Pre-wedding client meeting

<p>Hello all. I have been building up a photography business, mostly doing work in portraiture and sports, and a family friend recently asked me to do her wedding. I have done a couple of weddings in the past, mostly for family as their wedding gift, but this is the first time it would be a paying job. I am meeting with the bride and groom in a few weeks (about a month before the wedding) to go over things. I have some things in mind to go over with them, but I am worried that, this being for all intents and purposes my first wedding job, I may not think of everything that needs to be covered. So, my question is, does anyone have any suggestions of things I should be sure to talk to them about, or maybe some type of checklist of things that you generally cover at a pre-wedding meeting? It is my understanding it is going to be a fairly small, close friends and family type wedding. I would appreciate any advice that can be given. Thank you in advance for the help!</p>

<p>Typically when you are starting out you are shooting low budget weddings. And since low budget weddings typically don't have wedding planners that responsibility lies elsewhere. And it's to your advantage to help out in that area. </p>

<p>Most first time B&Gs don't have a clue how much time they should allow for taking formal pics and if this is something you intend to do I suggest you educate them, early. I don't know your style, if it's pretty much 100% photo journalism then probably not that big a deal. But if you plan on taking formals of the B&G, family and friends you should make sure you have the time. <br>

Many times the B&G will refuse to see each other before the wedding, and then allow 30 minutes from the wedding end to the reception, which is 20 minutes from the church. You can't allow that to happen, or you are not going to have an idea situation for creating formals.</p>

<p>Good luck in your new adventure. We are only in our 2nd year of going it alone but we've learned a lot. You will too!</p>

<p>Try searching. I recall several previous threads. Here is a search page.</p>

<p><a href="../search/?cx=000753226439295166877%3A0gyn0h9z85o&cof=FORID%3A11&ie=UTF-8&section=all&q=wedding+checklist&filter=0#1669">http://www.photo.net/search/?cx=000753226439295166877%3A0gyn0h9z85o&cof=FORID%3A11&ie=UTF-8&section=all&q=wedding+checklist&filter=0#1669</a></p>

<p>Also:</p>

<p><a href="../wedding-photography-forum/00GeiB">http://www.photo.net/wedding-photography-forum/00GeiB</a></p>

<p>This is an enormous topic. I don't have my ipad with me at the moment, which is where I keep my list of questions for the B&G when we meet , but i know it mostly by heart. I go quite in depth even at the first meeting. If you show you're thorough it's only going to impress them more. Thinks I cover / ask;<br>

The date/time of the wedding. indoors or outdoors? do they know of or are they hiring for any type of special lighting ?<br>

How many people are they expecting overall?<br>

Size of the bridal party? how many males? how many females?<br>

How many sets of parents or grandparents, and I ask for their names. If they book with me that day, I also ask before they go if they have any photos of mom/dad/grama/grandpa so I can memorize those faces before the day of the wedding. One major mistake would be not knowing who is who well enough that you don't include a lot of photos of them in the big day.<br>

Names of the best man / maid of honor.<br>

Are there any special religious ceremonies or rituals being conducted I should know about, if so what are they, what's considered respectful or not respecftul.<br>

I always get the name of the minister and call him regarding his rules about flash or other photography rules.<br>

Get the address of the ceremony location and reception, and I go there in advance to scout out formal shot locations as well as test lighting conditions. You'll find most managers at places that hold weddings and ceremonies very accomodating to photographers to show them around when nothing is going on at their hall / location.<br>

I ask her the colour scheme of the wedding and our bridal parties so I can not be shocked and keep in mind my lighting or equipment if they have bright shiney reflective stuff etc. If I didn't ask this question I wouldn't have found out till I arrived on the wedding day that my last client's groom and best men were wearing military fatigues as their wedding outfits and not tuxes or suits!<br>

I always scout out ahead of time nearby fancy hotels and halls that allow for deposits to be made on them (in case the couple are having an outdoor wedding and it rains) so that they still may have a nice place to fall back on for photos. I get them fully priced out etc. I've had two brides book with me just because they had outdoor weddings and said no other photographer presented them with options like this in case it rained on their wedding day and were thankful that someone was thinking about it in general.<br>

