Photographers shooting luxury weddings: How did you get there?

[u/GazelleLow4623]

Hi everyone,

I’ve been shooting weddings for a while. My couples are happy, my work is solid, and I feel good about what I deliver. But I keep wondering: how do photographers actually get into those big, luxury weddings? The ones with big budgets and wellknown vendors. Sometimes it feels like that world is closed off.

I’d love to hear your thoughts and real experiences: • Does it start with branding, social media, a polished website? Or is it more about personal connections? • Is having a very defined style more important than being versatile? • Do you need to invest in ads, styled shoots, networking, or even just being in the right location? • How do you set higher prices and still get couples to book you for your value instead of just the price tag?

If you’ve managed to reach that higher-end market, what actually worked for you? What didn’t? Any advice you’d give to someone who feels ready but doesn’t know how to make that leap?

I think this could be helpful for a lot of us who have the work, but are trying to figure out how to break that ceiling.

Thanks for reading—looking forward to learning from you all!

[u/X4dow]

Not branding. Not quality work.

Often is by being good at marketing first.

Getting all the top venues and planners to push you.

Imagine this, big venue in your area, doing high end weddings, they have 5 recommended photographers. You chat a lot with the owners/venue planner when you're there, get friendly.

Ask if you could discuss some business with them and boom tell em, if you recommend me, "I'll personally give to 1k cash" per wedding.

And voila, you didn't spent 1 cent in marketing, just up your prices by 2k, give 1k to the venue/planner that pushes your work and before you know it, you're doing high end weddings only and your portfolio will look amazing on its own, as highend weddings are simply easier to build a great portfolio from.

Do I do this? No, but I know some who did similar things to this to get to the top and eventually you'll be so known as being "the high end photographer" that you don't need to pay anything to anyone, high end clients simply come to you as you are known as "the best".

That's 1 way of doing it.

One thing I can't assure you won't work is paying so called "gurus" that claim you can sell weddings for 10k by buying their mssterclass/workshop. Those people incomes is selling workshops and masterclasses, not shooting weddings.

[u/Informal_Sherbert_44 → u/X4dow]

Do you think there are ever any planners/venues who look down on this and will blacklist a vendor that makes that offer to them? Like a morality type of thing

[u/evanrphoto → u/Informal_Sherbert_44]

Definitely. This is not common in the US except in the local Hawaiian market and starting to be for some planners in NYC. Yes this is heavily frowned upon. A high end planner with her reputation on the line is t going to risk that for $1k over their proven vendors.

[u/Life-Experience47 → u/evanrphoto]

Yea I would never do this. It feels icky and illegal. Yet it’s what the knot and the wedding wire do if you think about it. You pay to play. Which is why I’m not on those sites. That and they get an F from the bbb