starkitty

Thanks, all! Ben - I should have clarified, I photograph weddings on Sundays quite a bit. I don't have any kids but I still miss my "people". This job is a lot better than a M-F in most other ways, though.

Just curious to see how many full - time wedding photographers take portraits

on Sundays. I do and it hinders my social and family time - I'm practically a

hermit! I want to be flexible, so I've decided to block out 2 Sundays a month

for portraits. At busy times of year this still isn't enough to accommodate

everyone. I will stick with this policy for now but I'd like to know what other

full timers do.

Any body been? If I read correctly, the claim is that his entire post wedding

workflow including album production is 10 hours. Just curious to see if that is

possible while maintining quality.

Ha! I like carnations too - they are such the little underdog flower:)

William,

 

I am in Houston. Where is the wedding taking place? I may have been there. At the last Catholic wedding I photographed the mass lasted longer than expected and I was left with no time for formals. I was able to take 3 photos before we were sent away - the next wedding was being seated. Luckily the reception was in a historic building so we got some nice group shots there. I agree that communication is key. You'll defintely need an alternate location!

Giovanni - ??????

 

If someone has enough experience to be a second shooter, they will probably own a camera.

Conrad, I like the midnight sepia - not too heavy.

 

I googled it and it looks like it is no longer on the atn central site. Any pointers on where to look for it?

Thanks, Tony! I was in loupe view, but opening them from the library did work:)

Hi,

 

I just started using lightroom and I love it. Does anyone know how to open

multiple files into Photoshop from Lightroom? I can only open one at a time and

that's where things get slow.

Roger,

 

I think the Blurb books are great for proofing, but not so much for a finished album. I just started including a blurb book with all the images from the wedding in my packages, and so far they have been a hit. I even get orders for extras.

Ahh - I covet Arcade Fire for slideshow music:)

"that bride can hide anything--- "

Eric, that's mean. Nobody was asking for a comment on the bride's figure.

I tried to go the assisting route. I was scared off by interviewing with a very strange, arrogant photographer who hinted that I should wash his car, take out his garbage and drive 40 miles to buy his favorite cookies for the priviledge of working with him. "Or you could just forget the whole thing and marry a rich man." Wow. In retrospect I should have kept searching for a reasonable human being to work with. Learning on the job is not fun!

You may want to take a look at this guy - http://www.dbphotographics.com/

I second Pounds. They are very helpful, and the prices are reasonable.

My contact states that payment is due two weeks before the wedding, but payment may be in the form of a postdated check. The reason I work this way is because I want to focus on my photography the day of the wedding, and not chasing people around for payment. In the past my policy was to collect on the day of, but I always ended up missing some great candids while looking for the checkbearer:)

Wow, you guys are ambitious! I did make a Superman joke about changing in the booth since they both brought a change of clothes:)

Thanks guys, this helps. I was kind of stumped.

One of my clients wants her engagement photos taken at an old British telephone

booth. I don't think I can base an entire sitting around it, but does anyone

have suggestions for poses? We'll probably continue at another location, but I

want her to have an image from the phone booth she really likes.

I forgot to add - have the Epson 2200, and it's a great printer. Unfortunately when I try to print pages with large fields of black there is obvious banding.

Can anyone recommend a quality printer that will print two sided on photo

weight paper? I would love to send my album designs to a local bookbinder - the

quick turnaround time would be great!

Hi Brooke,

 

Did the email state that both profiles are included in one price? I am having the same experience with the dramatic drop in inquiries. My price increase last year probably has something to do with it as well. I am finally going to exhibit at a bridal show this year, and if I am successful, I probably will cancel my knot subscription. There has to be a more effective alternative for $200 a month.

Ian,

 

I have received many, many versions of your "must have" list with the exact same wording! I wonder which magazine or wedding planning book is the culprit? I understand that brides have an idea of the type of images they like beforehand, but this publisher is doing many people a disservice.

 

 

This pre-fab list has some high expectations -

 

Groom with his arm affectionately around best man

 

Dad whispering last-minute advice to groom ?

 

Bride's and groom's parents whispering to each other during dinner ?

 

What if these things never occur? Or what if I'm busy trying to fufill

another request on this long list when it does?

 

 

Bride and groom separately making their way to the ceremony (in a limo backseat, hailing a cab, walking down the street/hall/stairs) (This may require being in two zipcodes at once)

 

Altar or canopy from the back during ceremony ? (If I tried this in a church, many officiants would give me a look that I would drop dead from)

 

I've talked with brides about this list when I receive it, and they all reassure me it's just a general idea of what they are looking for. That always makes me feel a lot better, and free to capture the spontaneous images they liked on my website in the first place! It's nice to know you aren't doomed to fall short of the mark in a customer's eyes because of some editor who has never photographed an event!

Bob's reward idea is great! I'm taking a marker to my cards now.

"I don't think there's any kind of direct correlation you can draw from where you advertise to the number of bookings you'll get. There are too many variables... the quality of your work, your people skills, your experience, your competition, your location, your prices, your product offerings, etc..."

 

I agree with Mike - that being said, I also agree with Robert on the greed point. I've been on theknot for 3 years, and they sure like to raise their prices. When I first signed up I was overwhelmed with bookings. I later raised my prices, so the inquires I received from the knot dropped dramatically (btw, I'm still very inexpensive for my area) I think the flooding of their site with new photo advertisers might have a little to do with the decrease as well. I pay $125 and if I get 1 booking per month from them, it's still worth it to me.