A couple planning to get married often spend a fortune on the venue, catering services, rings, clothes, and the photographer.
And if you want the best photos, you have to hire the best photographers known for their excellent track record in taking wedding photos; that could mean having to pay a premium price for better photos! But many couples don’t mind the extra cost as long as they get the best pictures to last a lifetime.
A couple recently went viral, however, after a photographer for “10 hours of continuous photography coverage, for free! Their ‘payment’ would be in the form of the photographer’s exposure to ‘117 unmarried guests between the ages of 24 and 35 years old’.
Unable to believe that someone would actually do this, the photographer shared the other ‘perks’ they are supposed to get from the ‘sponsored’ wedding coverage. Aside from being exposed to those unmarried guests who might book their services in the future, the couple also pointed out that they have a total of 300 wedding guests, 196 of whom are based in the Chicagoland area where the photographer is apparently based, and 73 parents of the unmarried guests mentioned above.
Plus, the couple also has a combined total of 3,000 Facebook followers. Wouldn’t that be a great deal? Nah! The photographer doesn’t think so, too.
Moreover, the couple promised that they would hand out a wedding brochure to all guests, complete with the photographer’s name, logo, and other details for future reference. The photographer shared the email on Reddit where, as expected, the couple received not-so-nice comments about their cringe-worthy offer.
“This isn’t for exposure at all, this is just trying to get free things. They have nothing to offer anyone for that matter. Listen, if your name is Beyoncé you won’t have to ask people to give you free things for exposure, they’ll offer it. If you’re a nobody from nowhere with a couple thousand followers you’re nothing, a nobody. You have no bargaining power. Give your head a shake geez,” a netizen wrote.
“I think you should go, and for every photo you take, say “That’ll be $10, sir”. I mean, if they say you agreed for free, you can just say that they agreed to do $10 per photo. It would be embarrassing for them not to pay their photographer, and you shouldn’t worry about the bad image you’re leaving, it’s not like you would like any of the family members of such beggar to hire you,” a clever netizen commented.
How Much to Pay Wedding Photographers?
Obviously, there are many factors that affect the price you need to pay the wedding photographers. In the US, the usual range is from $1,150 to $3,000. In the Philippines, expect a range from Php20,000 to Php110,000.
But the actual price you pay would also depend on location, wedding package you get, and the photographer’s fame. More famous photographers, especially celebrity photographers, are known to charge higher fees.