With nearly a decade in the wedding industry, we know what it takes for a successful wedding & some of the most skillful ways to capture it.
The very first thing when trying to book a wedding photographer is take a look at their portfolio and make sure their style is something that is fitting to you personally and personality wise. Do the couples look comfortable and is their style cohesive? These are a few good questions to ask oneself.
Afterward, if things look like a good fit, check their availability or go ahead and book.
When we first hear from our couples it is usually after they have booked their venue, have a general idea of what style photography they are interested in and an accurate idea of their budget.
Our Approach
We work hand in hand with many of our couples to ensure their wedding day goes as exceptionally as possible.
After bookings, timelines are usually the first piece of the wedding puzzle that gets put on the table. We approach them candidly, normally with a quick conversation, rather than an email questionnaire. It helps get to know each other and puts the first foot forward towards finalizing the day.
One of the big deciding factors for how a photographer is able to capture your day is whether or not there is a second shooter. This plays majorly into the timeline and what photos can be captured. There are areas where this affects coverage & the timeline the most.
Second Shooter?
Early in the day it can affect getting ready coverage. With a second shooter both wedding parties can be photographed at the same time, rather than adding an extra hour with a single photographer.
Family formals or reception details/cocktail hour photos? For those who want extra photos of details and their guests, this can often be the tradeoff in coverage without a second shooter.
Timeline ‘Hacks’
One of the best piece of timeline advice is to schedule as many ‘formal pictures’ before the ceremony as possible. This transfers over to photography immensely. The earlier in the day the more well kept your hair, clothes, and makeup will be. If you plan on having a first look, it would mean scheduling it forty-five minutes to an hour before the ceremony in order to make time for wedding party photos & individuals afterward.
We recommend planning your timeline around the light. There are two key times later in the day that produce some of the best light for photography. The more commonly known one – golden hour, which has more warm & moody tones, is the hour that precedes the sun setting. The other is about 2-3 hours beforehand, when the sun is roughly 45* in the sky. This time has ‘high key’ lighting and tends to produce more light & airy tones. We use these times for couples portraits during weddings but are also great for elopements or engagement sessions.
Posing & Shooting Process
Unfortunately, the wedding industry has been stricken with mediocrity over the past few years. Not holding professional standards has resulted in photographers using posing apps amongst a number of tools that take their eye away from the subject and towards someone else’s pre-planned pose or pre-edited style.
You can have a speech prepared or you can be prepared to speak. We use the latter approach for photography. Our vast experience of working bottom up within the industry, accompanied by various apprenticeships, high end clientele, and a passion for professionalism has developed the skills necessary to direct our couples & clients through a variety of shooting methods that can adapt to any given scenario.
We photograph using anything from comfortable posing, guiding into candid moments and ‘hands off’ photo-journalistic methods – all while managing the timeline & anticipating your next needs.
Depending on the time of year we have anywhere from a 4 – 8 week turn around time for wedding packages.
Booking Process
We love working with our couples – to make sure we are a good fit on your wedding day, take a second look at our approach to weddings above. We work hand in hand to ensure that the way we photograph matches up with both the style you want and the way we shoot.
If you are a good fit, want to check availability, or to go ahead and book please feel free to get in touch. Please let us know your names, date of service, location and hours of coverage to start the booking process.
All bookings are final once the contract is signed and returned along with the deposit to reserve your date.
From there we ask for the first 50% of the total coverage costs at 3 months prior and the second 50% 1 week prior.