Should You Hire a Wedding Photographer Who Has Shot At Your Venue Before? (Venue Experience vs. Overall Expertise)

One of the most common questions I hear, when I hop on the phone to chat with a bride and groom about their wedding photography is: “Have you ever photographed a wedding at our venue before?”

It’s a reasonable question.
It makes sense.
And it’s one I get asked on almost every single phone call.

Here’s the thing: no matter what the answer to that question is (whether it’s a “Yes” or a “No”) for an experienced photographer, the answer truly does not matter.

Sure, there are pros and cons to hiring a photographer that has worked at your venue before:

PROS to Hiring A Photographer Who Has Experience at Your Venue

• They will be comfortable with the location and enter the day with a level of familiarity.
• They will know the venue staff and management.
• They will be able to confidently direct the day from one location to the next.

However, some of those “pros” could also be a “con” –

CONS to Hiring A Photographer Who Has Experience at Your Venue

• They will be comfortable with the location and enter the day with a level of familiarity.
• They will be tempted to simply replicate things they’ve done in the past (especially if there is a time crunch).
• They may default to what’s “easy” and works, instead of what’s “best”.

See? There are both pros and cons.

In other words: for an experienced photographer, it doesn’t matter if they’ve photographed an event at your venue before or not.

There are quite literally THOUSANDS of venues within a 100-mile radius of me. (And that’s just a 100-mile radius – that’s not even scratching the surface on the amount of venues in the state, in the tri-state area, in the country, in the world?!)

It would literally be impossible for me to have shot a wedding everywhere – even at the most popular locations around.

While it can be a lot of fun to shoot at the same venue multiple times (after all, I love the level of familiarity I arrive on the day with, how I already know the manager and staff, and the confidence that knowing what I’m walking into gives) – I’ll be honest: I (almost) prefer to shoot at new places.

Why?
My creativity is at it’s most FRESH when I’m in a location I’ve never been before.

Sure, I do very thorough research on every venue and location I go to (I utilize Google Maps, Google Earth, Google Satellite View, the venue’s website, and any blogs I can find), but all of those things only serve as a minuscule taste of what I’ll actually find when I arrive on the day of.
(HINT: That’s just one of the reasons I arrive on every wedding day EXTRA early – earlier than my brides and grooms even know or realize – so I can walk the property and gather a few fresh ideas ahead of time.)

After all, every wedding day is completely unique and different. And I’m not just talking about the decor, theme, and aesthetic – I’m talking about the time of year, the season, the time of day, and the weather – it ALL plays into my strategy going into a wedding day.

As a wedding photographer with 15 years of shooting weddings under my belt, I don’t need to have ever been to your wedding venue before. I have the skills, the knowledge, the expertise, and the equipment to shoot anywhere.

Whether or not your photographer has shot at your venue before shouldn’t be a determining factor in whether you hire them or not. You should hire a photographer based on their experience level, their portfolio of work, their personality, and how they make you feel. After all, there are both pros and cons to hiring someone who has been to your venue before.

However, if you are nervous about booking a photographer who’s never shot at your venue before (sometimes wedding websites or Aunts or friends will make you anxious) – my suggestion is:
Ask them if they can provide images that feel SIMILAR to the venue you’re getting married at! Whether it’s a gigantic church with stained glass windows and dark elements, it’s a barn with exposed wood, beams, and supports everywhere, or whether it’s a ballroom with chandeliers and beautiful twinkle lights – chances are, an experienced photographer can show you images from weddings that would have a similar feel. And seeing those images will help to put you at ease that you hired a PROFESSIONAL who can handle anything the day throws at them.