Do You Need a Photographer?
People ask, are photographers good value? Do you really need a professional photographer? They cost a lot of money, almost everyone has a pretty good camera, and every phone has a camera built in.
But you’re not just paying for a guy with very expensive cameras to take photographs.
I photographed a wedding where one of the bridesmaids was worried about a scar on her foot. To someone else, that might seem like a very small thing to worry about. You could easily say, “It’s on your foot. No one will even see it with your shoes on.”
But it wasn’t a small thing to her.
She was very self-conscious about it, and because she was worried, the bride became worried as well.
None of us is perfect. We all have things we like and don’t like about ourselves, and being photographed by a professional photographer on such an important day can cause anxiety. On an ordinary day, the scar probably wouldn’t have crossed her mind. But weddings can bring out nerves and emotions.
The bridesmaid was a lifelong friend. The bride wanted to share her wedding with the people she loved most. She wanted to have fun, and she wanted her bridesmaids to relax and have fun as well. Nobody wanted to spend the day worrying about whether her foot would look good in the photographs.
So I showed her a simple way of posing that naturally covered her foot.
Nothing complicated. It didn’t make her look awkward or make it obvious that we were trying to hide something.
I showed the rest of the bridal party as well, which gave everyone a little boost of confidence. They could relax because they knew how to pose naturally and look good in the photographs.
More importantly, the bridesmaid stopped worrying about her foot and could put her attention back where it belonged — on her friend and enjoying the wedding.
A professional photographer isn’t there just to take photographs. Sometimes our job is recognising when someone is uncomfortable and knowing how to solve the problem. That skill comes from photographing many weddings over many years.
I’m yet to attend a wedding where I don’t hear someone say, “I hate having my photograph taken.”
There’s nearly always someone worried about their height, their arms, how they smile or something else about themselves.
I don’t tell them they’re wrong or that they shouldn’t worry about it. That can be dismissive.
I want people to relax, have fun, and receive enough guidance to feel good about themselves in front of the camera.
A phone can’t do that for you.
The camera is just a tool. The real value comes from the person behind it — their experience, their ability to work with people, and knowing what to do when something doesn't go to plan.
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