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10 Questions to Ask a Wedding Photographer

Today, I decided to move to a very difficult topic for every bride and valid at all times regardless of the year or season: “10 Questions to Ask a Wedding Photographer”

This task is always a challenge because if you are a first-time bride (95% of all of you), then you do not have any experience and knowledge of what questions to ask.; essential questions which are crucial for your special day. You need to be confident that your choice is right and you will not be disappointed later on.

You usually ask your first question: “How much does it cost?”

Most brides ask this question first: why?

The reason is simple: you do not know what questions to ask.

Prices in our lives are clearly visible everywhere: at the supermarket, at the grocery store, at the Prada, etc. It is essential that the photographer is within your budget range, but this is not a decisive factor when you choose one photographer over another. 

I want to give you more reasons to ask different questions than asking for the price only:

1. The style

Style_China_Western

Western style engagement session has more cinematic and emotional touch                                                                            Chinese pre-wedding session is more staged and fun

 I am sure you do a lot of research before contacting any wedding vendor, if not then you should do that. A photographer’s case is similar.

First, you should like his or her photos; you should hear a “wow” inside of your heart when you look at the photos. Everyone has a different view and interpretation of art or images.

I am much more satisfied when someone likes my work and contacts me about my services.

The style is very important because you should feel confident, and you also ought to trust the skills of your photographer so that they can repeatedly create breathtaking images.

2. Shot list

I assume you wish that your photographer will not miss any important moment during your wedding day.

This is important as many photojournalists are shooting the day freely, and there is a large chance that they will capture all the events that happened during the wedding; however, they are less likely to take formal portraits of their aunties, grandmas, friends and others.

You need to articulate what you want and what people shall be included; you also should tell the photographer about any inconveniences, such as your family members not being placed beside each other after events such as divorce.

So please ask your photographer if he will follow your shot list.

3. Packages, albums, prints, USB.

 

Albums are amazing way to share your memories with your family

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a) Packages

Photographers usually have different packages to suit different budgets, tastes or needs. I cannot emphasize enough that choosing the right package is critical for your future experience.

Most of the wedding photography studios will agree to give you limited number of shoots; it is usually a very small number like 20-60. If that is what you need then it is good. Having more images and especially in the form of albums is very important.

You should ask what a package includes and what items you are able to purchase ala carte.

Many photographers offer shoot-burn packages. Sounds painful, right? It is actually hurting – you are right! In my opinion this is disservice to the clients to offer such a deal – if you receive unedited images then you already burnt yourself!

A whole photography is based on the printed images; XXI’s evolution bends this philosophy a little bit with computers, CDs, DVDs, etc.

My question as follows: “Where do you have VHS videos or even CDs?  In a drawer?”

Right – exactly. There are no more video players in the market for VHS tapes.

The Emotional Wedding Photography offers you three packages to suit your needs which are based on the number of images and amount of hours during the coverage of your wedding.

 

b) Albums

It is much better to have a material value, something which you can hold in your hands tomorrow, 1 year or 10 years later. The albums are giving you the comfort that you will be able to show your wedding images to your friends, children and grandchildren.

Albums give you that“wow” effect when you share them with others if they are built nicely and elegantly.

Emotional Wedding Photography are handmade in New York, the quality is far superior and the feeling is amazing when you hold them in your hands and feeling the leather smell or touching a Louis Vuitton fabrics cover.

A build quality will you guarantee of the same look after 20 years and even more. I tried to find such a quality in China for many weeks and months but I failed and this could be tip for you what kind of product our albums are.

 

c) Prints

Prints are also amazing decorative experiences which you could appreciate and remind all these amazing moments every time you look at your wall. That is why it is so important to ask your wedding photographer for the printed images.

This is an investment for your home not only the photography but it is also an excellent decoration for your empty walls at your new apartment!

I am a large supporter of the value in the photography, and the real value is everything what is printed and showed to the world.

