Photography question

CaylaSummer

Hey ladies,

So I found a photographer online and I don't know anyone that have used this particular company. Does this matter? I have some family friends helping me find photographers but so far i am not impressed with what I have seen. 

This particular company that I found offered me 150 dollar discount since I told them that we do not want an engagement photo shoot so it would be up to 8 hrs coverage with 2 photographers and there are other perks too with the package so it would cost $2845. I'm having about 150 guests, do I need 2 photographers? btw here are the other perks I was talking about 

 Up to 8 HOURS coverage with 2 PHOTOGRAPHERS

• 250+ retouched digital proofs in an online gallery

• 1 Gorgeous coffee table book of your wedding day

• Engagement Photo Session OR Boudoir Session (we are not doing this)

• Online Gallery for at least 1 year

• Online Bridal Registry (upon request)

Thoughts?

Littlin

You don't NEED 2 photographers, but we had two and it was great!  Our photographer's (DH's cousin) good friend was up visiting and is also a photog.  She second shot our wedding which maximized the pictures before the ceremony when we were separate and allowed for breaks.  We also got way more pictures to choose from, but then again, it was family so we got all of the ones they took and about 800 of them are edited between the two of them.

You should think about doing an engagement shoot or a boudoir (I wanted to do this but didn't make the time) - they are a good way to get to know your photographer beforehand to make sure they are for you!  The price seems pretty good for what you are getting!

CaylaSummer

okay thanks...I want to do the engagement photo but my fiance does not want to and I don 't want to the boudoir session either so I asked if i can get a discount if we were not going to so thats when they offered a little bit of discount. 

I have been shopping around for photographers and while this company is a bit out of my budget i think the pricing is quite good considering that we are getting 2 photographers. The other ones I have seen are around the same or slightly less but with one photographer

I was just concerned about using someone that I don't know or at least not recommended by anyone. 

[Deleted User]

Is is Renaissance Studios? The package sound like theirs. If it is DO IT-You won't be disappointed.  We have hired them and their work is amazing.  We just got our engagement photos done and we were blown away with how they turned out. These Photographers are one of the best around.  Highly recommeded them!!!!!

CaylaSummer

hey sj- lol do you work for them? yes it is them....my fiance is a little put off with the pricing he thinks its too expensive but i have looked around in other places and they were more expensive and as well i did not like what I saw because it was too weddingish,,,i like the style of the photographers and its exactly what i was looking for..

ring_pop

I'd recommend 2 photographers if you can afford it. I had one, and I was very happy with her work, BUT there were some shots that I would have liked to have and she missed simply because she couldn't be in two places at once. For example, she focused on taking pictures of me walking down the aisle so I missed photos of his face as I was walking down.

If you've looked through their work thoroughly and you click with them (no pun intended) personality wise, then don't be as concerned about the lack of personal referrals. There are SO many photographers in this city and each suits a different budget and style.

By the way, 250 doesn't sound like very many photos, especially for 2 photographers. We got about 370 (x 2 because we got black & white and colour versions of all) just from one photographer. That being said, she was with us for the whole day, almost 12 hours.

CaylaSummer

Thanks Ringpop - I have only looked at their work online and have been emailing back and forth with a contact from them. I think 250 photos is plenty. I 'm all about the quality rather than quantity. I was only thinking of hiring them for 8 hrs. My ceremony starts at 3 pm so I was thinking of having the photographers at 2 pm to get some of the getting ready part. The church is 10 min away from my house but probably i need to be there at 2:30ish and the reception will probably start at 6:30 dinner. So i want them to be there for the cake cutting. I have no idea how long the meals would take. It's a 3 course meal plus dessert i think. I'm trying to figure out how long I should hire them for because I dont want to pay more than $3000 because we are still hiring a videographer and will likely go cheaper on that one. 

However I think realistically I need them for 10 hrs. Having them there for 2 doesn't leave much time to catch the getting ready part. 

Littlin

If your dinner starts at  6:30, estimate a half hour per course, with the appetizers going a bit shorter, and dessert/coffee/tea taking a bit longer, especially if you have speeches during this part, which takes you to about 8:30, maybe slightly later.

