Tips, FAQ’s and Various ‘Good to Know’ Details

Where are you located?  Anne Edgar Photography is located in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.  We are most often found photographing weddings and events in South Western Ontario & the GTA, however we have also been spotted shooting weddings as far as Montreal, Ottawa, northern Ontario, and even the Caribbean on occasion.

How did you get into photography?  Although I had been introduced to photography during my high school years, my real education in photography began during my undergrad years at the University of Toronto where I studied Fine Art, plus Fine Art Photography at Sheridan College concurrently.  After I completed my Fine Art degree, I attended Humber College‘s Commercial Creative Photography program, graduating at the top of my class, on the Dean’s list, and received many awards.  I have been a full time professional photographer for the 2 decades that have passed since my school days, & have photographed over 500 weddings: for professional photographers, for famous people, & regular Joe’s alike.  I also enjoy passing on skills & information in the courses & seminars I teach locally in the KW area.

What is your wedding photography style?  I have the ability to photograph in many styles.  We can create very elegant & beautifully lit portraits or perhaps you would rather go with full out photojournalism / candid coverage.  Images can be fun and full of humour, emotional, or more serious & reverent.  My favourite weddings are the ones that encompass all of these styles, for the perfect & total capture of your day.  But in the end – the one thing that truly matters is that we capture your wedding day in your style.  Your images  should represent who you are, and not represent any one photographer’s personal style.

But when push comes to shove, if I must use one word to describe my images,  that word would be authenticity.

How do we book you for our wedding?  The next step for most clients is to arrange a (no charge) consultation.  This is an opportunity for us to spend some time together, chatting about all things wedding.  During the consult you will be able to ask all of your questions, and view our MANY sample albums.  Plus you will get a great feel for how our personalities will mesh together on your wedding day.  Most brides don’t think about this, but you will spend more time with your wedding photographer than almost any other person on your wedding day, and that includes your groom.  Choose wisely!

What is in your gear bag?  Canon 1D & 5D series camera bodies, L series lenses.  Metz  flash guns & canon speedlights.  A bunch of various gadgets, big green batteries & a whole lot of memory.  Want to know more?  Just ask.

How many hours are included with each package?  Our packages are event based.  This means that you choose the parts of the day that you want photographed, and we stay until those elements are complete.  We do not restrict the amount of time included in each package, as every wedding is different.  When you hire us to document your wedding ceremony – we are happy to photograph the complete ceremony whether it takes 20 minutes or an hour & a half, without impacting the amount of coverage left for the remainder of the day.  Event based coverage is a good thing!

How many photos will you take at my wedding?  We do not set any limits on the number of photos that we will take, and every wedding is different.  The exact number of photos will depend on many factors, for example: the amount of wedding coverage you select, the number of photographers, the number of people involved, the quantity of group shots you request, the various events happening over the course of your day, etc.  A good average for photos taken during ‘bigger is better’ coverage is roughly 1200 – 1500 images for a single photographer.  Once we return to the office, we typically we cull about 30% of the images, removing any blinks, exposure tests, or unflattering angles.  The remaining images are supplied to you to share with friends & family.

What do we get after the wedding?   You receive a complete collection of edited, full resolution images on a USB drive in a pretty package.  This collection of images will be in full colour, with a selection of images also included with creative finishes like black & white, vintage treatments, or other creative effects. All photos are ready for printing, at your lab or ours.

Plus we create an online gallery of highlight images from your wedding.  This private web gallery allows you to share your big day with anyone, anywhere.  The link to the gallery and a password will be supplied to you after the wedding.  Once you receive the gallery information, you can share it with any one you choose to, viewable anywhere in the world.  In addition to the image viewing tools –   your web gallery also has a download option, so that friends & family can help themselves to full res images at no extra cost.  And our affiliated online lab offers prints & products with an easy ordering system, check it out with the ‘add to cart button’.  Prints, canvas & metallic finishes, mugs galore.  Order a t-shirt with your spouse’s face on it.  Just because you can.*tip the slide show option in your web gallery offers a smoother viewing experience

 What does it mean when you say ‘the images are fully edited?’  After the wedding, once the images are all backed up, the editing process begins.  First we cull test shots & weak or repetitive images.  Then each image is individually edited, correcting for minor exposure, contrast & colour variations.  Cropping adjustments are made, and then select images are chosen for creative effects, such as vignettes, vintage treatments, and black & white effects.  The collection that you receive is beautiful and ready to share.

What if I want more edits on the photos?  We will accommodate small requests at no extra charge.  Fifteen or twenty minutes of computer work to make a sweet client happy – that’s an easy decision!  However if you have an extensive list of retouching that you would like done – over & above our already thorough edits, we offer a retouching rate of $45 per hour.

How long do you maintain our web galleries?  There is no hard & fast rule as to how long we will keep your web gallery live.  Once we start to reach our maximum storage capacity, we start to remove older galleries to make room for current projects.  You can usually see about 12 months of work in our gallery collection at any one time, so you can use 1 year mark as a guideline for wedding galleries.  E-sessions are removed sooner, typically just after your wedding gallery is created.  However, we do assume that you will download your complete collection of images at your earliest opportunity, so when we delete your gallery, we are comfortable in the knowledge that you have long since acquired your images.  (aka download your images right away!)

I want to order one of your beautiful albums…  We are happy to provide full album design & production services for clients who want a premium wedding album.

