"All in the Family"

I approach every wedding day the same. I always insist that I am just a vendor and am there to document the day. I try to stay out of the limelight as much as possible and often have been successful with that approach. However, there have been many occasions where the client has insisted that I eat with the guests. That is not how things usually work and I have to say, those events are where we usually get the best captures.

I came to realize long ago that the better the "comfort level" a client has with their photographer, the better the captures. This is because the client and the guest are comfortable with the photographer "being there" in their midst. This is not to say that great captures never come with the more "outsider" approach. Tremendous captures often do. I'm merely suggesting that the more comfort a client has with their photographer, the better the chances of getting great expressions-often when they don't realize or forget that the photographer is even in the room. Inhibitions, self consciousness and caution go out the window.

There have even been instances where the client has insisted that I spend the entire weekend with them and truly amazing shots have been obtained. Also, some of my best memories came from those very events and made me feel very humbled and grateful to be part of such a special and personal day.

I have never approached what I do as a "job" and other vendors have said to me, "wow, you are really hardcore" when I have stayed past the allotted time because of a hiccup in the itinerary. Maybe that's why I have had such wonderful experiences with my clients and them with me.

I encourage you when you are interviewing photographers to ask yourself; "Is he or she someone I really want to have around on the biggest day of my life?" Do I "click" with him?

It "is" possible to have a photographer be extremely professional and yet posses the qualities of someone who is fun loving, a diplomat at times and will never try to be the star of the show. Someone you would actually enjoy having around!

Sincerely,
Steve Dunbar
Principle Photographer
www.dunbarphotographic.com

"The Itinerary"

Your ""wedding day" begins with a quick cup of coffee, breakfast and a mad dash to start the makeup and hair process to achieve that perfect "bride" look you have dreamed about your whole life. So far everything is on schedule and the nerves and excitement are starting to escalate to a feverish high. Cell phones ringing off the hook with last minute questions and folks checking in to see how you are doing. The photographer arrives ready to go and you get a call. Some of the family members are hung up in traffic and will be late getting there. You have arranged for the pictures to be completed before the ceremony and now you find out that some of the important people won't be there in time for the pictures. You're not worried though because you have planned for this! Right?

So many times I have seen this happen. This one set back can make or break your wedding day expectations. I have been told repeatedly that "the chef can't hold the food"! Everything that day is set according to the time-line that has been planned out and one set back can truncate the whole time table. Multiple set backs can really create problems. How important is it that these set backs are planned for in advance so that your day can still progress smoothly and without a hitch? It is by far the most important thing to consider when planning out your day. Allowing a "buffer" so-to-speak of time will enable you to move forward with your time-line without creating undue stress and will still allow you to accomplish all of the things you had planned on. Having your time-line planned out "to the minute" sounds like a great thing and may make you come across as being very organized and orderly but is not very practical in the "real world".

Assuming you inserted buffers into the time-line, you can easily get the pictures with the people who are on time and still be able to get the pictures with the ones who arrived late, lets say, after the ceremony. It would require only a few minutes and shouldn't be a problem assuming you have a buffer between the ceremony and the cocktail hour/dinner. It would require a minor change and best of all, you still wouldn't feel rushed.

I encourage you all to work closely with your photographer and other vendors regarding your itinerary. Make sure everyone is on the "same page". It is a huge help to have someone to help you and to take responsibility to organize and to get people where they need to be. Don't be afraid to delegate. There is usually plenty of people around to get things accomplished no matter how small they may seem. As a bride you don't need to be running around trying to figure out how to make something happen. It's all about you on that day. We all need to be there for you to help make your day go off without a hitch!

Talk to your vendors. Ask questions. Work with them. Draw off of their experience. It may well be your first experience with this sort of thing. For us, it's literally "what we do" and we have seen a lot!

Congratulations and All the Best!
Steve Dunbar
Dunbar Photographic

Consultations Primer

I would like to kick this blog off with something I have been hearing fairly consistently for over a year now during my consultations with brides and grooms. The most recent was a couple of weeks ago while I was meeting with a couple at the West Mountain Inn in Arlington VT when I heard it again. After the couple spent the weekend meeting vendors and pricing out their services for the big day I looked them in the eyes and saw it; That glazed over look followed by the phrase "I can't believe how expensive everything is for a wedding"! Sticker shock! I was the last vendor they were meeting with and we didn't finish up until 11pm that Sunday evening. We discussed many thing which I will get into later but the main thing I wanted to share is how important "value" is in your wedding photography. In reality the only thing you have that's tangible after the wedding are you pictures (memories) and the top of the cake (which is gone after the first year). I try to explain to my clients that what you are paying for is their eye, shooting style and the end product they deliver. If you are an inquiring bride ask yourself these questions; Did the photographer work to custom build a package just for me? How well did he listen when we were discussing my needs and desires? Does he have access to the products I am looking for? Does he have a non-threatening personality that would work well in a wedding environment? Would he be fun to have around? Most of all, did they work to put something together that represents real value and fits within your budget? Believe it or not, there are photographers around that do stunning imagery without the scary price tag! It is my belief that even though some people may be hurting financially in this troubled economy, as vendors and artists we can still find ways to meet the needs of clients on a limited budget. There are so many options out there regarding albums and end products that there is no excuse for not being able to meet a clients needs. It's more an act of will and doing what we love. There is nothing more rewarding than putting a beautiful bridal album into the hands of a bride and hearing how thrilled she is as well as her family and friends. They are memories frozen in time that will last their entire lives! I have modified work flow and added stunning new products which allow me to meet the clients needs at a much lower cost than just a couple of years ago. It can be done! It's all about "value", the "eye (style)", "the products", "the personality", the total package! Steven C Dunbar (Principal Photographer) www.dunbarphotographic.com