Photographer Extra Hours

Do you really need them there for that much of the reception? Is it the exit you're worried about? I've known people to do a fake exit for photo opportunity and return to the reception to party some more.

Also if their package includes an engagement session and you don't want to use it, a lot of photographers will switch that for an additional hour.

I think I would try to get all the major photos done before the photographers time is up. Are you planning a big exit? If you aren't then you can at least push up your cake cutting, bouquet toss, garter toss stuff earlier in the night. $1000 for the extra time is quite a bit!

Have you talked to them or are you going off your contract?

We needed our photographer an hour earlier because I had some shots of DH I wanted. He did it for free for us. He was able to get some shots of our rings & the venue too.

We actually ended up not signing with a photographer because of this type of schedule. Have you already signed a contract? If you haven't, this would be enough to make me switch vendors. That being said, I would cut down on getting ready photos. Honestly, no one really needs those and you could easily have your girls snap some as you guys hang out or whatever. Or only have the photographer there for 30 minutes before you leave and do fake getting ready photos.

Do you need all the hours before the ceremony? I doubt you have 5 hours of pictures to take before the ceremony. Even if you want some "getting ready" pictures, the photographer can get there toward the end (I'll be last for hair and makeup, so even though we're starting that at 9am, I told to photographer to get there at 11:15).

I'm not sure how long your reception is, but 2.5 hours sounds like plenty of time for all the big photo ops. You really don't need them until the very end.

We had our photographers from 2-10 because we did a first look, but hair and makeup was over by 12. So there really was no good early time to tell them to arrive. I was originally a little sad that they wouldn't be there for getting ready shots, but now that I have my pictures, I don't miss those moments at all. When you think about it, do you really need pictures of you and your bridesmaids getting your makeup done? Chances are good your bridesmaids will be snapping pictures all morning anyway.

I would also agree with Jeanne and shorten the amount of time you have getting ready with the photographer. I am having mine for 7 hours and they will leave like an hour before our wedding even ends. I've been told after a certain point you don't care about the dancing/drunk pictures that the photographer will get plus your friends might even take better ones by that point in the night anyway.

We are having the photographers get there at 1:30 and we will all have our hair and makeup already done. They will take some of me and my girls in our robes and then take some of me getting my dress and jewelry on, etc. I think we could maybe cut out 30 minutes of that time but that's about all I feel comfortable leaving out...

The main reason I'm stressing over the timeline at our reception is because our DJ told us it was such a tight timeline to do a welcome, buffet dinner, first dance, parent dances, bouquet toss/garter throw, toasts, cake cutting and a sparkler "fake" exit all in about 2 1/2 hours.

I'm just worried we're going to seem really rushed to do all that...and I want myself and my guests to be able to enjoy the reception and just dance and hang out some!

We added hours the week before our wedding! We sat down with photographer and realized we wanted them an hour earlier to get getting ready photos and an hour later to get first dances. They bumped us up to the next package! Is yours able to do that vs adding hours? It was about $300 more to go from 6 hours to 8 hour package vs. $200 per extra hour. Not as expensive as yours but saved us money. See if you can add to your package vs. adding at the hourly rate.

Why do you need all those hours before?

Where did the 2 1/2 hours come from?

The 2 1/2 hours comes from the time we will get to our reception to the time that the photographers are scheduled to leave. We are doing all our pictures before the ceremony so the 5 hours before will be all our getting ready photos, first look, bridal party pictures at a 3rd location, and family photos at the church.

I don't think the amount is way out of the ballpark. Ours charges $395 for extra hours - but he's a friend, so I think $395 might be discounted.

We are opting to not have him there for getting ready pictures so that he can stay until the end of the reception. I'd rather have those pictures than getting ready ones.

Have you talked to your photographer about your dilemma yet? My photographer was so so good about helping me figure out my timeline. She's done a billion weddings so she knew exactly how long everything would take. Maybe your photog could help you decide what your best option is?

I'd rethink the beginning honestly, and yes, talk to your photographer.

The price is spot on; don't forget, more hours means more photos and more editing.

I can't imagine 5 hours of pictures before the wedding. Even if the photographer only does 1 hour of getting ready pictures, there is no way you will get 4 hours of pictures out of your bridal party or probably even want that many posed pictures at the end of the day. I would definitely cut that down to 3 hours at the most and use the time during the reception. As a guest, I cannot stand when I feel like I've just been brought in to participate in a photoshoot. I think rushing everything all for the sake of photos (especially a fake exit, that would be so incredibly rude if you're having everyone stop the party, go outside, pretend you're leaving and come back) would be awful for your guests. The whole reason we hire photographers is to capture the moments of they day. If the moments are all artificially created, what was the point?

Can I ask what some of your timelines look like? Aside from cutting out 30min or so from the beginning of getting ready pictures, I'm not sure where to cut. We have a large bridal party and are allotting 45 minutes for bridal party pictures and an hour and a half for family photos and individuals (us with each bridesmaid, groomsmen, etc.) and 15 minutes for our "first look." Then we hoped to have an hour of before the ceremony started to freshen up, have a snack and relax while guests start entering.

How many photographers do you have? Surprisingly, it won't take long to do the bridal party pictures. You guys stand still while the photographer moves everyone else around. Set them up in groups then do guys in, guys out, girls in, girls out, everyone in, everyone out etc. We took the individual shots with our bridal party out on our venues deck during cocktail hour. We also split up so while the guys did photos with one photographer, the girls did photos with the other. For family photos, we just did parents and grandparents. Any other posed family photos happened during cocktail hour while everyone was already gathered. With the timeline you've described, not counting getting ready, that's 3.5 hours so you're definitely less than 5.

That sounds extreme. I woukd talk to the photographer. I went from an eight hour package to a full day of coverage for an additional $200. It was a steal considering how expensive my area tends to be.

This is so true. Photographers have to consider the time you are asking for and all the extra photos and editing that will be involved. Sounds like a seasoned photographer who not only knows their worth but also what it means with regard to their post-processing time. They are professionals and ultimately get to decide what their time is worth.