How to find a budget-friendly photographer?

Unfortunately, you just have to ask. There are lots of packages available too. My photographer's packages range from about $1800 to $3500. We opted for a $2700 package that gives us all the rights to the edited photographs, two photographers and 8 hours of photography - but no prints. Go to Bridal Expos where you can actually ask what they charge and what's included.

Negotiate! Negotiate! Negotiate! Ask lots of questions and eliminate anything you can. I had a friend take e pics so I negotiated out the "free session" (ended up putting it back in, but still).

theknot.com filters based on price so try that.

Check out snapknot.com. You give them your area and price range and photographers in your price range are matched with you. That's how I found ours

We found our photographer on Groupon. She was offering $75 for a normal $300 one hour session. We really liked her portfolio. Even though the Groupon was only for a month, we asked her if she would be interested in doing a wedding in Oct and honoring the Groupon rate. She said she would. So we booked her for four hours at $75 a hour! Came out to $375 with taxes and stuff, and she gave us the normal wedding package with 20 free prints.

We lucked out there. She just moved from Florida to SC, so now she has to completely rebuild her client base, which is why she was willing to go so low. You might not be able to find as great a deal, but the lesson is it never hurts to ask!

Thanks for the tips! Heidi you did get lucky!

Well my photographer is in St. Louis but she is awesome and affordable! I also know that she has family in TX and maaaaybe you might be able to convince her to come out for your wedding? October might be hard because that's major wedding time around here but Worth a shot maybe? Check her out: alohakellyphotography.com

Check out http://featherandtwinephotography.com/. I dont know how I ever stumbled across her but I have followed her on Instagram for-literally-ever and she is AMAZING. She has been featured on WW and Brides of North Texas. Not sure what her prices are but its worth a shot. Also check out http://www.feltsphotography.com/. He is out of Weatherford and I have known him forever. Unfortunately, he is not in our wedding budget, but he charges right around the amount you want to stay at. He is extremely professional & experienced. Hope this helps! Good luck!

Try Thumbtack.com. I have found some vendors for different events on there.

I found mine on Craigslist! Take precautions when using that site, but mine 1) had good grammar in her ad, 2) linked to her website with portfolio (not big, but a few weddings and good reviews), our first communication was all about my vision for the wedding, and we skyped for an hour before she sent a contract. $800 for photographer/assistant that also can photograph, 8 hrs, at least 400 digital edited prints. That's what I wanted for starters, and I can purchase prints later.

I would use thumbtack.com too.

I also used Craigslist! Her post was professional and she had a few weddings on her website. We interviewed 3 different photographers and liked her the best because she was so professional. She had recently finished an apprenticeship with a super expensive photographer so she had learned a lot and had been out on her own for a few months. Good luck!

We got ours referred to us by someone from his work... I have my photographer from the moment I wake up (If I want... I DON"T WANT!!) until the reception is over... two photographers and an extra photo shoot we can use up to a year after the wedding AND 200 fully edited photos and our photos on a disc! All for $1000... Super excited for that!

Groupon

It takes time and browsing through websites, and asking. Just be detailed in your first contact instead of just saying how much. I'd search here, and on Google....read reviews and view work and make selections from there. When contacting them, Describe your wedding and needs and only contact those whose work you love. You'll find it with persistence and search. And patience. And no, not groupon or Craigslist.

This may help, making a more productive first email to a wedding photographer....I know when someone does that, I will work harder to accommodate their budget based needs. http://www.jayfarrellphotography.com/first-email-wedding-photographer/

I think the best tactic is just to set aside a couple of hours and browse websites, send inquiries, etc. Make a list of who you contacted and the price when you get it and go from there. I found that while most photographers don't list their prices on WW, about a third have it on their website and almost all of the rest were willing to email me price sheets. If someone wanted to have a meeting before I got pricing, I eliminated them. I had face to face or Skype meetings with top 3-4 who were in my budget.

I found mine on CL, it had such a great deal ! I did a little homework on her and she has done quite a few weddings and I love her work that I have seen. $500 for 6 hours

Best easy is to search. I want good photography but I don't want to pay an arm and two legs. Check on this site, it's where I started and found some decent deals. Then I did my own search, I found one crazy cheap but it showed in the pictures. I found others that were pretty good and under 1k

Check out: Stephanie Rose Photography or Miranda Marrs Photography. Both are pretty reasonable.