1. How long have you been a wedding photographer?
Officially, since 2009. Photography started as a hobby, then I moved to doing some headshots and model portfolio pictures, and then I fell in love with weddings and creative portraiture.
2. What type of equipment do you use?
D700(s), D600(s)
14-24 mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens
24-70 mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens
70-200 mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens
35 mm f/1.4 Nikkor lens
50 mm f/1.8 Nikkor lens
85 mm f/1.4 Nikkor lens
105 mm f/2.8 Nikkor lens (with macro)
Many Sb-910, Sb-900, Sb-600, and YN-560 speedlights
RadioPopper Px and JrX
3. When do you shoot engagement sessions?
Engagement sessions must now be scheduled during the week. I do not shoot on Sundays and weddings are given priority on Saturdays. It is best to schedule an engagement session as far in advance as possible; Fridays that are not booked with a wedding are kept free for make-up sessions for illness or rain dates, so that there is some flexibility for emergencies.
4. What type of shooting style do you use?
I really like to emphasize the fact that I rely on a blend of styles. I am not purely photo-journalistic, though I do think there are moments of the day which lend themselves to photojournalism (the ceremony and reception, for example). I am not intrusive in those moments and will not ask you stop and pose. While I do take a lot of candid shots throughout the getting ready portion, any aspect of the day which can have the word “portrait” attached to it, relies on what I call my “Creative Portraiture” style. In those portions of the day, I will place the couple or the bridal party members in a particular environment with minor direction in order to achieve the look that you can find so distinctly in my portraits. It tends to be a very natural and comfortable process. J
I also do offer a list of family formals for those who would like some traditional pictures. I cannot emphasize enough discussing the setting of these pictures with me. While most people do default to certain areas (church altars, for example), I will do my best to offer suggestions of the most suitable location of these pictures, particularly in terms of lighting. (P.S. The church altar is often the WORST place to do family formals.)
5. Do you do destination weddings and shoots?
Yes! I love to travel and will happily accept inquiry for destination shoots.
7. What are your fees for destination weddings and shoots?
There are a couple different pricing structures involved with my travel fees. For any wedding or shoot outside of my travel radius (50 miles from 21163), I ask that you cover the cost of travel or for gas/mileage. Due to the fact that a destination wedding has the additional expense of travel involved, there are special rates for destination weddings so please inquire for your particular location.
8. About how many pictures will I receive?
The number of images included each package is dependent on how much time is included with the package. An average wedding receives around 400-600 edited images, sometimes more. This is just an average. I don’t limit the number of pictures I give back to you.
9. When will my pictures be ready?
It takes about 4 weeks to prepare your online slideshow and it will remain active for 90 days. From there, expect two weeks for the pictures and CD to be delivered to you.
But remember this: I edit every single image I give back to you. It has a lot to do with my style and particular look, so I spend a lot of time on it. While a huge percentage of the work I do is in Adobe Lightroom adjusting each picture for clarity, color, white balance, and vibrancy, I also do occasionally further process some images in Photoshop to get them looking exactly the way I want to deliver them to you. This is not a process we want to rush. :) During off-peak wedding season, it’s a lot easier for me to dedicate myself solely to one set of images. During peak wedding season, I ask for your patience as I work hard on giving you the best possible images I can get for you! I know you’re anxious to see them, so that’s why I try to blog previews as diligently as possible!
10. Will you stay if I need more time on my wedding day?
You have the option of continuing your coverage at the overtime rate of $300 per hour.
11. What happens if you are sick on the day of my wedding?
I can honestly tell you that I have never been so sick that I did not make it to a wedding. It would take a fairly huge emergency or hospital stay for me not to be able to be there, so God-willing, this issue will not arise. That said, I do work with several second shooters and have a network of professional photographers whose work I am very confident in. If a serious emergency ever were to arise on my behalf, I would do everything in my power to secure another adequate replacement for me, so long as I am physically able to do so.
12. Is there any type of photography you don’t do?
I currently don’t shoot newborns or children under 6 months. I also do not offer boudoir photography.
13. Why don’t you shoot on Sundays?
As my business was growing, like many photographers I shot any job and date that came my way. But the truth is, I work Monday through Friday editing photos, designing albums, blogging, and doing all the administrative aspects of the business. I was finding that I would often work Monday through Friday, and then shoot a wedding Saturday and Sunday or a wedding Saturday and two engagement sessions Sunday and I had no time off or time to spend with my family. After missing several family events and finding myself extremely stressed, I realized that I needed to set aside a day off to be able to go to Church and spend with my family. So Sunday is naturally the best choice. :) In the summer, I can start engagement and portrait sessions as late as 6 pm anyway, so this isn’t usually an issue for work schedules. And I still, of course, will shoot weddings on Fridays! I will occasionally make exceptions to the no-Sunday rule during off-wedding season (December thru March) or traditionally long weekends, such as Memorial and Labor Day weekends.
14. Do you offer any discounts or reduced pricing?
I always like to give back to members of the military and offer a small discount to them. I also do occasionally run specials which are advertised on my Facebook page — so I encourage you to like and follow me there to get word about them!
Booking Policies
1. Can you hold my date?
Unfortunately, I cannot hold any date without contract or retainer. Once a contract and retainer are in my hands, the date is yours. Until then, the date is open.
2. What if I need time to think about it?
I understand that it takes time to make any decision about your wedding and if you’d like to explore your options, I encourage you to do so. However, I can’t hold your date. It’s heartbreaking when a bride tells me she really wants to books me, only to find out that the date has been booked in the meantime. However, it’s the only way I can assure fairness for all of my potential clients. Some clients want to book on the spot or after a phone conversation.
3. Will you call me if someone else is interested in my date?
Unfortunately, I can’t. Quite honestly, it can get very difficult for me to remember who was inquiring about which date. If a date is open and someone else is ready to book, they get first priority.
4. Don’t you think your booking policies are a little mean and unreasonable?
Nope.
I could stop there but I’ll explain. After doing this for several years, I learned the hard way that as much as I wanted to hold dates for people, it just wasn’t feasible for me as a business or fair to my clients. I’ve dealt with all sorts of booking situations, but when I started getting multiple inquiries for the same wedding date on the same day, it occurred to me that the only way I could be fair to the potential brides was a strict first-come, first-serve policy. That way, everyone has the same chance of booking an available date – it’s just up to you to go for it!
5. How much is your retainer?
My retainer for all shoots (weddings and portraits) is equal to half of the total package value. That amount is non-refundable and will be applied to the final balance.
6. In the case of portraits and engagements, do you allow rescheduling for inclement weather and sickness?
Absolutely!!! :) First of all, no one is at their best for a photo-shoot when they are sick — clients or the photographer! And I doubt anyone wants to catch a cold either! As for inclement weather, I’ll be very honest and tell you that as much as other photographers really embrace shooting in the rain, I’m of the mindset that if we have the grace and good fortune of being able to pick a beautiful day for our shoots, we should be able to do so. I especially believe this in the case of engagement sessions, since you can’t control the weather on your wedding day but can control the date and the weather for your engagement session. That said, I do have to reserve the time to do certain types of shoots and may occasionally let you know if it isn’t a shoot I can reschedule (Snappy Shoots may fall into this category, for example).
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