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faqs sections THE PREMIUM PACKAGE WHAT EXACTLY IS
YOUR PREMIUM PACKAGE?
The term 'Premium Package' is only used because it has been formatted and priced quite specifically to allow extensive coverage for you whilst remaining beneath the £1,000 threshold. As such, it is the benchmark from which other time/print commissions flow and is the most popular choice. Other commissions follow the same formula. The Premium Package is the 5 hour commission, which is normally sufficient to capture all events and people associated with your wedding. The fee is fully inclusive. Time, expertise, film, printing and travel costs (within reasonable range) are all included. The only likely supplement would be a travelling charge if you commissioned me for a wedding over 100 miles from London. For that time period of 5 hours, I am guaranteeing a minimum of 250 photographs at a large print size of 9" x 6" (no enprints, contact sheets or small proofs, etc). Surplus prints will be given to you also, at no extra charge. You can have black and white coverage at no extra charge, if you wish. You can also have a free web portfolio of at least 20 images from your wedding online for a year (and probably longer). Within an approximate 100 mile radius of London, a home portfolio visit, a visit to all the wedding's locations (on the morning of the wedding day itself) and personal delivery of the photographs to you afterwards are all included.
There is an hourly charge which governs variations above and below the benchmark Premium Package, starting with a minimum of 4 hours. I have provided coverage ranging from 4 hours to 2 full days so far, so pretty much anything is possible. The rate of large 9" x 6" prints guaranteed per hour is 50. If you decide on the day that I need to stay beyond the time agreed, then the same hourly charge applies, although I would not question an additional 10 minutes or so to cover something extra you wanted. The 9" x 6" print size is large enough to impress family and friends and applies to all commisions over all time periods, as do the offers of black and white coverage and the web portfolio of your wedding.
I do offer a choice of high quality leather-bound albums from a variety of sources (eg, Aspinal of London, Liberty, John Lewis) and can compile them for you but this service is extra. The album is sold to you at cost price without profit to me but I do charge (negotiable, depending on your requirements) for compiling it for you. I decided to offer an album as a negotiable extra because many clients wanted to choose and buy their own album and also choose their own pictures for it. Having thought about this, it does seem more sensible (as a photographer) to supply for my fee a concentrated effort in producing as many quality photographs of the day as possible, instead of using a large portion of that fee on an album plus my time (not as a photographer) in compiling it. The same fee inclusive of an album would mean less time attending your wedding and a lot less photographs guaranteed. In other words, I hope you will agree that you should engage me principally for my expertise in photography and for a large quantity of quality images of your wedding day. The reward to you of many diverse moments captured in 250 photographs (for 5 hours) is arguably greater than an album with traditionally only around 25 to 40 prints in it. However, I should be very pleased to purchase an album and compile it for you as an extra.
Not really. As an achievable amount, 250 photographs is linked to 5 hours, which offers differing possibilities and situations when many people are present, sometimes at more than one location. The observational style encourages a generous approach to the taking of photographs and the equipment I use facilitates that also. I can work fast and accurately and always without being intrusive, achieving a wide range of portrait, posed group, environmental and still-life photographs. I have watched wedding photographers who can get away with producing only a few set pieces and I never want to be thought of someone who misses so many other opportunities for a client. However, you should bear in mind that, although the situations I can exploit may differ, they are ultimately restricted by the general wedding scenario. Therefore, I am not promising 250 wildly different photographs, none of which is like any other. Within any given situation (for example, the reception), there may be some occasional similarities. On the other hand, you may be pleasantly surprised at just what can be achieved within a reception scenario. At the end of the day, I have to rely on a reasonable interpretation from clients as to what constitutes my guarantee here. What I can realistically promise is 250 excellent images for 5 hours' coverage which would present you with some difficulty if you had to choose 100 of the best to summarise your day. Some clients have told me that one of the most difficult things they had to do in connection with their weddings was to choose a selection of photographs for their album. Some have given up trying to be too selective and have filled three or four albums. What would concern me in fulfilling my guarantee is if there were a heavy overload of posed and formal shots, all of which take time to set up and complete. If an unduly heavy quantity of these were specified (for example, over 15), I may need to negotiate the number of prints guaranteed. Also, a wedding with very few guests reduces my scope. To date, there have never been any problems with guest lists ranging from 12 to over 200 people and I have always been able to hand over to clients the quantity of large prints agreed, plus surplus photographs in excess of that minimum under guarantee.
I shall deliver what I promise on this website. I have very high quality standards, not only in photography but also in the efficient conduct of my wedding photography service. The photographs you see on this website and the photographs in my information pack and hard-copy portfolio all represent a broad quality standard for my work. All the photographs you receive will not be any less in terms of impact or information conveyed by them about your own wedding. An important point to note is that the photographs in clients' web portfolios on this website were all selected by them. When I created this website, it was deliberately not as a static 'best of' site, which contained only my own personal choice of images. Instead, it was designed to be a 'live' site, with clients' portfolios uploaded regularly as I attended their weddings. Because clients select their own images for their web portfolios, their own choices can confirm an overall consistency of quality in my approach. This point about consistency would never really be demonstrated if you knew I chose the photographs myself. Client approval is a very good test in this context. Whilst the definition of quality is a very subjective matter and varies between individuals, my personal quality standard is to provide an interesting and informative photographic display of your wedding which is technically very proficient and visually rewarding for you, your family and your friends. The best judge of this is yourself, of course, and I would mention again the extensive range of clients' wedding portfolios easily available to review on this website, with not one single image taken using professional models with the luxury of studio time and a bank of softbox lighting. Every single image on display was taken under typical wedding day pressure. You can also be reassured that I shall not be intrusive or demanding on the day. I always follow instructions from the person officiating at a ceremony and I always take care to photograph people in a quiet and respectful manner. Your guests will provide the content of my photographs for you quite naturally without the need for any prompting on my part. With regard to the efficient conduct of my wedding photography service, this website itself is designed to provide you with as much information as I can at the point of your initial enquiry. I have tried to make it as helpful and explanatory as possible. At all stages subsequently in the commissioning process right through to post-wedding care, I am concerned to provide a prompt, efficient and courteous service. I also seek feedback from clients in the interests of continuous improvement. I guarantee that I never accept any other work on a client's wedding day. This means that you will not find me rushing to your wedding, nor rushing off afterwards to do something else. The fact that I write off your entire wedding day in my diary exclusively for you means that I can check routes to locations early on the day and meet people managing the venues during the morning of your wedding. Therefore, I can arrive in plenty of time to set up before the start of my commission and can stay beyond the agreed time period, if necessary. This whole approach is geared for your peace of mind. I hope all this allows you to have confidence in my wedding photography service, confidence in the quality of work I shall produce for you and confidence in my presence at your wedding. back to the top next section (the formal stuff)
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2000/07
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