What a beautiful evening at Webster Park and a fun time with one of my favorite families!

{A little trivia -  Jason built my custom vanity cabinet in my fancy newly renovated bathroom!}

The Smiths are a lovely family with 5 grandsons! How amazing is that. I feel sorry for the next baby if she is a girl. She’ll be a tough little girl, that’s for sure. These 5 boys were just a complete blast though. Not only did all of my tricks work on them, but they also were friendly to me right away. Most little kids aren’t as warm and open upon our very first meeting, so this really helped the portrait session go smoothly.

We were all laughs and chases and tackling, including myself. At one point, I think I had 4 of the 5 boys jump on my back. I tried to take a picture, because it must have looked hilarious… the portrait photographer getting really ‘into’ her work…

Anyway, here are my favorites from the multiple family portrait session. I love the life and reality of these images… these are the types of images I wish I had of my family growing up. My biggest memory of my Dad was wrestling with him after he got home from work!

Everyone I met was full of smiles smiles smiles! It was also fun to be at a wedding with a bunch of children. They added a really great element to the day and the flower girls were too cute! Lisa is one of the most ripped Brides I’ve seen in a while and you can clearly see she is a swimmer by those ‘guns’ of hers! She and Phil were really playful together and he seems to really enjoy making her laugh. They are an inspiration in their light hearted approach to life and love. It was an honor to spend the day stalking them, I mean photographing them. Have a great time on your honeymoon! I’m SO wishing I could bike around Spain too!

The day got off to a decent start for most. I’m noticing a trend this year…. somehow it is always the Groomsmen that are late/delayed/detained/bleeding. Most of my pre-wedding portrait time was taken away, however thanks to super organized (and attentive) families, we were able to get all the formal portraits we wanted and more. I kept feeling like I didn’t have the time I needed, however Zack from the Plantation Party House said I was right on schedule. So long as he wasn’t waiting on me to finish, I feel good. I do have to say, it was refreshing to work at a location where the coordinator was present and helpful. I was able to do my job smoothly because he was doing a great job at his. I was also surprised that he kept checking with all of the vendors to be sure we were all on the same page and to see if we needed anything! That is so rare!

Anyway, everything went smoothly for me because of his professionalism. Everyone involved was a true professional. From the florist to the bartenders to the band. Hopefully Lisa and Phil feel the same way. Obviously I see a lot of behind the scenes stuff and meet a lot of the other vendors, so I have an interesting perspective. All I know is that the dance floor was packed all night long, the bar was full and the desserts were devoured.

Vendors:

Plantation Party House

Orient Express Band

Arjuna Florist

Roc City Photo Booths

Designed Elegance Pastry Shoppe

Summer has been a busy one this year, even though my weddings have been spread out pretty evenly… One of the activities that is keeping my occupied is being President of the Greater Rochester Professional Photographers (GRPP).  Well, every August we all take our regular meeting night and turn it into a fun summer picnic! Since we have several outdoors-y folks (including me!) in our group, Sue and I thought that this year we would all go kayaking! So, several of us met up at the Bay Creek Paddling Center for an hour of kayaking before heading over to Ellison Park for our evening picnic. It was a super fun night full of games and fellow photogs. I haven’t been kayaking since my trip to Alaska in 2006, so this was a great teaser for me and motivator to get out on the water!

A SUPER special thanks to our grillmaster, Bruce Hahn from Hahn Photographic!! Not only is he always going above and beyond for us with our photographic equipment needs, but also for our stomach needs! Special thanks to our amazing and awesome Program Chair, Sue Egan, for organizing this outing and all of our other meetings this year! Sue, you kick butt and take names in this job!!

Fun, yet hot and sticky senior portrait session in Rochester, NY for Churchville High School Senior, Keighley! We took some classic and some creative images for this beautiful senior!

When Melissa & Jordan entered their decorated barn reception at Hurd Orchards Farm, Melissa kept saying “I can’t believe this is MY wedding!!”… I think that just about sums it up for everyone in attendance.

Jordan and Melissa have been a dream to work with and I am completely honored and amazed that this is my job… to photograph the wedding of such an amazing and inspiring couple! From their Fall engagement portraits to the very end of their vintage barn wedding, these two just ooze love and contentment. Their family and friends were no exception. Several people came up to me to just chat and tell me how fun the Engagement Guestbook was to look through. So flattering and so nice to feel appreciated and noticed.

