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Woo Hoo!!! You’re engaged…
-Now what?

Once you’ve made the decision to book me…
-Sign a contract, a 50% retainer is due and I’m yours!!! Next, schedule your engagement session and we’re on our way.

Timeline

Two weeks before your wedding date…
-The final 50% payment is due. Go over the finalized timeline and details of your wedding day and make sure I have all phone numbers (preferably cell) and address of important people and places I have to be.

Your wedding day
- HAVE FUN!!! Leave the rest to me; you’re in good hands.

After the wedding:
-I will post some of my favorite pictures from the wedding on my blog as a sneek preview.

6-8 weeks (roughly) after the wedding:
-All images will be online at www.pictage.com and a DVD of all your high-resolution images will be ready for pick up or mailing.

Your album:
-When your ready to do an album you will send me a list of all the images you want in your album. I will retouch them and then do a pre-design of the album. When I’m finished I will call you in and we go page by page making any revisions until your completely happy. When we’re done you will sign off on it and it will go to the printer and then to the manufacturer, we should have it back in 8-10 weeks. I have a variety of albums to choose from (feel free to come and look anytime). Pricing depends on which style you choose, what size and how many images you are choosing to go in it. Once I have this information I can quote a price to you.

Q & A

What got you started in photography and why do you like shooting weddings?
-Many years ago I had some pictures taken with my daughters. The photographer was brilliant. His artistry and how he photographed us moved me so much when I saw the pictures that I knew at that moment I wanted to learn photography. I wanted to be able to create that same emotion I felt when I saw my pictures. I studied fashion magazines and read photography books. I photographed all my friends until they were sick of me. I had connections with fashion agencies and started shooting their models. I thought this was the path in photography I was going to take until a friend of mine asked me to shoot his wedding. I didn’t think I would like it because I didn’t think it was possible to create art at a wedding. I was wrong. I have been photographing weddings ever since and I love it.

Do you use film or digital?
-I am 100% digital and use the best Nikon equipment on the market.

What if your equipment breaks during our wedding?
-I take 3 or more backups of every piece of equipment I use to every wedding, so fear not.

Where are you located?
-I am in Los Angeles (specifically Culver City).

Will you save my date?
-Definitely, but first I require a signed contract and a non-refundable retainer (50%) when you sign and that’s it for now.

Why is the retainer non-refundable?
-Because when you hire me for your date I am YOURS and nobody else’s. I no longer take phone calls or meetings for your wedding date, I have given it to you. This means I am now turning down all other bookings for your date, so should you cancel I keep the retainer because I have lost my chance for any other income on that date.

What if a piano falls on your head the week before our wedding and you can’t make it?
-I’ll probably have a pretty bad headache and if I’m alive I will do my best to help you find a replacement photographer. My liability if I am unable to make it to your wedding is limited to a refund of all monies paid to date. PLEEEEEESE understand I mention this only as a disclaimer because I have to, it would seriously take me being near death not to make it.

What are your wedding rates?
-$2,275.00 (plus tax)

Do you accept cash, check or credit card?
-All of the above.

What does that get me?
-An engagement photo session.
-All images from engagement given on DVD usually within 2 weeks.
-Your wedding photographed by me with 8 hours of coverage.
-A private password protected website for all your images from the engagement and wedding.
-All your images from the wedding given to you on DVD approximately 6-8 weeks (depending on time of year) after wedding.
-50 images (photographers favorites) retouched and enhanced.

Do you have other packages?
-After the above listed items it’s all done “a la carte”. Meaning you put together the items you specifically want. If you want to add an album, additional wedding hours, a second photographer, rehearsal coverage… whatever your specific needs are it is tailor made to what you want. If all you need is what is already listed then you are done.

Do you travel?
-Definitely, in Los Angeles its free. If I’m driving to Santa Barbara, Palm Springs or San Diego its an extra $100.00. If I’m flying I like to leave two days before your wedding (not mandatory I just like to be safe) just in case of flight problems and come back the day after. There is an additional $550.00 added to the $2,275.00 due to the extra days and missed work at home but I also include extra wedding day coverage at no extra cost. Other costs would generally include hotel (usually where you are staying), airfare (direct only), taxi’s, rental car etc. I like to make my own travel plans but I will definitely work with you in figuring everything out.

