bdk wrote:
last month I shot a wedding and an engagement session.
Next month I have a wedding and a co shoot on 2 more. an engagement shoot. A first year bday party with 250 people ( how does a 1 year old get 250 friends?)
A baby shower and a pregnant mother shoot ( never done one may take a woman with me for help)
with that said, you can see im getting some work.
My first question is, as a professional you carry insurance. I checked with a local company they dont cover photographers. Guy said he never had anyone ask before.
So Can you give me a name of a company that covers photographers and their cameras? also about how much a year does it cost you and how much coverage?
Second question is for wedding photographers
Just out of curiosity how many pix do you take at a wedding ( on average) yes I understand some weddings you take a lot less shots than others. just wanting an average
I took over 700 at the last wedding. IM told by a few people that they took 2000 or more for a wedding. I thought my 700 was overkill.
thanks
last month I shot a wedding and an engagement sess... (
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Join PPA (Professional Photographers of America) and/or WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International). Subscribe to 'Rangefinder.' There is a wealth of information there... PPA has insurance as part of your membership with them. They also have certification education and testing programs. Hurry on over to
https://photovisionvideo.com/ and check out all the great video resources there. Ed Pierce has spent much of his career traveling around the country, interviewing and working with pro portrait and wedding photographers, then editing the results into DVDs and online video downloads that actually teach you valuable information.
The number of photos you make at a wedding depends entirely on the circumstances and your personal style of coverage. How big is the wedding? How many guests? Are you working from a pre-arranged, agreed-upon scene list? Or, are you working entirely photojournalistically? There are the trite, traditional scenes (walking down the aisle, holding hands, swapping rings, vows, candle lighting, the kiss, various groupings, reception cake cutting, and a hundred more). Some people want nothing but those. But then there are the golden moments that happen spontaneously all around, before, during, and after the ceremony, and before, during, and after the reception. Some people want those too, or instead of, the trite list.
More to the point, what kind of coverage can the couple afford? Are you selling your service to record and preserve memories (good!), or just prints (dumb!), or just digital images on disc or website (even stupider!)? Remember to sell YOUR VALUE, which is always separate from the value of any media you provide. Make sure you get paid for YOUR VALUE before the client has access to prints or images. (A good policy is that they can see proofs, but not take ownership of them or any images until you have cash in hand.)
Wedding work is incredibly varied in its scope. When I worked in a lab, I worked with pros who did them under many different circumstances. Those who did them successfully always had a plan. Yes, they had insurance. They also had contracts to protect both parties, backup equipment, pre-arranged site surveys, contact lists of everyone involved, pre-nuptial meetings with the bride, groom, and person paying the bill for photography, and most of them tried to attend the rehearsal if possible. The successful ones never quoted a price without knowing who and what was going to be covered, when and where it would occur, why things mattered to the couple/family, and how they would deliver the results. They made sure it would be profitable before they ever left for the event.