How long is your photographer staying?

wishfire

HI Minerva

I'm a wedding photographer, and most people would book us till the first dance but tbh we do stay past it to at least get at least some pictures of people dancing. We wouldn't charge for the extra few minutes and, depending on how regimented your day is going to be, I would suggest you book someone with some flexibility to their timing.

If you need any help with planning/booking of your photography, feel free to send me a PM

PolishBigSpender

He met us in the church (I didn't want any pictures of me putting on my stockings) and stayed past midnight, probably until 1am or so. The wedding was at 4pm, so he was with us for about 9 hours.
We got a lot of pictures of us and guests dancing, eating, chatting - I would feel we missed out if we didn't have them.

gadgeteer_2

I'm a wedding photographer too and like others I generally stay 20-30 mins after the first dance to get a few photos of people dancing.

I'll be honest, at a lot of weddings people simply don't get up to dance. So unless you are sure that your family & friends are the type that will party the night away then it may not be worth paying an expensive photographer to stay on.

You'd be better off putting that money towards a photobooth instead where people can roll in drunk and take some hilarious shots.

If I were in your shoes I'd probably tack it on as the deal closes. Eg. If you can stay 30 mins after the first dance to get a few shots of people dancing then you have a deal.

The wedding photography market is very competitive so chances are good that your photographer would agree to that.

Lastly with regards to your concerns about blinking and leaning towards reportage, I wouldn't worry about it. If you choose a reputable and experienced photographer they will always take several photos in rapid succession during the group shots and they will check the LCD during the posed shots to ensure there's no blinkers.

What I suggest is go look for some wedding photographs you love. Pinterest is awesome for this but google images or Flickr works too. Choose 5 of your favourite photographs then ask yourself this. Are they posed or not? 9/10 couples who tell me they want the natural shots end up picking posed photos as their favourite.

Every photographer nowadays will take those natural style photographs. Assuming you have a reasonable budget, I would pick a photographer who either uses a second photographer or assistant. A second photographer will be able to get different angles and be where the primary cannot (eg. taking natural photos whilst others are lining up for the traditional shots). Top end photographers also use assistants to hold lights and flashes.

the_insider

We're having our photographer for 6 hours, from guests arriving pre-ceremony to evening guests arriving. H2B had two close friends who are professional photographers who both offered to do the photos but we want them both there as guests so we've asked them both to do some reportage shots once the formal stuff is out of the way. It means we get them in the pictures of the day but they can still contribute like they wanted.

jinky9

I`m a wedding photographer ( Leeds based but cover York) and in my ful day package (on offer at £800 just now) I give a free pre-shoot to give posing tips and images for use on the day / invitations etc, 10 hours coverage minimum on the day , dvd slideshow of selected images telling th story set to wedding day music and all edited images on a disc with licence to print. The coverage lasts beyond first dance for me on that package as I offer a free included photobooth set up which starts after first dance and is a good laugh. Generally I stay until around 9.30-10 with that package so it`s a good deal. Most others I know are off after first dance. I`ve messaged you details in case you are interested. Check out at least 3 full day weddings form anyone you use, try to meet them first ( iI offer free no obligation meets) and make sure they are fully insured with back up gear to cover all eventualities