Another thing people were raving about was the food! Comments like “my teenage son loved the food” and “why don’t my salads taste this good?” were heard all night long. I hope Sue and Amy from Hurd Orchards realize how much people appreciated their custom preparation, handmade, homemade approach to wedding dishes. Part of the joy in this food is that nearly every single piece was grown, prepared and cooked on location at Hurd Orchards! From the gorgeous floral arrangements to the dessert. There isn’t much more you can do to have a slow food, sustainable, locovore wedding than that!

So, I could just keep raving about all of the details, however I’ll let Melissa tell you about her dress, DJ Fine Wine and all the rest! Just too much to say!! So, without further ado, here are the teasers from the wedding… (How do I have 90 teaser images???? YIKES!)…

Heather McKay of McKay’s Photography in Rochester, NY has earned the Certified Professional Photographer (CPP) designation from the Professional Photographers of America Certification Commission.

McKay earned this designation after meeting rigorous requirements measuring her artistic and technical competence. The Professional Photographic Certification Commission currently recognizes less than 2,000 Certified Professional Photographers.

The Professional Photographic Certification Commission is the leading body for certifying imaging professionals. Certified Professional Photographer must complete a written examination, an image evaluation, and adhere to a stringent code of conduct. Certification must be renewed on a periodic basis, ensuring continuing confidence in the professionalism of Certified Professional Photographers.

For more information:
Heather L. McKay
585.244.4866
www.mckaysphotography.com

Here are the final images that were submitted to obtain certification. A VERY special “thank you” to all of my customers, not just the ones pictured. Without your love, support and business, I would not have the life that I do, the job that I love and the ability to continue to learn and grow and explore at each of your functions. Thank you for opening up to my lens, trusting me as a person and a business woman. You all make my images a success and in turn, myself a success!

You see, I had to be in Albany for a PPSNYS Council meeting on Monday and then back up in the Adirondacks on Friday for Sean and Brittany’s rustic and green wedding, so why drive back and forth? Luckily, a Photographer friend recommended a hotel and camp on the Fourth Lake that was perfect. No internet, spotty cell phone reception, plenty of hiking trails and swimming in the lake right out the front door. I even got to practice my banjo. Ah, peaceful. Of course, I still had a lot of work to do and brought some wediting (wedding editing) as well as a conference call that I needed to participate in…. All in all, it was a beautiful week and nice to sit quietly alone in contemplation before the next busy wave in my schedule! Here are just a few images from my daily hikes around the ADK!

Sean and Brittany ended up with a gorgeous blue sky for their evening wedding at the Wild Center in Tupper Lake, NY. We began the day skateboarding at the local skate park (yes, Tupper Lake actually has one!) and ended the evening with a beautiful moody sky and a hint of a sunset. The rehearsal dinner was a BBQ at Brittany’s parent’s cabin on the Racquette River and the girls headed out to the local Metal Festival for an impromptu bachelorette party!

Other highlights of the wedding were the awesome CoCo, with flowery collar and garter… Brittany’s sister, Tara, who is 8 months pregnant and on bed rest was in attendance via video chat!…. a birch tree theme… my very first Bride and Groom in attendance… and the most on the ball Groomsmen that I’ve worked with in a long time! Instead of a regular DJ, Brittany’s long time friend took over and did an awesome job mixing all sorts of genres/decades/styles. Well done!

Random trivia… Sean is an artist and he painted the former mural in my bathroom as well as drew the graphics on one of my banjos! Also, Brittany interned at the Wild Center one summer, teaching about moss…

It was an honor to be the Photographer and unofficial wedding coordinator for this event. Sean and Brittany have an amazing relationship and are so content with each other that it makes me smile. After knowing Sean for almost 10 years, it gave me great pleasure to see him get married to his best friend!

Rochester, NY Wedding Photography Studio, McKay’s Photography, has been featured in Buffalo Spree Magazine’s Wedding Issue with Alison and Trevor at Hurd Orchards:

Greener Photography’s Spotlight on a Member:

and Professional Photographers of America‘s article on hiring a Professional Wedding Photographer!

