DIY Wedding Photography

Anyone considering getting their guests to photograph their wedding for them ?

In a way ... we considered hiring some (25) digital cameras so our photography was 'crowd sourced' so to speak! We were going to hand them out before the ceremony. The package we liked included a bespoke A4 storybook, a big poster print a disc of the images and a web gallery all for £295 http://www.yousnap.co.uk

you might want to read this before you make your final decision. http://www.rocknrollbride.com/2012/01/should-i-book-a-professional-wedding-photographer-or-get-a-friend-to-do-it-for-free-a-cautionary-tale/
Thanks
Jon

We have a friend who is a keen amateur photographer doing ours. We've seen lots of his camera club work and haven't seen a bad shot yet.

We've also asked guests to e-mail us pics they take on their own cameras so we can print out nice shots

I think if you're careful about who you ask, you can get a reasonable album of pictures. Just bear in mind they may not be the same quality as those taken by a pro.

sort of, im an artists working in performance and have a few people who i have worked with and photographed my performances so i have ask them to do it as they would be invited anyway.

whenever iv seen all guests unleashed with cameras they take a dozen pictures of the floor, a few on someone cheek and the rest come out dark

I personally would never do it. Luckily we are not on a budget - and if I was then perhaps I would consider it. However, I would rather miss out other things than end up with rubbish pictures - they are the only thing that will last!

I would be so careful of this the photographs and a video (if you want) are the lasting things after the wedding. I know some people who have been devastated because the images weren’t what they wanted also remember the pressure you are adding to friends/families asking them to do this and if you then even worse after if you don’t like the photographs.

There are some fantastic photographers who do shorter hours/packages and therefore not as expensive. You also don't have to get an album straight away you could save up for that afterwards. I would cut back everything before cutting back on the photography. Just my opinion though! xx

i've been looking at gumtree and have found someone who takes photos part time who needs to build their portfolio so is offering her time at £15 per hour. i'd defintaly recommend gumtree as theres plenty of students out there who are just as good as professionals but just need to build their portfolio x

I don't think there is anything wrong with "crowd sourced" photos, to complement your Wedding photos, but the cameras in the above link are frankly.. well.. poo. Most people have a digital camera, iphone or similar and can take snaps to complement your quality pics. Perhaps then just add a basic half day session from a pro and you have a good combination.

A good pro will always flex their service to cater for your needs.

The problem with guests doing the photos, is that they will busily take pics at the beginning and then forget as the day goes on. Also cheaper cameras (anything <£3-400) just can't get enough light in to capture a quality picture in lowerer light, so your evening/indoor pics will be dark and grainy. There is no substitute for pro gear in low light conditions.

Not having more money to spend on a photographer is my biggest regret of the planning process for me. We're on a tight budget, and while I'm happy with everything else, this is the one thing that I could easily have spent more on. Our photography is being done by a friend-of-a-friend for a cheaper price than I found anywhere else, and I've seen his work and it's all fine, but it's just a little niggly doubt at the back of my mind!