WHY SHOULD WE CHOOSE ALEX AND JANET TO PHOTOGRAPH OUR WEDDING?
As full-time professional photographers, we have photographed hundreds of weddings across the UK. Our experience, commitment to you and our passion for our work means that you can relax in the knowledge that you are in capable hands and that we will do everything we can to provide you with a friendly, personal, professional service which is second to none. Most packages include coverage from the bridal preparations to the first dance or fireworks, ensuring that all the important moments of the most important day of your lives are captured for you to enjoy for a lifetime. As there are two of us, you can expect a larger selection of images from your wedding day than you may receive from a photographer working alone. Group photography is undertaken in a relaxed and friendly manner and because we work together, we aim to complete this in as short a time as possible so that you and your guests can enjoy your day to the full. We aim not only to document who was there and what happened, but to capture how you felt, the laughter and perhaps the tears - the very heartbeat of this most wonderful of days. If you would like two wedding photographers who are cheerful and enthusiastic, yet calm and relaxed, passionate about wedding photography and who have a great sense of humour too, we may well be the photographers for you. If you really like our work and consider your wedding photographs to be near the top of your list of priorities and if you have a sense of fun, then you are definitely for us. We restrict the number of wedding bookings we accept each year to ensure that our high standard of service and our level of creativity isn't compromised. This applies not only to the quality of the photographs we take and the time we spend with you on the wedding day itself but also to the skill and considerable time we invest in designing a truly unique wedding album, so that yours is absolutely perfect for you. Your album will not look like anyone else's - it will reflect your taste, your style and your once in a lifetime day. Another point worth considering - with us you really do get two professional photographers for the price of one!
WHY IS WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY SO EXPENSIVE?
It may seem so, but your wedding memories are not expensive - they are priceless! Our wedding photography packages represent exceptional value for money given our skill and the level of service you will receive from us. We are definitely not the cheapest, nor would we want to be, but we are certainly not the most expensive either. The cost of your wedding photography isn't just about the number of hours we work on your wedding day. It takes into account the time we spend with you beforehand, visiting your venues and consulting with you, processing your images after the wedding, uploading your previews to your online gallery, making slideshow discs and printing preview books for you, designing your album which can take at least two or three days, making any changes you request, ordering your album and prints and assembling it for you. Add to all this the huge investment we make in the best professional equipment available on the market, insurance, travel and the cost of training us to be the photographers we are today and you can see that actually, our prices are very reasonable. As weddings are so expensive, it can be tempting to cut back on this aspect of your wedding budget by allowing your photographs to be taken by a relative or a family friend. Please be very cautious - it may seem a good idea but you will have to live with the results long after you have forgotten how much money you saved. Professional photographers are skilled in taking great pictures in constantly changing circumstances, in different weather and lighting conditions, both indoors and out and often under considerable pressure. They are also experienced in dealing tactfully with large numbers of guests and getting their co-operation in order to secure your group photographs as quickly as possible. Another point to bear in mind is the question of back-up equipment should there be a malfunction. Although this happens very infrequently, professional wedding photographers carry the necessary back-up gear to ensure that if it does, it should only be a minor hiccup, rather than a major catastrophe.
A RELATIVE HAS OFFERED TO TAKE OUR WEDDING PHOTOS, IS THIS A GOOD IDEA?
Is the relative a skilled wedding photographer, able to cope in all circumstances, under pressure? Are they able to pose groups, couples and individuals attractively? Can they get a large number of guests from one location to another as quickly as possible? Can they cope with bad weather, changing lighting conditions and too little time and still produce good photographs? Do they have the creative ideas to produce images which are out of the ordinary? Can they work in every style in order to provide a storytelling set of images? Are they insured and do they have complete back-up equipment should the worst happen? How important are the memories of your wedding day? Would you like a beautiful, top quality wedding album of stunning photographs to treasure? It may seem like you can save a lot of money by allowing a friend or relative to take your wedding photographs and this is true, but so often when we speak to guests at weddings, we hear how they did this in order to save money, how disappointed they are with the results and how they wish they had hired a professional photographer. Professional wedding photography is a skill, taking years of training, experience and considerable investment. Our advice - employ a full-time professional and choose one who is a qualified member of a professional organisation, such as The Master Photographers Association.
YOU SEEM TO BE A LITTLE MORE EXPENSIVE THAT OTHER PHOTOGRAPHERS FOR THE SAME ALBUM, WHY?
