If you have to cut down on what you spend in your wedding, this is not the place to slash your costs. You want to make sure that you get the best wedding pictures possible and that your photographer is a professional.

One way you can make sure that you get a great photographer is to talk to your friends and relatives who have been married recently. Many times they will have suggestions and let you in on how their photographer performed.

If you are thinking of trying a photographer that you are not familiar with, you may want to check around and see what others have to say about their work. If you hear any horror stories, you would be best to keep on searching.

Style Counts
When you are picking someone to do your wedding photography, you will want to see the pictures that they have taken in the past. Unless you know the photographer well, you might not want to pick someone who is just starting out. By looking at their portfolio of pictures, you can get a sense of their style and the work that they do. Look for special poses that strike your fancy and make sure the photographer’s style blends with yours.

Price is always an issue when you are considering wedding photography. You may want to check with various photographers to see who can offer you the best prices. When you are comparing prices you can also see what the packages offer with the related prices. While some prices may seem a bit higher than others, often it is because the package offers more features like extra pictures or even video of your ceremony. Whoever your choose, make sure that you are getting real value for your money.

Black and White Photos
When deciding on a photographer, you will want to consider what exactly you want at your wedding. Do you want special photos like black and white pictures, or would you like video taken at your wedding. Are there special poses that you want taken or special moments that you want specifically captured.

If you have specific needs for the wedding, you must discuss them with the photographer. For example, do you want to have video footage at your wedding? You will want to hire someone else if the photographer cannot do this for you. Or, you can hire someone else to do the video separately.

Remember that this is your wedding and preserving this day is important. You want a photographer who will capture your day for you and do it on your terms. If the photographer seems overbearing or will not listen to you and what you want, then you need to choose someone else for your wedding photography.

A sound strategy means that you would be able to create opportunities by the numbers. You will have to create an opportunity in every situation. Most wedding photographers take two versions of the same shot to eliminate blinks and at the same time they are able to introduce variety. The norm of wedding photography is to shoot a full-length photo, which is followed by a head and shoulders or half-length photo. Secondly, you will have to create a list of photographs that should be or can be taken during wedding. The list drawn by most professionals include photographs of Bride at home, preparations/wedding dress, parents, bridesmaids, bridesmaids - group photo, bride and bridesmaids, bride and chief bridesmaid, bride and family, parents and bride, mother and bride, father and bride, brothers, sisters and bride, parents and bridesmaids, extended family and any special request.

These will be followed by photographs in the church or outdoors after the wedding ceremony is over. One of the favorite shots is where the bride walks through the aisle. You can take good photos using a tripod so that the flash can bounce from a reflector at around f/5.6 followed by a shutter speed of 1/8 or 1/15 of a second. This will allow ambient light to seep in. If you are not using the tripod then you will need to have one stop less than the normal where the flash will reflect on an 80mm lens and the shutter speed will be 1/30 of a second.

There are basically two types of cameras used for wedding photography. One is the 35mm and the other is a medium format. The 35mm cameras create grainier appearance when the photograph is enlarged as compared to a medium format. Another aspect of photography that you need to know about is the camera film. The camera film is available in both B&W and color. The color film is the most popular one but off late B&W photos are coming to the forefront. The good thing about black & white film is that you can create an artistic look. Secondly, the B&W photos last longer than their colored counterpart. The salient point of color films is that they are more versatile. If you shoot with a color film then you will be able to portray the details of the wedding day. If you are using a 35mm camera for the occasion then your best bet will be 100, 200 or 400 speed film. The 100 speed film gives best quality prints in strong sunlight, the 200 speed film can be used in sunlight as well as shade and the 400 speed film is the best for low light.