Indian wedding photographer with verses – Tarun Chawla

A developer into coding turned to coding the emotions digitally and that too accompanied with verses; yes it is your very favorite Tarun Chawla who just won the Best Photographer for capturing Bridal Portraits.

We have him on board with a few questions which all the would be brides want to ask from him regarding photography, his style, pricing and much more! 

Hello Tarun, we are in awe of your work and so are the brides to be. What is your advise to brides who love your style of photography but go cold once they hear the pricing structure?

TARUN – There are two things, either you cannot afford to pay me for photography because of having a low budget wedding; else you don’t want to spend much on photography.

If you are not planning to spend much on photography then I cannot help you, I have seen people saying they cannot spend much on photos while they end up spending 50~60 lacs on decor and 10~12 lacs on dresses. Photography is a very important aspect and should not be kept secondary.

But if you actually cannot pay for my services and having a low budget wedding, I am always ears 🙂 I don’t mind doing wedding for free if you are running away! I have shot few weddings at bare minimum cost because I actually knew what client’s budget was.

Now talking about brides or couples who are very much convinced about splurging on photography but still need to convince their parents, how should they explain photographers’ costing to them in a manner that they also feel the value of it, to tell them what all efforts go behind the scenes?

TARUN – My scenario: I am charging Rs. 4 lacs for 3 days of photography, in this I would cover the event from both sides as common photographer, each family gets amazing results and don’t have headache for managing two different teams.

Traditional scenario: Groom’s family hires a family photographer for Rs. 1, 00,000; bride’s family hires another traditional studio for their work, another Rs. 1, 50,000. So in total they are paying Rs. 2, 50,000 and each one is getting mediocre work, so couple decides to hire an emerging candid photographer, let us say Rs. 1, 00,000. So now they’ve spent Rs. 3, 50,000 and yet they will get just mediocre results in terms of photography even though they are spending a lot.

If one thinks over this, my offer is always cheaper and value for money.

As Indian Weddings are long events with never ending ceremonies and rituals, are your hours strictly hours and once the 6 hour or 8 hour window is over, you leave the place?

TARUN – When quoting for an event, I quote approx. 25~26hrs for 3 days of shoot, and thereafter hourly charge. I don’t leave once hours are finished, I always stick around and shoot as I know that client cannot take the decision in spur of the moment.

I am sure it depends on gathering but still what are your thoughts on as to how many photographers should be present for a wedding day to shot?

TARUN – There are minimum of 3 photographers present on wedding day for up to gatherings of 250 people, thereafter approx. 1 additional photographer for every additional 250 people. So for a Delhi wedding with 1000 guests, there would be 4-5 photographers present

As now even, studio photographers have evolved, how important is to have a Studio photographer as well along with a candid one or what you advise?

TARUN – I take care of everything, its suicide to have a separate studio photographer and separate candid as they will always keep fighting for space and angles. As a policy when I am shooting a wedding, I do not allow other photographers to be there. My team takes care of everything.

What is your advise to brides on getting the Albums done? Whether they should just get images from you and use a printing company to do so or you prefer them to use your services?

TARUN – I provide album design & print service as well; I can get some amazing quality albums if given enough time. Most of the vendors have different catalog for consumers and different for professional photographers. The access we get to size, quality and finishes, it is far better than what client could ever get directly.

Does booking a photographer in advance save on money; irrespective of yes or no, how far in advance one should book photographer?

TARUN – It does save a lot of money + gets you better results. Photographer who are at par with me get booked at least 6~7 months in advance for the peak dates. There is always a difference of 10~15% when booking in advance vs. booking a month or two prior.

In India, it is a general trend that people tend to ignore pre-wedding events and only for the main Wedding or Reception day they hire a good photographer. How to educate them that getting a package deal for all your events is economical as well as convenient to both bride and groom’s families as they get to know the photographer well and get into the comfort zone.

TARUN – This is tricky, see, having a pro photographer for only wedding and not for smaller function always proves counterproductive. It is advisable to have a single team for all the days. That ways the photographers knows who the close family members are and there is a level of comfort when shooting. I generally take up minimum of 3 days of shoot when doing a wedding + a complimentary pre-wedding shoot + 2-3 client meetings. This way I know who I am shooting and the story I am capturing.

Can the art be learnt or is it gifted as many photographers are self-taught.

TARUN – It comes from inside, you can always learn the technical aspect but if you don’t have the eye for it, it is next to impossible to spot the moments!

What about the latest trend of no cameras from guests to capture the moments as it is kind of sometimes disturbs the real photographer who is actually there to shoot it.

TARUN – I allow guests to shoot unless they don’t interfere with my duties. Ideally I expect clients to not allow other people to shoot during couple session or pre-wed shoots, and also in makeup room. While at wedding venue it is not possible to restrict anyone.

This is one reason I am fond of Christian weddings, they properly announce that ‘only 2 photographers should be allowed to cover the event and rest everyone should be seated all the times.’ It is very useful to lay the ground rules as it helps prevent chaos.

And lastly, what is your discretion on editing of photos, how far should a photographer go to edit them to make them look beautiful.

TARUN – This is a very subjective question; I am only giving my personal editing process. For me editing should make picture look same way it looked in actual. i.e. same colors, contrast and brightness. I don’t like doing touch ups {airbrush & spot removal} on skin unless it is absolutely required from client.

Finally, when it was time for me to showcase his work, I was confused which one to choose and which one to leave. I somehow managed to choose below and for more go to his facebook page and view the albums.