Although most professional photographers have access to the same albums from the same manufucturers, this is where the similarity ends. This is particularly true with storybook albums where many photographers simply send your chosen images to the manufacturer and leave the album design completely up to them. We feel that this isn't the best approach for two reasons - the manufacturer uses sets of standard templates and incorporates your images into these, exactly as they do for the many thousands of other clients the world over. This results in everyone's album looking very similar. Secondly, the manufacturer limits the number of images which can be included over a given number of album pages unless the photographer, and subsequently the client, pays an additional fee for any extra images they want in the album. This approach can add significantly to the overall cost of a storybook package from a photographer who uses this system. We design, in house, every single storybook and contemporary album layout ourselves, totally from scratch, to suit each couple. We do not place a limit on the number of images in our storybooks and we do not charge extra over a certain number unless you decide that you would like to add pages, in which case there is a reasonable additional cost per extra page. With our Avanta, Contemporary and Premier matted albums, we include a generous number of album images within each package. We will invite you to preview your album layout before you commit yourselves and you can request any reasonable changes you want before we proceed further, without any additional cost to you. This means that nothing is left to chance and ensures that you will receive a stunning, storytelling, bespoke wedding album which will be exactly as you want it.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR STYLE OF PHOTOGRAPHY?
We prefer not to define our style, as during your wedding day we will shoot in whichever style best suits the circumstances at the time. We are skilled in working in all styles from classical to detail to reportage, so you will receive the best possible coverage from us. For instance, your ceremony, congratulations immediately afterwards, speeches and first dance will be photographed purely in reportage style but your family groups are likely to more traditional. You will receive a variety of images which typically include traditional, reportage, detail, informal and fun and your wedding day story wouldn't be complete without a selection of romantic images of the two of you together. We also love taking a few special bridal portraits which have a stylish, modern, fashion feel to them, if this appeals to you. As there are two of us, we aim to present you with a large collection of images in different styles. We will discuss your photography in detail with you a few weeks before your wedding so that you can let us know your preferences. Each wedding is treated as the unique and special occasion that it is and will be approached as such by us. Each couple is different and we welcome your input and ideas so that our photography is tailored to suit you.
ARE YOU QUALIFIED?
Alex is an award winning, fully qualified member of the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers. He is also a Master Photographer. This means that his work has been assessed by both professional organisations and has been endorsed by them as being to the standard required for a professional wedding photographer. The significance of this is easy to overlook when seeking out a photographer for your wedding, but it is something which is very important, as it gives you the assurance that you are employing the services of an established professional. Janet is also a member of both the Master Photographers Association and the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers.
ARE YOU INSURED?
As full time professionals, we are fully covered by professional indemnity, public liability and equipment insurance. We also carry complete back up equipment to every wedding, so in the unlikely event of a malfunction, we have a full range of the necessary gear to fall back on. Whilst on the subject of insurance and as weddings are so expensive, we strongly recommend that you take out your own insurance the protect yourselves and the huge investment you will inevitably make whilst planning your wedding, because if the worst should happen and you have to cancel or postpone it, you are likely to lose the deposits or booking fees that you have paid to reserve the services of your suppliers. You may be able to recover these fees on your own insurance, so it's well worth having.
IS THERE AN ADDITIONAL COST FOR TRAVEL?
Generally speaking, travel is included unless the distance is significant and we are happy to discuss this. We can work anywhere you ask us to so distance is no object. Sometimes an overnight stay is necessary, particularly for the night before the wedding. In these cases, there is a charge to cover modest overnight accommodation and additional mileage which we will agree with you in advance. For weddings abroad, we will be happy to discuss your requirements and provide you with a price quotation on request.
HOW LONG SHOULD WE ALLOW FOR PHOTOGRAPHS?
As long as possible ideally but as a guide, for a civil ceremony and reception at the same venue, please allow an absolute minimum of one and a half hours between the end of your ceremony and the time you are to begin your receiving line or when the first guests are to be seated for the meal. Two hours is preferable as it allows us time to cover the specific photographs you requested during our venue consultation, plus informal, fun and reportage shots. It also allows you time to have your photographs taken without being rushed and to mingle with your guests, resulting in a much more relaxing and enjoyable experience for everyone. For a church ceremony followed by a reception, a good guide is to allow a minimum of three hours from the start of your ceremony to the beginning of your receiving line or sitting down for the meal, plus travelling time between venues. It's worth overestimating this to take into account traffic or other delays or a late start to the ceremony. If we have planned to stop at a location between the church and the reception venue for additional photographs, time for this needs to be added. It's a good idea to check with us before finalising times with your venue as a very tight timeline can result in your photography being compromised and sometimes venues will set times which are suitable only from their point of view. If you have secured our services for the whole day, we will be happy to continue photography after your meal but it is best if family group photographs are completed earlier in the day when everyone looks their best, ties haven't slipped and flowers are still fresh. At some stage between the end of your meal and the beginning of your evening party, it's really nice to spend some time with us to enable us to create some special, relaxed, romantic photographs before your evening guests start to arrive.