I’m not sure if I will order an album from you or make my own.  Will you be upset if we make our own album?  No … that is sort of the point.  Our packages are laid out in a manner that gives you total flexibility when choosing your album & print products.  Albums are BIG projects, and truthfully, we do not have enough days in the year to both photograph & edit all of our client’s weddings, AND run an album layout & design company.  For clients who love our high end books, and must have one, we are thrilled to work our magic for you.  For the rest of you who are excited to build your own albums – we breathe a little sigh of relief – and happily share tips for great books.

I don’t need to use the complementary engagement session, can I substitute something else?  Nope.  Because it is a complementary service, there is no cash value or substitutions allowed.  The good news is that it does not cost you a thing, whether you use it or not.

Are the images watermarked?  No – your images are full resolution and un-watermarked, allowing you to make your own enlargements & albums for all your friends & family.

Where should we seat the photographers during dinner? (*for ‘Bigger is Better’ package only*)  We can be seated anywhere you like during dinner.  But – sitting with the guests really is the place that makes the most sense, if you want great photos throughout dinner.  (and we know you do.)  An easy location – where we can jump up & get to the action quickly- is best.  The farther away we are, or more obstacles (tables, chairs, guests) we need to dash through – the less likely we are to get that candid shot in time.  You know what will work best with your room layout, and we can chat anytime if you would like some input.

Meals are not necessary for ‘Middle of the Road’ or ‘Budget Baby’ coverage, thanks.

Why we don’t take table shots during dinner:  Simple – because we are hungry & need a break.  You have been busy – all wrapped up in everything that happens in a blink & a blur on your wedding day, and you probably have not noticed – we don’t stop for lunch, or take a break.  So after give or take 8 hours of shooting – the chance to sit for a while & recharge our batteries (both figuratively & literally) is well deserved & much needed.  We do photograph the reception throughout dinner – the speeches & funny moments, the kissing games, and all the action, grabbing mouthfuls along the way, jumping up & returning to our seats for enough time to get that needed rest, while capturing all of the fun.  But fitting in table shots of all the guests on top of the rest would mean that we forfeit the food & rest time.  We feel strongly that the dancing & party shots are a priority and trump table photos (which your guests don’t enjoy anyway – trust me it’s like pulling teeth to get them to co-operate when the open bar is calling to them).  So let’s focus on getting amazing photos of those same guests enjoying the dancing & party, and ditch the boring table shots.

The First Dance:  Ok we know it is not all about the photos.   But a few suggestions for the 1^st dance can never hurt…  Remember there is a camera on you at all times… so if you plan the big dip moment, or the grand finale – orient yourself towards the camera so we can capture your best angle & not your posterior.  Let us know if you have something special planned, and how it will unfold so we can be prepared & in the right location.

Do we tip our wedding vendors?  Tips are sweet & completely unnecessary.  My favourite thank you is always a glowing comment on any of our social media pages.  Your kind words mean so much, and last longer than any gift or tip.

If however you have been so lucky to benefit from an intern or co-op student’s talents, and are so very pleased with their efforts, a tip to them would lovely.  My assistants and second shooters work just as long & hard as I do, and often rewarded with experience only. (aka no pay).  Naturally tips are never expected.  But if you were thinking of tipping someone, the second shooter is definitely the most deserving.

Face Book?  In the hours after your wedding, we begin the long process of uploading, culling, and editing your wedding day images.  During this process, we are excited to post teaser photos to our Facebook page.  We will tag you in these images, and voila, wedding day images will appear in your feed for you, your friends & families to see.  (and like & comment – that’s the best part- the comments!)  The catch is that we have to be friends to tag you.  Plus let’s just be friends anyway.  It is great to see what you are up to in the weeks, months and years after your wedding.  The photos that we upload to our Facebook page will include a watermark for easy studio identification.  Any photos that you upload from your UNWATERMARKED collection do need to include a credit to Anne Edgar Photography, in the comments section.  A link to our page or website is even better.  This satisfies any copyright restrictions, plus we love the exposure!

How the images display on various monitors…  Different monitors and different image viewing software will affect the way the images look when viewing at home. We use a high end wide gamut display that is calibrated for colour accuracy to edit your images.  This is important to ensure great results for making prints & albums at calibrated labs.  However, you probably are not viewing the images at home on a calibrated system, so don’t be distressed if the photos look too light or too dark, or off colour on your monitor at home or work.  An easy solution – adjust your monitor until the images look good, and you will be able to focus on the great images without worrying about too light or too dark etc.

We are closed on Sundays.  Mostly.  Unless you are booking a wedding.  SO please don’t ask me to shoot your e-session, or plan a consultation or appointment on a Sunday.  I am happily available Monday thru Friday, 9:00am until 8:00pm.  Saturdays are wedding shooting days, and I often shoot weddings on Sundays as well.  But on weekends when I do not have weddings booked – I do spend time with my kids & my hubby.    It does not happen enough & I am greedy with the days that are available.

Did you know?  We offer a gift registry!  If you don’t need a toaster, or more hand towels, let your guests know that they can purchase gift cards or use our gift registry.  Perfect for package upgrades, albums and fancy prints, they are great gift idea.  All your friends need is my email address to begin.  Inquire at anne@anneedgarphoto.com

 

Any & all questions are always welcome, contact us any time for more information.