There hasn't been one wedding that goes by where some uncle or friend of the couple comes up to me to tell me a wedding photographer horror story.  Unfortunately, there are bad eggs in any profession (just ask lawyers how they must feel!) and that is why I am so happy to be a part of the great standard of photogrpahers in the Twin Cities.  However, there is one "situation" that comes up a lot that people seem to complain about and I wanted to explain how it is for some photographers.

Now remember, I'm speaking in general and this does not relate to everyone.

One complaint I hear fairly often is that the photographer has set up formal pictures and won't let anyone else take any pictures.

There are a couple of thoughts behind this...

1) some photographers charge a smaller fee for photography because they make a good part of their income off of the reprints.  If other people are taking the same pictures as the photographer and giving them away for free, you can see how this would be frustrating to the photographer.

2) if you have a group of people posing for a picture, and then a group of people with cameras, the odds are that not every person will be looking at the same camera.  Even if aunt Sally with a digital camera is off to the side, someone will be looking at her and ruining the professional shot.

3) when you have a group of little digital camera flashes going off, it can throw off the professional flash in some shots.

4) all those people can just be distracting and take away from the flow of the pictures.  If you have to stop and wait for everyone to get their picture, you have less time to do other poses.  It also makes things very confusing and overwhelming for children in the wedding party, which leads to tearful ring bearers and pouty flower girls.

5) some photographers are very protective of their poses and lighting techniques.  Waiting for them to set up a shot and then standing in front of them to take your own version can really make a photographer feel frustrated. 

6) whenever there are groups of people taking pictures, you're going to have someone also offering their 2 cents on a pose or a smile or how to do something.  This ends up really taking the joy away from pictures...and yes, even the formals should be fun!

Hope this little PSA for photographers helps explain things a little bit! 

I was feeling very grateful today.  Grateful for being able to be creative for a living.  To be doing something that I love with my husband.  I started getting nostalgic, and wanted to give you a brief history of Studio Laguna Photography.

When John and I first met (I was 18, he was 22), I had loved photography since childhood, and had already been the main photographer for my yearbook and highschool marketing materials my senior year.  I was already in a photography class in college.  John had taken every photography class he could at our college and was known as the "photo guy".  He had not only shot a couple weddings over the years, but was accomplished in dark room techniques and took gorgeous portraits.  He worked as a photographer for the college paper, and loved going into the woods near his home in Park Rapids and photographing nature.  In fact, one of the first things we did when we met, was look at images that he had taken over the years.  Yes, I'm getting sappy just remembering that =)

When John and I decided we wanted to get married (didn't take long to realize that!) we tried to find a way down the road where we could work together and still make a living.  Photography was the natural choice.  Taking a huge financial leap and starting a business was not.  I'm a very cautious person, so I actually spent a couple years researching photography businesses and websites and working on a business plan.  I took my time with it, because I wanted to do it right.

In the meantime, we photographed quite a few of our friends' weddings from college.  We started to get the knack for it and decided we really loved working together.  When we moved to California, I decided to try the business part time and see where it took us.  We learned a lot in this time.  Pricing, customer relations, quality of equipment, advertising, the whole nine yards.  We learned a lot of what NOT to do, which is why I'm still so glad we had a "soft opening" to our business.

Moving back to MN was our big leap.  We purchased excellent equipment, remodeled our house so there was a studio and consultation space, and went full time.  We brought with us all we had learned in CA, along with a ton of research into the MN market and weddings in general.  I've been so overwhelmed with how our former clients referred us like crazy and our first year back we had 17 weddings, which just floored me.  We haven't looked back, and are so grateful to everyone for having such loyalty to our business and being such fabulous clients!

