The real value of wedding photography

Attending many Wedding Fayres throughout the year and speaking to prospective brides and grooms, we often hear people say "but it's only a few hours during the day, why so much?"

Whilst others will say "Wow, all that for that price, that's really good value."

The value of photography is different to many people.  If you are getting married and wondering whether to book a professional photographer or not, then here are a few questions you need to ask yourselves:

1. How important are your family and friends to you and the memories you share?
2. Do you enjoy, or have your been fortunate enough, to look through old family photographs of relatives years ago, some of whom you never met - and got a real sense of belonging and pride?
3. Would you want your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren to be able to see you and your relatives as they are now, and share your Wedding Day with you in years to come?
4. Do you want a family record which is guaranteed to be around to pass down to generations to come?
5. Does it really make sense to spend the whole of your wedding budget on a beautiful dress, attire, venue, cakes, favors and decorations and not be able to record the actual meaning of the day for ever?

If you have read the above and are still not convinced that any of it is that important, then save your money and get a few images from friends and family - there's nothing wrong with this if other things are more important to you.

However, if you have read the above and realised that keeping the memories of your Wedding Day and recording your story for generations to come is important to you, then please, please do not cut back on a professional wedding photographer - they really are worth their weight in gold.

So, where does your money actually go.

Let's discuss our Paphos Wedding Package as an example, just £1,500 gives you:

• Full day wedding photography coverage, including Bridal Preparation, Wedding Ceremony, arrival at Reception, Speeches and First Dance - approximately 14 hours of our time on the actual Wedding Day
• High Level re-touching/processing of images - approximately 14 hours of our time
• High Resolution of all wedding images from your on-line gallery, supplied on a Jewelled Memory Heart USB in a black presentation box - cost of Heart USB
• High Definition, beautiful animated slideshow of your favourite images to music (up to 20 minutes long) - approximately 2 hours design time
• Superior De-Lux Italian Digitally printed Album (16"x12"), 40 pages -up to 140 images - cost of Album plus approximately 8 hours design time 

So far, we have between 5 and 6 days work, plus costs for the Album and USB presentation of images. We also have our fixed costs of :

• Insurance - all professional wedding photographers should be insured for both professional indemnity and public liability insurance
• Back up equipment - we wouldn't dream of covering a wedding without 2 back up cameras, flashes, lenses, lighting, battery packs to name but a few
• Website hosting - your images will be available on a password protected gallery, so you can easily choose the images for your album and order extra prints
• IT equipment - PC and Software licences - we can't process your images, or supply you with HD animated slide show of your images, without reliable - and expensive - equipment.
• Tax and accountancy fees - yep, we have to pay it too

So, do we do this job hoping to get rich?  Absolutely not - the reality is that the hourly rate we earn covering a wedding is nowhere near what most people envisage.  We do it because of the people we meet, the emotions we share - and learn from - and the great joy we have when we can recreate your Special Day in your beautiful Wedding Album, to share with your loved ones for years to come.

That's the real value of wedding photography.

Here are a few memories of ours .....

Myths about copyright of images

When someone enquires about Wedding Photography, we get asked often “Can we have a copy of the images with the copyright?”

The answer is “yes” – to the digital copy of the images.    But “no” to the copyright. 

Here’s why….

The vast majority of professional photographers will never give the copyright with the images.  Under the Design and Patents Act 1988, the photographer owns the copyright from the moment the image is created.  

But don’t let this worry you too much.  Most photographers (and ColourStone Photography included) will provide you with a licence which allows you to print the images for personal use.

So why does the copyright remain with the photographer?  Well, imagine a marketing company is looking for a particular wedding shot, with particular lighting and background, and a specific “look” about the bride and groom – and your photographer has just taken that very photograph of you at your wedding.  The marketing company may offer a large sum of money for that very image.  Professional photographers earn their living by taking good photographs.  They have learned their art through hours and hours of training and practice.  When you hire a photographer, you pay for their creativity, their understanding of light and form and their ability to capture emotion. 

That marketing company needs to pay the photographer for that perfect image they have been looking for, if they want it.

So what about social media sites?  Your photographer has given you a DVD of images for printing for personal use.  You can upload them to Facebook too right?

Well, actually strictly speaking no – unless the licence you have been given specifies this.   Whilst most photographers do not currently get too stressed about this – although they really should - Facebook’s rules state that by uploading an image to Facebook the user allows Facebook to use that image in any way they wish.  So, your images could end up on sites you really don’t want them to, they can be altered, cropped and distributed freely and you will have no rights when you ask them not to.   Imagine your son or daughter’s image suddenly appearing on a Facebook advertisement without your permission. 

So, what do we do to ensure you can use your images in a safe way and get the prints you want?

With our wedding packages you may receive two sets of your wedding images.  One set, suitable for uploading to social media sites such as Facebook, will include a light watermark with the copyright information shown.  See this Facebook cover image for an example.  

The second set will be suitable for printing and will not include the watermark.  You will be given a licence stating you can use the watermarked images on social media sites and the un-watermarked images for printing, for personal use.

So, when booking your wedding photographer remember …

1.     If you are using a professional photographer, the copyright will almost always remain with the photographer.  If your photographer tells you that you will get the copyright with the images, then ask them for a signed contract at the time of booking.  The only way you will receive the copyright is if your photographer gives you a signed contract assigning the copyright to yourself – and most will not do this as they are possibly signing away their earning potential, and of course they need to know their work is being shown in a professional manner.

2. When choosing a wedding photographer, ask what licence they offer, rather than the copyright.   Check that you can print the images and also use them on social media sites.

Traditional, reportage or contemporary wedding photography?

Traditional, reportage or contemporary wedding photography?   Do you really know what style you want?

Everyone’s heard the phrases, but do you really know what’s involved on your wedding day to get those images you dream of?

Here, we look at three of the most talked about photography styles and tell you the things the wedding magazines don’t.

Traditional wedding photography

Traditional wedding photographs are those which you will find in your parents’ wedding album, with family groups including aunts, uncles, cousins, 2^nd cousins, 3^rd cousins …..   you get the idea.  These images will require input from your photographer and willing guests!  Ian will take some traditional images which your grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles will love – but he will also make sure these are a mix of formal poses and more relaxed images – so they won’t quite be the structured images your parents have.

It’s a good idea to let your guests know that they will be asked to join in for half an hour or so – we always try and get the group shots done first, so your guests can then go and relax and chat once we are finished, leaving you newlyweds to spend some time with Ian.

 

Reportage (photojournalistic) photography

Some Brides and Grooms are now requesting reportage photography – most of the time because they have read the wedding magazines and seen the latest informal, relaxed, beautiful photojournalistic images.    

However, what they don’t realise is many of these images are not true “off the cuff” images – we wish it were that simple!  Quite often the photographer has a lot more input into these images that you imagine.  Photographers who cover weddings in a true reportage or photojournalist style have vast experience and great skill.   Ian will always take some reportage style photographs during the day as this will ensure your whole day’s story can unfold in your Wedding Album.

 

 

Contemporary (fashion) photography

Especially for the Bride and Groom, this style of photography requires extensive input from the photographer, possibly with lighting and other accessories being required, all of which involves time.  Ian can offer this as part of your wedding package, but you must be prepared to set aside extra time away from your guests for these images.  The results are worth it!