Life is all about making connections with other people. If you’re just going about life all by yourself, then you are really missing out. Meeting new people is one of my favorite things about being involved with weddings. I get to know them and their background and their personality, and then I am around them on one of the biggest days of their lives. Some photographers take it more as just a job and don’t really try to make that connection, but I believe building relationships in wedding photography is extremely important.
Building Relationships in Wedding Photography
I include engagement sessions in all of my packages because this is where the relationship building starts. If we don’t do a premeeting, this will be the first time we meet and get to hang out. It’s a lot easier to learn about the couple and for them to get use to at an engagement session instead of the wedding day. There are plenty of times that I didn’t do an engagement session and things still went great, but it’s hard to really feel as connected without being around them first.
During the engagement session, I always ask questions. I want to know as much as possible about the couple. This is a great way to get them relaxed and not thinking about being in photos, but more than anything, I really do want to know about them. I’ve found so many interesting people and jobs and situations throughout the years. Often, I find that I have some connection with them, whether we know the same people or maybe went to the same high school.
Whether it’s the engagement session or the actual wedding, I always try to be upbeat. No one likes being around a grumpy person. I want everyone to enjoy my presence and have fun during the photos. It’s a party and it should be a good time. I’ll crack jokes and laugh at myself all the time.
Recently I have been trying to build some other relationships related to weddings, with vendors. In the past, I’ve always focused on the couple and the people involved with the wedding and never really built up a relationship with the other vendors. I’ve talked to a lot of them, but I’ve never really reached out like I should have. My new goal is to really talk to the other vendors, learn their names, and learn more about them. After the wedding, I need to keep in contact with them and help them out with photos.
Building relationships in wedding photography is so important. Often I will have people compliment me on my work at a wedding without even seeing a photo. People see how you act and how you treat people and it makes an impression. I don’t want to just create beautiful photos, I want people to feel good and enjoy being around me.
