Destination Wedding Photographers » Guest Bloggers

Choosing a photographer that is right for you!

Emily & Nate — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 04:55:07 +0000

I read this post on another photographer’s blog recently and I couldn’t help but share it. The author is Morgan Kervin Photography. It is a good read and articulated so well what I try to educate my clients about. I hope you enjoy it!

Photography part 2- It’s about choosing the right photographer

By Morgan Kervin

I want to start by saying that one photographer is NOT the right one for everyone. There will be photographers that you just don’t click with….you want to get along with your photographer, make sure you like their personality or you won’t get the ‘magical’ portraits you’re looking for.

When you start off looking for a photographer that is right for you, you will have three main choices.

1. The retail chain

2. The professional

3. The shoot and burn

The retail chain

The goal of retail chain portrait studios is to reel you in with an AH-MA-ZING deal, like free sitting fee and a few freebies, but what are you really getting? Sure the sitting fee may be free for the first person, but what about the rest of your family?

A simple search of a major portrait studio says their special offer is 26 portraits for $7.99 – crazy deal, right?

Did you read the fine print….one pose, one subject, natural color only, additional sheets $19.99 (which are typically 8×10). That session will probably last 10-15 minutes and you will get 7 shots to choose from, not necessarily usable shots. If you wanted an 11×14 canvas, guess how much that is…$149.99 (want to know how much MY 11×14 canvas is…$140).

The professional

The goal of professional photographers is to create a lasting experience that yields quality portraits. There usually isn’t any crazy deal to reel you in and then give you sticker shock after you’re there. You are able to ask for a comprehensive price list before hand so you know what you could be investing.

Your 4 person family will probably be charged a sitting fee of $100 or more and that probably will include only the photographer’s time and talent. The session will typically last 1-3 hours, yes HOURS! That means you can change outfits and maybe even locations, and did you say you needed to feed your baby-there is plenty of time for that too. You will end up with 20-40 great images for you to choose from. For print orders professional photographers use professional labs and give the highest quality prints. The professional also edits with one of the Adobe programs such as Lightroom or a version of Photoshop’s Creative Suite.

The shoot and burn

The goal of the shoot and burn photographer is normally to make some quick cash. Please do not confuse the shoot and burn photographer with a portfolio building professional photographer. You will probably spend $25-$50 and your session will last about an hour. You will get a CD with the images from the session, probably around 100 or so and a ‘copyright’ release. The shoot and burn photographer may not offer prints and if they do most likely they are printed from a consumer company that anyone could order prints from. Basically the shoot and burn photographer is like a friend with a camera…except they are a stranger and you are paying them to do what you could get with any point and shoot. Just remember that just because they have a ‘big camera’ does not mean they have any idea what they are doing with it. The shoot and burn photographer typically uses free editing software such as picasa or picnik.
ETA: Shoot and burn does not mean shooting and burning to CD, it means taking pictures to make quick cash and then getting burned out.

With all of that being said, the equipment does not make the photographer! I have seen amazing images taken with iPhones or point and shoots, and horrid images taken with top of the line pro level DSLR’s.

This post is about the care and consideration as well as the intentions of the different types of photographers that you can book a session with. You may be a retail kind of consumer- if that works for you then go for it! Just like you may prefer a shoot and burn to a professional- again if that works for you then go for it!Just know that not all photographers are created equal : in price, quality, or experience you receive. No one can tell you what the right photographer is for YOU

What to expect:
Retail store: in and out in 15 minutes, 1-3 good images, spend $10-$300
Professional: 1-3 hour session, 20-40 great images, spend $200-$1000
Shoot and burn: 1 hour session, 100 maybe decent images, spend $25-$50

The difference is in the quality and experience. When you look back at your images on your wall how will they make you feel? Will you even remember how that day was? Will they make you smile because of the memories they bring back? I know that when I look at my favorite images of my kids hanging on my wall, which are professionally done, I remember every detail of what happened that day and can’t help but smile at the chaos that went into getting that priceless image. When I look at the retail images from when my son was a baby all I can remember is that we only got the one image and we spent so long just waiting to be seen for a 10 minute – what felt like going through a fast food drive thru- session. When I look at the images from when we had a shoot and burn session, those are all on my external drive – never printed because they honestly weren’t wall worthy at all. I just remember that my life would be no different had it never happened.

Let’s get down to recognizing good work and bad work

You will notice on the bad newborn image the lighting is bad and very uneven. Not to mention the use of selective color, the bad posing of the baby and the fact that the baby has a pacifier in his mouth.

In the good image you will notice the nice even lighting, a serenely sleeping baby that is well posed. The good image looks over all more put together and effortless.

Another example but this time maternity.

The bad image well….that’s a dreadful color cast, she really wasn’t that color-she was not an oompa loompa.

The good image has even lighting and good composition.

Notice the bad images- on board flash used, subjects facing the sun and dappled lighting on their faces. Poor composition and I could go on and on about no vision or real connection with the subjects. Of course the bad angle too….no, the lovely lady getting the flower isn’t really a giant.

