Picture This

I'm on the photographer/videographer hunt now. Although I'm still looking, there are 2 photographers whose online portfolios have caught my eye. The first one offers above average quality and a good dose of creativity. It's a great bang for the buck, too, relative to other packages I've seen. We could get engagement and bridal sessions, 8 hours of wedding day coverage, custom 40 page album, and 3 parent albums all within budget. Then, I came across some beautiful pictures, popped right off the screen! The colors are definitely more vibrant and there's more creativity (a lot less posed)---though they both consider themselves photojournalistic. They offer a package inclusive of videography and photography that comes in $600 above budget and only gets us a 24 page album and digital negatives.

So, we're thinking perhaps we could use them for just the engagement session. It's the sensible thing to do I'm sure, but I wish I hadn't seen their site! Wondering if I'll regret not spending more for better pix....
We've actually allotted a nice fraction of the budget toward photography, so we're not trying to skimp on it. I've read skimping on photos is a common regret from brides. It's a question of upgrading or not.

I originally hadn't intended on hiring a videographer, but my mother shared that it's one of the things she wished she would've included in her day. So, I'm game for a basic edited video. After all, there are parts of the ceremony that the bride doesn't get to see that would be nice to see in motion later on. On tours, I have seen a lot of sites have installed surveillance style cameras for the bride to view the goings-on while she's in her suite. Nice touch.

So, what are your feelings about top of the line photography vs. above average quality?