If you’ve started wedding planning you’ve likely seen the list of 50 questions on the Knot or other planning websites with recommendations of all the questions you need to ask potential wedding photographers as you meet with them. While these lists have fantastic questions of things to chat with your vendor about they’re missing out on highlighting the questions that are the most vital. Today, I’m breaking down the 5 questions you need to ask your wedding photographer before you book with them. No matter who you’re speaking to these are all questions any professional wedding photographer should be ready and willing to answer!

 

Do you have back-up equipment?

All it takes is someone clumsily running into the photographer or accidentally tripping for a lens or camera to hit the ground and break. If something happens and your wedding photographer’s equipment breaks, stalls or just stops working you’re going to want to make sure they’re prepared to still capture your wedding day. A professional wedding photographer should have enough back-up equipment to capture your day regardless of if everything they own is working or not. This means having two camera bodies with them and a full range of lens and lighting equipment to capture your day!

 

Do you have liability insurance?

All professional business owners should have liability insurance. This protects both them and you two in case any damages accidentally occur. Many venues will ask to see proof of insurance in order to allow other vendors to work on their property. It is quite normal to need to send in this proof prior to the wedding day so you want to make sure any wedding photographer you hire is ready to quickly provide proof of insurance.

 

Do you have a business license?

As unfortunate it as it is, there are many business owners out there who are operating without legally registering their business. It is so important to make sure you’re hiring a photographer who is running a legal business! Photography businesses are required to be registered with both their state and county/city in order to operate. While you won’t get in trouble for hiring them, if they aren’t legally registered it does put you at risk! If the photographer is found to be operating without properly registering they risk serious fines or being shutdown. This could make them unavailable for your wedding day. Also, just like with liability insurance many venues ask to see your vendors’ business registration in order to make sure they can work on your wedding day.

 

Do you have back-up systems in place?

This one is so important! Your wedding day is only going to happen one time! Your mom will only do up your dress once, you’ll only have your first look, first kiss, first dance, etc. one time. If your photographer is operating without back-up systems in place they are putting your memories at risk. Any professional photographer you hire should be able to clearly explain what their back-up system is. Ask them how soon they back-up your images when they get home and in how many places are they backed up. I’d even recommend asking them how they protect your files on the wedding day. For example, I shoot on two memory cards simultaneously so there’s automatically a back-up in case a memory card corrupts. I also keep all the memory cards in a fanny pack around my waist until I can back them up at home to avoid anything being lost or stolen.

 

What’s your emergency plan?

We all hate to think about it, but sometimes emergencies do happen! You’re going to want to know what would happen if your photographer becomes too ill or injured to be there on your wedding day. Do they have precautions in place to make sure your wedding day is still captured? Talk through the emergency plan with your wedding photographer before you sign any contracts. You should clearly know if they have back-up photographers in place and how you would be alerted if an emergency situation arose.

 

If you’re searching for the perfect wedding photographer I hope these 5 questions you should ask your wedding photographer before you book are helpful! Wedding planning can be stressful sometimes, but it’s key to go in looking to surround yourself with a great team who will make your wedding dreams a reality!

 

If you’re looking for more advice click here to read more For Couples blogs, full of wedding planning advice.  And if you’re newly engaged and thinking about wedding photography send me a message! I’m taking on a limited number of couples for 2021  in order to make each couple’s experience special. Get in touch! I’d love to work with you!

 

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