How many photographers you need for a wedding depends less on your budget and more on three things: how many events you have, how many guests come, and how many things happen at the same time. Here is how we work it out with couples.
Start with your list of events
A South Indian wedding is rarely one day. There might be a nischitartha, a haldi or arishina, a mehendi, a sangeet, the muhurtham and a reception. Write down each one with the date, the start time, the venue and a rough guest count. That list is the brief for any photographer.
Then look at what happens at the same time
This is what most couples miss. On the wedding morning, the bride and groom often get ready in different rooms, sometimes in different buildings. If you want both covered, that’s two people before the first ritual even starts.
During the muhurtham, there’s the ritual on the mandap, the families around it and the guests. During the reception, there’s the stage, the food and the dance floor.
A rough guide
Every wedding is different, but this is where most of our conversations start:
- Small ritual or engagement, under 100 guests: one photographer, often candid, plus one videographer if you want a film.
- Haldi, mehendi or sangeet: one candid photographer and one videographer. Add a second photographer if the guest list is long.
- Muhurtham with a few hundred guests: a candid and a traditional photographer, and a candid and a traditional videographer.
- Large reception: a traditional team for the stage, plus candid coverage for everything happening off the stage.
Count the moments that happen at once, not the hours.
Where couples go wrong
The most common mistake is one team for back-to-back events at different venues. A team can’t shoot the end of the muhurtham and the start of lunch in a hall across the city. The other is cutting the traditional photographer to save money, then finding out that nobody photographed half the relatives on stage.
Send us your events on WhatsApp
You don’t need to work this out alone. Send us your dates, events and rough guest count on WhatsApp. We’ll suggest a team for each event and send you a clear quote link, with every person, film and album listed, and everything else that comes included. If you want to change something, tell us and we update the same link.
Questions couples ask us
How many photographers do we need for 500 guests?
For the main wedding event, usually a candid and a traditional photographer, with a second candid photographer if a lot happens at once.
Do we need separate teams for the bride’s and groom’s side?
Only for moments that happen at the same time in different places, like getting ready. For the ceremony itself, one team covers both families.
Is a drone worth it?
It depends on the venue. Open lawns and outdoor mandaps work well. Most indoor halls don’t need one, and some don’t allow it.
