Once we had our venue booked and our date set, our next big step was photography. And let me tell you, this had me sweating. Photography was hugely important to us- it’s the one thing you get to keep forever from your wedding day. Not only did we want great photos, but we wanted to work with a photographer that we could trust and feel comfortable around (a tall order for me, I’m 98% anxiety.)

And photography is expensive. We weren’t even sure about adding videography; between the two, we’d rather have the great photos, and we could always set up a tripod and a phone if we needed to film things.

It makes sense why it’s expensive, especially for your wedding day. But it’s still a lot. So just like the wedding venue research, I did a lot of research on local photographers. But unlike venues, where I scoured theknot and Zola, I looked at my friends who had gotten married in the last few years. That spoke a lot to me- getting that firsthand knowledge from someone I knew meant that I could really get a good feel for their experience.

As luck would have it, we ended up reaching out to just one photographer. A friend of mine had recently got married, I asked her who she worked with, and Shane and I set up a time to meet with them. We met Gabby and Mike at Disney Springs one evening after work, and we hit it off immediately. It turns out that not only did we share a lot of the same interests, but Mike and Shane had both been on Warped Tour years ago- they just barely missed each other!

We chatted back and forth over email about logistics, and- just like our venue- we knew it was just meant to be. The package we chose included an engagement session, a full photo release, and an edited video (and some other details- I can double check what they were!) And the whole package was lower than what we had originally budgeted for photography. It was honestly a miracle! We were so excited that we found a photographer and videographer that not only were capable, experienced, and very easy to communicate with, but we felt right at ease with them immediately. It was incredible!

What made you decide on your photographer? And did you decide to go with videography too?