer offers the best wedding photography package in your area, ask them for a discount.
You may be able to get a discount from your photographer based on the length of your wedding. Might also find that they offer discounts on packages, photography services, or even photo sessions.
Might be able to get a discount on the price of the package. Your can also ask your photographer for a reduced rate. They might have better prices on certain things for certain clients, like smaller weddings or getting discounts for kids.