Professional wedding, portrait and commercial photography

From Studio 1: Wedding Photographer Essex
Top tips to help you plan everything for your wedding day.

1. Don’t leave it to the last minute, start planning as soon as you get engaged.
2. When choosing the date , allow yourself a realistic amount of time to plan, keeping stress to a minimum.
3. Ensure the sort of wedding you go for is a joint decision between you and your fiance. Do you want a formal or informal day? Intimate or extravagant?
4. Book your wedding venue as soon as you’ve decided the venue. Don’t delay, popular venues will be booked up well in advance.
5. A wedding budget must be set beforehand. It’s a good idea to organise a meeting with all those who are contributing to discuss your plans.
6. Decide as soon as possible who will be paying for what and don’t leave any costs undiscussed.
7. Visit a selection of wedding venues and get detailed quotes from each in writing. Our recommended venues for your wedding in Essex are listed here: Essex Wedding Venues
8. When you have decided on your venue, make all bookings in writing and be sure to get written confirmation for the date, times and, if required, the number and kind of booked rooms.
9. Book your photographer, arrange a meeting a discuss all your options and prices.
10. Compile a guest list and decide on the sort of catering. Lunchtime buffet? Or a more expensive sit down meal?

If you have a tip you would like to contribute, leave a reply below or contact us here.

From Studio 1: Essex Wedding Photographer
Answers to some popular questions from customers.

We want to book your services what do we do next?

The next step would be to arrange a meeting to discuss your day in detail it gives you the opportunity to meet me, look at my work and go through the various options that are available to you. If you would rather secure your day prior to the meeting then a deposit would be required

How much is the deposit?

The deposit is £150 this will secure your day

When is the balance due?

The balance is due 3 weeks before the wedding day, you will receive your invoice at that time.

If I want to change my choice of package can I do this?

Yes. You can change the choice of package at any time although it would be best to confirm this before the day.

Do we have a choice of albums within the packages?

Yes you have a full choice of quality albums; you will be able to see these at the time of our meeting.

Will you be our photographer on the day?

Yes, I undertake all photographic assignments personally; I do not use freelance photographers.

How many photographs do you take?

There is no limit to the amount of photographs that I take.

Can we choose specific photographs on the day?

Yes of course that’s no problem.

What time do you arrive and finish?

Depending on the package I would arrive at the start of preparations (bride getting ready) through to the mock cutting of the cake at reception prior to wedding breakfast. If you require evening coverage that’s no problem, the additional cost is £200.

If we decided on a Storybook or Designer album who chooses the photographs and layouts?

You can have as much or as little input into the design of your album as you wish. I prefer to work together with couples, incorporating their ideas to produce an album that they will treasure rather than what they are just given.

How do we see our proofs?

You will receive a CD within the week with all the images taken on the day. From the CD you can choose all your favourite photographs for you album.

Will our photographs go on your web site for family and friends to see?

Yes, family and friends can also order photographs on line via our secure ordering service.

Are you a full time professional photographer?

Yes, I am a full time professional photographer running a busy photography business in Essex and yes I am fully insured, that’s the boring stuff out of the way, more importantly I am passionate about my work and love what I do this gives me the inspiration and drive to produce beautiful and creative photographs for you, treasured memories of your day captured forever.

If you have a tip you would like to contribute, leave a reply below or contact us here.

From Studio 1: Essex Wedding Photographer
Helpful answers to some popular photographic questions.

What is the difference between digital and film photography?

The main difference between digital and film is how the information is captured and stored. With film the information is stored on light sensitive crystals on celluloid film, digital information is stored on imaging sensors.

How to deal with noise at high ISO

The best option to deal with noise is to leave the pixels untouched, using a RAW file to process the image later with software. You can also shoot JPG files and let the camera’s processor apply its noise-reducing algorithm (if your camera has that option).

What causes red eye and how to reduce it?

Red eye is caused by light from the flash hitting the back of the eye (retina) and the camera recording the reflected light at red. To reduce the effect, try bouncing the flash or angle the flash so that the light hits the eye at an oblique angle.

Avoiding Lens Flare

Lens flare can occur when a bright light source appears in or at the very edge of a photograph and is often characterized by sun spots appearing throughout the image.
To aviod this try using a lens hood also avoid direct sunlight or any strong backlight entering the lens.

What are megapixels?

Megapixels are single points in a graphic image. The more pixels used to represent an image, the better will the image look.
A camera’s megapixel rating will help you determine the largest size of prints you can expect to make without sacrificing the quality of the image.

Do more pixels mean a better quality photograph?

Not necessarily, more pixels does not mean better quality photographs. Increasing the Megapixels (resolution) of the camera merely increases the size of the photo. This means that you can make larger prints, or crop a large area without losing too much detail.

What is digital and optical zoom?

Digital zoom is not really a zoom at all; a digital zoom just enlarges a portion of the image ’simulating’ optical zoom. In other words, the camera crops a portion of the image and then enlarges it back to size.

Optical zoom uses the optics (lens) of the camera to bring the subject closer.

What is white balance?

White balance (WB) is the process of removing unrealistic colour casts, so that objects that appear white as you see them are captured as white in your photograph.

How to reduce camera shake

One of the most common causes of camera shake, particularly for new digital camera users, is not using the shutter release button correctly. It must be pressed down two steps: first to lock focus and exposure; second to take the photo.

The second most common cause of camera shake happens when the shutter speed is slow, or when using a long telephoto lens. The best way to prevent camera shake in these conditions is to use a tripod or other flat, level support.

What is a wide-angle lens?

Wide-angle lenses give you a view “further back” in the frame than your typical 35mm lens. They’re especially useful indoors, where you can capture more of a room in your photo. A lens is considered wide-angle when it’s 30mm or below.

If you have a tip you would like to contribute, leave a reply below or contact us here.

From Studio 1: Essex Wedding Photographer
We’re building a set of definitions for wedding related terms.
If you have a definition you would like to contribute, leave a comment at the foot of this page or contact us here.

Civil Partnership

The Civil Partnership Act 2004 came into effect in England and Wales in 2005. It enables a same-sex couple to register as civil partners of each other.

Ascot Tie

A wide necktie often worn for the more formal wedding.

Boutonnière

Flower worn on the lapel of a man’s suit jacket.

Ballet veil

Long veil falling below the bride’s knees, above her ankles.

Cathedral veil

Also known as the ‘Royal Veil’. This is the most formal style of veil, extending onto the floor and beyond the wedding gown for at least a foot.

Madonna veil

A short veil worn by the Bride that is popular with less formal dresses. Very short in length, around chin length. This veil is also referred to as a birdcage veil.