Why should you hire a professional to capture your elopement?

We’ve all been there, debating, budgeting, seeing where we can cut back on a significant expense when our family member says “I can do that for you.” At first you think, that would be GREAT! We can save ALL THIS MONEY. Then the day of your wedding comes, You start getting ready wondering where your photographer is? Wondering if they are getting all the behind the scenes, are they getting my grandmother’s broach that is on my flowers, are they getting my earrings that were worn by my mother on her wedding day? Should I wait to get ready so that they can get my mom buttoning up my dress?

Then your bridesmaids, or your important people start showing up, hugs abound. Did that moment get captured? Did the face my mom made when she saw me in my dress for the first time get captured? Did my dad seeing me in this dress get captured?

I could go on on and on about how important all these moments are and the thousands of seconds in your day that could be missed if you don’t hire a professional. but I think these photos will speak for themselves.

I was fortunate enough to capture this wedding high atop a mountain in Wallowa Lake Oregon near Joseph Oregon. We rode the gondola up, we looked at all the gorgeous scenery, we spend several hours scouting the best location for these forever memories to be captured. With permission I am sharing what I captured alongside what was captured by someone with a “really nice camera” captured. Often times I hear couples say that they may not need a photographer because my “uncle has a really nice camera.” As I always do, I try to steer couples in the direction of hiring a professional. Below each photo I have included a little backstory, and reasoning for each one.

The moment: The bride walks into view for the first time for everyone to see.

The two images stacked on the left are from an amature photographer who probably had a great camera. The two images are from my lens, showing the story of how the bride and her dad came around this gorgeous bend in the road and the moment the groom saw his bride for the first time. I was able to capture both because of my lenses and my ability to know and anticipate the moment. I knew to set up myself in a position to capture both and with my incredible zoom lens and knowledge of how to use them they came our crisp and sharp and gorgeous.

The moment: Giving the bride away.

The image on the right is showing an out of focus, ill-lit version of this event. My image on the Left shows great grandmas seeing this happen, it shows the face of the groom clear and in focus, it shows the emotion of the day as well seen in the smiles of the groomsmen. Also, there may have also been a grease mark or dirt on the lens here, that could be why there is this general haze around the subjects causing it to miss focus and go to the trees.

The moment:

The prayer before the ceremony.

John’s dad stood up and said a prayer for all to hear before the couple started their ceremony high atop these mountains. As you can see my image has been set for proper exposure and shows the gorgeous scenery behind the beautiful wedding party. You can see the connection between father and son as dad looks over during the prayer. In my images I specifically look for human connections. Ensuring you see those moments you may have missed otherwise.

The moment: The groom wipes away a tear on the bride’s cheek.

In my image on the right you can see clearly in frame the beautiful couple sharing such a sweet moment. There was literally not a dry eye in sight as we witnessed this beautiful union between Jessica and John. The maid of honor was sweetly wiping away her own tears of happiness for her best friend. One thing I would like to highlight is the even lighting and the angle of this shot. While I did go back and forth taking photos of the audience as well you can see the moment captured between these two so perfectly.

The moment: The bridal party Ladies side

Here you can see in the middle bottom the image captured by the standing family member. I can actually having to walk around this member during these photos to get my shots. This hurts my heart a little bit because, while I am sure this family member was so excited to capture these for the bride and groom, they were taken out of the moment, and capturing these memories is what My job is. You can see the bridal party and the emotions from the two Maids of honor. The sweet smile from the flower girl and the fun in the dirt the youngest flower girl was having. These are all moments that the bride and groom will be happy to see later

The moment: The exchanging of the vows.

In the image on the right you can see that the light isn’t quite right, the backlit image is hard to see and you may not be sure what they are doing. In my image, you can see the connection the couple has, the bride is smiling while the groom thoughtfully says his vows. You can also see the gorgeous bouquet clearly being held by the Maid of Honor

The Moment: Sealed with a Kiss

Gosh, one of my favorite, if not THE FAVORITE moment of a wedding is the big smooch at the end. I love the way each couple makes that their own, from a sweet peck to, oh mama we need to get them to their room STAT. Jessica and john shared the sweetest of kisses atop this mountain. The only thing I was sad about is the officiant didn’t have enough space to move out of the way without risking his life, so I ended up fixing that in post. I was able to take him out of the picture completely. This is another reason to hire a professional. While this is not standard, I do try to go the extra mile to make sure my clients get a clean first kiss shot. Even if that means several hours fixing it in the post production process.

The moment: The exit

The smiles radiate from both of these images, but what I see when I look closer is one in focus well lit image, and one that may not live up to what it could have been. You can see the excitement in the bride and groom’s faces as they make their way back down the aisle and the beautiful backdrop they chose.

One final image to leave you with. The bride and groom shared a sweet dance in very low light situations. During times like this it is important to hire a professional who can make the camera work. The settings that I change my camera to allow for the bride and groom to be the main focus in their story, to show the smiling faces of those watching them, but not to overshadow the bride and groom.

If you would like to see the rest of the images I captured at Jessica and John’s Wallowa Lake Wedding you can do so here

I hope I helped you to see the importance of hiring a professional to capture your elopement or wedding and provided some insight as to why it is indeed worth it.