Taking your own wedding photos

Hey Adriana!

I would definitely recommend that you have someone operating the camera for the entirety of the day. If you take over being the photographer on your wedding day, you won’t get to enjoy your day as much because you will essentially be working. It also risks you not being in many photos if you are behind the camera!

It is your day and if you want to be the photographer, go for it. I would highly suggest not to since you will be too busy capturing photos and not being in them but that is just me. Have you tried a local art school or Thumbtack?

I am definitely one of the few on here that doesn't really care that much about wedding photography. But I just don't see how it's possible for you to do your own photography. You simply can't be in more than one place at a time. It's not just the ceremony. The whole reception will involve you doing things and talking to people that would be greatly curtailed if you were behind the lens. I would reconsider.

Do not attempt to photograph your own wedding. Arming your guests with smartphones and a hashtag or hiring a photography student is a better option.

I'm a photographer (literally paid my way through grad school with photography) and have tried to do our own family photos and it is so hard. That's with being able to reshoot over and over and not having anything else going on. I would never every attempt to photograph my own event where I wanted to be included in the photos.

I'm sorry, but you need to devote someone else to this task.

I also don't recommend trying to DIY your photos. I'm in the wedding business and have worked with many pro photographers and I've seen what happens when people hire someone not experienced at wedding photos, who doesn't use a pro camera, or when someone recruits a family member/friend who is inexperienced. You end up with blurry, unusable photos most of the time - they're over or under exposed, they're cropped horribly, they aren't sharp, they missed key moments, etc etc etc. There's a reason that good photography is expensive - and you're paying for good equipment, knowledge & expertise. I've rarely seen a budget photographer who generates "Wow" wedding photos.

That said, to save $$ on a pro, opt for someone for a shorter period of time (i.e. - 2-3 hours), and ask them to give you the edited photos only and eliminate album credits, prints, etc. Most packages include hours and hours of photography time and multiple shooters, so opt for one good person for a short period of time and that should reduce your price significantly.

Our best man's wife carried an instant camera the whole night. Between her and her MOH, they filled up an entire board with candids. It was magical in its own right and was just as warm as the professional photos.


My fiance's dad did not hire a photographer and went off on me bc the front camera on my phone was broken,and expected me to take pictures the whole time without even telling me until the rehearsal. Some old friend of his ended up taking pictures on her phone. They were still great.
Im just saying youre treading on scary waters, but either way its gonna work out.