Boston · Planning Guide
How To Get Great Boston Wedding Photographs
Documentary Wedding Photography · Boston & New England
TL;DR, Getting Great Photos
- Communication is key: Tell your photographer exactly what you want beforehand and make sure their style matches yours.
- Don't decide on budget alone: Price doesn't equal quality, so compare the actual work, not just the cost.
- See a full gallery: Ask for a complete wedding, not just cherry-picked highlights, and read the contract carefully.
- Plan family photos: Build a specific list and assign someone to round people up so portraits move quickly.
- Trust and buffer time: Hire someone you get along with and pad the schedule so the day can breathe.
Everyone wants their wedding to be perfect. You will be spending a lot of time picking out dresses, food, tuxes, a wedding photographer, and the ideal Boston wedding venue. After booking a wedding venue, the first thing you will do is make sure that your photos are created by one or maybe even two professional Boston wedding photographers. I’ve created these tips to make sure you are getting the best Boston wedding photos possible!
Communication is the Key
The first and most important thing that you need to understand is the importance of communication. Wedding photographers in Boston are not mind-readers, and we will not understand what the couples want if they don’t tell us. Every client has different requirements for their wedding photographs, and you need to communicate your wants with your Boston wedding photographer beforehand.
A couple needs to be honest with the photographer and communicate their requirements. Talk with your photographer and discuss what you are expecting from the wedding photographs before you hire them. There are lots of different styles of wedding photographers. So make sure their style lines up with how you want your wedding photos to look. No one wants to be disappointed with the wedding photographs, neither the couple nor the wedding photographer.
Do Not Decide Based on Budget
Many of the best Boston wedding photographers charge over $6,000 for their services. Some are worth it, and some aren’t. Just because they are expensive doesn’t mean they are better than photographers in the middle range photographer. When you compare the prices of photographers, make sure you’re also comparing the quality of the photographer’s work.
Don’t Hire Your Family Friend
When I talk to married couples sometimes, they tell me they wish they hired a professional Boston wedding photographer and not their friend or family friend to photograph their wedding.
The budget should not be your only criteria for choosing the photographer of your choice. You should hire a photographer whose photos you like the best for your wedding day. You can save money in other areas while planning for the wedding and increase the photography budget as the photographs will stay with you for a lifetime.
Read Your Wedding Photography Contract
Read the contract carefully. The document will mention all the details about the event. It will contain details like what happens if your Boston wedding photographer gets sick on your wedding day? Will you get all the photographs or just a few chosen ones? Be clear on the things to be covered and what you will get.
Verify the Portfolio
Before you sign a contract with a Boston wedding photographer, don’t just look at their work on their website. Anyone can photograph 30 weddings and pick their best photo from each wedding and create a website. Ask to see a complete wedding gallery. The portfolio will ensure that you like their style and know they can photograph your Boston wedding from start to finish.
Trust the Photographer
You need to trust the Boston wedding photographers you’ve hired for your wedding from the start. If you are getting a bad vibe during your interview process, look for some other photographers. You do not want to spend your wedding day with someone you don’t get along with. There is a Boston wedding photographer for everyone’s style and personality.
Avoid Family Frustration
I hear all the time from my couples that “At my bother’s wedding the family photos took forever”. Prepare a list of family photos you want to take during the time you have set aside for family portraits. Share the list with your Boston wedding photographer. This list can be beneficial, and you can work with your photographer to ensure that family photos move along quickly and efficiently. Lastly, delegate the responsibility to a family member who knows everyone to round them up during this time. This list can be beneficial, and you can work with your photographer to ensure that family photos move along quickly and efficiently.
Be clear on the Family Photos List
Don’t’ be vague when it comes to family photos. My “standard photo list” is different than the Boston wedding photographer your brother hired for his wedding. Communicate what you want. I send clients a suggested list before the wedding. Clients will then add and subtract, creating the family photo list that they desire.
Collaborations
When you hire a Boston wedding photographer, ask them to ask for a list of videographers that they recommend. If your photographer and videographer have worked together in the past, it’s a good chance they have developed a workflow without getting in each other’s way. That way, when you get your photos or video back from your wedding, you don’t see your venues in the background.
Allow Enough Time
Build-in some buffer time in your schedule. Wedding days take on a life of their own, and sometimes things don’t always go planning just how you want them. If you build in some buffer time, it will give you room to adjust your schedule when things don’t go as planned. When couples hire me as their Boston wedding photographer, I make myself available to help them with any scheduling or timing questions they might have. I have created resources and example timelines to help them through their wedding planning process.
Let Your photographer know of any Requests and Suggestions
If you have any requests or suggestions, let your Boston wedding photographer know. For example, if you do not like the background of the family photo. Tell the photographer and ask him or her to change the location. Communication is essential so let them know what is on your mind.