The emotional wedding photography prints are an unusual product made of high quality wood which is made for export especially.

Framed wood prints offer the beauty of a large wood print finished with unique framing options including pine, hardwood cherry, dark walnut or even rustic wood frames.

Your wedding or engagement image can be printed full frame which has the beautiful characteristics of the wood while also giving the focus to your image for you to enjoy during rainy or less happy days. There are different colors available to suit your home needs as decoration necessity.

4. Contract

 

Contract is always ‘must’ on your to do list

The contract will provide you with the set of regulations and obligations of what the wedding photographer agrees to provide.

A contract guarantees both sides that the agreement is respected in the future and also a proof for some unhappy situations when the photographer or client breaks the agreement. You should always ask for a written contract that states all the services the photographer will provide and your obligations as a client and the photographer as a vendor.

The contract will give you guidance on the sequence of the service provided; therefore, you will know what’s next.

Emotional Wedding Photography provides the client with the written form of the contract, which needs to be agreed upon and signed by all the parties: bride, groom and the photographer.

5. Emergency such as Illness, accident, etc

Asking your wedding photographer if he has any backup plan should be part of the routine process. The photographer should state if such a situation happened before and how he managed this.

If such action did not happen, then the photographer shall explain if he could find a replacement and his backup plan.

If such a situation occurs, then a photographer should make sure he will give you the deposit back and/or pay the compensation.

6. Raw Images/proofs from the entire wedding

As a couple, you should know if you will have access to your wedding images after the images in a raw and untouched version. My guess is that if you find a shoot-burn photographer, then he will provide you with this as a per-agreed service.

However, if you meet a more experienced photographer who thinks about his craft and the image, the answer is “no.”

Models often ask me for the raw images from the photo shoot, and my answer is similar to my second statement. I do care about the brand and the service I provide to the customers, and I will also do damage to the client by providing files which are not ready and not up to my initial vision, which I had when I pressed the shutter.

Clients are not professionals and do not know how to post-process images. This will harm more than you think. My advice is to trust your photographer!

7. Deposit

A deposit is usually required to hold the date of your wedding, and it gives you a guarantee that the photographer will not book another wedding on the same day.

Emotional Wedding Photography knows that such a guarantee is important for the couple. It is stated in our written contract. You should also know the payment terms and time frame for the rest of the payment. Emotional Wedding Photography requires 30% of the deposit to provide you peace of mind and the rest of the payment two weeks in advance before your wedding.

8. Photography experience

 This question can be tricky because many photographers have passion, and they treat photography as a job on the side or a part-time gig, which is normal. What you should know is how many years your photographer spent on developing the style or improving his skills to the level he is now – this is more of a newbie question because if you already like the photographer’s work and the images come from more than one wedding than you are in good hands.

However, you should ask for experience in portrait or people photography because if someone has been taking landscapes for years or capturing macro images of bugs, he will not have experience shooting people initially.

9. Additional time of the wedding coverage

This is another key question you should ask your photographer, which shall be written in the contract. What kind of optional/additional coverage will you receive if your event is delayed or extended? You should know whether the photographer will walk away after the agreed-upon number of hours or not.

Emotional Wedding Photography will guarantee additional time during the wedding, and this option is mentioned in the written contract, which all the parties must sign, where you are also informed about the cost of such coverage.

10. Colour correction

On the left – color has been corrected                                                                                                      On the right – raw image without any color corrections

This is the primary element that the photographer will inform you about. Colour correction is not detailed post-processing of 30-80 images from the wedding day. Image colour correction is when the photographer briefly edits your images, i.e. skin tones, adjusting saturation, the brightness of the background, or making your white dress or black suit really white and/or black.

This needs to be done based on the number of images you agreed to pay for in one of the packages.

Please be sure that Emotional Wedding Photography does this job on all chosen images from the weddings, including all aunties and uncles at the wedding, to provide you with the best possible quality to share with your family and friends.

Emotional Wedding Photography

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