Why We Need Good Photographers

In this day and age almost everyone has a cell phone. The latest phones by Samsung, I-phone, LG, Google and all of the other companies can do some pretty amazing things. Not to mention all of the apps that are out there as well. Recently, someone asked me the following question; “Do you think that cell phones will eliminate the need for professional photographers?” Without hesitation I answered; “No”. You can already guess what the follow up question was; “Why not?” Great question. To find out about the rest of my answer, visit my blog at http://metphotographytakingphotographs.blogspot.com

First things first. A good, knowledgeable photographer is priceless. When you are hiring a photographer to take pictures at an event, family portraits, etc., it is usually an event of great significance. For example, a wedding, a milestone birthday, a sporting event, etc. There is usually a lot of time and money spent on these events. What would happen if you didn’t have any photographs of the event? There are literally dozens of things that can go wrong at an event. Just try not to increase those odds by not taking the appropriate steps to secure a photographer.

Michael Lay, a professional photographer once said to me, “Darryl, the client(s) won’t remember what the food tasted like. They won’t remember what the place smelled like, but they will remember the photography.” You can look at your pictures over and over again once they’re taken. Once you leave the catering hall, facility, or wherever the venue was being held, that’s it! Yes, one will argue that the people in attendance will take photographs of the event and post them onto social media. However, were the photos the best photos taken at the event any good? Did someone get photographed with food in their mouth? Or their eyes closed? Or when they took that very nasty spill onto the floor? Are these the lasting memories that you were considering when you first planned your event?

For better or worse, I want you to think about the last few events that you attended. Can you remember the photos that someone captured on their cell phone or tablet? Were the photos blurry? Were the photos too dark? Did anyone or everyone blink? Let’s just say every photo that was taken during the event came out perfect. Did the person taking the photos send all of the photos to you? Did you have to wait a very long time to receive the photos? Did the person who was delegated to take the photos enjoy the event that they attended since they had to take the photographs? Did they capture all of the important moments?

Unfortunately, you don’t think about these things until the event is over. Countless times I have heard; “I wish that I would have hired you!” or “I wish that I would have hired a professional photographer.” It has gotten to the point where I do perform “Re-shoots”. There have been people wo have hired me to re-enact some of their most important life events (Weddings) because they could not get any decent photographs from their family and friends. Another phenomenon that is more and more common is not having enough storage, or battery power to take photos at an event. If you are attending an event in the evening and you have been on your cell phone most of the day, you probably don’t have a lot of battery power left. Even if you carry an extra battery supply, or you have your charger with you, you may be charging your device when that “can’t miss” moment takes place. You missed the moment because your equipment was in the charger. Or your memory card was full. Or you have no more storage on your device. Or, a combination of all of the above.

This is just a handful of “life occurrences” that I have witnessed over the last few years. One recent wedding trend called for all of the guests to use the disposable cameras on their tables to record the event. Candid shots, group shots, etc. This trend had several problems that included, but were not limited to the following: • The person at the table taking shots could not operate the camera properly. • The person at the table didn’t want the responsibility of taking photos at the event. “I’m not a photographer, I am a guest!!” • The disposable cameras were only equipped to take 24 exposures. The pictures were finished in 30 minutes. There were no more cameras to take the rest of the important moments at the event. • People took the cameras home, never to be seen again. • How are you getting the cameras back to the host and hostess? How were they carrying all of these cameras with everything else that they had to carry in the first place? Let me say first and foremost that I am not bashing “Do It Yourselfer’s”, I am simply reminding you that if you spend $26,000+ dollars on a wedding, or hundreds of dollars on a very important event in your life, why would you leave out/cut back on one of the most important parts of the event, the memories? (If you Google “Average cost of a wedding, that’s where the $26,000+ came from) There are some things that you can cut back costs on, life time memories just shouldn’t be one of them!

Consider the cost of not having the memories from a once in a lifetime event. If you have honestly had the following thought in your head; “I wish that I had some professional pictures taken”; or “Why didn’t I hire a photographer to photograph the event?”; then next time, don’t spend too much time second guessing yourself. You have enough things to worry about making sure that your once in a lifetime event is just that, a once in a lifetime event. Go hire a professional photographer and put your mind to ease! Until next time, have a great evening!