Photography as a Wedding Present

Wedding photography makes a wonderful wedding gift but a very poor choice of surprise present

There is more than one way to give photography as a wedding gift. You could offer to take the pictures, or pay for the photographer, or (as the bride) have a set of pictures taken as a gift for your future husband. Before the event pay for an engagement shoot or after the event offer to pay for framed prints or albums.  Be careful however ñ the photography can be a highly personal choice so make sure you consult with all those involved from the outset. Photography makes a very poor choice of surprise gift.

Offering to take the pictures.

Best advice: don't! I won't say any more than that! For reasons see: Why You Need a Professional Photographer on Your Wedding Day

Pay for the photographer

It's quite possible that by the time you hear of the wedding the photographer has already been booked and deposits paid etc. This is why you must speak to the bride and groom otherwise you and or the bride and groom could end up wasting money at a time when you really don't need to!

Also the choice of photographer must be down to the bride and groom. The photographer will be with them from the start of the day until (quite possibly) the end. It's essential everybody is comfortable with each other or the day will lose some of its sparkle!

A possibility might be to pay for a second photographer at the wedding for a slightly different viewpoint. But you must speak to the main photographer about this - you will need someone he or she is comfortable to work with, he may well have some very practical suggestions.

If you do speak to the bride and groom and offer to meet some or all of the cost of their chosen photographer I'm sure they will be deliriously happy! Wedding photography (when done properly) is not cheap!

Also avoid gift vouchers from photographers unless you know the vouchers are from the photographer chosen by the bride and groom or you could be throwing your money away - nobody wants that!

Other Photographic Gifts

A possible gift is to speak to the happy couple and their chosen photographer about pre-wedding engagement photography. This is where the photographer takes the bride and groom out to the venue or into the studio or even a local beauty spot for a "practice" photographic shoot before the wedding day. This has the very real advantage of letting the photographer and couple work together before the big day and gets the bride and groom used to being photographed. It generally makes the day go more smoothly!

Another possible idea, more for the bride than groom, is to have a set of boudoir photographs taken of the bride as a present for the groom. Yet another idea is a set of "trash the dress" pictures (for the brave) where the bride and groom go out the day after the wedding or soon(ish) after, all dressed up in their wedding outfits and have pictures taken in "unusual" venues or circumstances - I'll leave the rest to your imagination!

Yet another recent idea is a picture of dawn breaking on the wedding day mounted and framed ready to hang in your home.

The most recent trend in the good old US of A is morning after wedding photography - for this you would DEFINITELY need permission of the bride and groom. I'll leave the description to the originator: "Sexy shoots featuring rumpled beds and steamy showers are a hot new trend within the wedding business... these intimate photo shoots take place in newlyweds' bedrooms or even the hotels where they've spent their first night as husband and wife."

In summary, the offer of supplying the wedding photography for the couple's big day is a wonderful gift but a very poor choice of surprise. Before doing anything speak to the bride and groom and see what they've done so far, then fit in with their plans, or think again!

Adam Szczepanski  - London Wedding Photographer

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