brady_dillsworth

Check out <a href="http://www.bradydillsworth.com/Wedding-Show/wedding.htm" >my site</a>, where I travel for weddings and <a href="http://www.wpja.com" >the wpja</a> where you can find great wedding photographers across the country.

I bought four leads out of the hundreds that were emailed to me for 2005 and 2006 and booked three out of the four weddings. I am very selective on the location, style, budget and details that I buy, as I only photograph weddings where I think the couple and I will interact well.

 

I see tons of leads with brides wanting $1000.00, negatives or full res files, 10 hours of photography and an album for a Saturday in May. I don't buy until I see a $3,000.00+ lead (or maybe 2000+ for a Friday or winter month) where the couple is at a great venue, wants enough hours for me to get the job done right and that requests a journalist style.

 

I bet that if you were half way decent, shot in the $1000-2000 range, photographed the full day and gave away the files you would work every weekend of the year.

 

If you charge a whole lot more and give a whole lot less you can still get good leads, just not as many.

I raised my prices, improved my work and attracted a new audience. It was one of the best business decisions I could have made.

Good choice on a meter, I used to dislike the long neck strap but I soon realized that I can extend the meter at arms length while keeping it around my neck, and it doesn't bounce into my cameras while I walk.

Keith,

 

Good point, but consider that a photographer is often at the wedding longer than any vendor except for the videographer and the wedding planner. The DJ, Band, Florist, Caterer, Officiant, Makeup Artist, Hair Stylist and others are part of the day for just a few hours. Photographers may be at the wedding for 8 to 12 hours.

I would have told bride two that I had a prospective client meeting scheduled for next week and that I had to contact her before I could book client two. Client one should have been called and informed that there was a second client waiting for the same date and client one had to act the week of the meeting in order to reserve my services.

 

I'd hand write client one a note with a list of photographers that you reccomend.

 

I think you could have handled it better but sometimes people want the same day. I actually had two conversations going on with clients in the same week for the same date, one for 1500 and one for 5000. Since both clients wanted me I let them know that there was somebody interested in their day, the 1500 client closed 3 days sooner. I wasn't able to morally drop the 1500 dollar wedding even though I would have made a whole lot more money on the 5000 who committed a few days too late. Neither client met with me, everything was done by telephone and through my website.

Seriously ask a lawyer, have him or her draw up the rules and explain to you how you need to implement this. If you are not going to spend the time and money on a lawyer then I would not go forward. Your FBI brother in law may be able to guide you but still consult an lawyer, the last thing that you want is to be caught running an illegal lottery.

Mary said it perfectly, be sure to ask if there are any problems with seafood, peanuts or anything else that might cause problems. Ask if the photographer is bringing an assistant too. Chicken is usually a safe bet.

 

As for me, I have eaten everything from sandwiches to filet mignon. If the budget is tight let your photographer know, he or she won't have a problem with whatever they eat.

 

Lastly, there are always extra meals, so 9 times out of 10 the photographer can get the server to bring one of those out in a worst case scenario.

Sure you can, but there is a lot to it.

 

How much do you charge per wedding? How many weddings do you photograph per year? Are you getting large album orders afterward? Are you in an area where you can photograph year round? What do you call Making a Living? What is the cost of living in your area? Are you a talented photographer? Are you a skilled salesman?

 

It would be hard to make a living on 10 weddings a year at 1000.00 each with no album orders in CA. If you can charge enough, shoot enough and sell enough afterwards you can make a fine living.

I like 5 the way it is and 8 cropped vertical.

Seldex offers a bunch of nice albums at good prices. I don't have the price sheet in front of me but I think that they had books from 5x7 to 10x10 ranging from roughly 100 to 450.

 

They would have to order through you for Seldex, so if you want the prices and styles I can forward you the info.

 

Another option is Asuka Book, again, I think they would need to order through you.

Maybe I missed something but I read this in their mission statement:

 

"Offer FREE listing to all DJ's and Photographers which includes your company name, a short description, FREE link to your webpage*, and a targeted listing in the state and county of your choice. New accounts are instantly added - not in days, or even weeks like other search sites."

 

"Optional Premium listings target your service to multiple counties in your selected state. Your listing also appears at the top of state and county listings in a bolded title with graphic."

 

If it is just a link link you are after with a low placement it seems to be free, whereas multiple counties and a higher ranking seems to be subscription based.

I have never let an assistant work for me for free, not even on the first day with someone who has never done it before. I was always paid as an assistant too, it did not matter if it was my first wedding or my 50th.

 

At the very least they can carry gear and gather people for formals and that has plenty of value for me.

 

For someone with no experience maybe 50-100. Someone with experience 125-400. It all depends on the budget of the wedding, how long I need him or her and what they will be doing.

