My conversation from The Vendor Series, covering what couples should know about choosing a wedding
photographer, timelines, engagement sessions, posing and creating wedding photos they’ll love for years
to come.
Planning a wedding comes with a lot of decisions, and wedding photography is a big one. But beyond loving someone’s photos, how do you know what to look for? How much photography coverage do you actually need? What if you feel awkward in front of the camera? And how do you know if the photography style you love now will still feel like you years from now?
Those are some of the questions we talked about when a group of Toronto wedding professionals got together for The Vendor Series, hosted and interviewed by wedding planner Tiziana.
Each of us sat down to share advice from our own area of the wedding industry. In my interview, we focused specifically on wedding photography advice and some of the things I’ve learned after more than a decade of photographing weddings.
In my interview, we talk about:
- What to look for when choosing a wedding photographer
- Why Instagram shouldn’t be the only place you evaluate their work
- Timeless vs. trendy wedding photography
- Feeling awkward in front of the camera
- Engagement sessions and why they can be so helpful
- Building a realistic wedding photography timeline
- What happens when a wedding day doesn’t go according to plan
My interview is one part of The Vendor Series. You can find the rest of the conversations in the full YouTube playlist, with advice from professionals across the wedding industry.
A Few Wedding Photography Takeaways
We covered a lot in the interview, but these are a few of the things I think are especially helpful to know when you’re planning your wedding and thinking about photography.
Consider this the Cole’s Notes version. The full conversation goes into a lot more!
How Do You Choose the Right Wedding Photographer?
Instagram is a great place to find wedding photographers, but it shouldn’t be the only thing you look at before booking one.
A photographer’s Instagram is essentially a highlight reel. You’re seeing some of their strongest images from dozens of different weddings, but that doesn’t necessarily show you what one entire wedding day looks like.
So ask to see a full wedding gallery. Or two!
Look at everything, not just the portraits. Getting ready, ceremony, family photos, cocktail hour, speeches, dancing, dark reception spaces, weird weather, all of it. That’s where you’ll get a much better idea of what you can actually expect from your own wedding photos.
And if you can find a gallery from your venue or a wedding with similar lighting, season or logistics to yours, even better.
What About All the Wedding Photography Trends?
I actually think the key here is balance.
Have fun. Experiment. Get the blurry photo, the direct flash, the cool editorial shot or whatever fun trend you’re loving right now. Your wedding photos don’t have to be completely immune to what’s happening creatively in photography.
But the real meat and potatoes of your gallery should still have that timeless energy.
Trends come and go. That doesn’t mean avoiding them. It means having enough classic, true-to-you photographs underneath them that when you look back years from now, your entire gallery doesn’t feel tied to one particular moment in time.
Have fun with the trends. Just don’t let them become the entire meal.
“We’re So Awkward in Photos.”
I hear this ALL the time.
Here’s the thing: that’s my job.
A great photographer will guide you, direct you, demonstrate when you need it, make you laugh and help you feel comfortable enough that you aren’t standing there wondering what on earth you’re supposed to be doing with your hands.
Personally, I love movement, laughter and prompts more than traditional posing. My goal is to get you focused on how it feels to be together, rather than thinking about what you must look like in the photograph.
Walk. Talk. Move. Laugh. Look at each other. Forget about the camera a little bit.
And if there’s something that actually needs fixing? A hand in a weird spot, hair across your face, a jacket sitting strangely? I’ve got you.
You shouldn’t have to spend your wedding portraits mentally checking your posture, hands, chin and facial expression. That’s way too much work.
Want a little more help with this? Read: How to Feel Comfortable in Front of the Camera
Is an Engagement Session Worth It?
I love engagement sessions for a reason that has almost nothing to do with needing more pretty photos.
It’s a practice round.
Most people haven’t spent much time being professionally photographed together, so of course it can feel a little strange at first. An engagement session gives you a chance to figure all of that out when there isn’t a wedding-day timeline running in the background.
You learn how your photographer communicates and directs. Your photographer learns how the two of you naturally interact, what makes you laugh, what feels comfortable and how much direction you actually need.
And then you get to see the results afterward.
That’s the really useful part. You go into the wedding already knowing what to expect, how the process feels and that the slightly ridiculous thing you were asked to do actually looked great.
It takes away a lot of the unknown before the wedding day.
Give Your Wedding Timeline Room to Breathe
Okay, actual wedding photographer nightmare:
The officiant forgot about the wedding.
Yep.
They eventually arrived about 90 minutes late, which is obviously not something anyone had built into the timeline.
But there was no need for the couple to panic. The vendor team did a quick rejig of the schedule, moved some things around and kept the day going. The guests barely even noticed what was happening behind the scenes.
And that’s really the point of leaving some breathing room in a wedding timeline.
Things happen. Hair and makeup runs late. Traffic exists. A button falls off. Someone can’t find Uncle Bob for family photos. Or apparently…your officiant forgets they’re officiating a wedding.
A timeline should give you structure without being so tight that one delay creates a domino effect for the rest of the day.
More From The Vendor Series
My interview focuses on wedding photography, but it’s only one conversation in The Vendor Series. We brought together professionals from different parts of the wedding industry to share the things we wish couples knew before their wedding day.
You can watch the rest of the interviews in The Vendor Series YouTube playlist for more advice and perspectives from the team.
WATCH THE FULL VENDOR SERIES
The Vendor Series Team
Photography: Zsuzsi Pal Photography
Wedding Planning: Forever Events
Videography: Pavlotski Productions
Makeup: Sasha Simler Makeup Artistry
Florals: Posy Events
Hair: Maryanne Costa Bridal
Cake: Iced Cake
Content Creation: Core Memory Creative
About Zsuzsi Pal Photography
I’m Zsuzsi Pal, the photographer behind Zsuzsi Pal Photography. I’ve been photographing weddings for more than a decade throughout Toronto, the GTA, Hamilton, Burlington, Niagara and beyond.
My approach combines candid storytelling with guided, editorial portraits, with a focus on making people feel comfortable in front of the camera and creating photographs that feel natural, elegant and true to the day.
If you’re planning your wedding and photography is important to you, I’d love to hear what you’re planning.
