 |
|
| FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) | |
 |
General Stuff
Q - How would you describe your photographic style?
In a word, natural. I prefer to capture people as they are and not how I might direct them to be. Generally speaking, I'm at your wedding to document things as they happen, without input from myself. The odd time I might say, "Hey look at me", but generally speaking I try to remain unseen by the subject.
Q - Should we give you a list of shots we'd like?
Having a list changes the game from capturing the day as it happens to making sure I get all the shots on the list. In other words, while I'm off getting one of the listed shots, I might be missing some genuinely fun moments between the bridesmaids. I like to go where the action is and capture that.
So, I don't accept shot lists, except for the formal group photography where a short list of the groupings is very helpful (see the GROUP AND FORMAL PORTRAITS section below for more info).
Q - What kind of equipment do you use?
I use Canon digital gear. Though the quality of modern digital cameras makes this largely unimportant nowadays as it's more about the artist than the tools one uses. You can expect professional results, and the ability to make large, beautiful prints from any of the photos that I take.
Q - How many photos do you typically take?
Typically I take 2000-2500 photos at a wedding, of which a large number are thrown out because of people blinking or camera mis-focus/shake. From that I will select only the very best images, around 400 images.
Q - Can you recommend any other wedding photography related links?
Check out WedPix magazine, an online mag sponsored by the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA). Specifically, check out the 'For the Bride & Groom' articles. Also check out 'Honest answers about wedding photography' which has lots of great wedding photography related info specifically for the Bride and Groom.
Q - Do you colour-correct or retouch the photos we get?
Click here to see an example (specifically, the Bride's skin is smoothed slightly, her eyes sharpened, the sunlight hotspots on the nose and face softened and the tanlines removed). |
 |
Lighting
Q - What should we know about lighting as it relates to how we schedule our day and plan our locations?
Shade is always preferable over bright sunlight ... this goes for the ceremony and for the group formal shots as well. For best results and if possible, choose locations with shaded light, and not full-on, direct sunlight. Also, try to schedule your day so that the most important shots will happen as close as possible to sundown. The closer you get to sundown, the more ideal the lighting and the more dramatic the portrait.
Q - How can I look up sun-times for my wedding day?
You can check the wedding day sundown time at www.intellicast.com ... the ideal time for kickin' portraits (especially photos of you and your partner) is 45 minutes before and up to sundown. Obviously, this may not be possible with your unique schedule, but even if you can step away from your reception meal for 15 minutes for a few dusky photos outside, they will be fantastic.
Q - Do you use a flash?
Yes, though I try to make it look like natural light. I employ 'Method Lighting' which is using flashes in such a way that they look like natural light in the photo. I do this by bouncing the flash off of walls or the ceiling, or by using the flash 'off-camera'.
This is actually a very useful thing to keep in mind when reviewing a potential photographer's work. One CAN simply buy a flash, put it on the camera, set it to 'Auto' and fire away. But the resulting photos will look very similar to the shots from a point-and-shoot camera. |
 |
Bridal Preparations
Q - Getting ready for my wedding is going to be hectic. How can I arrange things in order to get the most impactful photos?
Make sure there are plenty of mirrors around. Mirrors make for cool candid portraits, and enable me to be a little more discrete and not so 'in your face' with the camera the whole time. Also, please warn the bridesmaids of when I will be arriving so that they will not be surprised when I show up and start taking pictures of them.
Q - How will you capture those amazingly real, emotional moments as I get ready for my wedding?
To a certain extent, with a little of your help. Try to save the best 'moments' for when I am in the room with you. Obviously, I want you to be comfortable with me taking your photo, so you can shoo me out of the room while you put your dress on... but as soon as you are decent, please have someone bring me back in so I don't miss any of the great expressions of people seeing you in your dress for the first time.
Q - Can we do some portraits of just me, fully dressed and ready, just before the ceremony?
Yes! Try and get your dress on as early as you can bear it, and set aside 15 to 30 minutes about an hour before the ceremony for me to do a few impromptu bridal portraits. This can also be a chance for you to get away from the hubbub for a few minutes and have a breather as the rest of the girls get ready. Just remember that MOST brides run late, so you'll really have to stick to the schedule for this to happen.
Q - What if I wanted to do some portraits BEFORE the wedding day, to avoid the stress of having extra stuff to do just before the ceremony?
Some Brides choose to book me for a bridal portrait IN ADVANCE of the wedding. Say, 2 weeks before, when things are much less hectic. They use it as a 'dress-rehearsal' to try on the dress and test out their make-up and hair. This also lets us have more fun with locations and props, since time is not a factor. This is a more modern, less traditional approach to things, but it makes for some great portraits because the pressure is off, and also gives you a chance to tweak things before the big day. If you're interested in this, please just let me know and we can work it into your package. |
 |
Ceremony
Q - Will you be intrusive during our ceremony?
I always make it my goal to be discrete and to not bother guests or draw attention to myself. At the same time, I constantly move around the venue for lots of different angles and viewpoints. Many brides comment on how they 'didn't even see me' during their ceremony. My goal is to stay 'under the radar' and catch people in as natural a state as possible.
Q - What if my ceremony venue has restrictions on photographers?
