North Carolina Wedding Photographer
your guide to choosing a north carolina wedding photographer:
This post is PACKED with information from a local North Carolina wedding photographer on how to choose your North Carolina wedding photographer.
When planning a wedding, I believe photography is a big thing. When the wedding is all said and done, a few years down the road, you might be hanging out with your husband at home talking about the memories of your day. The best way to relive these moments is through your photographs, in an album, in print, or by scrolling your phone. I wanted to create this resource for all North Carolina Brides to use and benefit from.
I hope you enjoy all the tips and tricks I’ve learned over the last seven years photographing weddings. I’m truly happy to help you all and I’m SO excited for you to indulge in all of this information.
index of the post:
- Finding your vendors / North Carolina wedding photographer.
- Planning your engagement session with your North Carolina wedding photographer.
- Planning your day-of timeline with your North Carolina wedding photographer.
- On the day of your wedding with your North Carolina wedding photographer.
- What to do for your vendors / North Carolina wedding photographer after your wedding day.
Enjoy your engagement!
You’re engaged, congratulations! Enjoy this period, it goes by quickly. Everyone tells you this, I know, but it does. Make sure to have date nights and make sure to have fun. There will be parties and chaos which will make it a season of life to remember forever. Soak it all in. Before you dive into planning, take a minute to remember what this feels like. Congratulations, again!
Starting the hunt for your wedding vendors/your North Carolina wedding photographer
Ever since the crazy number of weddings that are now occurring (after 2021), it’s advised to book your vendors out TWELVE to FIFTEEN months in advance! This is crazy.
Although, I still have a few available spots for 2022 brides and my books are open for 2023! Reach out sooner rather than later.
When choosing a North Carolina wedding photographer remember to ask your photographer all of the right questions if they don’t have them answered for you already:
- Q: How long have you been shooting weddings?
My A: 6 years and counting! - Q: Can we see a full gallery of a recent wedding?
My A: Of course! After you fill out my contact form, I’ll send some over! - Q: How would you describe your photography + working style?
My A: I specialize in capturing candid photographs along with a traditional style to produce natural, classic wedding photography. I strive to work for a smooth and stress-free wedding day. - Q: Can I customize a package to fit my needs?
My A: Absolutely! Let’s hop on the phone and chat about what you’re looking for. - Q: Will we have rights to the images?
My A: You’ll have the right to print and share as you please, yes! - Q: How much of a deposit do you require?
My A: I require a $300 deposit, due upon booking to secure your date.
I’d love to see how we’d work together! Here’s a bit about me:
I like to call myself a mostly extroverted introvert. The best part of my day is definitely waking up to do what I love (THIS) and making my perfect iced coffee + breakfast (fave meal). Also, coffee is pretty much a part of my personality and not that sweet coffee – like I love strong espresso over ice with a little sweetener and a splash of cream, lol.
The beach, laughing, my husband, and fam + friends make me the happiest.
If I wasn’t a photographer I’d definitely be running a different small business, I love every part of them.
Send me a message so we can hop on the phone and talk about your wedding day plans, I can’t wait to hear all about them.
Planning your engagement session with your North Carolina wedding photographer!
Engagement photos are SO much fun. Here’s why I advise you get them done with the same North Carolina wedding photographer that will be capturing your big day:
- Engagement photos are a much more casual and fun session than your day of bride and groom portraits will be. On your wedding day, you’ll be all dressed up, which YES is stunning, but casual photos are so much fun as well plus you can move around a whole lot more in casual clothing. Also, you won’t have as much time as you do for engagement photos.
- You can use your engagement photos for decorations at your wedding for things like your guests’ tables, a guestbook table, a photo wall, or even an enlarged print at your entrance along with a welcome sign. Then, you can move them into your home after, win, win!
- You can get to know me or your North Carolina wedding photographer before your big day, rather than meeting them the day of. If you know your photographer before they arrive at your wedding, your day will be so much more comfortable!
- Lastly and probably the most obvious, they can be used for save-the-dates and wedding invitations.
Here’s the thing about invitations and save-the-dates.
For save-the-dates, “they” say to send them out six to twelve months in advance! Included on save-the-dates should be your names, the date of your wedding, your wedding location, and a link to your wedding website. And it’s now been suggested to send out your invitations three to four months in advance. On your invitation make sure to have a great design, the names of the people hosting the wedding, the location(s) of the ceremony and reception, and detailed RSVP information. Don’t include gift registry information on your invites! It’s better to have them find that elsewhere, they are coming to celebrate you not give you a gift.
so all that being said?! WHEN should you get your engagement photos done? Well, every photographer is different, but I deliver photos from sessions within two weeks after the session date. Sooo, quick math: I’d say anywhere from four to twelve months in advance.
