I ought to be in pictures

At first B did not care about the photographer and pictures were not (and still may not be) important. However, they are important to me because once the day is done, the pictures will be all we have as a reminder of that day. Yes - we will have the memories but B is very forgetful (except when it comes to sports stats then he is like Rainman, seriously).

Someone on one of the web sites I visit wrote (I am paraphrasing) that you really want to click with the photographer's personality since you will be spending all day with him/her and that for the most part, they are a good photographer.

We actually found our photographer pretty quickly and with no hiccups.

So again I take a ride on the trusty Internet Super Highway and compile a list of area photographers that various brides to be are using. I begin to email fervently. Unlike reception sites, photographers got back to me quickly - some within minutes. B and I reckon it is because the competition is greater and there is less variance among photographers. With photographers we were looking for a photographer and at least an assistant who also shoots film, all the proofs, and ownership of the files/negatives. That was the set of basic criteria we were looking for. Oh and also within our budget. Based on the feedback from the brides online and the wedding packages, we narrowed it down to two photographers - one really as the other was a possible back up in case we didn't like the one in person.

On one of our wedding planning trips to New York, we went to visit the lady who would become our photographer. And while I not just scour the Internet for feedback and reviews, I also like to see what other information I can find. So before going to her studio, I knew that she worked as a public school teacher in New York City and had done a recent photo piece on the election of Sikhs in city government entitled "Fighting Prejudice with Votes: Sikhs in New York". So I felt that I liked her already.

We met her in her Union Square studio and she asked us the preliminary but necessary questions - where, when and how many. We looked through her books and some of the pictures I had seen on her web site but it was great to see them in real life. We discussed some of the things we were looking at and gave her the one thing B must have the photographer NOT do, and that is touch his face (more to come on this in another post). She laughed with that request but said that she would not touch his face. We found her demeanor and personality to be laid back, she wasn't trying to sell us anything or try to tell us how this one day will be the most amazing day of our lives and no day will be better. (I know that all the fairy tales end with the princess getting married, but I will be really annoyed if on the best day of my life I have to wear make up and not have my hair in a pony tail. I am just saying.) Based on what I wanted, we went with an a la carte pricing because her packages all came with extras that I didn't want or need. She was easy to talk to and even gave out a little book of her work and style. What I liked most about the book is that it gives examples of what different types of printing and paper look like. So I can now see the difference between a glossy photo or a matte or what metallic prints look like.

We drove home to Boston right after our meeting and when I got to a computer I sent her an email saying that we would like to book her. So far she has been great and fine with the date change.

So without further adieu, our photographer is Sarah Tew. (Click on her name to visit her web site).