I am more than honored, amazed and grateful for all of the attention! I want to thank Dawn Sullivan for participating in the PPA article about why you should hire a Professional Wedding Photographer. As well as Alison Zero Jones, for not only having one heck of an eco-friendly and awesome wedding, but also for getting your wedding featured in the Buffalo Spree Magazine. Not only was our wedding the first featured, my images were on the Table of Contents, the title page for the Wedding section and clearly the largest article of the featured weddings.

The only one I didn’t mention was an article about my good friend’s coffee shop / photo studio in PA in the Professional Photographers Magazine by PPA. One of my images that was taken of their coffee made it into the magazine a few months back. Totally cool to see my work in print!

I was a little surprised that she was so comfortable in front of the camera since she is a budding Photographer herself. It was good for me to step up my game with lenses and lighting to be sure that I provided them with images that she could never do herself. I’m pretty sure I got sand in my camera bag as well as all over my clean jeans, but these images were totally worth it!

This is one of those locations that I’ve scouted out on my weekly bike rides (including that morning) and I was so pleased with the results. Shawn and Julia recently acquired a sailboat, so I thought the marina was a great location for the two of them. Someone recently said that I manage to make Rochester look cool… maybe that is because I think Rochester is awesome!! Beauty in the eye of the beholder and all of that….

Anyway, I can not wait to photograph Julia & Shawn’s wedding this Fall and put together their Engagement Session Guestbook, which have been a big hit at this year’s wedding receptions!

These images are already online in their web gallery, so have fun looking through them…. however here are my absolute faves from the portrait session…

There were more tears than rain drops, that is for sure. Molly’s Father gave a very touching and entertaining toast, which showcased his view of the beginnings of their relationship. I love hearing all of the stories about how couples get started, as well as the proposal. After all, by the time I see these two, it is near the end of the movie when everyone lives happily ever after. Aside from the humidity, the day was beautiful. Everyone seemed to enjoy the weather outside better than inside and the cloudy, moody sky was worth grabbing the Bride and Groom for some more images…

Oh, and take some fun and funky photographs we did! *sigh* I love love love my couples. Molly and Eddie floated right to the top after they handed me some of the funniest and silliest images! What a way to use a romantic sunset, than to do the cabbage patch and to wrestle each other. My favorite part was getting Molly onto the ground. Damp ground, mind you. She is so hardcore that she really didn’t care about the dress at all. And it paid off. I love those images and her dress was perfectly fine when she got up! Sometimes not worrying so much, is indeed the key. Who needs a Trash the Dress session, when I get my Brides to do more on their real wedding day?

Super duper special Thank You to the excellent, Mr. Patrick Luke, Certified Professional Photographer for being my second Photographer for the day. He came in handy more than a few times and I am honored that he would spend his Saturday with me. His images were a classic and timeless addition to my fun and candid overly fish eye way of shooting. He also made an excellent lighting guru for the day.

An even bigger Thank You to Molly, Eddie and their families for opening up to my camera, showing me the love that you all have to offer. With clients like you, I am continually challenged, grateful, honored, amused and blessed. Good luck with your new home and have a blast on your honeymoon! The rest of the images (and there are MANY) will be ready in about a month….

The officiant or “reverend” as we like calling him was none other than Dr. Garrett Johnson… or Sparky as he is better known. Garrett is such a big part of Jerry & Mimi’s life that their dog is named after him! Dr. Johnson works for Apple and he had the nifty new iPad with all his wedding info on it. At first, I thought this was hilarious… until I saw how insanely helpful it was! Not only did Mimi & Jerry send their vows to him via email, then he just turned the iPad so they could read them, but also it looks a heck of a lot better in my images than a giant white binder that is usually in the way and with papers falling out. Typically, this is what I see at weddings. I’m a fan now and am totally digging on the iPad!

Garrett was the first friend I made when I went to Orientation for the Rochester Institute of Technology way back in 1992. Garrett and Jerry were randomly assigned roommates in the dorms and the rest as they say, is history. It is amazing that after all these years, this group of guys is still so close. Many of the guys in attendance were on my floor freshman year. Amazing. Anyway, for all of these reasons, it was an honor to be there and to see everyone.

There really is too much to say about The Morey’s wedding, so I’ll end here. All I really can say is that both families were amazingly open and friendly and it was just such an honor, joy and pleasure to be able to document these two tying the knot! My best wishes to them both and safe travels on their honeymoon in Greece!

Much much love to you both!

