Note: Photographers’ Friday is a weekly blog series directed toward professional photographers, and in some instances, serious amateur photographers. All Photographers’ Friday blog posts will assume that readers have a basic working knowledge of digital SLR cameras, but if you’re left with questions or don’t understand any of the information, don’t hesitate to ask. We love e-mails!

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This could billow into a huge blog post — but I’m not going to let it. This could turn into a huge topic — but I want to distill it down to just three main points. So here goes.

1.) Wedding Photographers Should Build Relationships With Other Vendors so Weddings Where You Work Together Run Smoothly
Kind of important, right? I’d say so. Before a wedding, wedding photographers really need to reach out to wedding planners, venue coordinators, and to the officiant, if the ceremony is taking place inside a church or synagogue (because their rules are the rules when it comes to photography during ceremony). Connecting with these vendors and building affable working relationships before a wedding is key to making sure you a.) know exactly what is going to happen on the wedding day, and b.) being a professional. Your clients are counting on you to not only capture their memories, but help make their wedding day pleasant and stress-free. Do your homework so you can do just that instead of adding to the stress.2.) Wedding Photographers Should Build Relationships With Other Vendors so You Can Help Their Businesses Succeed — OR So You Know to Steer Clients Clear of Them

After a wedding, we always make sure we send plenty of wedding images to the vendors who were involved. After all, they worked hard to make this wedding wonderful, too — they created beautiful flower arrangements, designed decadent cakes, kept the party going on the dance floor. And if you, the professional photographer, don’t give them any professional images of their hard work, they’ll have nothing but iPhone snapshots — or nothing — to show for it. That doesn’t seem entirely fair, does it? If they hadn’t done their jobs, you wouldn’t have been able to do yours! So help your fellow professionals out, and help their businesses succeed. In the process, you’ll get a good feel for their own level of professionalism and courtesy — and believe me, I’ve definitely been mistreated by fellow vendors after weddings, experiences that have helped me know to tell my future wedding couples which businesses to avoid, since I certainly don’t want them to have a similar experience.3.) Wedding Photographers Should Build Relationships With Other Vendors so Your Own Business Will Grow

This last reason is undeniable: Just as you will recommend the vendors you enjoyed working with, other vendors will recommend you if they know you and know that you take good care of your couples. Just yesterday, I sent one of my 2013 brides a list of two types of vendors I would recommend, based on my experience with them. There are other vendors I’ve worked with in that category that were notably absent from the list I sent her, because I sent her only the ones I know would take care of her well. Likewise, I know other vendors will recommend me if they are confident I would make their clients happy — and make their jobs easier.

So that’s pretty simple, right? Pretty compelling, too, I think. I reach out to vendors even though I’ve got this deep-seated aversion to phone calls with strangers. (No lie — much as I love talking, I am terrified of calling strangers.) Grow your business, grow other people’s businesses, and serve your clients to the best of your abilities by forging relationships with other excellent professionals. You will not regret it!

~ Laura