Has anyone used a student photographer?

Lollie79

Hi
As we are looking to save money i thought i would look into using a student photographer. She was recommended by a friend whose said her work was good. I have had a look at her facebook page and her work is really good altho she has only done one wedding before and that was her aunts. Ive made contact and we have arranged a meet up for friday to discuss what we are looking for.

What sort of things should i ask her and what sort of price would you expect to pay in this circumstance?

Btw i also have a meeting with a wedding photographer on wed who has years of experience and he did a family wedding recently so we have seen his work. He is going to charge us £575 for all day, the pics on a disc and a 6 x 4 of every print taken.

Im only expecting the student photographer to provide us a disc and im more than happy with that.

Just wondering if any of you have any experience of using a student and was it what u expected etc...

Lollie x

Mint1955

My daughter did weddings when she was student and she charged £150 - £250 dependent on how long the day was i.e breakfast till the first dance or Getting in to cars from house to pretend cutting the cake and then leaving before sitting down to meal.

Make sure the student has backup equipment just in case of breakdown especially spare charged battery packs for her camera and extra memory cards so that she can snap many many shots to allow a greater choice for final edit.

Make a list of the definite shots you want and who is to be in them make 2 copies and make sure you assign an usher or someone approproate to be the photographers assistant in getting the right people together at the correct time etc.

The photographer will need to be personable and not shy as they will need to be able to herd people around and also to get people to move away etc etc

Hope that helps.
Sheila

MrsDrink

Be prepared for the barrage of posts telling you you must choose the best photographer - you only get one chance to take photos that you will cherish for the rest of your life blah blah blah lol.

If you want your photos to be a high quality and you don't want any moments lost then I would be wary about using a student. I know professional photographers who hate doing weddings because of the responsibility. BUT if you just want to capture the day, and don't really care about individual specific photos (like what if she misses the first kiss), then I would be all for going with a student. Mmm that sounds really negatively phrased - I don't mean it to be.

Until a month ago I wasn't going to have a photographer - I was just going to have my mum taking snaps during the ceremony. But as she's paid for my dress we have some spare money in the budget, I didn't think it was fair that she wouldn't be able to watch the ceremony cause she'd be too busy snapping. So I ummed and ahhed sent out a few taster emails to see what local photographers prices were like etc. In the end I decided not to - I thought sod it I'm not paying that for photos that any of my guests could take in theory... until I saw some reportage style photos of a friend (just normal ones in a location not a wedding), and they were great. That sold it to me and a week later I met a photographer today and have paid a deposit. I have already started drawing a list of photos up that I want taking - like I really want a natural photo of MrD waiting for me at the top of the aisle (hopefully looking a mixture of nerves and excitment), and photos of all our guests arriving - all the things that I wont be able to see. I also think our mums would really like a photo of the whole family... so that will be their gifts from us.

Mmm what is my point? It depends what you want from your photos.

Oh forgot to say - I'm only having a photographer for the ceremony and a couple of posed group photos (and one of MrD and I). The rest I'm either taking myself or I'm getting from my guests afterwards. (Have bought writable CDs for them which I'll send with our Thank you cards asking for them to burn their photos from our wedding and return to us).

sandraann

I'm a wedding photographer myself and appreciate that many wish to economise on this part of the wedding.It's obviously up to the individual how much you value the photography but one huge concern i'd have about using a student is that they're really unlikely to have any insurance and if you're accepting that they're a student you could leave yourself liable for a claim resulting from the photographers actions. It could be something as simple as them assembling a group for a photograph and someone tripping.Every vendor at a wedding should be insured fully.
My other concern would be that back up equipment for cameras and flash equipment, along with an assortment of lenses is a necessity and it's unlikely that a student could afford it. Why not hire a professional photographer for a few hours if it's proving too expensive to have them for the full day.

lorna01

depending on when your getting married loads of students will do your photos for free ! they need it as part of their portfolio for their course work, if you look on gumtree you will find loads !