By Laura Gawne
Saving money on your wedding photography is a snap. (no pun intended) Whether you hire a pro or get friends and family to help with this part of your wedding, here are some serious cost saving ideas.
You can engage your guests by adding disposable cameras to tables at the reception so attendees can be your photographers. Your bridal party can decorate these inexpensive cameras and some companies even make wedding themed disposable cameras. You are sure to get unique and personal photos from this tip.
Go a step further and ask a friend or family member who is interested in photography to bring their camera and shoot the wedding photos and reception snapshots. Make sure to tell them what you're looking for in the overall look of your photography. It would be only tasteful to offer to pay for all of the film, batteries, and processing.
Don't forget photography students in your area. Many High Schools and Colleges offer Photography Classes, and you might be able to catch a rising star at a great price.
When it comes to chic, elegant wedding pictures, nothing beats the look of Black and White photos. Black and White photos can be combined with all of the money saving ideas above. After the wedding, the photos can be blown up and dry mounted for a long-lasting keepsake.
It would be a good idea to ask your guests to bring their digital cameras. They can email the shots to you. Later, you can crop, touchup and edit photos to your liking. Here’s the great part, it will cost you almost nothing to send friends and family copies of your wedding photos. After my wedding, I spent a pretty penny on copies of photos for other people.
Everyone loves to have a video of their wedding celebration. A bride and groom could choose to hire a professional videographer, but a cheap way to have video memories would incorporate the help from friends and family again. With the popular digital camera, anyone with working knowledge of the camera could make beautiful memories for the bride and groom. These cameras allow for high quality video and the convenience of editing on your home computer.
Negotiating with a professional photographer…everything is negotiable. First ask how much he charges. Then ask him how much he will charge for just shooting the pictures (without him making prints).Tell the photographer that you like his work but you want to keep the negatives. This will save you TONS because you can go to the drugstore or photo lab and get the prints made for a lot less. If he doesn’t want to do that, find someone who does.
If you’re lucky and have a friend that is a photography buff maybe that could be their wedding gift to you.
Craigslist.com is another great resource. They have local classified ads where you may be able to find a photographer for super cheap. You may even find one who will barter with you. They could give you a huge break for letting them use your wedding photos for their portfolio.
Wedding pictures create memories for a lifetime. You don't have to spend a lot on your wedding photography, but do put some thought into your choices.
About the Author: Roxie Radford, Laura Gawne and Susan Bain are the owners of the popular website http://www.cheap-chic-weddings.com. They are dedicated to helping brides-to-be save money on their wedding day.
Source: www.isnare.com
