Why hire Heston Weddings as your wedding photographer

Selecting a Wedding Photographer is probably the most important and possibly the most difficult decision you will make for your wedding. Unfortunately, little in life prepares you for selecting an excellent photographer.

I think that it is helpful if you break down the selection process into sections. Obviously as a full time professional photographer I look at things in a certain way, but I think you will find this breakdown helpful. When selecting a photographer for your wedding you should consider what I call the 4 P's - Portfolio, Personality, Professionalism, and Price.

Portfolio - obviously you want great pictures from your wedding, so making sure that you like the photographers portfolio is important. You want to look at not just the photographers "cherry picked" images but also multiple full weddings. Looking at albums from multiple weddings will allow you to see if the photographer gets great images from start to finish of the wedding, and if the photographer can tell a story with the images. I think that I do fantastic work across the board, which is why I have posted up multiple albums for you to review, along with my "cherry picked" images, as well as my Artistic images.

Personality - I think most people under estimate the importance of the photographer's personality and demeanor. On the day of your wedding, you will probably spend more time with the photographer than anyone... even your fiance. The last thing you want is a pushy, nervous, obnoxious photographer following (or leading) you around all day. I could tell you that I'm wonderful, but better that you read it from some of my clients. Endorsements

Professionalism - This encompasses many things, from how you are treated by the photographer - do they return your email and phone calls promptly - to how does the photographer run their business, and in fact is it their full time occupation.

Hopefully you will find that I return emails and phone calls immediately or within a few hours (except on Saturdays and Sundays when I am working)

Photography is my business - I don't have a different job Monday-Friday. I am a registered business with the state of Washington and I carry one million dollars of liability insurance - which protects you in case something should happen to me or one of your guests while I'm shooting your wedding.

I train regularly as a photographer - I know that sounds a little odd, but things are always changing and I need to stay current and fresh. I dedicate 6-12 days a year where I actually pay to attend training with other photographers.

I also compete in print competitions - this helps me perfect my photography, because my images will be judged by a panel of 6 professional photographers - and they miss nothing when judging images. So, when I go to make prints for you I apply the knowledge I've gained by having my prints judged to perfecting your prints. Also, attending these competitions allows me to see images from photographers all over the world. This is helpful because I get to see emerging styles of photography. Not doing this condemns a photographer, and their clients, to the same old thing they have been shooting for years or in some cases decades.

I also use professional equipment, not pro-sumer equipment. And my backup equipment is the same quality as my primary equipment. This insures that your images are the same throughout your wedding.

Price - Ah price! Unfortunately many couples make their decision purely on price, and not necessarily because it is the most important thing, but because it is the "easiest" to compare.

If all photographers were equally talented, professional, and their personalities were all the same then price would be a good way to decide who to hire. Unfortunately or fortunately not all photographers are the same, so price gets a little more difficult to use.

My recommendation is the use the first three items Portfolio, Personality, and Professionalism to narrow down your search and then use Price as a deal breaker - realizing that it better to stretch your photo budget a little to get a great photographer and great images, rather than save a few dollars on photography.

Remember - You can get prints and albums months or even a years after the wedding, however, if you try to save a few dollars and the photographer doesn't capture the great images that you want, you will never have them - no matter how much you spend after the wedding or get as part of a wedding package.