WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN YOU DECIDE TO BOOK ME AS YOUR WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
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Hello again!
Now that you’ve had a look at the website and you love my images and my style, it’s time to get in touch. Yay!
Next you’ll be taken to the contact form, which includes a few short questions about your wedding as well as a message field where you can let me know a little bit more about your plans.
I will normally get back to you within 24 hours. If your wedding date is available, I will also include an overview of the current wedding coverage. If you don’t hear back from me within this timeframe, I must have missed your message, so please do give me a call or shoot me another message.
I would love to meet you and chat about your big day at a local coffee shop. We will go over my portfolio, including a complete wedding or two and some of my wedding albums.
Alternatively, we can always meet somewhere in the middle if distance is an issue. Or if you are booking from abroad, live further away or you are busy with work, we can also chat on the phone.
The next step is easy. If would like to go ahead and book me as your wedding photographer, all it takes is your signed contract and a 20% non-refundable booking fee and we’re off!
GETTING TO KNOW YOUR WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER
You’ve booked Elena Russell Photography as your wedding photographer! YAY!
With the formalities over we can start to get to know each other a little better.
The best opportunity for this is your complimentary pre-wedding shoot, which we should plan to do no later than 6 weeks before your wedding.
You may already know when and where you would like it to be, or you may be unsure about what would reflect you as a couple best. I can always come up with a few suggestions that would achieve this, but maybe there is a special place where you like to walk together, a field or hill where you love to watch the sunset, a country spot, a city location, a beach you both love to roam, the coffee place where you met or love to hang out at, or the pub or restaurant where you love to have your relaxed brunch on a Sunday.
Best part about the all-day package is that you can break up your 2 hour engagement session into two sessions at no extra cost. Let's have the first session be the romantic, "proper" session and the second one spent doing what ever you guys do for fun. Let's go sledding, have a campfire, or simply go for an ice cream run! SOOO many options!
From the day when you book Elena Russell Photography as your wedding photographer, up until your wedding day, I am always available to chat through any of your questions, either by email, phone or Facebook.
I will also send you a photography planner, which is a short questionnaire, that will ask about the exact running order of the day, the key parties, any special considerations (such as divorced parents and new partners names), as well as any special photography requests and restrictions there may be.
Around 3 weeks before your wedding, you will also receive a reminder for your final balance so that it’s all sorted and we can focus on your upcoming day. We will meet up to finalize your timeline and go over any last minute changes and requests.
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ITS YOUR WEDDING DAY!
Wohoo! It’s finally here! On the morning of your wedding day I will arrive and after a hug, I will quietly blend into the background and start capturing all the beautiful details and your preparations.
If you have requested a second shooter, one photographer will be with the bride and the second photographer with be with the groom and his party before you arrive at the church and then we will capture your ceremony, your guests and of course the two of you while you say your vows.
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After this, we will follow the timeline we set out together, although we always allow for some flexibility to account for bad weather or some part of your day overrunning.
I try to get your group shots out of the way first, so that we don’t have to worry about them later and after a short break in which you can relax and spend some time with your guests, we might sneak away to your first portrait session.
These images will be just of the two of you, similar to your engagement shoot and will show just how gorgeous you two look together on your special day. I promise not to keep you away from your guests and the fun for too long.
During the rest of the day, I will capture many candid shots of your friends and family interacting and laughing with each other and with you. This will include the speeches, the cake cutting and throwing of the bouquet if you want to do that, and then I will take a short break while you and your guests sit down for your meal.
Once the light is low, and weather and time permitting, we may take you out for a second much shorter evening portrait session (this one is optional and sometimes depends on the time of your timeline).
Whewww that was a mouthful! This is usually the time when all the really different images with creative light or glorious sunsets are made, so they are very much worth doing.
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Your first dance and the party afterwards will form the end of your wedding day story in my images, and I will spend quite a bit of time capturing the mood and atmosphere of your party. This is the loud, crazy, fun and dance-filled part after all and I will probably be rocking out right there with you while capturing you and your guests having a blast!
Once I have captured this, I will come and find you, hug and congratulate you once more and then take my leave.
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WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
I know how much you will want to see your images right away.
So, in the first couple of days after your wedding, I will post a preview for you on our Instagram feed and on my Facebook page. Like my feed and page now, and you’ll be able to see the updates when they come online.
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After this, it takes us around 6 weeks to edit your images depending on the time of year and on how busy we are and once your images are ready, you’ll be able to view them in your online wedding gallery. Please feel free to share these and tag your family and friends and I would love it if you tagged Elena Russell Photography too.
With your wedding images on a USB stick on their way to you about 1-2 weeks later, we can talk through your choice of wedding album if you would like one. We will design your album with your favorite images in mind, and once you are happy with everything, and depending on the time of year, your album will arrive in around 7 weeks.
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SO... IS THIS THE END?
The end of our wedding photography journey together doesn’t have to mean the end of our friendship or even our photography journey. I hope that you will often come by Facebook page and instagram to drop me a line or let me know how things are going.
I would also love it if you would leave feedback about your experience with me as your wedding photographer. You can do this, via email, on our Facebook page.
Then, when you’re ready, I would also love to photograph your onward journey together as a new family. Think anniversary or romantic couple photo shoot, or if you have a little munchkin come along with a maternity and baby shoot. But more about that when the time comes.
So, get in touch and let’s begin our photography adventure together!
I would love to hear from you about everything you have planned, and if you fancy, I’m always up for a chat and a nice hot cup of tea or a glass of wine.
Tell me. What are you waiting for?
