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Original poster

Would we regret NOT having a photographer at our wedding?

88 replies

Gettingmarriedissoexpensive · 09/05/2026 13:02

Spurred on by the thread of the person who didn't get her proposal photographed, it has got me thinking about my own wedding.

Photographers are so flipping expensive so I'm toying with the idea of not bothering... however do you think we would regret this?

Has anyone not had one and was happy with their decision? Thanks all!

OP posts:
mumonthehill · 09/05/2026 13:05

We had a friend take photos but no official pictures. We also had lots of photos sent to us that guests had taken. I do not regret it however I do not have a photo of myself with both my parents and I do wish I had one but I do have some wonderful pictures that I suspect a paid photographer would not have got. Been married 26 years and have hardly ever looked at them really so for us they would not have been worth the cost.

peoplegetready · 09/05/2026 13:07

We didn't have a photographer, have some lovely photos taken by guests. Been married over 20 years and never felt we missed out.

O00ps · 09/05/2026 13:07

I suppose it depends on the style of wedding and yourselves.
We didn't have a photographer but it was back in the day when you could buy those little cameras for one time use and we gave them out to guests so we did have pictures (the best ones were taken by the younger guests i thought :)
But it wasn't a big dress up or expensive wedding, and I hate being on photos.
If you like having pics then you might regret not getting good ones

Plantyshazfan · 09/05/2026 13:10

We had a friend take some photos and have always been happy with that. Wouldn’t have paid the amount for an album that would never be looked at. The best photos were the candid ones taken by friends and family.

VimFuego101 · 09/05/2026 13:10

Honestly I regret not having a good pic of my whole family together now that some of them are gone. I would have paid for a small set of pics, in hindsight.

Shallotsaresmallonions · 09/05/2026 13:12

I think it's one of the only things that really is important at a wedding.

asdbaybeeee · 09/05/2026 13:15

We had a student photographer come and we only booked her for 3 hours. She arrived at 12, did some before shots. Then the ceremony at 1 , group shots at 2 and a few of me and dh at 230. She left at 3.
it was great because we didn’t want the day to be constant photos and posing but we still had plenty of nice pictures to look back on. I can’t remember what we paid (10years ago) but it wasn’t a lot maybe £50 and we got the pics on a disc a one printed them ourselves.
We also tried to avoid the word wedding/bride when booking things. We had a small and large posy of flowers for bouquets which were £££ cheaper than a bridal bouquet. Same with table decs/ favours etc.

Seawolves · 09/05/2026 13:20

Our photographer didn't show up and I really regret having no decent photos of the day, the ones taken by family and friends are not great so I have not a single good photo of our wedding day.

NorthFacingGardener · 09/05/2026 13:20

I think you should have one - it’s the one thing that lasts. And photographers are good at organising everyone so you have photos of all the different groupings you might want. Friends and family photos are a bit of a gamble, although we had some lovely ones that friends took as well as the official ones.

Guests will have totally forgotten in a few years if you had amazing floral arrangements or expensive wedding favours or table settings. But you will always have the photos.

I didn’t hire a wedding car, my dad just drove me in his normal car - that would be my recommendation to cut costs personally.

WaltzingWaters · 09/05/2026 13:22

It entirely depends on you. For me I absolutely love photos and having a good photographer for our wedding was an absolute must. But if you’d be happy with some photos taken by guests then go ahead with that. Alternatively, if you’re not fussed about the quality, you could look into finding a photography student who would be happy to take photos as practice for probably a small fee. I did this when I was learning photography and just charged a few hundred. That way could end up with some incredible quality photos, or they could be mediocre.

HoppityBun · 09/05/2026 13:40

Plenty of people ask friends to take photos and choose from those.

hagchic · 09/05/2026 13:41

Didn't bother. Hate photos.

Friends and family still took plenty.

No regrets.

As to 'the one thing that lasts' - thankfully, my marriage has lasted, so no need for photos to prove its existence.

SirChenjins · 09/05/2026 13:46

We paid for a photographer and I can't remember the last time we looked at our photos - a waste of money imo. If I was doing it again I'd give everyone disposable cameras and ask the person conducting the service to take some group photos. I guess it depends if you like having your photo taken and having more styled photographs, or whether you hate posing for the camera and prefer informality.