Also, if you have travel time to the church, you may want your photographer there a bit earlier than an hour before just because it goes quickly and they'll want you to pose for pictures while you are getting ready as well - it's very fun, but you'll need a bit more time.

I would suggest hiring from 1:30 - 9:30 if you want 8 hours.  We did our first dance as we walked in, and did parent-dance between meals and speeches with dessert.  We did our cake cutting about an hour after the dancing started.  If you are worried about them being done before you have done all of these things, you could always do them at the beginning versus the end?  It is nice to have a couple dancing group shots as well later in the evening.

They are usually pretty flexible if you want to add a half hour, etc., so just talk to them about your timeline and you'll probably be able to work something out.

lalap69

I really liked Renaissance and almost went with them, except Clint, their main photographer, was booked on my wedding day already.  From what I've seen of their photos, they're a really great price.  I think it might be because they're based out of Milton, not Toronto.  Ask to see a complete wedding that they've shot before booking - this really helped me make up my mind in booking my photographer.

[Deleted User]

We were lucky and we have Clint  from Renaissance Studios  doing our weding. We booked him in January for Aug 2011! 

CaylaSummer

hey guys thanks so much for your advice. I was talking to my sister inlaw and I told her that the ceremony is at 3 pm and then dinner would be 6:30 pm. She said that is not enough time to go from the ceremony to the reception since we are taking photos in between. Its about 30 min drive from the church then I was thinking of going to this park which is 10 min away from the church then to the reception. 

How long do these photo session take?

CaylaSummer

lala- yeah I was thinking of speaking with them in person and to have a look at other weddings they have done. My fiance thinks its too expensive....lol he is bugging me...He doesn't really know the difference between bad and good photographs..i think its quite cheap considering we are getting 2 photographers

Littlin

Our ceremony was at 3, and our cocktail hour started at 6, dinner at 7.  We had lots of time, but our reception place was only a 10 minute drive away.  With two photographers, you can do a lot of the family formal shots before the ceremony as well.  I think you should be fine for time if you take advantage of that.  Our wedding party shots took about an hour, and the family ones about a half hour.  We got A LOT of pictures, however.

CaylaSummer

K thanks Litt- well I figured if we have 2 photographers then it's just more efficient. So in the package it says: 250+ retouched digital proofs in an online gallery

What does this mean? I would like to have all the 250 pictures for me to choose which ones to print..

I do not understand the concept of having an online gallery. I figured if we are paying for them to take the photos they should give us all the pics in a disc and allow us to print them when we want to. 

Littlin

Usually you have access to the pictures in an online gallery to see them once they are done, but I also got a CD of all my e-pics and wedding pics.  You have to make sure they give you rights to their photos as well.  

Sometimes they charge you to print out the pictures and send them to you, but if you want a CD, they may just give you one and have you print them out yourself?  Maybe the online gallery is for choosing which ones go in the wedding album they make? 

Sorry I can't be more help.  We were lucky to be working with family for pictures.

lalap69

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_canada-toronto_photography-question?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:613Discussion:dc39cd45-3554-4770-8be8-32089ba10e01Post:2c2b737d-0870-46d2-a107-1dcc4c72f094">Re: Photography question</a>:
[QUOTE]lala- yeah I was thinking of speaking with them in person and to have a look at other weddings they have done. My fiance thinks its too expensive....lol he is bugging me...He doesn't really know the difference between bad and good photographs..i think its quite cheap considering we are getting 2 photographers
Posted by CaylaSummer[/QUOTE]
You should definitely meet with any photographer in person before you book them.  You want to make sure you get along because you'll be spending a lot of time together on the wedding day!

lmckenzie98

Two photographers are nice because while you are getting the bride/groom/family shots by one photographer, the other photographer can be capturing the crowd.

carleyraine

I'm jealous - book them - they are sooooo awesome.

I work in advertising, so I ended up going with a colleague who gave me a great deal but Renaissance was totally my first choice. The price seemed crazy at first, but after finding other photogrphers we liked online and getting quotes from them, we realized their prices are average. 6 out of ten quotes we got came in around $3000.

Get a quote from 5Fifteen or Ikonica and you'll see what I mean. Renaissance is almost a steal! LOL