PRE-BOOKING QUESTIONS
Do you photograph LGBTQ+ weddings?
I would LOVE to! I haven’t yet, though. The irony is that I happen to occupy a tiny corner of the LGBTQ community myself. Real talk though, it doesn’t matter to me what group you identify with – if you love love, then you’re my kind of people.
How far in advance should we book our wedding with you?
I recommend booking at least 6 months out (1 year is optimal) but last-minute inquiries are always welcome.
Can we see examples of full weddings before we book?
Of course! You can see full galleries here: clients.namu.love/weddings – if there’s a password-protected gallery you’d like to view, let me know and make sure to include the name of the gallery or a link to it.
AFTER-BOOKING QUESTIONS
What if we need to reschedule or cancel our wedding?
RESCHEDULING: If your wedding is more than 6 months out, rescheduling is possible, but not guaranteed. If I have your future date open on my calendar and assuming all other details remain the same, I’m happy to reschedule to that date and move your booking fee to the new date. Any costs associated with changes to the new date or location will be added to your final total.
CANCELING: Unfortunately, because there’s no guarantee that I’ll be able to book with a new couple on your date, if you cancel within 6 months of your wedding date, you’ll forfeit any fees paid up to that point to cover any work I’ve done and the loss of income if I’m unable to re-book your canceled date.
If I manage to re-book your date, I’ll refund up to $1000 of your fee or whatever you’ve paid up to that point, whichever is less.
ENGAGEMENT QUESTIONS
When should we schedule our engagement session?
If your package includes an engagement session then I definitely suggest scheduling it as soon as you can, especially if you plan on using an image or images from your engagement session on your save-the-dates.
Can we schedule our engagement session on a weekend?
Because most weddings happen on Saturdays and Sundays, I generally don’t book engagement sessions on weekends. We can tentatively schedule it for a weekend, but you should be aware that if I book a wedding on that date, we’ll have to reschedule your engagement session. On a positive note, weekday engagement sessions are generally easier and more fun because there are less people around!
WEDDING DAY QUESTIONS
What happens if there’s bad weather during our outdoor wedding?
If there’s just a little rain, it’s windy or skies are gray, we’re going to keep shooting! Sometimes those drizzly days and overcast skies can result in some very beautiful images. If it’s a real storm, hopefully your venue and you have planned for an indoor emergency relocation. Please note: there are no refunds for weather or natural disasters or other circumstances outside of my control.
We thought you were amazing on our wedding day. Can we tip you after the wedding?
You’re awesome just for asking! I’ll never expect a tip, but I’ll always appreciate it!
POST-WEDDING QUESTIONS
Do you share our photos online?
Sharing our favorite images from your wedding on our websites and social media is how we wedding photographers advertise! If you’re concerned about privacy, we can make your actual wedding gallery password-protected and if there are specific images you prefer I don’t share publicly, I’m happy to remove them from a public gallery and use alternatives when sharing on social media.
When will we see our photos?
I pride myself on having one of the fastest turn around times in the industry. Assuming there are no factors outside of my control, you’ll get a sneak peek within one to three business days and your full gallery will be delivered within 3 weeks of your wedding date! That’s right, less than a month after your wedding, you’ll have all kinds of gorgeous images to help you re-live that special day. Please note: wedding locations held out of my home region or out of state will extend delivery times by 7 business days.
What size are the photos you deliver?
I deliver a gallery of high resolution 1920×1080 images. If you decide you’d rather print your images through someone other than me, I’m happy to provide a limited rights release for printing and a gallery of full resolution images without my branding for a $750 fee. This fee allows you to print your images anywhere you choose and helps make up for the lost print sale income.
How are files delivered?
Your images are delivered in jpg format with my company logo placed unobtrusively at the bottom of the image. RAW files are never delivered as part of any session fee.
If you would prefer to completely own your wedding images (including the copyright), the fee is $2500 per wedding, which would give you total ownership of the raw files, along with all rights, and I will no longer have the right to use the images in any way without your permission. Please note: buying out the copyright does not give you access to any “extra” images. Any images not worthy of being delivered in your gallery are deleted to save space.
Wait a second, as the client, don’t I own the photos?
This is a common misconception. The reality is that you don’t. As the artist who creates the art, copyright ownership is automatically assigned to me the moment the image is created, making me the owner and rights holder. As the client who has commissioned me to create the art, I assign you the right to use the images in almost any way you see fit as long as it’s for personal use – that means you can’t sell the images or transfer/assign rights to them without my permission. For example, you can’t give a news agency or magazine the right to print your wedding images in their publications without first getting permission from me (and except for very rare exceptions, it’s always going to be a “yes!” from me, lol).
If you’re bothered or worried about this, don’t be! This is not only both California and federal law, it’s also standard practice in all photography industries. Even though I own the images, there’s very little that you won’t be able to do with the images I send you. You can download them anywhere, share them online, buy prints (as long as you order them through me) and hang them all over your home or office…even text dozens of them to your grandmother who lives in another country!
The only two limits I put on your personal use are 1) that you don’t obscure or remove my logo from the images (except where it would be impossible not to, like with Instagram’s square-cropped images – and as long as you tag me or credit me in the post when my logo isn’t visible) and 2) that you don’t re-edit the images yourself. This includes using filters in apps like Instagram or stand-alone editing apps on your phone. Also, if you’ve been provided unwatermarked images for printing, please note that those unwatermarked images are not for sharing publicly, they’re only for printing. Any images shared on social media must include my logo, unless you’ve paid the fee to buy out the copyright.
All of this may seem a little draconian or unfair, but considering word-of-mouth is the main (and often only!) form of advertising most photographers use, it’s important that our branding stay visible on the images we worked so hard to create for you.
How many photos will I get? Will I get all the images you shot?
You’ll receive a TON of photos, especially compared to how many most photographers deliver. For weddings it works out to be around 70-100 images delivered per hour, on average. You don’t have to worry at all about getting “enough” images – you’ll get every single image I shoot that I think is amazing and matches my brand and these days (humble brag), that’s pretty much most of the images I shoot, lol. You won’t get every photo I took because some photos end up blurry or just terrible in general (even I take some terrible shots sometimes!), but you’re hiring me because I’m an expert photographer with more than a decade of experience and that means you can trust me to deliver every single shot that’s worth delivering.
Which kind of shots do I not deliver? I don’t deliver “repeats” (shots that are just slightly different versions of the same subject or scene), blurry shots or accidentally inappropriate shots (like when the wind blows a dress up or a very unflattering shot of someone). Everything else gets included, as long as it’s a great shot! Due to the candid, sometimes rapid-fire nature of my photography style, not every shot is going to turn out the way we want or expect, but don’t worry, the best shots will always end up in your gallery. Which leads me to another common question…
Can I buy the shots that you took but didn’t include in the gallery?
Nope. Not even if you say “pretty please, with a cherry on top!”
If I think an image isn’t suitable for including in your gallery, then it gets deleted. That’s because I only keep, deliver or share work that is representative of my brand and my personal style of photography. Think of the shots that get deleted as the early sketches of an artist – you would never ask a painter to give those to you, right?
What kind of photo editing is included?
My style is very candid, using both natural and off-camera lighting. Many of my shots look pretty good right out of the camera and don’t need much editing, so I generally just crop, color-correct and adjust light/shadows. Photoshopping fly-away hair, blemishes, closed eyes or other advanced editing is not included, but can be added for $10 per image.