~ Kamay

Deena and Brad were one of my very earliest Bride and Grooms, so this was an amazing opportunity to be able to photograph their growing family! My trip to DC was the perfect opportunity! Lucky for all of us, Brad’s sister and her family were also visiting so we were able to get images of all of the kids playing together…

Little Daria is only 5 months old, so she will have one heck of a time with 3 older boys to play with as she grows up. Luckily, they are all super fun and great kids. Brennan and Owen clearly are best buds and they were mesmerized by my camera. We laughed and laughed on the swing set. When Daria was fed and changed we took her inside for her own little photo shoot. No sooner did we get her naked did she pee on the bed. Awesome. You know, it is so worth it though because not much is cuter than little chubby naked babies!

We attempted a few group photos, but NONE of the kids were having it, as you can see from the above image. It is amazing that I am ever able to get any images of kids looking at the camera, since it just isn’t in their nature. This is why I like to let them just run around and be the kids that they are. I have the added bonus of laughing my head off at them too…

This past weekend, I was in our nation’s capital for several days. If I owe you an email or something else… this is why!!

It seemed that everyone I’ve ever met was in DC for the weekend too. Thursday, I drove down via PA and stopped in State College for lunch with Tammy Wolfe and Tamar London from London / Wolfe Photography. These two are awesome and they gave me a giant bag of their coffee! Yum! Later, when I arrived in DC I met up with one of my old High School friends, April, who was there for a conference! Lucky for me, because the apartment that I was supposed to stay at fell through. I would have been homeless if it weren’t for her. Well, I was super tired from the LONG drive and I left my car in a weird garage downtown that seemed odd and was several blocks from the hotel. I barely slept because I didn’t think I would ever find my car again. Well, in the morning I went back to the corner I wrote down and looked all over for this garage. I walked all around many blocks in the blazing heat looking and looking. I met several nice garage attendants that were helping me find the right one. I passed just about every major tourist attraction in the process as well! If I wasn’t so hot and stressed, it would have been fun. FINALLY, I found the cheese shop that I remember was directly across from the door I exited through the night before! Yay! Well, I didn’t see any garage, but I saw a fancy lobby that looked vaguely familiar… I walked through the doors and found some elevators. Those looked familiar too. So I go in and suddenly the B4 that I had written down along with the car info made sense! So, I was in the right place. Found my car. Still a weird garage! They should HAVE to hand out tickets when you enter…

Anyway, I get the car, exit the garage, and figure out where I am…. under the famous Ford Theater!! That would have been a helpful landmark to have noticed when I parked my car at midnight! Wow, and I wasn’t even drinking.

OK, so at this point, I’m tired, sweaty and homeless again. I decided to go find the hotel that the wedding will be held in and see if they have open/inexpensive rooms. The parking garage for the hotel is like a speak-easy, and impossible to find, so I park at a metered spot for an hour. The hotel is nice and has a room that I can stay in for both nights, so I check in. I also walk around a bit to scope out possible locations for the Bridal Party images the next day. The area around the L’enfant Plaza is UGLY. Wow, Jerry and Mimi were right! However, a few blocks down the street is the Smithsonian! Gorgeous. Would be a HOT walk though and I’m thinking it is out of the question.

So, I get back to the hotel, check in, dump all my stuff, change again and call the Motorcycle Man, who is in town visiting his girlfriend! Thanks to Facebook, we had planned to hang out for lunch. So, I find my car, see that I have a parking ticket (I was 2 minutes late!), find the garage, get on the metro and head towards the Pentagon. Yet another DC landmark that I did not get to see this weekend. Lunch was good and it was great to see Curt and Allison. I head back just in time to relax for a few minutes before the Rehearsal begins.

You know, as soon as all of my friends showed up for the Rehearsal at the hotel… everything starts to click and the stress just leaves me. Amazing what being around the people you love will do. Jerry & Mimi’s Rehearsal went fine and I helped them sort out logistics of the ceremony before the hotel’s coordinator showed up. After that, we all went over to Jerry & Mimi’s for a backyard cookout. I was already exhausted, so I mostly relaxed and chatted with everyone.

The rest of this story is to be continued….. A separate post for the wedding and a separate post for the Portrait Session I did for Deena & Brad on Saturday morning!! Both were super fun!

