Negotiating with photographer...is it possible?

Cont.- We're getting married at the venue and the event will go from 4-10 so I really don't think we need 10hrs of coverage.

Thoughts?!

Why not? The worst she can say is no. I found al my vendors to be helpful and respectful of budget. Many were willing to work with us. I think that sounds pretty reasonable.

You can ask, but don't be surprised if she says no. If you take off an hour, she won't be able to make up that hour any other way that day, which is why many photographers have package deals /hours like that.

Possibly; photographers work differently than other vendors, and usually only do one event on a day. That happens to be a weekend that is always wild, but it can't hurt to ask.

Honestly though, if it's someone I loved and they wouldn't budge, that's like 4 bucks a week to make up the dif!

I agree you can ask but expect a no. I have several friends who do photography and they get pretty peeved when people ask for a reduction in price. Now asking for less hours is a bit different because you are not asking for it to just be less BUT for them to work less so that is possible. I see nothing wrong with asking for less hours. I'm only doing 6 for my wedding. I do kind of find it rude when people try to hassle someone to go lower it's like saying you don't think they are worth more. It's not their fault one may not be able to afford their services but if each person went down because someone couldn't afford them they wouldn't really make money. Not to mention for each person who doesn't or can't pay full price there is something else who always will. So there isn't much of an incentive to drop the price. I see it like going to the store if you went and said hey I only have 5 bucks but this is 8 will you still sell it to me? You know that wouldn't fly.

I negotiated with all my vendors. My photog is actually giving us her 2k package for 1k. Email them and say "this is my budget. This is what I would like. Would you be able to work with me:

I negotiated with my venue, photographer and florist. It's definitely possible. My photographer threw in engagement photos for free and took $250 off the price. It was between her and and another guy and I liked her better so she matched the other guys price.

I didn't mean to haggle, but my videographer ended up working out when I told him I couldn't afford his services. He asked what my budget was and what I wanted, educated me a bit on what he could provide (and why more footage doesn't mean better footage), and gave me the best price he could. I won't have two cameras like I wanted, but I'll have really good footage and editing, rather than twice as much junky footage by a lesser quality videographer. It never hurts to be honest with vendors, the worst they can say is no. Just be respectful of their time, this is their livelihood too.

It never hurts to ask. Also, not sure what your plan is, but many vendors are willing to negotiate prices when you are offering to pay in cash. We've paid for almost all of our wedding in cash, and have had a LOT of success with this.

One tip: Instead of asking "Can you do x", present it instead as a statement. My favorite go-to has been "What's your cash rate" or "What's your cash discount".

Good luck!

It definitely is possible! You should definitely do it. Also, $200 is very much to take off. You might be able to get her to go even lower than that because it is a Sunday wedding.

The odds of them getting a wedding on a Sunday are slimmer, so they are much more lenient in there pricing for this day (usually).

Thanks everyone! I'm not good at asking/negotiating so I wasn't even sure if it was possible. Do you think it's best to call or email?

E-mail. Especially if you are uncomfortable with it because you can pre-think what you are going to say, and you are prepared.

Even if her response is less than nice you can hide your emotions and what you are thinking. Can I ask who you want to be your photographer?

Also, I got my photographer to go down about 50% which is insane, but I talked it out with her. We just did not have any more money to put towards the photographer.