We stay current with our equipment and style and I go to many seminars and conventions as well as online education to keep up with education and trends.  We take our business very seriously and always want to deliver the best results to our clients.  Being a small boutique studio is important to us, we like staying small, we like the one on one relationships.  We're the Dunder Mifflin of photography, if you will...can we be Pam and Jim? =)

Why go on about this?  Because we want our clients to know our history, to know our dedication.  We shot our first wedding together in 2000, and it has been an amazing ride so far.  One that I look forward to sharing with John and our family and all of our amazing clients for many MANY years to come!

Here is an amazing blog entry about how people think about the business of photography, and how it really is.  It is so well written and SO accurate...check it out!

http://www.ispwp.com/the-secret-life-of-wedding-photographers.html

 

 

It is time for another chapter in the wedding photographer user manual.  A good decision is an informed decision, especially when dealing with photography.  It is very important to make sure that when you're shopping for your wedding photographer, that you compare apples to apples.  There is a huge variety of talent, pricing, styles, and mindsets when it comes to photography, and it can be confusing if there isn't some preplanning involved. 

Here are few questions that don't pop up on most FAQ's pages, but are important to ask all the same.

Definitely ask your photographer to give you a basic run down of how they would shoot your wedding day.  It is good to not only get an idea of how many hours to expect, but also lets you see how much time your photographer spends shooting formals versus images of just the bride and groom and so on.  It is also a good conversation starter to see if you gel personality-wise, which is a very important part of choosing your photographer.  You want to make sure you feel comfortable with them since you spend more time with your photographer than anyone else on your wedding day. 

When you get your images back after the wedding, make sure to ask if they are edited images.  Some photographers don't edit any of their images.  Some edit just the top few.  Some edit all the images.  Some will turn and image black and white or work on an image in photoshop for no charge, some will charge for any retouching.  It is important to know how finished your images will be when you see them. 

It is always good to ask how quickly you will get your images after the wedding.  Industry standard is 6-8 weeks.  It takes time to edit the hundreds to thousands of images taken on your wedding day.  Some photographers put a due date in the contract, some don't.  If you have a specific timeline in which you want your images, be sure to mention that before signing a contract.

If you get an online gallery, see if those images will be online for only a set amount of time, or if they will be archived on the site for years. 

If you get your images on disk, ask what size they will be.  Will you be able to print an 8x10 from the file and get a nice print?  A 16x20? 

Getting a general idea for album design and print time is also a good thing.  Albums can take months to get back from the printers or can have a turnaround of a couple weeks.  During holidays, some album companies get very backlogged and albums get delayed.  Having an idea of when to expect your album is important. 

Your photographer is also a good source of general wedding information.  They are behind the scenes and there all day.  So it can always be helpful to ask if there are any pieces of advice you can use for your wedding day.

Apples to apples comparison shopping can be difficult.  Every photographer charges differently, so try to have a set of questions you ask at each consultation.  It is also important to remember that a wedding photographer's fee doesn't just cover their time the day of the wedding, but also their equipment, experience, and editing time after the wedding.  And make sure to check a personal reference and/or research the company online.  Do your homework, so you can feel confident in your decision. 

John and I LOVE shooting destination weddings.  Why?  Because everyone who is there REALLY wants to be there.  Because it becomes a giant vacation to all involved and people have a great time (which makes great images).  Because we love to see new things and capture new locations in our photographs.  Because having a good time is a big part of destination weddings and we enjoy being a part of that.  Because we love to travel.  There are many more reasons, but these are the main ones.  We love destination weddings so much, that we work hard with the bride and groom to fit within a budget and are often less expensive than a local photographer...especially if you're traveling to the east coast or California. 

So keep Studio Laguna Photography in mind for your destination wedding.  Our passports are ready!

 

I decided to do a series titled User Manual so clients and visitors of this blog could get a more in depth (or maybe a refresher course) on our business.  I think I'll have this article series both explain some of the products we carry as well as some basic photography facts.  I feel that this will be a nice way to get some in depth details on Studio Laguna Photography.

So look for these entries in the future!  I've also added a tab on the right side of the blog for quick referencing.