Saving Your Photography Budget

My wedding photographer shot with gusto. She and her retro plastic rain boots waded into the middle of a pond to get the right angle for my shots. Her gutsy shots proved fantastic, but getting me out of a canoe in heels is much easier said than done. With one heel on a muddy incline and another in the wobbly canoe, I started to slip, sending me on my way to becoming one muddy, soaked bride for the rest of my photo shoot. But I was saved. The second half of my dry and non-muddy photo shoot, I tribute Jenny and her rain boots. Just as I began to slip, Jenny jumped back in to the pond and stopped the canoe from tipping over. I fell into the boat instead of into the pond.

Our budgets can sometimes follow a similar path. We think everything is under control and that we are getting really great products for our money. And then SLIP! We somehow lose control and our budget ends up soaked and muddy and useless.

But not you. Because you read this article.

My photographer saved me on my photo shoot day, and these next five tips can help you save your budget.

Less is More--Five tips to keep to a budget:
 Decide what’s important – Is having the right venue or quality photography more important? Put your money where your heart is. And remember… a good photographer can make any venue look good.
 Printing – Print the pictures yourself. Ask your photographer to sell you the rights to edited photos and put them on a disk. Professional photographers make huge profits by marking up their printing fees. You can print photos for hundreds of dollars cheaper if you take a disk to a wholesale printer.
 Make sure you get what you pay for – “Do something with your wedding photos!” says Reed. Purchasing photo packages instead of single shots will keep your cost down. Reed explains, “Most of my packages include albums because I want my photos to seen, enjoyed, and not lost on a disc somewhere. But when it comes to photos the sky is the limit--you can even make them into post-it-notes.”
 Try a photo booth—If you can’t afford a photographer for the reception, “DO NOT use those disposable camera’s on each table!” warns Cooper. “You are lucky to get any good shots. Most people forget to turn on the flash and take some pretty random pictures that you will have to PAY to develop.” Instead, “Try a photo booth,” says Hansen. “Photo booths are fun, inexpensive, and you and your guests pay only for the photos you want.”
 Casual Elegance -- “You don’t need an elegant venue for elegant pictures,” says Jenny Hansen of Jenfolio. “The opposition of one elegant accessory, such as an armed chair in a dry riverbed, or a lamppost in the middle of a field excites the eye and saves you money.”