Wedding photographers eating at reception?

Yes, but feel free to check with the photographer or see if anything is mentioned in their contract. My photogs were a married couple and both vegan, so they appreciated my checking with them but said their provide their own food for the day.

@Sherell It certainly isn't required that you invite the other two members of the band to the reception since they are hired vendors. Although I hope your friend keeps the invitation part on the down low so the other two group members don't feel offended or left out. If you think they may feel left out because one of their group is invited you may way to consider if you have space for them or not.

You can invite your officiant as a courtesy but you aren't required to do that either. My officiant is like yours, he is someone we've hired and don't have a personal relationship with (not yet anyway, we might after we complete our pre-marital counseling sessions with him) but I've invited him to the reception as a courtesy anyway. He likely won't come but I did it to be polite.

I asked this question a few months back and the general consensus I got was that if they are staying for the entire wedding (or reception) you should feed them.

Didn't read all the comments but yes do kind of include them. Generally vendors are like kids in the guest count. Because they don't drink in the job they are served at a discounted rate. They also may have a separate space to eat or sit (think bridal suite or cocktail area or smaller table to the side instead of with grandma lol). Make sure to note them at the end of your list as "vendors". It is likely your venue will want their names & contact info anyway.

But you absolutely should be providing a meal for them.

Of course, I'll feed them! Mine told me that she probably won't eat much but I know I get when I don't eat and I want my pictures to be nice!

It's customary to provide food for the vendors who are at your reception (DJ, Videographer, Photographers, Photobooth attendant, DOC, etc). It doesn't have to be fancy (not all the courses your guests are getting), and you shouldn't pay full price or include them in your guest count when you talk to your caterer, but you don't want them to have to leave to get dinner, so it's kind to provide something. They don't have to have a seat at your guests' tables (in fact, most prefer a vendor table at the back or off to the side somewhere so we can eat quickly and get back to work). I don't put anything in my contract that requires it, but when I've been with the bride since 10 or 11 am and often skipped lunch because we were busy shooting or getting ready for the ceremony, it's a pretty long night to go until after midnight without dinner. I'm sure most jobs don't ask you to work for 10-12 hours straight without a meal break. If you don't serve something to your vendors, you really should give them an extended "lunch break" like you would get at work, so they can eat. Providing a vendor meal just means they don't disappear for an hour to find food themselves.

One other thing, if possible, talk to your caterer about serving your vendors first (right before the guests meals come out - or at least at the same time. If you don't mention this, some places will serve vendors last). I'm guessing you don't want photographs of your guests eating, but when the vendors are served last, that means you'll have a bit of "downtime" when your guests are finished eating and ready to dance because your vendors are rushing to try and eat their meals in under 5 minutes... If your photographer (and DJ) eat at the same time as your guests, everyone will be ready to go at the end of dinner, and you won't miss out on any pictures because they were eating!

Yes you normally feed your vendors.....i know for our photographers, dj and day of coordinator they all had in their contract that they get fed

Providing your photographer (and any of your vendors) with a hot meal (what your guests eat), rather than a vendor meal, is a really easy and considerate way of showing them you also care about them. Especially since most vendor meals are two slices of bread with a piece of meat between them and some chips. Which is hardly substantial as a meal when someone has been working for 8-10+ hours.

Sure, you can choose to save $40/head by providing your vendors with barely anything to eat for dinner, but I can guarantee you that by feeding your vendors the same food as your guests you're ensuring their desire to continue to work incredibly hard for you and provide the best possible experience.

Because at the end of the day, while it just sounds like a meal, feeding your vendors the same food as you is fundamentally psychological and shows your vendors that they are people too, not lesser than you, but professionals who you have trusted and brought along to celebrate with you and your loved ones, who are doing their absolute best to provide you with the best possible experience.
Love is in the little things. Not the vendor meals.