Wedding Photography Price List And Breakdown
Your wedding photographs will be the longest lasting reminder of your wedding day. Long after the frozen top tier of wedding cake has been eaten, and as the anniversaries tick by, your wedding photographs will remain in frames and albums as constant reminders of the happy day that you got married.
It is no wonder then, that your wedding photography is one of the most important aspects of your wedding. Photographs can be formal, posed shots, or candid images documenting your day. You should spend time thinking about the style of photographs that you want, and try to find a photographer who you trust to capture the overall feel of your wedding. You should also choose a photographer who you get along well with, as they will be sharing some of the most intimate moments of your wedding day, and mingling amongst all of your guests.
The cost of wedding photography can vary from photographer to photographer, and choosing a package can be a complicated and difficult task. The key to making a good decision is deciphering the various elements that make up a price list.
A wedding photography price list can be full of technical jargon and fancy terms that seem unfamiliar and daunting to a bride. It can be a difficult task deciding whether Photographer A’s package deal offers better value for money than buying each item separately from Photographer B.
When looking into packages, you should always ask the photographer for a wedding photography price breakdown, itemizing exactly what is included in the package. Check if there are any extras that are not included that you may end up paying for, and make sure that the items that are most important to you are included.
You may know ahead of time, for example, that you will need the photographer for 3 hours, that you want a limited number of formal poses, and a few candid shots of people around the church. . If this is the case then you should pay close attention to the price of the photographer’s time. You may even have an idea of what kinds of prints you will want. If you love photos, and your walls are adorned with prints, and your shelves crammed with frames, then you will need to budget for buying several prints, maybe in larger sizes. You will do well examining the price list for prints. There is no point in buying a package that includes 6 hours, and no prints.
On the other hand, if you know you will only want one or two small prints of some special, artistic shots, then you will want to know that you are getting a photographer who can creatively capture moments at your wedding, and the price of images may not be so important.
Here are some key terms that you might find in a wedding event photography price list:
Deposit – this is the amount that you need to pay to secure the photographers services. The deposit may be a flat fee, or a percentage of the cost of your package, and is usually deducted from your overall spending. You should check the terms and conditions of any refund of this deposit if you need to cancel or postpone the wedding.
Retainer / Booking Fee – this is essentially the same as a deposit. It is the money required to hire the photographer. This money is rarely refundable, as you are paying for the photographer to reserve the date of your wedding, and potentially refuse other work on that day. This is why an initial payment is often called a fee, rather than a deposit.
Package – this is a rate that includes a variety of services, such as number of hours the photographer will work at the wedding and the number of images he will take. It may also include a limited number of prints. Be sure to check the details of a package carefully to understand what is included.
Proofs – these are low quality images of all or most of the images taken from your wedding. The photographer will usually discard the worst images that he feels are not up to his standard, and you will choose any prints that you want made from the proofs. Proofs do not have any retouching or enhancements, so do not make good final prints. Photographers may now provide digital proofs on a CD or an online web album for you to look at rather than hard-copy proofs.
Prints – these are your final images that have been professional retouched, enhanced for colour balance and sharpness, and printed out on specialty paper and inks for a high-quality, long lasting photograph. Larger prints may come on board or cardstock to protect them.
Bridal Portrait – some photographers will include a bridal portrait in their wedding package. This is a photography session of the bride, fully made up and in her dress, before the wedding, and may be done in a studio environment.
Albums – there are many, many different types of albums now available. Proofs may be presented in a simple album that you will have to return. Prints may be supplied in a traditional album, where the prints are put into sleeves, or stuck to the pages. More modern albums may involve printing the images in an artistic layout directly on to the pages for a custom wedding book.
Websites:
http://www.wedding-guide.org
http://photo.net
www.thenest.com