I wrote this article for Brides magazine. I hope you find it interesting!

10 GOOD REASONS TO USE A PROFESSIONAL WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
In these credit crunch times, wedding budgets can be squeezed and photography may well be one area you have considered cutting down on. But is that a false economy? Photographer Jane Legate puts the case for using a good professional.


You've got friends who are pretty whizzo with their digital cameras. You've even been to weddings where some of the best pictures have been taken by them! So why bother paying large amounts of cash to a professional wedding photographer? After all, how hard can it be? Well.... pretty hard actually. Here's why.
1) It's a huge responsibility. One day means only one chance to get gorgeous photos of this hugely important event. This fact alone will make the average amateur very nervous. And nerves mean mistakes. The list of things that can go wrong technically is endless. Is it fair to put all that stress onto a friend who is meant to be there to enjoy the day? Professionals are used to dealing with this situation and will have back-up equipment to cover any eventualities. There are so many "what if's" in a wedding. What if the camera breaks, what if the flash batteries run out, what if it's raining and all the photos need to be taken in some dark corridor, what if you get lipstick on your dress, what if your page boy has a tantrum ...... etc. Your pro photographer will have the experience to deal with these problems.

2) You want natural photographs, right? But most good "natural" photographs that you see in books and magazines have been set up by skilled wedding photographers in order to look unposed. OK, your friends may have got some professional-looking shots themselves, but often this is because they have stood behind the pro photographer and copied what he or she has set up. It is the skill in choosing locations with the right light and backgrounds that is often the key to making a great picture and amateurs on their own may simply be unable to do this. And of course good pro photographers know how to talk to couples and get them to "pose" in natural ways, rather than standing and staring cheesily into the camera.

3) Operating the camera is the easy bit. Now try getting large groups of people together, finding a location in which they are all clearly visible, then talking to them and getting good expressions at the critical moment. Dealing with people is the hardest part of wedding photography. The guests are there to enjoy themselves, the bride and groom want as much time with their friends but ....at the end of the day, they also want group shots for posterity. So they want the group shots to be taken as quickly and efficiently as possible and your photographer needs everyone's co-operation. And this is where it often gets too much for the inexperienced amateur. After grandma has had to go and lie down, sister-in-law is up in her room feeding the baby, your cousin's family have got lost en route to the reception, and Uncle Jim's gone walkabout in the gardens, the hard-pressed amateur may just about lose the will to live. The groups then take too long and the chef gets in a tizzy because the meal will have to be put back and his soufflés will sink. Disaster!

4) Amateurs may get the occasional good shot, but what you need is a balanced coverage of your wedding with good shots of every aspect of it. From getting ready shots with your bridesmaids, emotional moments with your mum or dad, the nervous groom outside the church, the formal service and signing of the register, the emotional release of walking back down the aisle, shots outside, groups, the reception, cute shots of children, reportage shots of guests, cake-cutting, detail shots of your tables with flowers etc. The pro photographer has to cover all this, going from interior shots to external shots, using natural light, flash or room light and perhaps with different lenses, all at a hectic pace that photographers of other disciplines like food or fashion may not be able to cope with. It's all go!!

5) People sometimes think that taking a picture is as easy as pressing a button, but there are many other things which pro photographers do to get their stunning shots. For example, they can put parts of the picture in or out of focus to make the image much more compelling, creative and simple. See shots below where the focus is only on the flowers. This also happens to be a fashionable style of photography, used extensively for detail shots of flowers, shoes etc. It is unlikely that amateurs would be able to do this. Professionals also know how to use light beautifully, creating halos of golden sunlight around your hair rather than unattractive black shadows on your face. It is no exaggeration to say that good pro photographers can literally make you far more beautiful.

6) Photographers are used to working with the other wedding suppliers they encounter on the day: florists, make-up artists, hairdressers, toastmasters, vicars, chauffeurs, videographers etc. They understand the "etiquette" of all these situations and co-operate with others to ensure that your day goes smoothly. For most first -time couples, their wedding can be rather daunting. Not having done it before, people worry about "doing the right thing". The professional photographer however is an old hand at this, and effectively becomes a sort of Master of Ceremonies or wedding planner, gently guiding you and the guests through the day. Will your amateur friend be able to do that? Most pros have had experience of different types of weddings: Church of England, Catholic, Civil, Jewish, Greek, Indian etc. They know the form and won't step out of line.

7) Experienced photographers work all year round so they are used to dealing with varied weather conditions. Pouring rain can be difficult to cope with the first time you are photographing a wedding! All weather conditions (especially bright sunshine) can present challenges for photographers and experience is vital. Amateurs generally think that photographs should be taken in full sun but this is extremely unflattering.

8) Cameras are improving all the time, but there is still no denying that the average compact digital camera is no match for a professional's gear. The resolution (print quality) of the image will be far superior with the bigger cameras. Creative shots are far more limited on compact cameras too.

9) What lab would an amateur use? Home printing will not be good enough and may well fade over time. Even professional labs vary in their print quality. You need to know that your photographer has a good working relationship with a lab, and that they will cherish the photographer's business, producing beautiful prints that reflect the quality of your day.

10) Finally, what will you do with the photographs after the honeymoon? You will probably want a beautiful wedding album, but how will you create that? You might be tempted to stick the prints into a book yourself. How would you physically stick the photos on? How would you ensure they go on straight???! How will you arrange them to look balanced and creative on the page? Professionals have a creative eye and years of experience at making up albums and this makes the finished result infinitely superior. And of course you won't have the choice of beautiful albums that the pro photographer has. They can create the new book-style digital albums as well as more traditional albums.
 
 
Even on a budget, weddings are still expensive. But after the flowers have died, the cake has been eaten and the champagne drunk, what have you got left apart from a wedding dress that you'll pack away in the attic? Answer: memories. So wouldn't you like a memory of the emotion, the beauty, the details etc rather than a few unflattering and basic snaps?
The recent bush fires tragedy in Australia illustrated how important photographs are to people. One poor lady wept in anguish on the television news at the thought that she had not been able to save her family photographs from her burning home. Wedding photography is not just for the day. It's for a lifetime. It's your heritage, your story. Tell it with pride.

Contact Jane Legate on janelegate@btinternet.com.