| What do I get? |
Our wedding packages are outlined here. You get a
photographer for your entire wedding, from bridal preparations through late in the reception.
We start with your free
engagement session. We'll spend at least one consultation session discussing your needs, including what particular pictures you want most,
who will be there, and we'll review the timeline with you to make sure that enough time is allocated for the photographs you want.
We'll look over the venue, consider the time of day, and talk with you about how we can capture you and your party in the best light available.
We'll contact your officiant to learn of his or her pattern for the ceremony and any restrictions they have of photographers. We'll contact
your DJ to make sure important events like the cutting of the cake, first dance, and bouquet toss and garter ceremonies are staged so
they can be photographed well. As your wedding approaches, we'll sit with you and the groom to learn of the families, any special
pictures you want, and develop a shot list and shooting schedule.
On the wedding day, we'll go to where the bride gets dressed, photographing the dress, the preparations, and the
bridal party. Then we'll locate the groom, photographing him and the groomsmen. We'll capture the
ceremony with all the important events. Between
the ceremony and the reception, we'll both get formal portraits of the families and wedding party. Our Grand Ball package
includes a photographer dedicated to capture candid shots of the cocktail hour between the wedding and reception.
Then we'll photograph the reception, from beginning to end. We will ask the
couple to sneak away around sunset for some couple photos if possible (and the weather cooperates):
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| What is your style?
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We are a relaxed husband and wife team (with some associates). Our photojournalistic
style dictates that, for the most part, we blend into your day and capture you and your party being you. You should know,
however, that we step it up a bit during the family and bridal party shoot between the ceremony and reception. In order
to get all the extended family and wedding party, we'll need to direct a bit, and ask that everyone be prepared to move
into and out of position quickly.
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Does our package include prints?
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The Gala and Grand Ball packages include a good number of prints. The
Intimate package is a package for those who wish to do their own printing.
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What happens with the big day?
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We will work with you, your officiant, your DJ, and your venue representative to (1) understand your schedule
so we can photograph your event professionally and with minimal stress for you and your beua, and (2) suggest
scheduling to get the shots you want with as little interruption as possible. |
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How do you keep our pictures safe? |
A wedding is a one time event, usually with family and friends who have not gathered in many years, and are not likely
to be together again (unless there happens to be another wedding in the family). Therefore, we take several safegards
with your digital images. You'll see us disappear while you are eating; at this time we're copying all the images from
our cameras to a computer for safe keeping. We do that again before we leave the venue. As soon as we return to the studio,
we put the memory cards in our fire proof safe, and copy the images to a portable hard drive. We only return the cards
to service in our cameras once the processing is complete and they are copied to our studio store. |
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What kind of equipment do you shoot with? |
We use Canon equipment. Or primary cameras are a Canon 5D Mark IV and a Canon 5D Mark III. The lenses
we use at most weddings are a Canon 24-70mm f2.8, A Canon 70-200mm F2.8, and a Canon 50mm F1.4. We use three speedlights,
Canon 600EX-RT units. We use one of these units on camera (with an external battery pack) for the ceremony, then use
all three to light certain events in the reception. Our studio is equiped with current state of the art computer equipment
for processing your photos, so we usually can have your photos ready for your viewing by the time you get back from your
honeymoon. |
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What does it all do?
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Well, since you asked. To start with, Canon versus Nikon? Both manufacturers make very similar equipment. We first bought a Canon,
and once a photographer buys a high quality lens, that is the brand the photographer shoots. While the camera lines have different
menu systems and their buttons are in different places, the end result is a high quality, high resolution photograph.
Canon's state of the art camera for wedding professionals is the 5D Mark IV. We use it with our best
quality lens, the 24-70mm F2.8. It has 30 megapixels, and can shoot in low light (up to
ISO 12,800, but it gives respectable results at ISO 6,400). It has a fast auto focus, which performs exceptionally well in
low light (so we can get that shot of you walking down the aisle in the dark church).
We use the 5D Mark III with our 70-200mm lens. While this was state of the art until the Mark IV was introduced,
it is perfectly matched for
the less demanding longer shots. The 5D Mark III is a 24 megapixel camera which has similar low light and fast focus
capabilities.
The 50mm lens is a specialty lens that we use for selected shots where we want to achieve a blurred background.
Two things set aside professional photography equipment from cell phones: the lenses and the flash. Lenses first: Our three primary
lenses are high quality lenses that faithfully focus the image for the camera, and are optimized for low light. They also
give us the ability to achieve artistic effects, such as blurring the background.
The flash is the other tool that separates our work from the cell phone pictures. Flash ensures that shadows are as we want them
to be, and illuminate your eyes. For the reception, we engage all three of our flashes to illuminate the entire room for some shots.
We have advanced tools to get the shots, and the creative skills to compose those shots. You really will see the difference
when your friends show you thier cell phone shots!
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How many photos do you take |
This is one of the real advantages of digital photography! We typically take between 800 and 1,000
photographs from beginning to end. We take pictures of everything imaginable,
and strive to get emotional and action shots. We'll photograph
you, your party, the reception hall, the decorations, the ceremony site, and just about everything else. If you paid for it,
we're going to try to photograph it.
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How will we review our photos?
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We spend time while you are on your honeymoon sorting through the pictures, selecting what we
think are a good selection. If you are convenient to our Arvada studio, we will offer a
session to present them on a big screen high definition
projector with music and refreshments. If you are not convenient to our studio,
we will present our selections on a high definition tv or on
our laptop. Once this session has been held, we'll put them
on our website (view),
where you can continue
to make selections (and your family can buy their own, if desired).