The address and location and times the bride is getting ready, and the grooms. If they're getting ready at identical times, I present the option of which they'd like photos of getting ready since I don't usually shoot with an assistant. Or hire a second shooter. My wife seconds for me a lot, but mostly getting candids with the camera on "P" mode, she's not a huge photography buff.<br>

I ask if there are any special circumstances at all I should be concerned about. Such as a relative that may be particularly sensitive to being photographed, etc. (I've ran into a few females that had some sort of ectomorphic fear or something about literally being afraid of having themselves photographed due to not liking how their body looks)<br>

I give them a copy of the contract to review later in case they decided not to book right away.<br>

I ask how long they are allowing between the ceremony and reception for photographs. I generally like to nudge them softly in the direction of less time = less formal poses. My recommendation to them is generally 1 hour with the photographer (me) to get a minimum of 1 dozen well posed well lit portraits. Usually 3-4 with the bridal party 3 of just the bride and the balance with the bride and groom. The more time beyond the hour they alot, the more good photos they get out of it.<br>

I'll mention to them that I may still them away during the reception just before or after dinner for a few romantic poses outside or in a secret hall somewhere, so we can add a few more good ones to the book.<br>

How is the bride arriving? how is the groom arriving? Separately? together? Limo? Other vehicle? What time?</p>

<p>There's a lot more questions you could probably ask depending on special circumstances. Most of these should cover you for your average non celebrity non special client wedding.</p>

<p>All of what Jonathan listed - plus times and time they are allocating for pictures assuming they are doing formals. </p>

<p>As Manuel pointed out, some couples do all this planning by themselves and fail to leave adequate time between events for photos. I recently had a couple (who even had a planner) that requested that we stop between the ceremony and the reception at a very busy park. They failed to take into account that the road to the park was 1 lane in each direction and that it became a major choke point for traffic on weekends. Fortunately, I asked the question and found this out early enough that the planner and I were able to find another location much easier to access, that we could use and get some photos at. Had we gone with plan A, without a Plan B - the couple would have gotten to their 5:00 reception at about 8:00. </p>

<p>Another question I always ask is "are you going to be seeing each other before the ceremony?" if the answer is No - then the question (which I ask anyway) is are you doing a receiving line? The answers to these questions determines time between the ceremony and the reception. Receiving lines tend to take between 20 minutes and 45 minutes - depending on the number of attendees. I've had one disaster with a receiving line that took 1 hour plus... the disaster was that key people in the wedding party got bored with it and left to get food - which the couple (or the party) didn't provide. So when it finally came time for formals - we had to literally find people which took more time and delayed the couple in getting to the reception. </p>

<p>Point is - no question is a stupid one at this time in the process. Don't assume you know how things will work - allow enough time for photos and if you get done early - great - they have some extra time to relax before the ceremony or on the way to the reception. </p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

<p>Since you've already booked them, you just need to firm up details, right? I'll give you the in-a-nutshell version of my potential client meeting and then my pre-wedding meeting. </p>

<p>Potential Client</p>

<ul>

<li>take down ceremony, reception location. How many in wedding party. Tentative timeline (they should know when the church is booked at this point - sometimes the reception as well). I don't go into details of timeline of the day other than to remind them that they should remember to factor in time for the receiving line, formal family photos, and travel time.</li>

<li>I give them an overview of my prints that are mounted in a self stick album. They can touch and see quality. I flip the pages and as I do I explain considerations in taking the photo (see how I handle low light, DOF, back lighting, etc.)</li>

<li>I let them flip through a completed sample album.</li>

<li>I give them a packet that includes my contact information, a price list, a wedding check list, the contract.</li>

<li>I go over the wedding check list and encourage them to have a go-to person that is not mom/dad or member of the wedding party, but knows people and can get them together for their photos.</li>

<li>I give them two contracts - they hold one and I hold one - then I go over every point of the contract verbally (i summarize each section) and then ask if they have any questions. I tell them that should they decide to book with me that they should sign both contracts and send them both to me. I will sign them both and then send back one original with both signatures.</li>