1) Be early

 

2) Have all addresses, maps, phone numbers, copy of contract and any other details ready

 

3) Dress as well as I do

 

4) Always look happy, like this is the best job and the most important client ever

 

5) Anticipate what I will need before I have to ask

 

6) Quickly point out my mistakes as well as your own, especially if you drop something

 

7) Don't talk about clients until the shoot is done and we are on the way home

 

8) Don't accidentally switch the formatted CF cards with the written CF cards, I like to work fast and don't want to waste seconds doing an unnecessary swap

 

9) Don't load/unload the Mamiya RB 67, I've never had a roll of exposed 120 unravel and want to keep that trend going. Just hand me the backs and take the exposed ones

 

10) Learn to carry lots of heavy and expensive gear without dropping it or bumping into things

 

10 b) Wear these really cool/geeky waist packs from Domke, it helps to keep gear in order: Domke F-902 and Domke F-945

I think I am going to lead with the BW image in my portfolio for meetings and on the website.

 

Paul, I had three of the best weddings of my life in the two weeks after that stressfilled weekend so I am doing great.

I think this is the first time that I've seen 100% agreement on photo.net. I was a little unsure but the black and white it is, thanks.

At my last wedding the rain was just about to begin during the

pre-ceremony portraits. We went outside to shoot in front of a field

and the sky was dramatic, the light was great and the wind was

blowing. I got a series of BW portraits of the bride with the great

sky before we had to leave. I really love the BW pictures but I am not

too sure how a prospective bride would react to it as the first

wedding image on my site.

 

I use the color image as my entry page photo for the wedding section

but I am considering switching. Do you prefer the vertical BW, the

color horizontal or neither for the opening image of the wedding

section for my website?<div></div>

I am a guy and I try to change my outfit for each wedding. For shirts I like the solid colors black, white, grey, blue, yellow, green or orange. For pants I like grey, black, tan (light, medium and dark), blue or green.

 

I dress based on the feeling I get from the couple. I probably would not wear an orange shirt to a 50 year old couples second marriage at a country club nor would I probably wear a black suit to a 25 year olds commitment ceremony in San Francisco.

 

I also always keep a second outfit in my car as I one time was caught in a rainstorm during outdoor formals and gave my umbrella to the bride. The second outfit could be a little more conservative or a little more relaxed than what you are wearing so you can change if you are not comfortable.

 

Overall I dress to fit in. All black can be just as bad as yellow or orange if you stick out from the crowd.

95% sure it is dust on the sensor. I get that on mine all the time, especiallly when I work with it outdoors. Get used to cleaning your own sensor, it is a lot cheaper than sending it in for service.

 

Try not to change lenses with the camera on and try not to change lenses when you are in dusty/windy conditions.

24mm f-2.8 (own)

 

35mm f-2 (own)

 

50mm f-1.4 (own)

 

85mm f-1.4 (buying soon)

 

200mm f-2 (want)

I have it and like it. The lens is small and light. The AF speed is OK on a D70. Some people have complained about oil on the aperture blades but I have never experienced it on my sample.

I am not really interested in the bargain crowd.

 

I was put off by the fact that in the info that I got for this bridal show there was a client list and there was not one photographer that I would regard as high quality or expensive listed. There were actually several 599 and 695 full day wedding packages listed.

 

I think I will pass on this one and work with an upscale event.

What are your thoughts on exhibiting at Bridal shows/expos?

 

In my area there are shows that run at two different times of year,

one in the fall and one in the winter. Which of these two times makes

more sense to you (I usually book about 8-10 months out with my

longest being 16 months and my shortest being 4 months)? I am leaning

toward the fall one but I don't know what types of people these shows

draw (whether they book long term or short term).

 

The shows run in two different locations also, one being downtown and

the other being a suburb.

 

The prices range between 400 and 800 for the three to four hour event.

 

Does anyone who has exhibited at one have any strong views on ROI

(including cost of time for prep, time for setup, time for exhibition,

time for tear down, cost of sample prints and cost of sample albums)?

I always tell the client that they will get around 200 images from a 5 hour wedding, 300 from a 7 hour wedding and 400 from a 12 hour wedding. Realistically I provide about twice that many in print form.

 

One of the reasons I do this is to protect myself in case there is an error and I only provide the minimum proofs. The other reason is that the client expects 200 good images but then the client receives 400 good to great images and they are more pleased than they thought they'd be with both quality and quantity.

 

As a rough guide I usually tried to shoot less than 2 rolls of 35mm an hour when I used film, so if I can do 50-100 digital shots an hour then I am on track by that old standard.

I think it is better as an idea than as a product. It looks like it is fine for a few people but in real world shooting I think that it would be a bigger hassel than it is worth. On the rare occasion that I do check my LCD it is for such a brief amount of time that I think the delay to pop the cover up would be noticable and bother me. What if something quick happens with the cover popped up and I press my face into the cover and scratch my glasses or injure my eye?

 

Like Nadine I photograph weddings so I work fast and don't want to be thrown off my rhythm. Maybe if I was shooting outside in the winter with falling snow I'd consider one, but still I doubt it (since I'd probably be using a Mamiya RB67).

 

For shade I usually cast a shadow with my body over the LCD (D70) if I need to see it outside. I took off the cover on my LCD because it always made my photos look soft. Now I use no protection and I have seen no problems with scratching or anything.