colleendonovan

<p>I ask for them during dinner too. Mostly to keep myself entertained while everyone eats. :) It's nice to have a little break and be able to play around while still 'working'.</p>

<p>I do quite a bit of SEO and I am ranked first or second for most of my major key words. I'm not bargain basement, but most of my brides come from out of town and I feel that having a higher ranking website helps them find me. My biggest source of referrals is word of mouth. I don't do any print advertising - I work with the venues and work hard to give my current clients a really, really great experience. <br>

I know that most truly high end wedding photographers rely on and are made by referrals.</p>

<p>Holy moly. I don't know. Have you checked with the high end album manufacturers?? They might be able to point you in the right direction. I'd imagine that they are hard to find. But - I could be wrong. :)</p>

<p>Look up Garrett Nudd and see if he is offering any workshops. I love his work!!</p>

<p>Hmmm... How about - 'I'm sorry, but we aren't offering any specials at this time.' Or something along the lines of online hosting is a complimentary service that you offer to all of your couples, etc..</p>

<p>My 70-200 lens is my work horse. I have it on me the entire wedding and use it most of the day. <br>

What you will use will depend on how you shoot of course. :)</p>

<p>I personally would not go with the non IS version of that lens. It's a big lens and can get heavy after 8 hours and the IS is awesome. I rarely carry a tripod or monopod around and with the IS I don't have to worry about having one. If it were me I'd continue using the lenses I had until I could afford the L series. </p>

<p>I wouldn't say I'm obsessed, but I do check every once in awhile. :) I check more often now that I've had a few people stealing content, etc. It's a bummer.</p>

<p>Put your logo on them and send them a CD. For free.</p>

<p>That's what happens when people don't do their research before hiring a photographer...</p>

<p>Brides love photobooths. They do. Do a little bit of hunting online and you'll see that they are still very popular and that the brides are willing to pay for them.</p>

<p>You should have liability insurance already. That is one of the most important elements involved with being a 'professional'. Once you have liability insurance you will have to take out a rider for the amounts specified by the venue. The cost varies, but they aren't outrageous. You'll have to take proof of it with you to the venue. <br>

You can have liability insurance through any insurance company. Check around for the best rates and coverage.</p>

<p>Don't you think though, that check lists just open up a can of worms?? If you have one the cient will expect every picture on that list to be a good one and could hold you accountable for missing one (or more). <br>

From a client's perspective I think that huge check lists listing every possible photo makes the photographer look more unprofessional than if they didn't have a list at all. I mean, if the photographer has to have 'first dance from 8 different angles' on the list it isn't going to instill a sense of confidence about the photographer.<br>

I have a list of formals that is limited to 10 different groupings. I give them the list and if they want more than that it has to be approved by me before the wedding. I am not uber strict on how many more they can have taken, but I do have limits. :) Usually the MOB wants a few 'extra' shots or something. <br>

In regards to formals I show a limited amount in my sample albums and on my website and I find that most of my clients don't 'need' a ton of them. They already know what my style is.<br>

Honestly - I think a check list would be more work than it's worth. Show your best stuff! Your clients will trust you and you will have a ton of fun shooting weddings without worrying about a list!</p>

<p>I use <a href="http://www.creativemotiondesign.com">Creative Motion Design</a> and they uploaded some fonts for me when I redid my site last year. As long as you have the fonts you just have to ask them to load them onto your site. :)</p>

<p>I imagine a lot of it depends on where you are situated in the market. High end? Low end? Middle?</p>

 

<p>I delete any and all pictures that don't make the cut. It's easy to explain to clients that they don't exist. :)</p>

<p>I don't use ligthroom so I don't know if this is relevant or not for you. :) I upload all of the images from each wedding into their own folder - I usually just name it whatever the couple's names are. I go through and rough edit selecting all of the images that will make the final cut. I then go back and edit them all and move them to a new folder labeled proofs (within the name folder). I also rename them at the same time that I move them. That way when I'm going through looking for images for venues/other vendors I know where the good ones already are and I can cherry pick which ones I want to send out. <br>

Maybe that will at least give you an idea of one way to organize. :)</p>

<p>What the heck is all this about handing down wedding dresses?? I have yet to have a bride who has worn her mothers gown. My brides are fashion forward, stylish girls and I'm sorry but their mother's gowns are not. Anymore. :)<br>

The old hand 'em down thing is over. Most of the girls I talk to now would rather wear the dress they've spent countless hours finding and thousands of dollars paying for more than once. </p>

<p>I'm pretty sure <a href="http://www.josevillaphoto.com">Jose Villa</a> still does. And <a href="jonathancanlasphotography.com">Jonathan Canlas</a>. I'm sure there are more but I can't think of their names off the top of my head. I love both of them...</p>

<p>Oh, and I have to add that a session doesn't always involve literally 'trashing' the dress. Most dresses come out just fine after a nice dry cleaning. I haven't met too many girls willing to destroy the dress. I also do sessions with senior girls and their prom dresses. Fun!</p>

<p>You don't know what Trash the Dress is?? Oh my gosh!! Are you out of your mind???<br>

Just kidding!!! Really I am! I'd love to do more of these sessions, but they just haven't caught on around here. Perhaps I need to market them more. Usually a trash the dress session is a fun session the day after (or more) the wedding where you go out and find really creative places and poses for pictures. You've seen the whole bride in the water, rolling in the sand, etc. My favorite so far was of a bride who had painted one side of her dress green and the other blue and was sitting in front of a wall painted the same way. I can't remember where I saw it or who did it, but I love it!<br>

There's a whole website started by the awesome Marc Eric just for trash the dress sessions - it's <a href="http://www.trashthedress.com">www.trashthedress.com</a> You can go look there for inspiration. :)</p>

<p>I fel for you Betty! The first wedding I ever did was 3 months pregnant and aside form praying I wouldn't be sick all over someone's shoes it was a great experience. With baby number 4 I did weddings up until I was 8 months. People looked at me like I was crazy, but those were the only weddings that my back didn't hurt afterwards. It hink my huge belly balanced the weight of my backpack. :) I have a wedding this weekend and am 6 months pregnant with baby number 5. Thankfully I'll have access to plenty of water. It's supposed to be in the hundreds here also.<br>

And yes - always, always bring food - I keep some stashed in my shootsac and car. Running around for 8 hours burns a lot of calories...</p>

<p>You need much more than 4 cups of water in a day. Especially if it's hot outside. You should be drinking more like 12-16 cups. ANd no I'm not kidding. :) Just remember your brain doesn't work as well when you're dehydrated - you could forget to check your settings. :)</p>

<p>Oh and just to add to my already snippy sounding post - processing your pictures a certain way isn't really a 'style'. It's a fad.</p>

<p>OMG TRA is WAY overused (IMO)! Ugh. I hate it when photographers think that they have to use six different actions on every photo to make them look 'good'. What happened to awesome lighting, true emotion, and great compostition?? Why in the world would you want to use the same actions that 8 million other photographers use?? So that your work will 'fit in'? So that you will have 'the look'?? Personally I want the opposite - I'd rather have my images stand out and be different than blend in with the sea of pictures already floating around the internet that have been overprocessed with TRA or whatever actions.<br>