Notice the good images- Nice even lighting, clear communication and you can feel the way the subjects feel ♥

Bad image- wow lots of bad in this one. Terrible posing, completely crumpled background, very bad cloning, color is off and image is underexposed.

Good image- interesting angle and composition. Good color and exposure. Sharp focus.

A note from Morgan (the author of this post):

For all of you that are thinking OMG, she is totally bashing aspiring photographers and I feel so bad for the photographers that have their images put up on this post….don’t feel bad, all the craptastic images are mine! Yes the bad images are from when I first started portfolio building almost two years ago. Let’s just say I thought I was awesome and knew what I was doing, and thank every day that someone told me I sucked…now I strive to prove them wrong

Every professional photographer starts out not knowing what they are doing, what you need to know is that there is a difference in someone doing it for a hobby, someone doing it for the quick cash, and someone operating a business or aspiring to do so. With each different type of photographer there is a different style and quality that you will get. A good rule is to look through your potential photographer’s portfolio/website and if you love 80% or more of their current work then they may be the right photographer for you, I also suggest having a chat with them by phone or in person to see if your personalities match up. Lastly ask yourself if you would want to hang these images on your wall for years to come and pass them down through the generations to come.

Feel free to share this post, just make sure to link back here Thank you!

The Importance of Wedding Flowers | Guest Blogger

Emily & Nate — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 16:54:05 +0000

Hi! My name is Kristie and I am so excited that Emily and Nate have asked me to be a guest blogger today. I am the owner and designer of Kristie Lorlean Designs, specializing in flowers for weddings and special events. I have been designing weddings for some time now, but have just recently got my business up and running. I love working with brides and helping make their day special.

Flowers have always been an important part of weddings. In the 1800’s men would give nosegays, a small cluster of flowers, to a girl when he wanted to start courting her. Throughout the courtships he would send her nosegays with special messages. Each flower and color had a meaning that progressively became more romantic and passionate. When they were wed, the groom would once again give the bride a bouquet of flowers.

The bridal bouquet is the most important flower arrangement a husband will ever give to a wife. It is an expression of love and commitment. Flowers are also given to important people in the bride and groom’s life to show appreciation: parents, grandparents, bridesmaids, groomsmen, etc.

Today, most brides use flowers to create a beautiful atmosphere and to tie in the colors and theme of their wedding. It is my belief that flowers convey emotion and express personality. As a florist I can help you create a bouquet and flower scheme that will be personalized and designed to match you and your wedding.

Good luck planning your upcoming wedding!

Kristie

www.kristielorlean.com

Emily & Nate’s .02¢: We recently had a chance to get to know Kristie during our Valentine’s Day Beautifully You Session. She is so fun to work with! Also, she brought us a gorgeous flower arrangement that smelled like heaven! She is very passionate about her work and we look forward to working with her this year. If we are photographing your wedding this year, send me an email for a special on flowers from Kristie Lorlean Designs!

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Evapaul Design | Guest Post

Emily & Nate — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 14:00:49 +0000

Hi I’m Kirsten Bingham of the design duo Evapaul Design. My husband Nic and I are the designers behind Emily and Nate’s new branding.

Nic and I loved this project and working with Emily and Nate made it really enjoyable. Emily knew she wanted something classic but comfortable and we took it from there. Both her and Nate agreed on gray and then we proposed using a sunny yellow as well. Emily and Nate had designed their previous logo and although it served their needs at the time, they came to us wanting a fresh approach and 2 new sets of eyes.

We were happy when they contacted us to completely overhaul their brand. Rebranding can give your business new life and create new opportunities. When we redid our branding recently, I totally fell in love with our business again. It promotes creativity and branding from a professional graphic designer will let everyone know how serious you are taking your business. Sometimes it seems that anyone with a blog and a DSLR is a photographer; branding is one way to set yourself apart as a professional.

Though Emily and Nate aren’t just wedding photographers- that is something they really wanted to focus on; and weddings are something Nic and I know VERY well. This is the 3rd marriage for both of us. Ok, I’m kidding- but we do have an etsy shop designing wedding invitations so for the past 3 years, we’ve been completely engulfed in the wedding field. Our shop is: www.evapaul.etsy.com

Though we love weddings and that is our main business, our lives were turned upside down last January by a 7 pound bundle of excitement, love and personality named Daphne. Having a kid is life changing in the best way imaginable. So, we’ve opened a brand new etsy shop designing modern baby invitations- because we think even babies love pretty things. www.EvapaulPetite.etsy.com

We hope you enjoy!

* Addition by Emily: I just want to start out by saying that Kirsten and Nic are AMAZING! We loved working with them and they are very good at what they do. I am no longer embarrassed to pass out my cards. Oh, and did you know we used to have a website back in the day? Oh, you didn’t? Well, that is because it sucked big time! I would always send people to our old blog because our site was THAT BAD! And even though I designed both the old site and the new one you are looking at right now, it was so much more fun designing this one because I had vision. Our logo was a great starting point that really shaped the rest of our brand.

So, here is to Kirsten and Nic, two amazing people who happen to be AWESOME designers!

Emily