Daniela and Brad both hate getting their picture taken, but you really can’t tell here! They are both naturals! Brad kept cracking me up with all of the silly faces he makes to get Daniela to giggle and I think we’ll have to do a series of them…

My favorite part of the session was that Brad kept offering to break into the buildings for me… if only all of my clients thought breaking and entering was appropriate for my photo shoots! Ah, the mayhem we could cause. Thankfully, as we were leaving, they both said the photo shoot was a lot easier than they expected and that it was fun! Exactly what I like to hear!

I am so excited to be the chosen Photographer for their wedding this Fall at Bristol Harbour! It will be an honor and a pleasure!

Sure, today’s affordable digital cameras can make anyone seem like a good photographer. But there’s a lot more to getting the wedding photos you want and deserve than just pointing and shooting. After this most important and special of days, it will be your wedding albums and pictures that you turn to time and again to remember and cherish those once-in-a-lifetime moments. Choose your photographer as carefully as you’ve planned every other detail of your wedding, and you’ll still be enjoying those images years from now.

To help, we’ve put together a list of ten critical aspects of wedding photography you should know and understand, along with some of the most important questions you should ask prospective photographers to help you make your final decision.

#10    Professional Fees: What are your fees? Do you charge a flat rate for the day, or do you charge by the hour? What about travel time, overtime, and editing rounds? Are there other potential costs I should know about?

I charge a flat fee for up to 8 hours, because I have found that is the proper amount of coverage needed for about 90% of weddings. Additional hours are available. My fee covers myself as your main Photographer, a press-printed proof book with all images, a personalized web gallery for viewing/ordering as well as high level customer service and wedding planning brainstorming. Occasionally, I will bring another photographer, depending upon the wedding dynamics. Travel outside of Monroe County is typically $50/hour for driving. I edit all images after the wedding, during my initial round and only do retouching on purchased images.

Post-wedding, the costs will be completely up to you…. albums, prints, gifts, calendars, tote bags, canvas wall collages, etc. McKay’s Photography offers gift certificates and I recommend that you add my services to your registry.

#9    Format: Do you shoot with film, or capture digital images? Tell me why you choose one over the other.  If you capture digital images, what steps do you take to preserve the digital files for the long-term?  How soon after the images are taken are the media cards backed-up. What steps do you take to protect against data loss?

I shoot completely professional grade Nikon and Fuji cameras and lenses. I used to love the simplicity of film, however now I love the challenge and creativity with digital. Digital is not ‘free’ as I often hear from amateurs that are out there shooting weddings for friends. I spend a LOT more money now that I have gone digital. I need new cameras and computers and hard drives every 3 years at best. Last year, I spent $1000 just on a hard drive backup device. This is pretty cool though! If a drive in it fails, then I can just get a new drive and the device will automatically figure out what needs to be repaired and replaced. No lost data and no lost time sorting out ‘what was on that drive?’.

My workflow after the wedding is this: I get home, open a beer, open Aperture (my editing software), import the first media card into Aperture and the original files get copied directly to my HD backup device. While they are importing, I can go through the thumbnails to see exactly how the images came out and start to visualize what I’ll do with them. Also, while they are importing I lay down on my yoga log to put my back into a straight line again! When the first card is finished importing/saving to drive, then I back those images up onto a DVD. Repeat process for all cards. I usually go to bed around 1 AM… but you know, even though nothing could happen to the cards while I’m sleeping, I really can’t go to bed first and do this in the morning.

In addition to the backups on my main hard drive and the DVDs, I also backup everything in both places again when I have edited the images down and for quality. The final images you see online/in proofbook are all backed up too. As well as the album design. Heaven forbid your album get damaged down the road, I can pull those files and have a new album made for you, for significantly less than the original! Then, at the end of each wedding season, I copy everything from my main hard drive to another separate drive as another redundant backup.

#8    Equipment: What kind of camera do you use?  Do you use any equipment that requires flashes or special arrangements for lighting?  Are you able to provide equipment for black and white, or special effects?

