Photographer packages comparison

EverAfer

A bunch of questions photography related:

Some photographers charge by the hour, i.e, 5 hr or 6 or 8. How much time do you add to the front side for capturing the bridal party getting ready?

How many did you expect to get and how much of it is edited? Do you negotiate ahead of time how many edited pics you get back?  What is the norm?

If the photos are released to you, I assume that means you can do whatever you want with your photos?

We're setting up meetings with a few local photogs and just want to make sure we're comparing apples to apples.

Thanks!

emmyg65

How long you book a photographer for depends on the schedule of your day. Where are you getting ready? How long does it take to get from there to the ceremony site? How long does it take to get from the ceremony to the reception? How long are your ceremony and reception? You'll probably also want about an hour for photos of just the two of you (either as a first look or after the ceremony) and some time for formal shots (my photographer scheduled 1/2 an hour for 10 groupings of family).

The rest of your questions depend on your photographer. We booked our photographer for 8 hours, which included 500 images, all hand-edited. She doesn't give clients unedited images. We ended up getting many more than that, 800+.

Very few photographers completely release photos to clients. Instead, they retain copyright and you can print them or whatever for personal use only. We can't even submit our photos to a blog without crediting our photographer. This is because even though they're pictures of us, they're her artwork.

EverAfer

Thanks, he's getting dressed at his home. I'll be getting ready at the hotel, which is the same venue for ceremony, cocktail hour and reception.  We were thinking we would use cocktail hour to do all of the photos for us, WP, and family.

photokitty

I chose an all day package. The per hours ones just added up to be too much. The full coverage packages are always a better deal.

How many depends on the photog.

Editing is the same. Most of them just do basic light and color adjustment. They aren't going to do drastic editing unless it is a must have photo. They will typically make sure important group photos have at least one edited so everyone's eyes are open.

You should negotiate everything before hand. It may not be possible after or could cost more than you're willing to pay.

It depends on the release what you can so with them. Ask before signing if you can crop, edit, post, etc and how you are allowed to use them. Also ask how large you will be able to print the images that they give you.

Also ask about second shooters, back-up equipment and experience with bad lighting. Have they shot at your venue.

GL!

EverAfer

Thanks @photokitty!

Those are great questions and suggestions.

photokitty

EverAfer said:

Thanks @photokitty!

Those are great questions and suggestions.

Welcome! Happy to help

justbecause1

As far as time is concerned, just estimate based on how many bridesmaids you have and whether they'll be doing their own hair/make-up etc. For instance if your wedding is from 5pm-12am (7hrs), you can work backwards from that block. So if you have around 5 bridesmaids who are all doing their own hair and make up, you can probably expect 3 hrs for that time and about 3o0 minutes of travel to the church/venue where you're having the ceremony.

This is why I chose an all day package as well. 8hrs just wouldn't cut it for me. And for me I was more focused on the fact that all this stuff will happen on only "1" day and I didn't want to miss anything. It costs now but it pays you back over a life time and when I got my photos back, I understood that completely.

As far as how many edited or unedited photos you get, I think all photos should be edited.... well if you're paying someone who has great quality. If you're hiring a budget based photographer I guess all you can do is negotiate that. 

DON'T FORGET TO GIVE YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER A LIST AND DON'T BE AFRAID TO EMAIL HIM/HER SOME PHOTOS THAT INSPIRE YOU!

I used Lens Out Loud (www.lensoutloud.com). They were amazing and you can see my wedding there. Good luck!

vmj23

My photographer is a flat rate for the entire day, but for planning purposes I asked her about how much time is needed for photos before the ceremony . She told  me 1 hour for the bridesmaids.  she has a 2nd shooter that will do the same with the guys.   We are undecided on if we will do a first look or not, to save time later, but either way, she told me approx. an hour for the formal photos .

 

Our package is to just get the disc (no prints) and it specifically is worded in the contract to get copyrights.   Definitely check with your photographer if you have those rights...some will charge you additional.