Do you work with a second photographer?
-My opening wedding package is made to be as cost effective as possible for those of you who are on a tight budget. Thus it starts with only myself photographing your wedding. I have photographed many weddings in the past by myself so it’s no problem to do so. That being said I strongly recommend hiring one of my second photographers to go along with me. It makes my job easier thus I’m able to produce better pictures and you also get extra coverage you wouldn’t have gotten without them.

What does a second photographer cost?

Around $40.00 - $50.00 an hour. I have many I work with and they all charge a little differently. It depends on who’s available for your date and what kind of deal I can work out with them.

What is the website where my images will be posted?
-The online gallery is a private password protected website www.pictage.com where all your images from your engagement and wedding will be posted for 3 months. You can share the link with friends and family so they can view and order images as they please.

What album companies do you work with?
-Right now I work with Leathercraftsmen, Graphistudio & Willowbook. For a choice of either traditional matted albums or flush mounted (magazine style) albums. In a traditional book your images are printed individually and set in mats, the pictures are separate. In a magazine style album the images are printed together directly on the page (one page) much like a coffee table book or magazine.

How many images do we end up with?
-Every wedding is different but for a normal wedding with all the normal events and timeline I have yet to deliver less than 800.

What if my wedding goes past the time we have booked you for, do you leave?
-Usually this can be figured out in the timeline beforehand but if for some reason you need extra coverage it can be added on @ $250.00 per hour.

When do you leave?
-When my scheduled time is up I will come to you at the end of the wedding after I have gotten everything I need and ask you if there is anything else you want, if the answer is no then I am done, if you want more I stay and will bill you after the honeymoon for the additional hours, its that simple.

Do we feed you?
-A happy photographer is a fed photographer. It doesn’t have to be the same sit down meal as all the guests, in fact most venues have “vendor meals” either one is fine with me. I do suggest that you make arrangements with the reception site so that I eat at the same time as the bride and groom so that I keep on the same schedule as the two of you so I don’t miss any pictures.

What if I don’t want an engagement session?
-I include an engagement session because I really want us to get to know each other better. I want you to feel excited about your wedding day and the pictures your going to get and after you see your engagement pictures you will definitely be excited. That being said if its something you still don’t want you can receive an extra hour of coverage at your wedding.

Do you keep our digital files at your location?
-Yes but once you receive your disks our liability for storing your images is over. This is why we recommend making copies as soon as you receive your disks and storing them in separate locations. We will never delete your images and we keep 2 copies but should some sort of natural disaster hit and wipe out all our back up devices we like to know that you will always have copies of your images.

What is your style and how do you photograph?
-I have clients that come to me and say “I love your photojournalistic shots and that’s what I want for my wedding”. My response is then to explain the difference between true photojournalism and photojournalistic looking pictures. True photojournalism is when I don’t interfere at all and document the day as it unfolds moment by moment. Photojournalistic looking shots are shots that I may set up by putting you in great light or a location and giving you direction and then photographing you. When done right these pictures can look like a beautiful moment captured photo journalistically but I have stepped in (even if to a small degree) thus making it not a true photojournalistic picture. So to answer this question my style is a mix of mostly photojournalism but there will be times that I prompt you or move you to great light/location to achieve the look I’m after (and that you hired me for) and that would be classified as more “portrait” type pictures.

Can we give you a list of photographs to take?
-For shot lists of the friends and family after the reception I will shoot however much you want but I do require that the list be given to someone that knows everyone and is good at gathering. Then I can concentrate on photography. As far as shot lists of what to take pictures of throughout the day, this I do not do. You’re hiring me for my vision and if I’m looking at a piece of paper all day I’m missing the wedding. Don’t worry I’m probably getting most of the stuff on the list anyway. (If it’s a few important things then of course let me know.)

Do you photograph in both black and white and color?
-Your wedding will be photographed digitally in color. The process to convert to black and white or anything else after the fact is easy, so fear not.

How do you work on our digital files? What gets retouched?
- There are several steps in the process of working on your images. I take the original RAW file straight out of the camera and give it a correction for color, tone and contrast. These images are then turned into JPEG files and make up all the files you will see online and be given to you on disk. The 50 pictures that make up the “photographers favorites” will go onto the next step which includes retouching and enhancing to make it as beautiful as possible. These will also be given to you on disk with all the originals. Retouching and enhancing is a very time consuming process therefore it cannot be done to all the pictures from your wedding but it will be done with all the images that go into your album or any custom prints you order from me. An hourly fee will apply for complicated retouching work or for any list of images you wish to submit to me for this kind of treatment.

