Weddingbee boards

Asking to look at a full wedding -- or several -- is totally reasonable, and should be expected by the photographer. Also think about asking to see pics of weddings that will resemble yours (e.g. a low-light venue, a beach wedding, etc.)

Before you call, decide how you want your wedding photographed (how much direction you want/need, what style, etc.), and in your inital contact, determine where your prospective photographers stand on these points/their wedding photography 'philosophy', for lack of a better term...it should help you narrow down your choices. Also, I've heard from a lot of brides that having more than one photographer there makes a huge difference, so that may be something to ask as well.

At your interviews, I found that some of the most enlightening questions were those that forced photographers to admit that they weren't perfect (since we all know that nobody is)...and the best answers were those that described how they addressed those issues. E.g. -- ask about their strengths and weaknesses as a photographer;  what they find the biggest challenge in shooting a wedding is and how they handle it (that second one seemed to stump our photographers most frequently, which was great b/c it meant we weren't getting a canned, practiced answer -- I referred it as our "Ms. America" question ).

I'm sure there are many sources out there, but I found that the book "Bridal Bargains" is a great resource for question suggestions.

Good luck!

I find it humorous when brides ask me what kind of camera I shoot with and when I tell them it's obvious they have no background or clue about photography. :)

DCBride had a lot of good questions to ask.

If you are on a specific budget, don't be afraid to tell your photographer that. Tell/Ask them "I really love your work and would love to work with you; is there any way we can work a out a package in my budget?" You'd be surprised. Some photographers will just take out an album or prints to fit your budget. Ask how many hours they cover. Some photographers get paid by hour rather than package deal.

If the photographer offers you a CD of your images (also known as digital negatives) make sure they are hi-res (high resolution). No sense in getting a CD of images if they aren't even print quality. They is a HUGE difference between email quality and print quality. Normally hi-res is 300 dpi (some photographers do 200 dpi); low res is anything lower than that (websites usually use 72 dpi).

I love your idea of asking to see a whole wedding rather than just the best shots. This way you can see if their lighting and exposure is consistant.

Good luck!

Oh one more thing...don't forget to ask for references -- both clients and vendors. The clients can comment on how they were treated and the final product, etc., and vendors can comment on the photographer's professionalism throughout the day, etc. Granted, the photographers will likely only give you names of people they think will have good things to say about them, but it can't hurt, and you may be able to read more into people's enthusiasm than into the words themselves.