The Wedding Day Timeline Sample
What are the advantages of hiring a professional?
A professional has just the right equipment for photographing your wedding. Having attended many weddings, an experienced wedding photographer will be at ease at your wedding. A professional is used to working with individuals, couples, and groups to make the formal photography go smoothly. When you think about the cost of photography, remember that the photographer’s fee is only part of your investment: You, your parents, your extended family and your friends will be investing time with the photographer during your wedding. Don’t waste time on your wedding day with a photographer who won’t produce results you love!
How much does it cost?
Usually photography runs between nine and fifteen percent of the total wedding budget. When couples value photography highly and are on a limited budget, they will spend up to 30% of their wedding budget on photography. Be prepared to spend a minimum of $1,200 for a small wedding, and $3,000 and up for bigger one.
How much time will the photographer spend at my wedding?
That is really up to you. You can have the photographer meet you where you are getting dressed, and keep taking pictures until you leave the reception. Or you may just want a few hours of photography, with a few formal photographs and some pictures of the ceremony. Our typical coverage depends from the package you choose, starts two or three hours before the ceremony and ends after the bouquet, garter and cake for a full day coverage.
Go over your time line for the day before the wedding. Find out how long the photographs you have requested are going to take. If it is too long, cut out some of the posed pictures. If you have dozens of posed shots on your photo list, expect your photographer to be persistent in getting them. Or tell your photographer the way you have scheduled the day, and that he/she is to follow your schedule. A posed photo of cutting the cake takes ten seconds, and the rest of the cake shots should be candid.
How many images we will get from our wedding?
The amount of pictures depends from time coverage (usually around 200 images per hour). We often capture thousands of images (generally from 1,000 to 3,000) for you to keep forever.
Does the camera used make a difference?
Yes. We use only professional full frame Nikon Digital cameras and high quality lighting units.
Images from a full frame, high resolution digital camera are better because they are sharper and less noisy, with greater color saturation. We are shooting in RAW file format, which offers additional control and creative option, and helps getting the best image quality possible in camera.
What is photojournalism? Is it better?
There are many stories and vignettes at a wedding: Bride getting ready, ring bearer being coaxed to walk up the aisle, the bride’s mother watching the father-daughter dance. Moments like these, when photographed, is Wedding Photojournalism. A good photojournalist captures decisive moments to tell a story. Our tudio offers the perfect combination of professional photojournalistic and traditional styles of wedding photography.This is also a matter of taste, combined with necessity. Great wedding photography can be done with no formal posed pictures at all (wedding photo journalism). But, there may be many people and combinations of guests that will never be captured unless the photographer deliberately gathers them in one spot for a picture. When planning with your photographer, draw up a list of “must get” photos. If you want a large catalog of specified pictures, then expect your photographer to spend more time doing those, and less time doing candids and wedding photojournalism.
Should we do the formals before or after the ceremony?
Some couples think it is bad luck to see each other before the ceremony. If following this tradition is important to you, all of the photos of the bride and groom together will be done afterwards, but solo shots can be done before. However, getting all the formals done at the beginning has several advantages: Flowers, clothing and make-up are fresh, and you can carefully budget time for formals. (And, if your ceremony ends after dark, the only time for natural light pictures of the two of you will be before the ceremony!) Couples who feel formal photos are important will set aside one, two, or even three hours for formals, which finish up about half an hour before the ceremony begins. If you do formals immediately after the ceremony, guests have to wait before they can greet you, and members of the bridal party will have pose for pictures rather than mingle. About half of the weddings I photograph have all the formals taken before the ceremony.
What about having two photographers?
We are offer two-photographer coverage for all packages- the main shooter, and an assistant, who also acts as a second shooter when it necessary. One concentrates on the formals, the other on wedding photo journalism.
Some photographers ask that no one else take pictures during the formal photography. Is that reasonable?
Yes. If the photographer is trying to work quickly through a series of formal pictures, a snap-shooter might slow the process. A problem arises when there are several cameras aimed at a formal group – the subjects will be looking at different lenses. The diverted attention will ruin the professional’s picture. On the other hand, many guests find snapping a few pictures a pleasant part of attending weddings. So we usually let people snap away when formals are over. Ideally, guests should show respect for the bridal party and photographer and put down their cameras during the formal photos.
Online gallery, CD/DVD proofing.
Online or CD/DVD proofing is very convenient and becoming more and more popular. Couples like the fact that distant family members can see the wedding images and order their own copies. Online ordering and photography go together well – you see the picture and order a copy any time, any place.
Image editing.
We post process all images in a variety of techniques such as color correction and enhancement, density correction, noise reduction, image sharpening and adjustments in exposure, balance, saturation and contrast as necessary. We do everything that it takes to give you high quality images.
What about black and white photography?
Some couples want black and white pictures because they like the classic quality. Also, there has been a return to black and white (in advertising and weddings) with a contemporary or fashion look to it. Our clients receive two copies of each image on CD/DVD, one in color, another one black and white.
Getting an album.
We are as many photographers now offering “Packages,” each package having a set number of hours, images, and depending of package can include albums. Also, you can add an album or, order and pay for your album anytime after the wedding. It is important that each album shows wedding from start to finish, not just a collection of images.
Who chooses the pictures that go in the album?
After looking at all the images, the bride and groom usually decide what goes in the album. We let you specify the list and sequence of the pictures, so that the album really shows the wedding the way you want to see it. Before sending it for a print we approving the album design with you, using proofs or computer images to show you what the final album will look like.
I want to make copies or print my photos myself. Do I have the rights to do it?
According to federal law, images produced by a professional photographer are copyrighted the moment they are created. Federal law prohibits copying or reproducing copyrighted material without permission from the owner of the copyright, i.e., the photographer. But our studio provides DVD or CD of all images with a COPYRIGHT RELEASE, you have our permission written in the Wedding Photo Contract, so you can make any amount of copies, or prints from it legally, without any limitation.