I find this question a little silly, if asking someone who does this for a living. Obviously I use all professional grade camera gear, have backup gear, many different lenses, flashes, etc. Only the ‘friend with a good camera’ needs this question. The real issue is that this is just a tool to get the job done. I could take your friend’s lesser camera and get great shots with it because you are hiring ME and my experience and my style of shooting and seeing light, as well as my ability to handle all the personalities and posing issues at a wedding. As for flashes and lighting.. the same applies. As a professional, I am constantly playing with fancy lighting techniques, learning classical portraiture, etc. Also, some locations are different than others. I shoot available light as much as possible. You should be able to see this in the Photographer’s work immediately as a consumer. That being said, I don’t do selective color (where the image is B&W, except one thing), and I do provide a LOT of B&W images.

Here are perfect examples of the concept that the camera does NOT matter!

I took these to illustrate the difference between knowing lighting and posing and being too candid or amateur…. In the first image, we can see Anna as she is normally: she HATES getting her photo taken and always makes this face! (um, Anna… this is why your photos look silly… stop making that face!). Anyway, the second image shows what happens when you hire a professional photographer… A tiny amount of posing on my part and placing her in great light and viola! GORGEOUS ANNA, the way her friends and family really see her! Same girl, same day, same camera… even the same photographer (just to prove a point to you and her)…. the third image is a candid that tells a story…

#7    Collaboration: Will I be working with you or someone else on your staff? Do you work with an assistant? Can we work together to make sure you get all the shots I want? What is the process for reviewing, selecting, and editing the final images for the album, enlargements, and print sets?

I will be your Photographer. If I bring a second Photographer with me, they will be someone of similar level of skill and quality (other professional photographers). I do not use traditional assistants because I find them highly distracting. You are hiring me for my skill and image quality, so bringing a hobbyist that wants to learn how to do weddings is my paying them for their education. That being said, I am always on the lookout for a good assistant…. I just prefer they carry my lights, tripod, etc.

We will work very closely together PRIOR to the wedding day so that you and I both know exactly how the structure of the day will go, which images are ‘must haves’ and which ones are extras that we will try to capture at the reception. The only thing to keep in mind is that if you are handing me a list of images I have to get, then I’m not able to walk around and discover.

People don’t hire me for my formals. Anyone can group a few people together and get them to look at the camera. You are hiring me for my disarming personality and for my ability to capture personalities in great light. If you let me do my job, then I will be more creative, more fresh, more productive. This is also the difference between someone with years of experience and a newbie. I already know what the ‘must have’ shots are and know what challenges there are to capturing them. I also know which images end up purchased or in an album and which ones aren’t important the day after your wedding. I also have a great sense of who you are and what is important to YOU, not some bridal magazine. I work for you… or rather, I work with you to create great images that last. Collaboration is a great word. Without you, I would have nothing.

#6    Deliverables: In what format do you deliver the proofs? Do you provide an album, CD, and prints as final products? How many and what size? What packages do you offer, and what will I pay for additional items not included? Are negatives or image rights included in your costs?

I find that most couples are completely overwhelmed with the process because there are so many options and all Photographers are different. Honestly, you have no idea what you actually want yet. The bridal websites tell you what you think you need, but really each couple is different. The only people who really need the digital files are graphic designers. Even they never actually get around to producing their own wedding album! My designer still hasn’t done hers! The Digital Negatives (DNG) are available for purchase at any time, however almost every couple earns this from me. If you order an album during the winter for $1000 or more, I will give you the files upon completion of the album. What I have found is that couples really just want the files for posterity, a random printing of a 4×6 here and there and also because they are told to want them. Photographers don’t value these enough either. If I charge $600 for a DVD of 800 images, then that is only $0.75 per image! Surely the editing and backing up alone is worth more than that.

Please look at this from other perspectives… Will you EVER actually sit down and design your album? Will you continually backup those images as technology changes so that your great grandchildren can see them? What about printing? Even a lot of Photographers aren’t color correcting their images correctly… how will you know if it looks right? When you buy a print from me, you are not paying for the piece of paper it is printed on… you are paying for the image because you couldn’t take it yourself. You are paying for my expertise. I don’t have my accountant gather my receipts for me and then I sit down and do my taxes… It is the other way around! I’m paying him because he is a professional accountant. He knows better than I do. Why would a Photographer be any different?

#5    Time: What is the maximum amount of time I will wait to see proofs? Once I’ve selected my pictures, how long will it take for final delivery of all printed products?

Typically I have my weddings finished and delivered a month after your wedding, however my favorite highlights of the day are on my BLOG and Facebook a day or two after.. as a teaser!

