Why Photography is the Most Important Wedding Expense to Splurge On

Other than your spouse and some cake that will sit in your freezer for a year, your memories are about all you’re going to have left of your wedding after the day is over. As we all know, memories fade and pictures are one of the best ways to keep them alive. Not all wedding photos and wedding photographers are created equal. The longer time passes, the more you’ll cherish your wedding photography, and you’ll thank yourself for making this wedding expense one of your top priorities. 

There are a lot of Washington DC wedding photographers and Maryland Wedding Photographers to choose from, so take your time researching your options and finding wedding photographers that match your style. Don’t just pick the first photographer you find because their prices are cheaper. You want to make sure you find a wedding photographer who truly cares about getting the pictures you want. Someone who gets you and can make you feel comfortable will be able to take pictures of you where you naturally happy and carefree. We’ve rounded up some reasons why your wedding photos should be an expense that you leave a little (or maybe even a lot) extra room for in the budget. 

Good photos are art

You’re not going to hang your wedding dress on a hook in your living room, but you will likely hang photos from your wedding all over your home. You might also put them on your thank you cards, create magnets out of them, put them on your holiday cards, put them on a coffee mug, post them on social media, show them to your kids someday, and your family will probably hang them in their homes, too. With such visible photos, they need to be beautiful and truly be a work of art. Good photographers know how to get the best lighting, where to take the best pictures, and what angles to shoot from to have you looking your best. They also know how to edit photos so they come out looking natural and beautiful. 

They keep your history alive

Not only will these memories help you remember the special day, but they’ll be a special piece of family history for your kids, grandkids, and even great-grandkids to look at. The more high-quality photos you have from the day, the more future generations will be able to learn from you and your love story. Don’t just settle for a few staged family photos; you want all the candids in photojournalistic style–the pictures that capture who you are, which brings us to our next point.  

They capture the essence of you

Great wedding photographers set up photo opportunities and edit photos in a way that enhances your natural beauty and tells your love story. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words. When you splurge on a good wedding photographer, you’ll get someone who is going to work with you to capture your day as it unfolds, not someone who is there to take the token staged photos. They’ll learn about the great bond you have with your brother and be sure to capture plenty of photos of the two of you together, for example. 

A great photographer can lower your wedding day stress

When you and your photographer create a game plan before the big day, you don’t have to worry about making sure every important photo gets taken–your photographer has it taken care of. 

They’ll also be sure to capture all the behind the scenes photos that you want to be taken. For example, they might take a beautiful shot of your dress hanging while you’re busy eating breakfast. Or maybe they’ll take some close-ups of your rings while you’re setting up last minute decorations. As long as you communicate with your photographer beforehand, you can trust that these photos will get taken, and you don’t have to stress about it or waste time overseeing the process when you have so many other things to attend to throughout the day. 

They make everything else you spent time and money on worth it

There are so many small details in weddings that brides love to plan and put together to make the day perfect: the design of the bouquet, the centerpieces, the favors, the bridesmaids’ jewelry, the list could go on and on. Without a great photographer with a plan and an eye for detail, all of these things might quickly be forgotten soon after your wedding. Let’s face it, a year after your wedding, if you ask your guests what your centerpieces looked like, most aren’t going to remember. The vision will also probably start to fade from your memory as well. With a photographer who makes sure to capture all these details though, you’ll remember it forever and suddenly all those hours spent planning and decorating don’t go down the drain the minute the DJ plays the last song.