<li>I tell them to email or call me if they ever have any questions - some do, some don't.</li>

</ul>

<p>Pre-Wedding Meeting</p>

<ul>

<li>Most of the time I don't meet with the client, but instead email them about 10 days before the event. I ask for the timeline of the day, including addresses. And also do they know where they want to shoot their on locations shots, or would they like me to suggest places.</li>

<li>I also ask for the wedding checklist to be emailed (the checklist asks for bridesmaids/groomsmen count.</li>

<li>I review the timeline and notify the couple of any red flags (they usually still don't account for receiving line, formals and travel time). We make adjustments to the schedule.</li>

</ul>

<p>One thing you might also want to do for the day of the wedding is to print out a mapquest of the on location photos (after ceremony/before wedding) so you can give it to the limo driver. I got chewed out by a limo driver when I first started out because he said it was a courtesy I should have thought of. I naively assumed that limo drivers had gps devices. Apparently not all do -- so I never assume they know where they are going.</p>

<p>Looks like they covered most of the responses I'm sure you were looking for. But I'm going to give you one little thing of advice. I found out the hard way... make sure you know every little detail about the ceremony and in order. I did a wedding where the couple were in the front of a gazebo. Well I thought it was really convenient that I could walk behind the gazebo without making a show of myself and get some really great shots of the sand unity ceremony. Well immediately, and I mean immediately after the sand pouring, the couple turned around and got their first smooch, all the while, I was in the back of the dang gazebo, when I wanted to be in the front. Luckily, I got one measly shot, but was very disappointed in myself for not knowing it would be so fast. I had no time to walk around front and get that photo. So make sure you know what's coming next. Some ceremonies can really differ from each other and catch you off guard.</p>

Jessica,

 

When a couple has expressed a bit of interest after seeing my portfolio and like how I work as a photographer I then

go through the schedule of their day. Often a couple will say oh we just need you for 6 hours, not 8. I say, ok but just

to be sure let's see what your schedule for the day looks like. I get a fresh piece of paper and half way down the

middle I get the ceremony time. Usually this has been established and doesn't move. Everything hinges around it.

Then I ask if they would like to do a big reveal and formal shots before the ceremony. I try to explain the great

benefits to doing the shots beforehand. They may say things like receiving line, 5 minutes. And I will say, you said

150 guests. That will probably take more like 15-20 minutes. Be sure to tell your officiant to remind people that you

only have a short amount of time so to greet you quickly. I will budget in the time it takes for transportation to and

from spots. I pad every time by about 5 minutes because everything with weddings run late. If the bride says 5

minutes for getting into her dress, ask her what type of dress it is. Have the groom cover his ears if he is present. If it

is a corset back or one with loop buttons you had better budget at least 15 minutes for just getting into the dress.

 

 

So anyways, I work my way backwards with them for the getting ready time, and get an approximation of the number

of formals they are looking to get. All parts that take place before the ceremony are listed above the ceremony time.

 

Then work forwards with them through getting to the reception and events taking

place there and the coverage amount they want. Put this on the lower half of the paper. Do they want me there until the bitter end? Do they want me to only

stay until the cake is cut, etc. Then I tally the number of hours from start to finish and see what package looks best for

their needs. this is often the first time they will have really scheduled out the day. Whether they hire me or not I give

them a copy of this schedule. Often wedding planners schedule too little time as well so it is important to be a reality

check for them. 10 minutes is not enough time for bridal couple portraits and 20 iterations of family formals and bridal

party formals.

 

I get all the family names and pronunciations, and any special request shots, like a close up of grandma's broach

which is the something blue, or a sorority shot, etc.

 

I go over when they can expect to see the photos after the completion of the event.

 

I also discuss engagement shoots. Almost all my packages include one. If they choose one that doesn't include it, I suggest we add one separately to give them practice in front of the camera before their big day. This let's me figure out their best angles, etc, in advance.

Do a search... Write them down on a paper so you don't miss any shots, such as the formals of the bride. Check off the list as you shoot the shots. After several years of shooting I still check myself. Some of the major mistakes are leaving out grand parents, the flower girl, detailed shots.