Author: Josh & Kristan

Choosing a Photographer Part #2 – Location

Often times I get asked “where is a great place to take photographs” and for me this is easy. I like green parks and mountains. Your needs may be different and there are things to consider.

Studio – Some photographers only work in a studio setting. They are able to control all the lights, change backgrounds and ensure every shot is perfect from start to finish. Studio portraits are great because you can get in and out a lot quicker and you know more or less what the end results will look like.

On Location – On location is exactly that. You choose a location, be it outdoors or indoors and you work with what you have. Sure we can control some light with reflectors, and flashes but outside and on location we are at the mercy of all the elements that may be. For me, I prefer on location for a few reasons.

Lets say we go to a park for family photos. While I am shooting the older kids the younger ones can play. While I am shooting the parents the kids can have some fun nearby. This lightens everyone moods, kids are happier and smiling and a lot of times the moments when the kids are having fun and playing are some of the better shots because we are not forcing them to smile or stand still. Parents are no longer stressed because to get that perfect shot. A great example of that is below. During this shoot we were working with a lot of kids. The aunt asked to have one picture of all the kids laying down. Well the two youngest did not really like this idea, they wanted to jump on everyone and play. So we went with what we had and had them jump and lay on other people and in the end it was one of my favorite shots of the day. The smiles, the expressions were all natural. We were not forcing them to smile a certain way or look at the camera. In the end we got a few of the older boys looking at the camera, the girl to the left was in a full on laugh cause her brother just jumped on her and the aunt is right there enjoying the moment.

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Another reason I like on locations is because of all the random props you find. Maybe a tree to lean on or leaves to throw. A playground where you can get some great shots of the kids playing. The possibilities are endless.

Finally when it comes to outdoor/on location I really enjoy it because we put you in your environment vs. mine. If you like riding horses then lets take photos of you on a horse or brushing them. If you play a sport lets get you on the field or the court. The photos are all about you and what you want.

When deciding on a photographer and location keep these things in mind. I will always help with locations based on what I know about you but at the end of the day the location will be a reflection of who you are.

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What goes into editing a photo?

In an earlier post I talked about the importance of choosing a photographer that had experience in editing. I would like to first say that I am not a professional Photoshop Guru by any means. I have a specific style that I edit most of my photos in and know the routine pretty well. But when selecting a photographer and going with the “cheapest” option you again are getting what you pay for. It is easy to point the camera at someone and click the button and BAM you have a photo. But at times that is not what the client is looking for. Often times the photo does not come out exactly how you want it to and you need to make changes in a program after the fact.

I shoot in RAW. What this means is that I shoot in a format that collects all the data of the image in a bigger than normal file. All DSLR cameras can shoot this but often times people starting out avoid shooting in RAW because when they see the photo it is less than flattering. Shooting in RAW the colors are going to be a lot more muted and dull. The colors might be slightly off and overall the photo just does not have that POP you are wanting. This is perfectly normal and it is the way the camera processes a RAW file. Most point and shoot cameras and our phones shoot in JPEG which means the camera edits the photo for you providing you with a decent looking shot. The problem with JPEG though is that you are not getting all the detail from the image. You are only getting what the camera thinks you want. If you want to change something later in post you have a harder time doing this because not all the data is there.

Below you will find two photos. These are of a friend of mine that I shot for her Professional head shot at work. The first photo is the RAW file. This is exactly how the image came out of the camera without any work. You can see the photo is kind of dark, the colors are muted and overall it just does not give you any feeling at all. PLUS it does not accurately represent how she looked that day. Our eyes receive detail a lot differently. So at times you want make the image look as real as possible.

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Talking with Liz there were a few things that she wanted edited for her final photo and personal I wanted to make sure i captured her eyes. This first photo does not do her justice when it comes to her eyes. So here is how my flow usually works.
1.) I will lighten or darken the overall image based on my tastes and how the camera took the shot.
2.) I will often times makes my black slightly blacker and my whites slightly whiter.
3.) I might mess with my shadows and if there are dark shadows I will pull those out giving more detail to the overall photo.
4.) Next I will focus on the main subject in the image. In this case it would be Liz’s face. I will often start with some skin smoothing and lightening of the face to ensure that is where the eyes are drawn to.
5.) Next I will work on the eyes. In this case i really wanted to bring out her eyes so I lightened those up and made them POP a little more.
6.) Next I might add a vignette to the image to continue drawing your eyes in to the main focus but in this case i did not mess with any vignetting.
7.) Finally based on a conversation with client if they are wanting something removed (a pimple or blemish) for example or sometimes they ask to have their cheeks brought in a little bit as another example. I don’t always like performing these tasks just because it is not who they are at the time of the shooting but when asked I will often times make those changes for them. In Liz’s case we only made slight changes that you will see in the final image. All of these changes occur in a second program called Photoshop.