WILL YOU PHOTOGRAPH OUR WEDDING CEREMONY?
We'd love to! It's the most important part of your big day. For a civil ceremony, it's often possible for us to take photographs from the front, one on the bride's side and one on the groom's. If you are having a church wedding, we prefer to work with one photographer at the front taking close-up shots using a long lens and the other taking longer shots from the centre of the aisle, near the back. That said, the person conducting the marriage is the boss and their attitudes to photography vary enormously, ranging from "No photographs whatsoever during the ceremony" to "You can do exactly as you want as long as you are discreet." We are very discreet, we don't move around, we don't use flash and we obviously prefer the latter response but it's vital that you speak to your registrar or minister well before the wedding day, so that if you are unhappy with their particular policy, you may have the chance to look elsewhere for someone who takes a more sympathetic view. When discussing this with them, please be specific as they can sometimes mislead you. Rather than asking if your photographer can take photographs in the church, which could be taken to mean that you want photographs in the church after the ceremony, ask something along the lines of "Can my photographer/photographers take photographs during the wedding ceremony itself, as it is very important to us that we have a record of this in our wedding album?"
WILL YOU TAKE GROUP PHOTOGRAPHS?
Absolutely! We understand how important these are to you and we will work as quickly as possible through your group photographs. However, we do need adequate time to do a great job for you and we recommend keeping these to a small number of the most important ones, which we will discuss with you before your wedding. We will know in advance who will be included on each group photograph, their names and their relationship to you and we aim to make the whole process as enjoyable as possible for everyone involved. If there is a suitable location at your venue, it's a good idea for us to take a big group shot of everyone attending your wedding, as it ensures that everyone is included on a photograph. This does depend on there being a high enough vantage point, such as an upstairs window or a balcony and, of course, the weather. Co-ordinating this particular shot can be time consuming and not all guests co-operate as willingly or as quickly as they should. This is where your attendants can really help us. Between them they are likely to know most people at your wedding and if they can arrange for everyone to move as quickly as possible to the location for the big group photograph, this will save time. They are also invaluble for making sure the guests required for each smaller group are close by and ready as the previous group is being photographed. Each group shot takes very little time to take, but if someone is missing, the photograph cannot be taken until that person is found. Helpful attendants really play a big part in making your wedding day run smoothly.
WHAT IF IT RAINS?
The one thing that no one can book - the great British weather. We'd be worth a fortune if we could! We've photographed weddings in numerous locations and in all weathers. If it's raining, you would be very unlucky if there wasn't a break in the weather at some point during the day, even for a few minutes. We will work indoors as much as possible, using the church and the locations inside your reception venue and we will keep an eye on things so that if we do get a lucky break, we can take advantage of it for some photographs outside. We have a selection of umbrellas, including white bridal brollies, which you are welcome to borrow and we can get some great photographs of you both cuddling or walking together under a white umbrella. It is difficult to take large group photographs in the majority of venues and you may have to accept that these can't be taken satisfactorily, unless your church has a balcony or your reception venue has a large, open, well lit staircase or an indoor gallery overlooking a large open area. If you have secured our services for the whole day, the weather is less of a problem as we will be with you for much longer, so this is something which is worth thinking about if you were planning on booking us for basic wedding coverage only. If you haven't yet booked your reception venue, we strongly advise you to ask the staff at the venues your are considering where we can take group photographs if the weather lets us down. Some venues have beautiful, spacious interiors where smaller group photographs can be completed easily. Others have very limited space available for photographs during bad weather and it is well worth checking this before committing yourselves. The best advice we can give you is this - you can't change the weather, but the most important thing on your wedding day is that you get married. Shrug your shoulders, smile, relax and have a fantastic day, confident in the knowledge that we will still get great photographs for you.
WILL YOU TAKE PHOTOGRAPHS OF OUR GUESTS AND SELL THEM PRINTS DURING THE EVENING?
We don't generally offer this service, although we know that some photographers do this and use it as a selling point when securing wedding bookings. We feel very strongly that we are employed by you to devote our day entirely to documenting your wedding celebrations and to providing you with the absolute best service we can. We feel that our time is put to best use photographing whatever is happening that is interesting or taking some beautiful shots of the two of you together. These will contribute to telling the story of your wedding day and are more likely to have a place in your wedding album and these are our top priorities. However, with your permission we have no problem whatsoever if any guests approach us to take a photograph of them. We are more than happy to do this as long as we have covered everything we need to for you first and when there are a few minutes to spare. Your guests will then be able to view the images online and order prints if they wish, without any pressure. After we have completed your wedding coverage, usually shortly after the first dance or fireworks, our priority is getting home and ensuring all your precious images are safely archived. We don't go to bed until this is done, regardless of the time.
