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I
squint and blink if I pose in bright light. Can you
help?
We have great news!
...Click
here
What
is your style of photographing
weddings?
75% photojournalistic
combined with 25% traditional.
We excel at capturing all
those unexpected, special moments as they occur!
We suggest that a SMALL
NUMBER OF PLANNED family poses will turn out to be
really valued by many customers. Weddings may be
your only chance to catch family members together
in pictures. Today's trendy pure
"photojournalistic" style may overlook
these.
Do
you cooperate with video cameras?
Yes!
How
many pictures do you take at a wedding?
Average of 500 to 1,000
but exact number varies depending on the number of
guests, size of family, amount of activities such
as dancing etc.
Why
so many?
By taking far more
pictures than we'll need, we have alternative shots
for when people blink. And of course we catpure
great spontaneous candid shots of people who are
important to you.
The real goal is to end up
with a smaller number of really great images.
Professional wedding ALBUMS average 20 to 40
enlargements -- that's all. (Though styles are
available to handle many more images if you
want.)
Many clients like to add a
second, less-formal album for candid shots.
A popular option is an "electronic" album of
candids on an iPod or similar device. You can do
this yourselves or order through us. See examples
on our albums
page!
What
happens if we have to change our wedding
date?
We'll accommodate your new
wedding date if possible, otherwise we'll refund
your deposit!
Our
uncle wants
to be the photographer, he got this expensive
digital camera from Best Buy. Should we use him
instead of hiring a professional?
Wedding photography is
more complicated than regular photography.
Much more complicated. When your uncle or
cousin messes up, you'll be enemies forever! See
example here.
If you need to
appease your uncle, why don't you ask him to take
candid photos during the ceremony and reception.
Do
you carry backup equipment? What happens if your
camera breaks at our event?
We have been doing this a
very long time and have lots of backup equipment
available.
Will
the photographer accept our ideas for special
poses?
Absolutely! We are there
to serve you and are happy to accept special
requests!
If you have special poses
you've seen published in a bridal magazine, and you
can bring us a cutout of what you like, that is
terrific. Bring these to us BEFORE the wedding day
so we can work your ideas into our own list.
And if you don't have the
time, but just want us to use our own judgment on
poses, we'll flow with that too.
My
mother got a list of special poses from a bridal
magazine. Will you photograph every pose on
it?
No! Not from that bridal
magazine list!
Actually we could
photograph everything on it, but you wouldn't have
any time left to see your guests.
Experienced photographers
must use professional judgment to cut poses down to
a manageable number. The concept is, don't
monopolize the couple's time at their own wedding
for the sake of less-important poses.
On
the wedding day, do you ever stop family &
friends from taking pictures with their own
cameras?
Mostly we cooperate with
guests and often will take a picture for them using
their own camera. We don't consider guests in
"competition" with us.
Exception: On rare
occasions we must stop amateurs from taking
pictures during formal group portrait sessions. We
want to get posed pictures completed quickly so you
can return to your guests. If amateurs keep
distracting or delaying our group poses, it slows
things way down, and affects the photo quality too.
We're hired to secure your best interests.
Can
you do special effect photos - such as vignettes,
soft focus, cropping, black & white,
sepia?
By the way,
what are those things?
Of course!
Click below for
explanations/examples...
Special
effects
Cropping
Black
& white
How
much in advance should I book a
photographer?
The sooner you book the
photographer of your choice, the sooner your date
is saved on his calendar. No photographer will
reserve a date without a paid deposit.
The best time to book a
photographer is after you've determined the wedding
date, which may depend on availability of the
wedding or reception site you want. Things will
fall into place after you've settled upon a
location.
Caution though...most
wedding sites have non-refundable deposits so it's
hard to make date changes after that.
How
long does it take to get our pictures after the
wedding?
1. Editing: We
average 3 to 6 weeks after a wedding date, to
perform our digital editing & organizing
of the important poses. (However we can e-mail you
some preview shots almost immediately or post them
on our website. Let us know your
preference.)
2. Prints:
For ordering reprints and enlargements, photo labs
are pretty quick now because computers have
streamlined their work flow. The photographer
should digitally edit/enhance each image that's
ordered before it's sent to the photo lab.
3.
Albums: Album completion time varies
depending on the complexity of the album you decide
to order. Basic albums may be done in a couple of
weeks. High end coffee table albums with custom
layouts and special cover materials take longer. It
depends on each manufacturer's workload. (Most
albums are now assembled by companies that produce
them in their own factories, and all of us
photographers use the same group of
suppliers.)