Prints are delivered two weeks after ordering. Albums can take up to three months, however I am usually the one waiting on you with regard to albums…

#4    Quality: Do you develop or print the final pictures in-house, or do you work with a professional lab? If in-house, what kind of equipment do you use? What do you do to make sure my pictures don’t fade?

I do all of my own editing and post-production, then I have a professional photo lab print it for me. My experience working at a photo lab for over 10 years has given me extremely high standards for quality and I take this very seriously on your behalf. These images are not just for you, today. They are also for your kids, your grandkids and that distant cousin, the genealogist. Also, all orders come to me and are inspected before they are shipped to you.

#3    Style: What is your artistic style? Do you shoot traditional poses, or have a more photojournalistic approach, or, is it mixed? Do you like to shoot in the studio, as well as on the wedding day? If you stage shots or group portraits, how do you manage distracted or uncooperative subjects or guests?  Can I see examples of an entire wedding day shoot to see how you might tell a wedding day “story”?

Hopefully you can see my style from my web galleries and my BLOG posts. I keep two words in mind when picking images for my website: fun and photojournalistic! Photojournalism is talking about capturing “moments,” “emotion,” “storytelling” and candids. At the top of my BLOG there is a link for all active galleries where you can see entire sessions and weddings. I will be happy to send you one that is similar to your day. As for the posed group shots, you will learn that I have a TON of tricks up my sleeve that ‘handle’ difficult participants or guests… that gets back to the experience that I was talking about earlier. The more important perspective to have is that they are your guests and this is their day too. If I was a guest at a friend’s wedding, I would want to be able to get a great image of the B&G for myself too.

#2    Experience: How long have you been photographing weddings?  How long have you been in business? Can you provide references? Can I view some of your albums? Tell me about the worst wedding photography nightmare you’ve experienced, and how you got through it.

I have been a Photographer since I was in Junior High School, went to the Rochester Institute of Technology, worked at a photo lab for 10+ years and have been professionally photographing weddings since 2002. If you want to see what my past clients think of me and my work, check out my Facebook Page! My clients are very active there and you can contact any of them for a referral.

The worst wedding nightmare for me was my first “real” wedding (first one that found me through advertising and not a friend). It was the hardest day of my life and really taught me how to ‘swim’ so to speak. After that, I realized exactly what I still needed to learn about myself, weddings, posing, gear, etc. It was a great learning experience and taught me that I am very calm in a crisis. The B&G had NO idea about all of the problems that day and the images came out amazing. I have learned since that many ‘problems’ are usually blessings in disguise.

And perhaps the most important thing you need to discuss with your photographer …

# 1    Assurances: How do you ensure my satisfaction? What are your backup plans in the event you’re late or called away by an emergency?  What happens if there’s an equipment failure, or some other unforeseen issue? Do you carry liability insurance? Can I get all of the points we’ve covered in a written contractual agreement?

This is again where being a professional and being part of professional organizations is imperative! I am very connected to the Rochester Photographic community and have a number of close friends I could call on if needed. That being said, it would take A LOT for me to not be there at all. I’m too much of a control freak and also, even if someone died (other than me), what would I be able to do about it?? As for gear, same applies. I’m friendly with a camera shop in town and I know in a pinch he would bring something to me if needed, or I could call a photog friend. I’ve done this for people too. I believe in sharing… skill, etc.  Also, I do have liability insurance and the PPA has all sorts of support for you and I in case something goes terribly wrong.

Do not take “no” for an answer to that last question! A written contract signed by all parties protects you and the photographer, and does more to ensure your wedding photo bliss than any other action or decision you can make.

See the Difference

Professional photographers have unique skills and training in the artistry, as well as the technology, of creating beautiful wedding images that reflect exactly the image you want to portray.  And wonderful wedding photography goes beyond the actual shoot itself to the products you’ll want to own.  Before you sign on the dotted line, make sure your photographer is well-versed in creating and delivering the total package that will make you happy long after your big day is over.

We recommend interviewing multiple photographers—and don’t forget, chemistry is important as well.  Your photographer will spend this most important day in very close contact with you, your wedding party and your guests, so make sure you interview several photographers and after you’re satisfied that all of the above is in order, pick someone who you will want to share in your wedding day.

