A good portrait should be thoughtfully planned, bearing in mind who you are and what makes you, well, you. It’s just not enough to capture a photo of you and your family and call it a day. Many things about the photo should tell a story about you. The purpose of a good portrait is to tell a story about who you are, right now in your life. It should be something you can go back to for years to come to remember how you were back when…

One of the most important things to consider about a portrait is the location. The location can be a favorite park, the spot where he proposed, your first home or any of a multitude of places. A meaningful location can bring back memories in the portrait and add to its overall impact. For example, photographs of a toddler against a studio backdrop can be nice, but would mean a whole lot more if they were taken at the park that Mom used to take him to everyday. Especially if there are candid images captured of his favorite things to do at the park.

A popular trap to avoid is getting a portrait at the “popular” locations that everyone else goes to. For example, many people in Southern California have their family or engagement portraits done at the beach. the important question is: “Do you go to the beach very often?”. If the answer is yes, then a beach portrait would not only be appropriate, but would probably be a great representation of your family. If the answer is no, then you should really consider the places that you do spend time together. A good portrait is an important investment, and should be taken in a fitting location along with all of the other things about you that will capture meaningful memories.

Looking for a wedding or portrait photographer? Photography is a big industry with a wide variety of styles and services available. Among the many are retail studios and specialty or boutique studios. Retails studios are either a standalone shop (usually a chain), or they might be part a large department store. Within specialty studios is another wide variety of offerings. These studios usually focus on a specialty such as formal in-studio portraits, outdoor portraits, beach portraits, etc.  Specialty studios generally take fewer clients, and spend more time on each client.

The first question to be answered is “why am I looking for a photographer?”. Establishing how important the photographs are to you, and what you want to capture in the photographs will help you to determine who to hire. On the lower end, if you’re just looking for a quick and not so expensive portrait, stopping into the local mall may be sufficient. If you’re looking to capture a set of photos that tell a story about your family, and want a custom designed album or a custom framed wall portrait (either of which will are usually guaranteed for 100 years or more with proper care), then you may want to look at a specialty studio.

The next thing you’ll need to establish in order to find the kind of photographer you want is what you want to receive as a result of the photographer’s service. It sounds really obvious, but the more you know about what you want, the better you’ll be able to determine what kind of photographer you should be looking for in the first place. Even within the short list of photography services I describe here, there are a number of different styles and specialties available. If you decide that you would like a portrait session at a specific location and want a certain kind of print products, that will really narrow down the large field of photographers in your area.

One of the most common misunderstandings about specialty studios is that the prices are artificially high. Many make an apples to apples price comparison between a mall or department store studio and a specialty or boutique studio and it simply does not work. If the budget is lower, and you cannot identify a specific need for a specialty studio, then the mall or department store studio is the way to go. You will pay less overall, but the photographer will spend less time with you and the styles and backgrounds may be limited. It is a given that you will pay more for photography from a specialty studio. It should also be a given that the photographer will pay more personal attention to you before, during and even after your session.  A specialty photographer will tend to invest time in a relationship with you, so that personalities and spirit are brought out in the final images. The personal touch, along with generally higher quality products will usually result in a better experience and end product. There are very good specialty studios that specialize in studio portraits. You can bet that these studios will differentiate themselves from the higher volume and lower cost retail studios with the skills and creative products they offer.

There are a number of different offerings out there for people who are looking for a photographer. All serve a purpose, and there is really no right or wrong about what they offer. It’s simply a matter of what is right or wrong for you. The more you know about what you want the easier it will be to find the photographer that best will serve your needs.

The person that you hire to photograph your wedding has a special responsibility. Not only is this person going to capture one of the most important events of your life, but they will also have to capture the moments and people that mean the most to you. In an event where there are no do-overs, you are trusting your photographer to capture images right the first time, and to bring out the spirit and personalities of the day.

Here are five things to consider as you shop for a wedding photographer:

1. How much time will the photographer spend with you before the wedding date?

By the time your wedding day comes, your photographer should have spent some time with you to learn a little bit about you, and to make sure they are absolutely clear about what you want. By establishing a relationship with you, your photographer will be able to bring your personality out in your wedding photos.

2. Is your photographer willing to work with your wedding coordinator and other vendors?

Along with spending the time to determine what you want, your photographer should be willing to contact your wedding coordinator ahead of time to arrange a reasonable amount of time for any special photos that you may want taken. Everyone who provides a service for your wedding shares you as a client, and should be willing to work together to keep the day on-schedule and running smoothly.

3. What knowledge or experience does your photographer have with your religion or culture? Many weddings involve important religious or cultural traditions that must be captured. Make sure that your photographer either knows of these traditions or is willing to learn about them. More importantly, make sure that they are just as important to your photographer as they are to you. At the end of the day, it is about what is important to you, and religious and cultural traditions should always be respected by your photographer.

4. How long does the photographer preserve your images after the wedding date?

Every photographer handles this differently, and it is important to know if and how your wedding images will be preserved. In the world of digital photography, preserving images long term is not a simple matter of burning a CD and holding onto it forever. Properly preserving images requires a well thought out storage plan.

5. What kind of input will you have in the album design process?

Every photographer approaches albums differently. Some prefer to select images and design an album themselves, and others will wait for your input. Options for on-line album proofing can be a plus, allowing you to make fewer visits to the photographer’s studio to review the album. Gaining an understanding of how that process will work ahead of time is an important part of making sure that you will get what you want in an album.

These are just a few important things to consider before hiring a photographer for your wedding. Of course, along with these considerations should be the most important one…how much do you like their work?