Can
we make copies of photos that you take at our
wedding?
Yes.. That's why we
never use copy protection or digital rights
management (DRM.) We recommend against those
technologies. We copyright release our wedding
photos for your personal use.
Digital Rights Management
or copy protection are dangerous software
technologies that could prevent your digital images
from being readable in the future. That matters a
lot if your original photos become damaged or lost.
Can I
have another photo lab make prints from photos you
took?
Yes. We make you
legal by providing you with a Copyright
Release.
You can even use your home
ink jet printer. (See our page with
helpful
instructions.)
If you prefer you can
order through a professional photo lab or through
us.
Can
any computer read the digital photos you
take?
Yes. We use only
common file formats that are recognized by EVERY
VERSION of Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh.
Both brands have file viewing software built in. So
you can view photos without installing any special
software.
Is a
deposit needed to reserve a wedding
date?
Yes, $350. We normally
book the first person who gives us a deposit for a
particular wedding date. Giving us a deposit also
means client agrees to the terms of our Standard
Contract which includes a Limitation of Liability
clause.
If another photographer
offers to "pencil you in" for a date that is a
marketing gimmick with no legal meaning.
When
are final payments due?
We are ok with half of the
total being paid on or before the wedding day. Any
remaining balance should be paid by the time we
ready to deliver high-resolution digital images
(typically 3 to 6 weeks after a wedding, depending
on workload.)
Album expenses are a la
carte and do not have to be paid before the
wedding. (But an album must be paid in full at the
time of order.) A la carte items are not
required purchases.
How
many weddings does Doug shoot per
weekend?
We usually photograph only
one wedding per weekend.
Sometimes other photo
studios ask Doug to help them out when they have a
scheduling emergency - such as if their staff
photographer suddenly quits. Professional
photographers help each other out in emergencies.
We may be competitors, but most of us are nice
people too.
Can
we change photo packages if we decide we booked the
wrong one?
Yes!
Do
you accept checks?
Yes.
Do
you accept debit or credit cards?
Yes, but not in the field.
We appreciate advance notice so we'll have our
online Pay Pal account ready. Pay Pal is a division
of eBay.
Do
you have any special tips for weddings that will be
outdoors?
Yes! If you aren't using a
professional wedding planner, here are some issues
to consider that will help your day go better.
Click
here
Why
are photographers' prices so high? Since
photographers don't have to buy film any more,
shouldn't fees be very low?
Really good photographers
have years of experience and never stop learning.
These years will be reflected in the costs, just as
hiring a master carpenter costs more than hiring a
trainee who can't quite nail the cabinets
straight.
Pro-grade cameras &
computers require periodic upgrades. Upgrade costs
must be recovered through those "high" prices ---
or the photographer will not stay in
business.
Doug doesn't just spend 6
hours at a wedding --- image editing time &
post production duties easily add 40 hours
work to each wedding.
Some photographers charge
lower fees don't spend proper time in digital
editing or don't really know what they're doing.
Tsk tsk...
Does
Doug use an assistant or second
photographer?
In most cases yes. But it
can vary with scheduling availability, price and
other factors.
Do
you photograph Quinceaneras, Bat Mitzvah & Bar
Mitzvah photos?
Yes. We have a
knock-your-socks-off portfolio to show you on
request. Bar Mitzvahs and Quinceaneras are
photographed almost exactly like
weddings.
Do
you shoot modeling portfolios?
We specialize in wedding
photography. Plus some family portraits,
architectural & commercial
photography.
We can shoot
"amateur" modeling portfolios on a TFP basis.
But if you're serious about modeling career,
your portfolio should be created using full studio
facilities. We can refer to you to local
photographers who have a good reputation in that
specialty.
I noted
your website's domain name changes slightly when
I navigate through your website! What's going
on?
We have a primary website
and what's called a "mirror site." It's similar to
a business having more than one phone line, but
it's the same business.
Will
digital images last as long as
film?
The short answer is
current digital prints and enlargements are
expected to last from 60 to 200 years. But
preserving digital image files on disc is a
little more complicated. We HAVE figured out how to
do it but don't want to bore you with thedetails.
If you're a techie Doug
explains all the fun deteails in an article
here.
Is
digital or film better?
See a direct comparison
with your own eyes here.
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