What is a bridal session?
-A bridal session is where you get your hair and make up done, put on your dress and we go out to unique locations and take great pictures, its almost like your own private fashion shoot. It gives you a practice run with your hair and makeup to see if you want to change anything and best of all you get great pictures and if your fiancé wants to put on his tux/suit he’s more than welcome to join in. Be sure to contact your florist to get a bridal portrait bouquet for your session.

What is a trash the dress session?
-Once again this is your own private photo shoot, just the three of us. The difference is this time I put both of you in contrasting environments. For ex: Gorgeous bride and groom in a grungy alley or both of you rolling around in the shoreline at the beach. The idea is to photograph the two of you in conditions/environments that one would not normally see a bride and groom all dressed up in. Trust me its fun!!! Oh, almost forgot, this is definitely after the wedding.

When should I schedule my engagement/bridal/trash the dress session?
-As soon as possible. Certain times of the year I get extremely busy, there are periods where I can not take a booking for months at a time, so PLEASE don’t wait until the last minute.

What do we wear to our engagement session?
-Wear clothes that do not detract from the two of you. I want the emphasis to be on the both of you not your clothes. I would suggest casual clothes that you are comfortable in. Try not to wear anything that has wild patterns or some big logo or advertisement on it. Darker solids, non descript patterns or textures are fine but make sure there is a different tone contrast in your tops. That means don’t both wear all black shirts because when you hug it can sometimes look like a black blob (same for any color).

Where do you photograph the engagement session?
-Engagement sessions are done on location anywhere relatively close to me.

How are we supposed to pose or what do we do, we’ve never had photos taken before and we get really nervous
when we get our picture taken?
-An engagement session is meant to capture the two of you, who you are as a couple together. We’ll go somewhere fun, walk around and the two of you just relate to each other. You can talk, hug, kiss, laugh, whatever you want and I’ll be there to capture it. If you need a little help I’ll be there to give you a prompt. Trust me its painless and in about an hour or two you’ll end up with great pictures.

If you have any other questions that aren’t answered here please fill out the contact form and I will get back to you shortly.