CAN OUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS ORDER INDIVIDUAL PRINTS, PARENT ALBUMS AND FRAMED PRINTS?
Yes, they can. Individual prints in presentation folders can be ordered directly from us, through our online ordering service. A charge for postage is applied to online orders, but not to orders which come through you and which are collected by you. For large prints, framing, parent albums, canvas wraps and acrylics, these have to be collected directly from us. Information on all these items will be included in your preview pack but we are more than happy to meet with family members to discuss their individual requirements, if necessary.
WHO OWNS THE COPYRIGHT TO THE IMAGES?
Many people ask this question without really understanding why, simply because they've seen it in bridal magazines on the list of "Questions you should ask your photographer." By law, the person who created the image owns the copyright and this applies to all photographers, whether professional or otherwise. The question should perhaps be "Can we have a high resolution disc from which to make our own prints?" The answer to this is yes, you can. Although we will not relinquish our copyright, we can provide you with a disc along with a licence for you to print the images, at an additional cost and as an extra to your wedding photography package. The reason that we don't release our copyright is because we may want to use certain images in our advertising, on our website, at wedding fairs and sometimes in print competition. However, we respect our clients' right to privacy and we will seek their permission wherever possible before using any of their images in our publicity material.
HOW DO WE BOOK?
Please call or email us in the first instance to check our availability on your wedding date. We are sometimes booked by overseas clients purely on the content of our website and a follow up telephone conversation and often on personal recommendation or because the new client has seen us work at a wedding which they attended as a guest. However, if possible we recommend a meeting for an informal chat to discuss your wedding photography. This allows you plenty of time to ask any questions you have and gives you the chance to see a wider selection of our work, including complete sample wedding albums. After this, if you decide you would like to secure our services, we require a completed booking form which we will provide you with and a booking fee of £200. The booking fee is deducted from the price of your chosen package - it is not in addition to the package price. Please note - we are unable to hold dates without payment of the booking fee and your date is not secured until we have received this and a completed booking form, after which you will receive a written confirmation.
DO YOU CHARGE VAT?
As a full time professional photography business, A D Photography is registered for VAT. Our registration number is 938 3954 76. All our prices are inclusive of VAT at 17.5%. There are no hidden extras.
WHEN WILL OUR PREVIEWS BE READY?
We aim to have your images uploaded to a password protected, online gallery within two weeks of your wedding. This can sometimes take a little longer during high season. Your previews will usually be ready when you return from honeymoon or shortly afterwards depending upon our workload at the time. We ask that you call or email us on your return and we will then make arrangements with you either for collection or delivery of your previews.
DO WE HAVE TO CHOOSE OUR ALBUM IMAGES WHEN WE COLLECT OUR PREVIEWS?
No you don't, as we consider this to be a high pressure selling technique. When you collect your previews from us, we will explain how to go about choosing the images for your album and we will answer any other questions you have relating to this. The preview CD and preview book, if your package includes one, are yours to keep. You take them away with you and decide at your leisure which images will make up your album. When you are ready, please come back to us with your choices, whether this is a finalised layout as in our more traditional albums, or whether it is a list of images for us to use to design your layout for you, as in our contemporary albums and storybooks. We are here to help you every step of the way, so that you are one hundred percent delighted with finished wedding album.
IS THERE A CHARGE TO PUT OUR IMAGES ONLINE?
This service is provided to our wedding clients with our compliments. There is only a charge if you ask us to remove specific images from your online gallery.
WHICH WEDDING ALBUMS DO YOU USE?
We have a large range of albums in different styles to suit most tastes and budgets. Our albums are selected from some of the best manufacturers in the UK, Italy and Australia. We use Graphistudio of Italy to print and bind our storybook albums, as in our opinion, they are the best manufacturer of this style of album and offer the widest range of beautiful covers, plus parent copies and mini books. We can source more or less any album you want, so if you've fallen in love with one in particular and you know who the manufacturer is, we will do our best to obtain it for you at a competitive price.
HOW LONG WILL OUR WEDDING ALBUM TAKE?
This depends upon your choice of album and can range from about two or three weeks to approximately six to eight weeks from the time you approve the layout for those albums which are made outside the UK.
HOW LONG WILL YOU KEEP OUR IMAGES ON FILE?
We don't place a specific time limit on this and we keep all images on our working computer for at least a year following the wedding. After this time, we will remove them and archive them elsewhere to free up space on our main system. Please be assured that your images are safely stored in more than one place so that we can retrieve them if necessary. This also applies to storybook album designs, which are archived separately, so that in the unlikely event of your album being damaged or destroyed, we would be able to have it re-created for you.