Please clarify with the ceremony venue and officiant if photography restrictions exist for the professional photographer and let me know these restrictions in advance of your big day. It is ideal if I can have free range in the venue, and permission to use my flash at will. However, some venues/officiants do not permit the use of flash and some go as far as ask the photographer to only shoot from one location in the back, or sometimes not shoot at all. In all these circumstances, I can still do my job (well ... except when no photography at all is allowed), but obviously, if I'm only allowed to shoot from one location, there will be a limit to what I can do.
Most often, any restrictions are determined by the officiant. If you think you can persuade the officiant in these matters, please do so as I will only do what the officiant allows me to do, and I will not negotiate with them on your behalf on the day of the wedding.
Q - How do we get really great 'kiss' shots?
Make sure to make your first kiss a 'Hollywood' length kiss. If you want a good kiss shot, I'll need more than just a little peck from you. This is kind of cheesy, but bear with me :)
For the best kiss shots, slow down your approach, look into each other's eyes and DON'T RUSH! When your lips touch, close your eyes and count to 10. Feel free to practice often before the big day :) You'll thank me later. |
 |
Group and formal portraits
Q - How should we plan for the group and formal portrait photos?
Set aside 1 to 1.5 hours of time at some point during the day for larger group photos and couple portraits. Keep in mind that a huge variety of family groupings can steal time away from your couple portrait time. Your wedding day will be very busy, and often the schedules get pushed. A few times in the past, I've had couples with no time left for their own portraits. I suggest that you limit the groupings to the following
Limiting your group shots to this list will give you lots of time for meaningful shots of just you and your partner and each of you separately. Also, with groups of 10 or more people in the same shot, it becomes very difficult to pose and arrange people in a pleasing way.
Keep in mind, almost everyone at the wedding will have their camera, so miscellaneous groupings of extended family and friends will be captured as a normal part of your wedding day, and you can get copies of these shots after. Ideally I like to do the family groupings in 20 to 30 minutes, then have 45 to 60 minutes with just the couple so we can try different lighting setups and locations.
Q - What do you think of doing group portraits first, before the ceremony?
It has been my experience that doing group photos BEFORE the ceremony makes for a very smooth day, and less delay for the guests to endure between the ceremony and the reception. If you are a modern couple, and don't believe in the bad luck of seeing each other before the ceremony, then I highly recommend scheduling the group shots as the first order of the day. If you want to do it the traditional way, I can do that too. Just let me know what you want to do.
Q - What else can we do to make the group portrait time go as smoothly as possible?
Two words - "FAMILY LIAISON"!
On the day of the wedding, one of the most stressful things can be organizing the family and wedding party for group photos. To make this part of the day go as smoothly as possible, we suggest that you appoint a ‘Family Liaison’ for the group photo time. This person should not be in the wedding party, should have a good knowledge of ‘who’s who’ amongst all the guests, and will help collect the required people for each grouping.
This person can also be a great help should any friction arise between family members, freeing the couple to enjoy their day and the photographer to get the group portraits done as quickly as possible so the couple and their guests can get on to the best part - celebrating.
|
 |
Reception
Q - Where should we put you during the meal and reception?
It is typical that I and my assistant be seated with guests and served the same meal as your guests. This serves 2 purposes ... 1) If we're going to take great photos of your wedding, we will need energy to do so and 2) This allows us to build rapport with your guests so that they appear comfortable and at ease in the photos.
It is ideal if you place us at a table on the outer rim of the room, facing the head table, and near to a wall so that we have a place to stow all our gear, and can have easy access to it all night.
Ideally, we want to eat when you eat. Let's face it, people munching on food does not make for good photos, so we avoid taking your picture when you are eating (and hey, you want to enjoy your meal in peace, right? :). Then when you are up and mingling with guests between courses, we too will be up and getting great candid shots. So, if it's at all possible, try to arrange with the reception venue to serve us at the same time they serve you and the head table.
Q - Our DJ has a lighting rig. Is this a problem?
Not at all! If your DJ can bring even a modest light kit with them (coloured spotlights etc.), it will make the candid dancing shots all the better and more interesting. We LOVE DJ's who bring lights!
Q - At what point will you leave for the day?
Typically, I stay for the first dances, cake-cutting and the bouquet and garter toss (if you do that). Then I shoot a little of the general dancing, and once I know I have some great shots of people dancing and having fun, I will approach you to see if there's anything else, and if not, I will then pack up and leave. Of course, we can discuss other options unique to your own wedding schedule, and if you'd like me to stay beyond my contracted obligation, we can add on via an hourly rate. |
 |
Business Considerations
Q - Will we own the Copyright to our wedding photos?
No, FORBES CREATIVE will always own the Copyrights to our photos. However, you will be allowed unlimited personal use. We will even provide you with a signed letter stating this, that you can show to the lab doing your prints, should they object to printing Copyrighted material.
Q - Wedding Photography seems expensive. Why is that?
Photography is something that you can pay as much or as little for as you like, but you get what you pay for. What it really comes down to is what's the most important thing to you? We feel that that the photography is the most important thing, since it's almost all you have left after the wedding. A month later, the flowers will be wilted, the food eaten and the dress will be in a box, but the photographs are still there for you and your children and your grandchildren.
Obviously, every bride has a different budget and a different set of priorities. We're here to serve the Brides for whom photography is one of the most important expenditures on their wedding day. Charging what we charge allows us to afford the equipment, education, and time to create what we create. |
|