In the case of Liz’s photo above I spent about 6 minutes editing this file alone. Keep in mind that this is all something you pay for when you book a photographer. You don’t just book them to take the photos and hand them over. If that was the case you would NOT be happy with your end result and would be asking for a refund. Just something to consider when that initial “sticker price” shock factor kicks in with booking any photographer.

Now for the results. Hope you enjoy

Choosing a Photographer Part #1 – Is it worth going cheap?

One of the biggest things to consider when choosing a photographer is going to be the cost. Often times I have given a price for my services only to be told “I will just have my friend do it”. Later I will see the photos on Facebook and I can tell that “a friend took them”. I am not trying to be mean but when people can go out to the local best buy and pick up a decent Canon T6i with an 18-55 kit lens for $599 I can see the appeal in wanting to be a photographer. This is not to say that you can get great photos with that camera. For a long time this is what I started out with and took great photos. What I am saying though is a lot goes into photographing an event. Lets consider a few things before we look at options when choosing a photographer.

1.) Photographers spend a lot on gear. With decent bodies between $1,600 and 6k it is not cheap.
2.) Throw on a couple good lenses and you can easily spend close to $1000 a lens. 3.) Once you take the photos you need to edit them. Photo editing software can range $500-$1k a program.
4.) Now lets consider the photographers time. On average you are looking at $50 – $300 an hour for the photo session. But it does not stop there. Many photographers can spend several hours editing photos. On a typical wedding of 8 hours I will deliver about 400 photos to the client. Each photo takes around 3-5 minutes to edit if not more depending on the photo. So now I have not only shot your wedding for 8 hours, but now i have spend another 25-30 hours editing. So at the end of the day you received 40 hours worth of work.

Its easy to see that a lot goes into a photograph and ensuring you get the best deal and the best quality is always the most important factors. I classify photographers into three categories. Lets take a closure look at these a little closer.

The beginner: This is the person who just bought a camera and started dabbling in photography. This is the friend who got a new camera for Christmas who offered to shoot your wedding for dirt cheap. Normally they will show up with their kit lens or maybe two. They will normally be a 18-55 and 75-300. A good set of lenses to start with out in bright light but once you go indoors or night hits, these lenses are not able to perform like more expensive lenses. So your friend or the beginning goes to the wedding and stands where they think are the spots, they point the camera and shoot. Sweet you got your photos. But the light might be too direct or maybe they are too dark. Maybe there is blur some blur. Or maybe the photos come out great but then they edit them butsince they just started out they are not sure the proper techniques. I am not knocking beginners by any means. I too was a beginner and so were all the photographers I aspire to be. My point though is do you want to have them take photos of the most special day of your life? Everyone has to start somewhere but they should be able to find small jobs, family photos, children etc before branching off into weddings. Finally one way to spot a beginner is someone that gives you a CD of all the photos they took. I was this person for a while. I wanted to give the client 1000+ photos cause I thought quantity was best. I did not value my time and was only looking for the sale.

The Part-Time Pro: This is the person who has been taking pictures for a longer time and decided they could make some extra cash selling their gift. They have better cameras, better lenses, some flashes and some good software. They don’t do photography for the money. This is why they have their day jobs. They don’t shoot 20+ weddings a year but they put a lot of time into their work and ensure you have the best possible product. The Part-Time Pro’s prices will be more expensive then the beginner but you will also get better quality photos. Their editing time will be increased and they will deliver a finalized product to you. When I say finalized I mean you will receive prints, photo books, canvases etc… The Part Time Pro knows the value of a hard copy and the feeling you get when you hold your photos for the first time. The Part Time Pro probably wont offer you all the photos on a CD but might offer them for an additional cost. You also wont get 1000 photos. Instead you might get 200-400 AMAZING photos. They take the time to throw out the ones that don’t make the cut and ensure you only have the best of the best. The final big difference with the Part Time Pro vs the beginner is their ability to interact with people. They have taken more photos, been to more wedding and interacted with more people than the beginner. They will help lighten the moods of grumpy guests, they will interact and have fun with guests and most importantly they will help you. They will help you by relieving the stress that comes with events.  I consider myself in this class of photographers. I spend a lot of time editing, I spend a lot of money on my gear and I love making clients happy.

The Full-Time Pro: These are the photographers that do it for a living. Often times their prices will be the highest of the 3 categories however you are getting the best of the best. They have many years of experience and they are great business people. They shoot several events a year, turn around lots of clients and have the best of the best gear money can buy. Your photos will be beautiful and unlike anything you could have asked for. You wont get the pictures on a CD, instead you will need to buy a pakcage and choose your photos accordingly. You will not be disappointing with the Full Time Pro but keep in mind you will pay a premium price.

Hopefully this starts to help you narrow down your search of photographers. I know it can be a daunting tasks but hopefully you now can determine the type of photographer you are looking for. This will help save time and stress. Before I close i would like to mention one thing. I did not mention the what I call “One stop Shop” services. These are the ones where you can get your picture taken while shopping for groceries or shopping around the mall. I ask that you consider any of the three photographers above before going to one of these places. Support local business, support local photographers and help build better pictures for our future.