- View my favorite Raleigh, North Carolina engagement session + engagement photo tips on this blog post!
- If you’re needing location ideas across the state of North Carolina for your engagement session, you can view my top locations in this blog post.
- If you need advice on what to wear, you can read all about it in this blog post!
- All of my relevant North Carolina engagement photos and session tip blog posts can be found here.
North Carolina engagement portfolio:
Planning your day-of wedding plans with your North Carolina wedding photographer!
Ahhh planning the wedding day schedule. Timelines are crucial, you need one and I hope your photographer will help you create one! If you have a good timeline your wedding day will go by with ease. There are two major types of timelines for wedding days: with a first look or without a first look.
Every photographer has their own way of doing things but here is a typical timeline for different photos on your wedding day with me!
Scheduling photos without a first look, immediately after the ceremony and before the reception, time gets crucial! Here’s my suggested amount of time to set aside for photos after your ceremony:
20 minutes – family formals
20 minutes – wedding party
30 minutes – couples portraits
When you have a first look you can use more time for your photos, you could even do wedding party and family formals before the ceremony!
20 to 30 minutes – wedding party
20 to 30 minutes – family formals
40 minutes to 1 hour – couples portraits
pro tip! Schedule 10 to 15 minutes of sunset portraits for some dreamy images from your wedding day! We photographers love that “golden hour” !!
GETTING MARRIED !!! The big day with your North Carolina wedding photographer:
Your big day is here! This is the day when you should forget about all the stressful planning and BE in the moment. As a photographer, I want to capture your wedding day exactly as it is. My goal with every wedding is to help make the day as stress-free as possible. I value serving you. Whether you have a big celebration planned or a small gathering with the most special people in your life, it’s going to be the best day of your life.
The love you two share, your people, and having a wedding day to remember – these are the most important pieces.
Congratulations!! Your wedding day is going to be amazing.
Have a lovely honeymoon!
So much hard work goes into planning and executing a wedding day. You and your significant other deserve this trip to relax and connect after months of endless planning. Log off and go enjoy time together, just the two of you. This is just the beginning of the rest of your lives together! Go hang on the beach, hike a mountain, or chill in a hot tub.
After your wedding day how to help your North Carolina wedding photographer and other vendors…
Whew, you did it! You planned a successful wedding, got married, and celebrated that with your significant other on an amazing vacation! Now you’re back home and then what?
Print your photos!
From a North Carolina wedding photographer to a bride: PRINT YOUR PHOTOS! I cannot stress the importance of this enough. Yes, you will have these photos on your phone to share with family and friends and to look back at, but there is nothing like holding printed images or an album in your hand. Some things you can do with your wedding photos: print 4×6 prints for an album, design and purchase a high-quality album, and order enlarged prints to hang above your couch or in your bedroom. Don’t let these photos you invested in sit on your phone, please!
Back up your images!
Another tip from a North Carolina wedding photographer to a bride: BACK UP YOUR IMAGES! This is another important step. As photographers, we all take it seriously to make sure your images are safe and you should do the same. I always offer my couples a flash drive/Photobox with all of their images, but if yours does not, be sure to back them up! Your online gallery typically won’t stay up forever and your phone or computer may crash so I suggest getting a couple of flash drives and backing your photos up onto a couple of those.
Leave some reviews!
Thank your vendors! A simple text or email means so much to us. We’d be so happy to receive a review on our significant pages as well. These reviews mean the absolute world to us. They allow us to continue to serve amazing couples like you and keep our businesses alive (it can be so hard). We appreciate YOU!
There you have it. How to choose your North Carolina wedding photographer from a photographer. Thank you so much for being here!
READ ABOUT ME \\\ /// VIEW MY NORTH CAROLINA WEDDINGS
About the Author: Greta loves her job, consumes too much caffeine, and spends her free time hanging out with her husband or at Target. She is a wedding photographer based in Fayetteville, North Carolina often found in other states across the US. Specializing in capturing candid photographs along with a traditional style to produce natural, classic wedding photography.
Let’s chat about your wedding day!! I’d LOVE to be your North Carolina wedding photographer!
March 30, 2022
