Important Questions to Ask Your Wedding Photographer & Videographer | Pennsylvania Wedding Photographer & Videographer

Congratulations on your engagement! This season of your life is just so exciting, and we couldn’t be happier for you! As you begin your search for a wedding photographer and/or videographer, there are lots of important questions that you need to ask them before you make your decision. Here is a list of questions that we feel are necessary to be asking your photographer and/or videographer.

AVAILABILITY

Is our date available?
Although it seems rather simple, this is probably one of the most important questions to ask! If the photographer/videographer isn’t available, it isn’t worth asking any further questions unless you are able to switch your date, which in most cases, isn’t feasible (i.e. if you already have your venue booked and secured).

What happens if you get another inquiry for my wedding date?
Most photographers/videographers will not book any other weddings/events on your date as long as you are securely booked (retainer paid and signed contract). We require a 25% retainer fee to be paid and a signed contract upon booking. If we receive an inquiry for your date, we will refer them to other photographers/videographers we’ve connected with.BACK-UP TEAM

What happens if the photographer/videographer is ill or isn’t able to make it on my wedding day?
Hopefully this never ever happens, but you still need to be prepared and to feel at peace with your decision, it’s a question that must be asked.

Throughout the years we have connected with so many talented, professional, and fun photographers and videographers, so we make sure that we have a backup photographer/videographer that has a similar style to ours (their shooting style, to be specific). 99% of the time we work with second photographers and videographers, so they would be our go-to choice as backups. We would then look for second shooter(s) for them if necessary.

If the photographer/videographer isn’t comfortable answering this question, then that would be a red flag!INSURANCE

Do you have insurance?
At a minimum, a wedding photographer/videographer should carry liability and equipment insurance. If your venue requires proof of liability insurance, no problem! We will send over a certificate of insurance immediately upon request.SECOND SHOOTERS

Will you have a second shooter?
Some photographers/videographers have these and some don’t. We choose to include these in most of our photo and video collections to ensure more coverage of your once-in-a-lifetime wedding day. Having multiple camera angles will be beneficial. Think of all the action that will be captured and how many more photos you’ll receive in your photo gallery!EXPERIENCE

What is your style? Think about how you want your wedding photos and film to look.

Our style is our art. There are many different styles when it comes to wedding photography and even videography. Some photographers/videographers are very traditional & timeless, some are light & airy, and some are dark & moody. Choosing a photographer/videographer that has a style that you love will guarantee you love your photos and videos!

Our photographic style is bright, bold & colorful. We also consider our style timeless. Right now there are many trends in the photography world, and although we support every artist and their style, we feel that it’s important to remain timeless; appreciating the style of photos years down the road and not having any ounce of regret.

Our video style is cinematic/storytelling and true to life in color.

How many weddings have you shot?
Hiring a photographer/videographer that is well experienced (or seasoned, as we like to call it) is incredibly important. They can offer you timeline guidance, vendor recommendations, flattering posing skills, all while delivering stunning photos and videos – because they’ve done it over and over again, year after year! In our 9 years of business, we’ve done well over 150 weddings.

If your budget for photo/video isn’t much, then you could always search for a photographer/videographer who is just starting out and trying to build their portfolio.

With years of experience comes a higher price tag, but you receive so many benefits that a new photographer/videographer would most likely not have. In whatever choice you make, make sure it suits your budget and that it feels right to you.

Do you use backup equipment?
Always make sure to ask this during your consultations. When we shoot weddings we make sure we have multiple camera bodies (2-3), multiple lenses, tons of SD cards, and a hard drive to safely store all of our footage on. We also like to backup in multiple places (secondary external hard drives and the cloud). Making sure your photos/videos are safe and backed up right away will help you (and us) have peace of mind.

How long until I receive my images/videos?
This question will vary as well. For photographers, the standard delivery time for weddings is around 6-8 weeks. For videographers, it can be much longer; 4-6 months. We aim to deliver our couples’ wedding photos in 4-8 weeks and their videos in 4-6 months. We know how excited our couples are to see their wedding photos/videos, so we always provide a sneak peek via social media within 24-48 hours after the wedding day.

If your wedding photographer offers albums, then it may take around 2-4 months to receive. The timeframe for delivery depends on many things; the design process, the revision process, and the delivery process.

What do you do if it rains on my wedding day?
Many photographers will have clear umbrellas and protective gear to cover their camera and equipment. Sometimes venues will even have clear umbrellas. In our experience, if it rains on a wedding day, we’ll keep an eye on the radar to see if there are any breaks in the rain to hopefully go outdoors for photos. We’ll also look for overhangs or porches to shoot on. If none of these options are possible, then we will look for the brightest area in your venue. We’ll also set up artificial lighting if necessary.COLLECTIONS (PACKAGES)

What all do you provide in your collections?
Look for things that you feel you absolutely could not go without for your wedding day. Think about coverage time, second shooters, delivery methods, and heirloom items (albums, prints, canvases, etc.).

We offer a few photography and videography collections as well as combined collections. As we mentioned earlier, most of our collections include a second shooter with online gallery delivery, 6 hours to full day coverage, prints, albums, and more. We also offer ‘Extras’ in case you wanted to build onto any of the collections we offer.

How many photographs will we get?
A typical amount you should receive from most photographers is around 500-800 photos. While the exact amount varies from wedding to wedding (dependent on wedding size, length, and number of photographers booked), we typically average anywhere from 75-100 images per hour of coverage.

Do you charge a travel fee?
Some photographers/videographers will charge based on how many miles/hours they have to drive and some may not, this depends on how far the venue and reception is from where they are based. We include 60 miles of travel for the wedding day and anything over that is charged at .57 per additional mile.

If your photographer/videographer are not local to you and are traveling hundreds of miles for your wedding day, then a hotel would also be necessary (and so appreciated).

We mostly serve all of our home state of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Maryland, but no destination is off limits. If you’re not local to us (we reside in Mechanicsburg, PA) and your budget allows for us to capture your wedding day, we would love to chat!

How much is the retainer (deposit) to book our date? Can we pay in increments?
We almost always hear this question asked during consultations, and it’s an important one to ask! Typically the down-payment is around 25-50% of the total collection (package) depending on the photographer/videographer. We require a 25% retainer fee to be paid upon booking (as well as a signed contract). We also allow our couples to pay throughout the time leading up to their wedding day as much as they would like. For us, balances are due two weeks prior to the wedding day.

Knowing how much money you need will help you also decide on a photographer/videographer and a collection they offer.These are just a few questions you should be asking your wedding photographer/videographer. Although the above questions are important to ask, you’ll want to be sure you’re choosing your photographer/videographer based on the following questions:

• Is there a strong connection between both of you?
• Do your personalities match and you feel comfortable around them, like you guys can be great friends?
• Do you feel as though they answered all of your questions thoroughly and that their answers coordinate with the vision you have for your wedding?
• Are you comfortable with their workflow and how they plan to handle the entire process?
• Do you absolutely love their style?

We hope this blog post served you well! We are currently booking 2022 weddings, so if you’re planning to get married any time next year, we’d love to see if we’d be a great fit for you! Getting to know our couples personally is something we’re extremely passionate about.

You can get in touch with us using the contact form on our website. We can’t wait to chat with you!