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Wedding Photography Frequiently Asked Questions (FAQs)

There is a lot to take in and get your head around when booking a wedding, especially when it comes to vooking the venue and the photographer! In fact, there are probably more questions than you realise to ask. Here are a wide range of questions that often get asked. 

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It is worth noting that I have put these here for your convenience - but I am happy to discuss any questions or concerns that you may have! Please feel free to contact me; I am netiher salesy or pushy - my passion is that people have their perfect wedding, irrespective of whether you book me. 

Wedding Questions

Here are the main questions that I get asked regarding my work on the main day itself.

Frequently asked questions

How long are you photographing on the day?

A lot of photographers state times, such as 8 hours for a wedding. I do not for one reason - I am there for the whole day! From getting ready in the morning to the party in the evening, I will be there taking photos of details, emotions all of the important moments. This means I do not like to restrict myself to a set time; I will often be part of your wedding day for 11 to 13 hours, depending on what you have planned. This attitude has gained me a reputation for being one of the hardest working photographers in the area!



What if you lose the photographs

This is a subject that I am very OCD about, as I have heard of some horror stories! On a wedding day I use multiple memory cards split throughout the day. If one is corrupted, I can normally recover the images, but worst case scenario is that I have many cards from multiple cameras. I also provide a selection of images on the day, which I upload to the cloud there and then. When I return, I upload all of the images to an external hard drive, and to secure cloud storage as a back up. The memory cards are not wiped until you have received your images. The hard drive images are never wiped, so the original files are always kept. On delivery of the images, you will receive a temporary (approximately 12 months) download link, a usb to keep, and an album on my website. Remember - if all 3 of those disappear, I will still have your original files on hard drive backup. I told you I am OCD!



When will we get the photos delivered?

Your wedding day is only the start - it is typically days and even week of solid work to process your images. Many photographers will take 3-6 months to provide images, which is a long time to wait when you are really excited! This is why I provide a small selection on the day - good enough quality for social media - so that you can see how amazing you looked on the day! I also have a reasonably quick turn around of images, I aim for about 4-6 weeks as a maximum time.



I am really uncomfortable with having my photo taken, how do I pose?

This may surprise you, but this is actually MY job to worry about it, not yours! I use a wide range of techniques that will help you get beautiful photographs. Most people that I work with do not like having their photo taken, but by the time they have spent a few minutes with me they will be having a real giggle and enjoying themselves. Remember, most people getting married are not models, its rare that I get someone who is comfortable in front of the camera! I pride myself on building fantastic relationships with all of my couples, so that you feel relaxed and will get stunning photographs of your wedding day.



I hate my body/I am too fat/I am too skinny/other?

Firstly, I disagree. You are beautiful as you are, male, female, trans, straight, gay, large, small, etc. I work with people with all sorts of different personalities and body shapes. Whether you are thin and straight or have a curvy body, I know the poses that will be most flattering to your shape. If you have concerns or specific things that you are worried about, please talk to me, there are ways and means! One of the reasons I provide engagement shoots for free as part of wedding packages is to help guide you and show you the most flattering way to pose so that you look your best on the big day. I am all about a positive body image - I do not just photoshop everyone to look the same - I would rather take photos that show you off in your natural beauty. If you do have specific changes you would like me to make, however, I do have the photoshop skills to edit photos.



How many photos will I get?

I take a lot of photos on the day! Things like groups shots tend to get a lot to try and avoid people blinking or making a weird expression - so I do think the photos out to the good ones. However, I do not limit the number of digital images that I supply to you. When I got married I noticed how many photographers specify 600 or 800 images. I do not - I try not to limit the photos to any number - if they are good I will process them and supply them. This is why many of my couples receive 1000+ images. There is no promise from me as such for a specific amount, but I do always provide a lot of photographs.



Will the photos be edited?

Some photographers just take the images out of the camera and apply the same settings to all, and then do the same thing in blank and white. I do not - I work on all of the images in a multiple stage process to make sure all of the images are processed to a high quality. Some images are more suited to black and white and some to colour - I use my experience to go through them and produce the highest quality. If there are specific images you would like in a certain way, I am more than happy to change them. In reality, I rarely get asked for edits to the photos that I produce. As a side note, there is a falicy that the images should be ready to go out of the camera. There is a very long technical reason for this (happy to chat about it all day but you won't want to read it!), but in short the images are photographed in RAW format and require some processing on them. The amount of work that goes into the photos depends on the images.



Engagement Questions

I get a lot of questions specifically around the engagement photoshoot. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions that I get!

Frequently asked questions

What clothes should I wear?

For ladies - the classic look is a floaty summer dress. That said, it is really down to the style of the couple, jeans and a jumper/top can look just as good in engagement photos. There are typically two looks I recommend, smart casual or smart. Smart casual, as a guide, would be what you would wear to dinner with friends/the in-laws. Smart would be the sort of thing you would wear to an evening wedding reception. For Guys - it tends to be a bit more simple - smart casual or very smart - his is typically to match what the partner is wearing. If you are going for smart casual, jeans/trousers, shoes and a shirt on top (that could be over a t-shirt). For smart, a full suit, with a tie (this may be removed). For everyone - its worth noting that we will typically be on location for your shoot, so there will likely be soft ground a short walk. I do not have you walking for miles in a bog, but it might be worth considering having something you can walk in, potentially with a change of shoes if you want to wear something smarter.



What make-up should I wear?

I typically say that less is more. Part of processing images involves working with skin, and actually it is better to be natural than thick with makeup, especially foundation. As a guide, I suggest what you would wear to Sunday church rather than a Saturday night out. It is worth bringing spare eye and lip makeup. Although it may be unnatural, it might be worth thinking about bringing a lip balm for the men!



Where should I have my photos taken?

I prefer quiet locations in the countryside, where you will not feel self conscious. If you have somewhere in mind, I am happy to work with you to shoot in your preferred choice.



I am really uncomfortable with having my photo taken, how do I pose?

This may surprise you, but this is actually MY job! I use a wide range of techniques that will help you get beautiful photographs. Most people that I work with are worried about having their photo taken, but by the time they have spent a few minutes with me they will be having a real giggle and enjoying themselves. Remember, most people getting married are not models, its rare that I get someone who is comfortable in front of the camera!



What happens if it is raining?

I typically prefer to try and do couple's shoots in the dry - it helps you to concentrate on the shoot and the images normally come out better too! I will stay in regular contact and if the weather is not looking great we can discuss if you want to reschedule. If you book a wedding quite near in the future, I will book in more than one date just in case, if possible.



I hate my body, I am too fat/skinny/other?

I work with people with all sorts of different body shapes. Whether you are thin and straight or have a curvy body, I know the poses that will be most flattering to your shape. One of the reasons I provide engagement shoots for free as part of wedding packages is to help guide you and show you the most flattering way to pose so that you look your best on the big day.



Wedding Packages

It is not always easy to know what you want, so I have created a number of wedding photography packages to suit your requirements. Not quite right? Talk to me about a bespoke package.

Wedding Portfolio

I have a lot of experience and will work with couples on the style and types of photos that they want. Check out some of my photographs, from getting ready through to the end of the day.

Engagement Photoshoots

Get to know me as your wedding photographer as well as learning about posing for your special day.  I provide free engagement photos as part of my wedding packages as they are so integral to the smooth running of the day.

Approved Suppliers

There are so many wedding suppliers out there, how do you know who is worth the money?

I have a lot of experience of the market, as well as getting first-hand experience of how they work with couples. See who I would recommend.

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©2021 by Jesse Lawrence of JLawrence Photography