why it might be a good idea to hire an out of town wedding photographer.
(especially if you live in an expensive market)
it might seem counter-intuitive at first.
right? like, isn’t hiring a photographer expensive enough already? know i have to pay for their travel and lodging?
<< galit & clay in NYC.
My name is Jason Albus, and I’m a vet of the wedding photography game for over 8 years now. I absolutely love traveling for weddings more than anything. Couples hire me all over the country, and the world, in order to get the PHOTOGRAPHER OF THEIR DREAMS ———AND———SAVE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN THE PROCESS.
Yeah, I know it sounds too good to be true, but when you think about it, it makes perfect sense.
if you live in an expensive market…
photographers of my experience and talent can be double or triple the average price. just based on cost of living alone, if i was headquartered in L.A. or NYC or San Francisco, i would have to charge more than i currently do.
I am a very transparent person as far as this business goes: my pricing is very simple and up front.
The average wedding client of mine spends between $2,500-$3,750, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. But that’s the baseline.
Based on my market research in other cities, and based on my experience and skill level, if I lived in NYC or LA or any of the high-end wedding markets I would be in the $6,000-$8,000 wedding photographer market.
But the magic here is that since I have lower costs of living and other business costs, I can still charge my same base prices to my out of town and destination wedding clients without bloating their budgets with high travel and lodging costs.
In the end, this is win-win for EVERYONE involved, and my clients end up saying it’s the best decision they made on their wedding day.
but beyond money, traveling photographers just simply WORK HARDER on your wedding day.
Unlike most local photographers who are bored and complacent and shoot in the same old locations, when I’m on an out of town shoot, I scout out all the cool hidden spots. I talk to locals about where the best views and locations might be.
Why is this? Part of it is psychology… you’re doing something new and different. Part of it is selfish… I’m not gonna lie, having a beautiful destination wedding collection in your portfolio REALLY makes you stand out from other photographers. But it’s mostly because I love making great, unforgettable images, and traveling invigorates this passion that few others ways can.
for destination weddings it makes even more sense…
Why do couples fly me all over the world and tell me it was the best decision they made for their day AND it ended up saving them tons of money?
Think about it… you’re putting all this time and effort and money to put an incredible destination wedding together, but now you’re gonna just go with some random photographer that your resort or wedding planner recommends? Do you really think they’re going to give you the quality and attention to detail that you deserve?
If you’re putting together a world-class event, you need a world-class photographer there to document it. And it’s just an extra bonus if it actually ends up saving you money in the end, as well.
The best part about shooting destination weddings is really feeling like you’re part of the family after a day or so. Once you have that comfort level with everyone involved, THAT is when the real photo magic happens.
so if any of this sounds like you, contact me below.
let’s talk.