	Categories Wedding Engagement Family Fashion Portraits Pregnancy Art Pets Personal Resources Client Photographers About Contact Website Woo Hoo!!! You’re engaged… -Now what? Once you’ve made the decision to book me… -Sign a contract, a 50% retainer is due and I’m yours!!! Next, schedule your engagement session and we’re on our way. Timeline Two weeks before your wedding date… -The final 50% payment is due. Go over the finalized timeline and details of your wedding day and make sure I have all phone numbers (preferably cell) and address of important people and places I have to be. Your wedding day - HAVE FUN!!! Leave the rest to me; you’re in good hands. After the wedding: -I will post some of my favorite pictures from the wedding on my blog as a sneek preview. 6-8 weeks (roughly) after the wedding: -All images will be online at www.pictage.com and a DVD of all your high-resolution images will be ready for pick up or mailing. Your album: -When your ready to do an album you will send me a list of all the images you want in your album. I will retouch them and then do a pre-design of the album. When I’m finished I will call you in and we go page by page making any revisions until your completely happy. When we’re done you will sign off on it and it will go to the printer and then to the manufacturer, we should have it back in 8-10 weeks. I have a variety of albums to choose from (feel free to come and look anytime). Pricing depends on which style you choose, what size and how many images you are choosing to go in it. Once I have this information I can quote a price to you. Q & A What got you started in photography and why do you like shooting weddings? -Many years ago I had some pictures taken with my daughters. The photographer was brilliant. His artistry and how he photographed us moved me so much when I saw the pictures that I knew at that moment I wanted to learn photography. I wanted to be able to create that same emotion I felt when I saw my pictures. I studied fashion magazines and read photography books. I photographed all my friends until they were sick of me. I had connections with fashion agencies and started shooting their models. I thought this was the path in photography I was going to take until a friend of mine asked me to shoot his wedding. I didn’t think I would like it because I didn’t think it was possible to create art at a wedding. I was wrong. I have been photographing weddings ever since and I love it. Do you use film or digital? -I am 100% digital and use the best Nikon equipment on the market. What if your equipment breaks during our wedding? -I take 3 or more backups of every piece of equipment I use to every wedding, so fear not. Where are you located? -I am in Los Angeles (specifically Culver City). Will you save my date? -Definitely, but first I require a signed contract and a non-refundable retainer (50%) when you sign and that’s it for now. Why is the retainer non-refundable? -Because when you hire me for your date I am YOURS and nobody else’s. I no longer take phone calls or meetings for your wedding date, I have given it to you. This means I am now turning down all other bookings for your date, so should you cancel I keep the retainer because I have lost my chance for any other income on that date. What if a piano falls on your head the week before our wedding and you can’t make it? -I’ll probably have a pretty bad headache and if I’m alive I will do my best to help you find a replacement photographer. My liability if I am unable to make it to your wedding is limited to a refund of all monies paid to date. PLEEEEEESE understand I mention this only as a disclaimer because I have to, it would seriously take me being near death not to make it. What are your wedding rates? -$2,275.00 (plus tax) Do you accept cash, check or credit card? -All of the above. What does that get me? -An engagement photo session. -All images from engagement given on DVD usually within 2 weeks. -Your wedding photographed by me with 8 hours of coverage. -A private password protected website for all your images from the engagement and wedding. -All your images from the wedding given to you on DVD approximately 6-8 weeks (depending on time of year) after wedding. -50 images (photographers favorites) retouched and enhanced. Do you have other packages? -After the above listed items it’s all done “a la carte”. Meaning you put together the items you specifically want. If you want to add an album, additional wedding hours, a second photographer, rehearsal coverage… whatever your specific needs are it is tailor made to what you want. If all you need is what is already listed then you are done. Do you travel? -Definitely, in Los Angeles its free. If I’m driving to Santa Barbara, Palm Springs or San Diego its an extra $100.00. If I’m flying I like to leave two days before your wedding (not mandatory I just like to be safe) just in case of flight problems and come back the day after. There is an additional $550.00 added to the $2,275.00 due to the extra days and missed work at home but I also include extra wedding day coverage at no extra cost. Other costs would generally include hotel (usually where you are staying), airfare (direct only), taxi’s, rental car etc. I like to make my own travel plans but I will definitely work with you in figuring everything out. Do you work with a second photographer? -My opening wedding package is made to be as cost effective as possible for those of you who are on a tight budget. Thus it starts with only myself photographing your wedding. I have photographed many weddings in the past by myself so it’s no problem to do so. That being said I strongly recommend hiring one of my second photographers to go along with me. It makes my job easier thus I’m able to produce better pictures and you also get extra coverage you wouldn’t have gotten without them. What does a second photographer cost? Around $40.00 - $50.00 an hour. I have many I work with and they all charge a little differently. It depends on who’s available for your date and what kind of deal I can work out with them. What is the website where my images will be posted? -The online gallery is a private password protected website www.pictage.com where all your images from your engagement and wedding will be posted for 3 months. You can share the link with friends and family so they can view and order images as they please. What album companies do you work with? -Right now I work with Leathercraftsmen, Graphistudio & Willowbook. For a choice of either traditional matted albums or flush mounted (magazine style) albums. In a traditional book your images are printed individually and set in mats, the pictures are separate. In a magazine style album the images are printed together directly on the page (one page) much like a coffee table book or magazine. How many images do we end up with? -Every wedding is different but for a normal wedding with all the normal events and timeline I have yet to deliver less than 800. What if my wedding goes past the time we have booked you for, do you leave? -Usually