How to Evaluate Wedding Photography as a Bride or Groom

Photography involves many, many elements, all coming together to give you a certain feeling and reaction. You are looking for a wedding photographer who is capable of capturing your special moments, and when you look at the photos to relive those moments, you enjoy a certain feeling and reaction. 

So let's start by looking at the photographer's past work and let's see what we see. 
  • What is your first reaction? 
  • What do you see first? Faces, colors, a feeling, 
  • What does it feel like? You are part of the moment, you are watching the moment, is it intimate, or are you a bystander

Is this what you want for your wedding photos? 
If this was a picture of you and your loved one(s), is this a photo you would like to have?

After your first reaction, let's look at some of the photo qualities
  • Faces – How do the faces and expression look? 
  • Skin Tone – How does the skin tone look to you?
    • ceramic, grey, golden, nude, sepia
    • How do light complexions look, how to dark complexions look, how about a mix of complexions in the same photo
  • Feel – How does the photo come across to you: cool, warm
  • Focus – do you see faces, expressions, details, blurriness
  • Colors – are they muted, bright, saturated, How does each color appear... white, red, blue, green, black
  • Construction – Where does your eye go first? Is that where you want it to go? Does the background contribute to the story either with aesthetic value or by being 'erased' / blurred so your focus goes where it should
  • What story does this picture tell? What feeling does it give you?
And as you are looking at individual photos, also consider that this is part of a greater body of work, and your day will have you going from place to place, and room to room. 
  • Do you like the photographer’s indoor photos, outdoor photos, day shots, night shots

To evaluate a photographer in a more meaningful way, ask to see a full gallery of photos so you see a full set of wedding photos rather than just the top 5 from an event. There are privacy policies that may restrict what can be shared, but often an in-office visit will permit a photographer to show more complete works in a private work environment (as opposed to posting on the world wide web).