If your wedding photos will be important to you, hiring a professional photographer is essential.
Recently I received an email from a woman who wanted to retouch her wedding photos from this past summer. She hoped to create a wedding album in time for Christmas. She wrote that the pictures “need work and maybe a lot of work.”
After reviewing her wedding photos, it was obvious she was right. Her photos needed a lot of work.
Instead of hiring a professional, the couple had asked friends with cellphones to take the wedding photos. While that might have seemed like a fun and budget-friendly decision at the time, reality has now set in.
Many of the indoor photos were out of focus or suffered from camera shake. The outdoor shots had too much contrast and no fill-light, leaving the bridal couple’s faces dark and without catchlights. Overall, the images were poorly exposed and poorly framed, with some taken from too far away (like the entire ceremony) and others far too close, cutting off heads and limbs. A number of images had closed eyes, and most were shot vertically.
Retouching would not be able to save every picture. Many photos could be improved but they would still look like amateur cellphone photos.
The woman wanted 122 photos retouched. Because of the volume, I quoted a very discounted rate of $20 per photo, totalling $2,440 plus tax.
Just to point out the obvious: for $2,440 the couple could’ve hired a lower-end professional photographer whose photos would have been much better than the cellphone shots.
The woman wrote that my $2,440 quote was much too high for her. She was hoping for something around $250. I suggested she try one of those really cheap retouching services on the other side of the planet, but she wasn’t interested. She replied that she would rethink her album plans.
I also suggested she hire a portrait photographer as soon as possible, while the autumn weather is still good, and create some new “wedding” photos with just her and her husband.
It’s disheartening to know she’s hoping for a wonderful album of her wedding day, yet she recognizes the photos don’t measure up.
So, if your wedding photos will be important to you, to your children, and your grandchildren, invest in a professional photographer. It’s always worth it. Never rely on amateur photography for an important event and never rely on retouching to save amateur photos.