this can be figured out in the timeline beforehand but if for some reason you need extra coverage it can be added on @ $250.00 per hour. When do you leave? -When my scheduled time is up I will come to you at the end of the wedding after I have gotten everything I need and ask you if there is anything else you want, if the answer is no then I am done, if you want more I stay and will bill you after the honeymoon for the additional hours, its that simple. Do we feed you? -A happy photographer is a fed photographer. It doesn’t have to be the same sit down meal as all the guests, in fact most venues have “vendor meals” either one is fine with me. I do suggest that you make arrangements with the reception site so that I eat at the same time as the bride and groom so that I keep on the same schedule as the two of you so I don’t miss any pictures. What if I don’t want an engagement session? -I include an engagement session because I really want us to get to know each other better. I want you to feel excited about your wedding day and the pictures your going to get and after you see your engagement pictures you will definitely be excited. That being said if its something you still don’t want you can receive an extra hour of coverage at your wedding. Do you keep our digital files at your location? -Yes but once you receive your disks our liability for storing your images is over. This is why we recommend making copies as soon as you receive your disks and storing them in separate locations. We will never delete your images and we keep 2 copies but should some sort of natural disaster hit and wipe out all our back up devices we like to know that you will always have copies of your images. What is your style and how do you photograph? -I have clients that come to me and say “I love your photojournalistic shots and that’s what I want for my wedding”. My response is then to explain the difference between true photojournalism and photojournalistic looking pictures. True photojournalism is when I don’t interfere at all and document the day as it unfolds moment by moment. Photojournalistic looking shots are shots that I may set up by putting you in great light or a location and giving you direction and then photographing you. When done right these pictures can look like a beautiful moment captured photo journalistically but I have stepped in (even if to a small degree) thus making it not a true photojournalistic picture. So to answer this question my style is a mix of mostly photojournalism but there will be times that I prompt you or move you to great light/location to achieve the look I’m after (and that you hired me for) and that would be classified as more “portrait” type pictures. Can we give you a list of photographs to take? -For shot lists of the friends and family after the reception I will shoot however much you want but I do require that the list be given to someone that knows everyone and is good at gathering. Then I can concentrate on photography. As far as shot lists of what to take pictures of throughout the day, this I do not do. You’re hiring me for my vision and if I’m looking at a piece of paper all day I’m missing the wedding. Don’t worry I’m probably getting most of the stuff on the list anyway. (If it’s a few important things then of course let me know.) Do you photograph in both black and white and color? -Your wedding will be photographed digitally in color. The process to convert to black and white or anything else after the fact is easy, so fear not. How do you work on our digital files? What gets retouched? - There are several steps in the process of working on your images. I take the original RAW file straight out of the camera and give it a correction for color, tone and contrast. These images are then turned into JPEG files and make up all the files you will see online and be given to you on disk. The 50 pictures that make up the “photographers favorites” will go onto the next step which includes retouching and enhancing to make it as beautiful as possible. These will also be given to you on disk with all the originals. Retouching and enhancing is a very time consuming process therefore it cannot be done to all the pictures from your wedding but it will be done with all the images that go into your album or any custom prints you order from me. An hourly fee will apply for complicated retouching work or for any list of images you wish to submit to me for this kind of treatment. What is a bridal session? -A bridal session is where you get your hair and make up done, put on your dress and we go out to unique locations and take great pictures, its almost like your own private fashion shoot. It gives you a practice run with your hair and makeup to see if you want to change anything and best of all you get great pictures and if your fiancé wants to put on his tux/suit he’s more than welcome to join in. Be sure to contact your florist to get a bridal portrait bouquet for your session. What is a trash the dress session? -Once again this is your own private photo shoot, just the three of us. The difference is this time I put both of you in contrasting environments. For ex: Gorgeous bride and groom in a grungy alley or both of you rolling around in the shoreline at the beach. The idea is to photograph the two of you in conditions/environments that one would not normally see a bride and groom all dressed up in. Trust me its fun!!! Oh, almost forgot, this is definitely after the wedding. When should I schedule my engagement/bridal/trash the dress session? -As soon as possible. Certain times of the year I get extremely busy, there are periods where I can not take a booking for months at a time, so PLEASE don’t wait until the last minute. What do we wear to our engagement session? -Wear clothes that do not detract from the two of you. I want the emphasis to be on the both of you not your clothes. I would suggest casual clothes that you are comfortable in. Try not to wear anything that has wild patterns or some big logo or advertisement on it. Darker solids, non descript patterns or textures are fine but make sure there is a different tone contrast in your tops. That means don’t both wear all black shirts because when you hug it can sometimes look like a black blob (same for any color). Where do you photograph the engagement session? -Engagement sessions are done on location anywhere relatively close to me. How are we supposed to pose or what do we do, we’ve never had photos taken before and we get really nervous when we get our picture taken? -An engagement session is meant to capture the two of you, who you are as a couple together. We’ll go somewhere fun, walk around and the two of you just relate to each other. You can talk, hug, kiss, laugh, whatever you want and I’ll be there to capture it. If you need a little help I’ll be there to give you a prompt. Trust me its painless and in about an hour or two you’ll end up with great pictures. If you have any other questions that aren’t answered here please fill out the contact form and I will get back to you shortly.