This is true, however it is not just the day! You and I will be working together for two whole years, if not more! Keep this in mind when looking at personality as well as price. You may have some magical budget that you pulled out of thin air, but I have done the math on how much time and energy I spend on getting you as a client, keeping you happy and supported during the wedding planning process, as well as after the wedding until the delivery of the album. Not to mention the fact that I then become your family photographer! There is no surprise (to me) that almost all of my friends were clients of mine first! Ask all of the other Photographers how many they keep in touch with. I know you are not shopping for a friend, but it shows the level of customer service and sheer respect that I have for you, your money and your investment in my business.

Here is an image to illustrate this post:

This is really cool! I photographed Jodi & Jeremy’s Wedding, Jodi’s pregnancy, her Trash the Dress and Little Mason at one year old!! I know that I will continue to work with Jodi through the years, even though her father is an excellent Photographer as well. We are working on building these heirloom canvas images of their growing family. I know they are trying to have a second child and Jodi has already told me that I will be scheduled to be there for the birth too. I LOVE this part of my job. Each year, her and I get better and better images together…. (I’m an idiot though, as her pregnancy canvas here is sideways, derr!). These were a surprise gift for Mother’s Day from Jeremy and Jodi cried…

We had a great time checking out the tulips, lilacs and magnolias in Highland Park. The sun was shining and the kids were in a great mood. They are getting just old enough to participate in the portrait session, so I’m able to use new tricks to get them to do what I need them to do. On the ride home, Tony called me the ‘child whisperer’ and I laughed. For me, kids are easy! However, I’m not invested like parents are. I’m not sleep deprived. I am only around the noise for a short time and can leave at anytime. For me, kids are FUN and parents are much more difficult. Luckily for all of us, this day was perfect and I feel like this was the best session we’ve done together yet!

OK, in all seriousness, Jeana has been my waitress for a few years now and I met her back when a bunch of my friends and I were going to the Tap and Mallet each Monday night to play Uno. Jeana was really great at reserving our table for us and coming up with witty names on the reservation card (the silliness was started by Chris). So, naturally I’m thinking in my head now that I should have treated all those dinners and beers as “advertising” and should be able to write it off on my taxes! Hah! If only I could write off beer!

And John, well he is the owner of John’s Tex Mex on South Ave. The only place north of Texas that has guacamole worth paying for! It is a great little restaurant in the South Wedge that feels a bit like Austin and makes me miss my friends and family back home. What is really cool about John is that he has the same background I do. He went to RIT for Photography and has assisted for wedding photographers. He knows about high end photographic printing and about the fish eye lens. It was surprising to be able to completely geek out with him when we met! It was also another reminder to get creative and fun with the images on his wedding day.

If anyone will appreciate something a little funky, it will be these two. And to think, they weren’t going to have a wedding photographer at all. I am SO glad that Jeana changed her mind! Hopefully after they see their wedding images, they will be happy they did!

So, the day…. The day was beautiful and sunny and the ceremony was on the deck out back. It was short and sweet and John’s vows were sweet and heartfelt. After they said ‘I do,’ John and Jeana filled up their custom beer mugs and we went outside for a few formal portraits. basically, we walked around the block and that was about it! Too much fun to be had that we couldn’t miss. The food was amazing and was all BBQ! I was happy to see some delicious vegetarian options, like BBQ tofu. During dinner I was able to catch up with a long lost friend, Luc Thiers! We had met on the movie set of “Smoking Laws” a few years ago.. right before he moved to Boston. It is good to have him back and great to see him doing well. Also there was Tim Brown, the Director of Photography for “Smoking Laws“. Tim was out on the deck interviewing the guests for advice or well wishes for the happy couple and everyone just mingled and had a great time. Anyway, the reception was fun and relaxed, without all of the formality of a regular wedding reception. Surprisingly, I was able to get a Tap and Mallet crew photo on the front steps and those are some of my favorite from the day! And right before I left, I snagged one of the yummy carrot cake cupcakes from Cheesy Eddie’s! Perfect day!

Congratulations to Jeana and John!! It was my pleasure working for you this time and I only hope I was able to bring as much joy to your life as you have brought to mine!

I love Rochester, with it’s unique and amazing wedding reception locations!

Typically this is where I run down the day, but really… there are so many pictures in my “highlights” blog post this time, that I’ll just let you look at them! All I can say is that neither of them ever stopped smiling!