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How long before we can see our prints?
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We generally take two to four weeks to process your photographs. Usually by the
time you are back from your honeymoon, we can arrange the first showing of your pictures.
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Can we post our photographs on social media?
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Yes. We would appreciate a link telling your friends who did your wedding.
We do pay a referral fee if a friend hires us on your recommendation.
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Who owns the photographs?
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We license your photographs for "home use." You are free to print your photographs as desired
for your own use. We allow you to print photos for your immediate family. We ask that, for others who might want photos, you direct them
to the website, where they can purchase their own.
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Will you use my wedding photographs for other purposes?
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Our standard wedding contract includes a model release,
which allows us to use photographs in our promotional materials.
We will honor your wishes if there are certain
photographs you do not wish to
use in our promotions.
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Can we see a few wedding shoots?
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Yes. There are samples of our work here as well as on our scattered throughout this
web site. We will show you our online portfolio of the weddings we shoot, and several
samples of our wedding books and prints.
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Who photographs my wedding?
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For the most part, Steve and Cathy are the primary photographers. Occasionally, we use one
of two other accomplished photographers. If we plan on using a different photographer for your wedding, we'll tell you as we discuss
wedding options. Of course, there are events beyond our control, such as illness, that could force us to use a different
photographer.
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Will my photos be retouched and color balanced?
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We color balance all photographs. We do minor retouching as requested (fixing minor blemishes,
etc.) We remove highlights, and do remove unwanted background objects from selected pictures.
We don't do extensive Photoshop work, but if you buy the digital print, you can certainly
retouch them yourself or send them to a Photoshop expert.
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What about red eye?
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We use flash devices that remove the cause of red eye. For you technical types,
red eye occurs when the flash is close to the lens. Since we use an external flash,
red eye seldom occurs (we can remove it, but usually don't have to).
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How many hours of coverage are included?
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Generally, we spend about six to eight hours with you on your wedding day. We
start our day late during your preparations and continue through the significant
events at the reception.
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| How is payment made?
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A Reserve the Date fee of 1/2 the package selected is due at signing. This payment
can be made by credit card or check (or even that funny green stuff). The balance
is due two weeks before the
wedding, payable by check.
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| Does our package include an engagement session? |
Yes. The Intimate and Gala packages include one
engagement session. The Grand Ball package allows for two engagement
sessions.
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Does our package include an album?
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The Grand Ball package offers both a 12 x 12 album and a video slide show.
The Gala package offers you the choice between (1) a video slide show or (2) a 12 x 12 album. The
Intimate package does not include any
albums.
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What if we want photos later?
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Our packages come with the digital images on disc. You can reprint them at
any time. The studio maintains the images for at least one year,
and we'll be happy to provide prints while we have the images. We also put the images
on our portfolio, so you can buy them yourself.
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What is "photojournalistic" photography?
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Photojournalism is the capturing of events without staging or posing the pictures. Traditional
wedding photography had particular poses that made up the photographs you would get. A purely photojournalistic photographer would not pose any shots,
instead chronicling the day as it unfolds. We like the photojournalistic style, but with a gathering of family and friends such as a wedding draws, posed photos
are a must. Still, most of our shoot involves capturing the events as they unfold. We must confess, we aren't above staging a cheesy shot or two, such as the groom
trying to escape his fate.
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Will we be comfortable with you?
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We feel this is one of our strongest qualities. We are photographers who have "been around the block."
As parents who have married off two daughters, we have the customer's perspective. We are also quite easy going, and bring our suggestions to you
in a way that you can accept or reject them. We are here to photograph your big day; we want to help you get better pictures, but we don't
want to add to your stress or ask you to re-arrange the ceremony if you don't want to. This is part of the reason we offer the
free engagement session, so we will work together for an hour or so before you commit to trusting
us with your wedding day.
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I'm a Bridzilla contestant
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We work well under pressure, and we have been to our share of
weddings. You'll find our experience and
ability to remain (and project) calm makes your big day go smoother.
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What should we wear?
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Obviously, for your wedding day, the ceremony dictates your attire. However, for your engagement session,
if you hire us to photograph the rehearsal, or if you change clothes
before the reception, consider this: For portrait photography,
"non-flashy" dress is best. A portrait is generally designed to highlight faces; pronounced patterns of dress, or
excessive skin (particularly sleeveless garmets) tend to draw attention away from the face.
Feel free, for your engagement session, to bring a change of clothes. The choice, however, is yours.
if that loud print is "just you," we'll be happy to photograph you in it.
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Where can we shoot our engagement session?
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We have a studio with several backdrops for traditional portraiture. We also love
Colorado's outdoors! There are a number of favorite places we have:
- Clear creek in Golden is our favorite outdoor spot. In addition to water, trees, and mountain
backdrops, there is a history center there with a number of different buildings to use as backdrops.
- Boulder creek, at Howard Fine park.
- Clear creek in Wheat Ridge
- For country or old themes, there is a fantastic history park in Golden.
- Lily lake at the Rocky Mountain National Park, early in the morning.
- Bear lake at the Rocky Mountain National Park, early in the morning.
- Chataqua park in Boulder has some stunning views (hiking required for the best spots).
- El Dorado Canyon state park has stunning views, if you are willing to hike.
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