Every couple wants their wedding photographs to be perfect. If you want to avoid disappointment, follow the tips mentioned above.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do we actually get great wedding photos in Boston?
Honestly, it comes down to communication and trust more than anything technical. Tell me up front what matters most to you and what you want your photos to feel like, then pick someone whose existing work already looks the way you want yours to. After 20 years and 800 weddings, I can tell you the couples who relax and let the day happen always end up with the most honest photos.
Should we just pick the cheapest wedding photographer to save money?
I'd never tell you to overspend, but budget should not be your only filter. A higher price doesn't automatically mean better work, and the cheapest option can cost you the one thing you can't redo. I usually suggest trimming somewhere else in the budget before you trim the photos, since the photos are what stay with you for a lifetime.
Is it a bad idea to have a family friend shoot our wedding instead of a pro?
I hear it constantly from couples who wish they hadn't. A friend with a nice camera is shooting their first wedding under real pressure, with no backup gear and no experience moving a day along. If photos matter to you, hire someone who does this for a living so your friend can actually enjoy the day as a guest.
How do we keep family photos from taking forever?
This is the number one frustration I hear, and the fix is simple: a shot list. Before the day I send my couples a suggested family-photo list, and they add or subtract until it's exactly what they want. Then we set aside dedicated time and assign one relative who knows everyone to round people up, so it moves fast and you get back to your guests.
What should we look for before signing a wedding photography contract?
Read the whole thing carefully. It should spell out exactly what's covered, whether you get all the edited images or just a selected few, and what happens if your photographer is sick on the day. I'd rather you ask every question before you sign than be surprised later, so don't be shy about it.
Why should we ask to see a full wedding gallery, not just the website highlights?
Anyone can shoot 30 weddings and post one great frame from each. Asking to see a complete gallery from a single wedding shows you whether they can cover an entire day well, from getting ready through the last dance. It's the best way to know their style holds up start to finish.
Do you work with videographers, and why does that matter?
I shoot both photo and video myself as one vendor, so there's no second crew getting in the frame or competing for the moment. If you do bring a separate videographer, hire people who have worked together before so they share a workflow and stay out of each other's shots. It keeps the day calm and your images clean.
How much do we need to tell our photographer about what we want?
More than most couples think. We're not mind-readers. Every couple wants something a little different from their photos, and if you don't say it, I can't know it. Talk it through before you hire anyone, what you're expecting, what you love, what you'd hate. Nobody wants to be disappointed at the end, and almost every disappointment I hear about started as an unsaid expectation.
What if we don't click with a photographer when we meet them?
Then keep looking. If you're getting a bad vibe during the interview, trust it. You're going to spend your entire wedding day next to this person, getting ready, before the ceremony, on the dance floor. You don't want to spend it with someone you don't get along with. There's a photographer out there for every style and personality. Go find yours.
How much buffer time should we build into our wedding day timeline?
Build in some. Wedding days take on a life of their own, and things rarely run exactly the way the spreadsheet says. A little slack gives you room to adjust when something slips, instead of cutting photos to make up the difference. Buffer time is the cheapest insurance in wedding planning, and it's the difference between a relaxed hour and a rushed one.
Will you help us build our wedding day timeline?
Yes. When couples hire me, I make myself available for any scheduling or timing questions along the way. I've put together resources and example timelines to help people through the planning process. You shouldn't have to guess at how long things take. That's my job, and I'd much rather sort it out in advance than solve it at 4pm on your wedding day.
Do you send us a family photo list, or do we make one?
I send a suggested list before the wedding, and you add and subtract until it's the list you actually want. That matters, because my standard list is different from the list your brother's photographer used. Don't be vague here. Tell me exactly who you want and in what combinations, and we can get through it quickly.
Who should be in charge of rounding up family for photos?
Delegate it to a family member who knows everyone by name. This one thing does more for family photos than anything else. I don't know which one is Aunt Carol, and calling into a cocktail hour for someone who wandered off eats your time fast. One person who can find people is worth twenty minutes of your evening back.
Can we ask for changes during the day, like moving a family photo somewhere else?
Absolutely. If you don't like the background for the family photos, say so and we'll move. If you have a request or a suggestion, tell me. Communication is the whole thing here. I'd much rather hear it in the moment than find out later that something bothered you. Speak up, it's your day, and I'm not offended.
Should we cut our photography budget to pay for other parts of the wedding?
That's a decision I'd think hard about. You can save money in plenty of other places while you plan, and the photographs stay with you for a lifetime. I've had married couples tell me they wish they'd spent more here. Hire the photographer whose work you genuinely love, then find the savings elsewhere. Price alone shouldn't be the deciding factor either direction.