Growlybear83 · 09/05/2026 13:49

We didn’t have a photographer. My mother in law took a few pictures at the end of the ceremony and a couple of friends took some photos. We’ve probably got a total of 20 pictures in total of the wedding and reception. I’ve never seen the need for more and never regretted not paying for a photographer.

bedtimestories · 09/05/2026 14:03

Having photos to help me remember events is important to me so I had a photographer. Favours and chair covers wearnt important to me so we didn't have them. Think about what's important to you and spend the money there

hellospring26 · 09/05/2026 14:06

Well I’ve just chucked my 1k album in the bin…do what’s important for you.

CharnwoodFire · 09/05/2026 14:09

We got married about 9 years ago and didn't get a photographer. We were told that a relative was a professional and would take photos - they weren't worth the paper they were printed on. I think I regret it but still know how expensive it would have been...

museumum · 09/05/2026 14:10

I regret it now fifteen years later. It didn’t bother me at all for years but it was so long ago that my memories are less fresh. We got good phone photos outside but the indoor ones are quite poor so there are very few of the reception.

zappp · 09/05/2026 14:15

I was also reluctant to get a photographer given pricing, but I am so, so, SO glad I did.

She did an absolutely brilliant job and captured the day in a way that you simply can’t with only guests taking photos - not just because of the quality, but because she was able to run around taking pics of the ceremony while guests had to be seated, was there early so could photograph the table settings, knew exactly how to arrange/pose us for the photos of us and with family, etc. etc. However good people are on their phones, there’s no way they could’ve produced anything close to what our photographer did. We ended up with so many beautiful photos that looked really natural - even in the “posed” ones - and it went from being a begrudging spend to one of the best investments of the day.

to make it worth your while, I would pick someone who is familiar with your venue, as they’ll know all the best spots and times of day - she grabbed us during sunset and knew a beautiful place to photograph us that we didn’t even know was there.

ninetofiveeveryday · 09/05/2026 14:18

I regret paying for our photographer. I love that we put disposable cameras on each tables, we got great shots of everyone having fun!
I went to a wedding recently where they asked one person to take ‘official’ photos just so everyone was looking the right way etc and they are delighted with what they got!

ThatLassFromLeeds · 09/05/2026 14:19

We had a friend who did photos during and after the service as a wedding present, and they worked out well. Nothing at the reception - just whatever friends took, but there were some good ones.

I haven’t looked at them much, but my mum still flicks through them from time to time, and the kids like seeing them too.

Rosiecloud · 09/05/2026 14:33

Yes. I didn’t have one, just got my Dad to take some photos and some friends took the odd one. The cameras I left on the tables were hijacked my my SIL’s little kids and they are all crap photos.

I really regret it. 24 years later almost everyone who was at our wedding is dead. There are no ‘good’ photos of me & DH together. No good photos of us and now deceased parents and grandparents. I screwed up.

JustGiveMeReason · 09/05/2026 17:54

I think couples will regret not having a list of photos they want, and getting someone to take them.

I know that it is the fashion these days to only have "candid" photos and no group shots, but I think once you start losing people you are close to, you will wish you had asked someone to take those photos.

That doesn't mean I'd pay a photographer for the 16 hour day packages they offer these days. I see no possible reason to want a professional to take photos of me in my dressing gown. If you really feel you need a photo of that, then everyone has a camera phone in their hand all day anyway.

If I were getting married now, I'd write a list of the photos I wanted to have and I'd get someone with a bit of something about them to gather the people ready for each photo, then (in advance) ask 3 or 4 people to take that photo (so no-one is under pressure to get it right all the time) and, with the invitations, I'd tell guests we weren't having a photographer and ask everyone to take lots of photos and upload them to somewhere you can access. You will almost certainly find someone who will bring a super camera and enjoy taking some real quality shots, and you will also have loads from the really high quality cameras most people have on their phones too. But you also won't look back and think "Oh, we didn't get one with the Grandmas" or "I feel sad we never got one with all the wedding party together" or "I wish we'd had one with all my immediate family" etc, as they will be on the list you ensured you did get.

I've had a few conversations with people who have got married in the last 5 years who later realised they didn't get any photos of X or Y at their wedding.

OldCrohn · 09/05/2026 17:58

We had a very small wedding - no flowers, sit down meal, bridesmaids etc. Not using a photographer is my only regret.

Advocodo · 09/05/2026 18:07

We had a photographer but hardly ever look at the photos now. I think I wouldn’t have one today as I image the cost would be enormous.

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