The photographer is going to be your employee in many ways, so you will need to be absolutely sure that this is a person that you can trust with your wedding pictures. Treat him or her as a job applicant and see how you interact with each other.
You can find a list of wedding photographers in your local phone book, but it’s much easier to get onto a wedding website and see who local people recommend. This list is much shorter and can lead you to higher quality people without having to call everyone from A to Z.
Once you have a list of photographers, start to call them to set up appointments. Try not to schedule them too close to each other so that you can spend as much time as you need with each one. If you’re rushed, you may forget to ask particular questions and you may also forget which photographer said what.
Make a list of questions that you want to ask. You can ask about pricing, hourly fees, added costs, location costs, various developing techniques, and more. Try to think of every question that you and your soon-to-be spouse can, even if you think they sound silly. No question is too silly, and if the photographer has been around long enough, then they will have heard them all.
Your interview style
One of the things that work best in talking with photographers is to try to make sure that you are leading the conversation. You want to make sure that you are getting your opinion into the talks, rather than being told what other couples are doing and saying about them and how much their fees are.
If you feel like you’re being sold a product, rather than an opportunity to have some great pictures, then you can cut the appointment off and leave. You have no obligation to choose anyone until you’re completely satisfied with your choice.
Look at the samples carefully and make sure that you’re looking at ones that are recent. Sometimes photographers will try to show you older photos, but if that’s not your style, then it’s really not applicable. Study the quality of the pictures and look for poses that you like.
Your pictures will serve as a reminder of the happiness and joy of your wedding day. You need to find someone who will create masterpieces of your photos. Take your time in finding someone, but do it early—if you live in a smaller town, these professionals can book up early.