Hiring a photographer to capture your wedding day can be a really big decision. There are so many factors to consider when choosing your wedding photographer. Here are some great questions to ask a wedding photographer before booking. Our intention here is to help you find the right wedding photographer to snap those perfect, personalized moments while providing answers from our years of experience and knowledge. We’ve taken the time to answer some of the applicable questions from this helpful article from our friends at The Knot.
1. What is your photography style?
Our photography style can be described as photojournalistic mixed with traditional photography sprinkled with stunning landscape and heartfelt black and white photography. We treat your wedding day like a feature story snapping away as the moments unfold naturally. This photojournalistic style is blended with traditional photography that stands the test of time which is perfect for those family formal portraits after the ceremony. We look for moments but also help set the scene.
2. How many weddings have you shot, and how many do you do in a year? Also, what’s your favorite part of a wedding day, and time of year to shoot?
Learn more about our photographer, Aaron, by clicking here. We shoot close to 40 weddings a year. We’ve found that taking on more weddings than this can lead to a creative burnout and while taking on less weddings leaves us feeling left out of the wedding festivities. Our goal is to provide each one of our couples a personalized level of services that allows the creativity to flow that aligns with the couple’s vision.
There are so many awesome moments that take place throughout a wedding day but our favorite part of the day to photograph is when we can take the couple away to snap some sunset photos. During this time, it’s just the couple. They get a moment to themselves away from everyone to enjoy each other’s company. In this moment, you see the couple catch a bit of a breather and share this new love as a married couple. One thing that gets our team really excited is seeing our clients’ faces as we share their stunning sunset photos. We are ecstatic whenever our clients send us photos of their fireplace mantle with a photo we took hanging right above.
We are so fortunate to live in an area with so many gorgeous locations to shoot all year round. Lake Tahoe and Northern Nevada are filled with fantastic locations with incredible views. Our team has produced spectacular photographs from every season. Whatever season you decide to get married in, you can feel reassured that the wedding photographers at Epik Weddings & Events have the necessary skills, state-of-the-art equipment, and creative eye to capture those perfect, personalized impressions.
3. Will you be my actual photographer, or will it be one of your associates?
Photographs tend to come out better when you’ve cultivated that connection with the photographer. This is where Aaron comes in. Our lead wedding photographer Aaron will collaborate with you during the planning process to understand the specific moments, people, details, etc you’d like photographed. On the big day, Aaron will be accompanied by an assistant photographer to execute on the plans you two have discussed.
4. Do you have back up photographers who will shoot the wedding if you’re sick?
This one of the best questions to ask a wedding photographer because you want to know what would happen just in case. Yes – we always have redundancies! We have associate photographers to step in if needed as well as a connected group of fantastic photographers in the area to count on. Your wedding day is important to us and we’ll ensure that you’ll have an amazing photographer at your wedding.
5. Will there be a second shooter or any assistance? Is there an additional fee for each?
While we typically recommend having a second shooter at your wedding, not every wedding needs one. Depending on the size of your wedding, amount of hours of coverage, or special events, a second shooter may be a good option.
Larger weddings with a timeline full of events would really benefit from having a second shooter to capture detail shots, guests’ reactions, and other special moments allowing the main photographer to really focus on the couple. Elopements and smaller, more intimate wedding celebrations typically don’t need the second shooter.
We have several wedding packages that include two photographers and we can even add a third shooter if you’d like. When you think about your wedding day, think about the important moments and details you want captured then we can discuss the best wedding package that suits your vision and budget.
6. How many hours of coverage do we get? And what is the charge for overtime?
The ideal number of hours of coverage depends on a few factors such as the size of your wedding and how many different elements of your big day you’d like captured. Would you like photographs capturing the beginning of the day getting ready moments all the way to the final dance and grand exit? Or are you looking to have just the most important moments such as the wedding ceremony, first dance, and wedding toasts? When you look back at your wedding day, what do you want to remember the most?
Our photography wedding packages start at 4 hours and can go all the way to 12 hours of coverage. We’re always flexible with our couples so you can decide on the week of your wedding whether or not you’ll need additional hours. The same goes for adding a second shooter.
7. How will you coordinate with my videographer? How do you envision working together?
Yes, this is a cheesy saying but teamwork makes YOUR dream work. Whether you choose to hire our full team or invite us to collaborate with other vendors, we’re proactive about communication and steadfast about your vision. We’ll make sure we’re all on the same page in order to create a stress-free, sensational day for you and your guests. This is your day; let’s make it seamless.
8. How long after the wedding do we get to see the photos?
Our wedding photographers are artists and great works of art take time. You’ll receive a few sneak peeks of your photos within 7 days of your wedding date. The final images are delivered in an online wedding gallery within 120 days from the wedding date.
9. How many weddings do you do on the weekend?
As much as we love weddings, two weddings per weekend is our max. We give our all to each wedding because we believe that you deserve that on your wedding day. We typically shoot one wedding per weekend during our peak wedding season from April to October.
10. Have you ever shot at my venue before?
We’ve shot at tons of venues, beaches, state parks, vacation rentals, casinos, and locations off the beaten path. We’re native to the Lake Tahoe and Northern Nevada area — chances are we have captured it.
11. What are the restrictions for sharing photos online or for publication? Do you own the copyright to the photos?
Our clients have all the right to print and share their photos. This means you can wallpaper your bathroom with your wedding photos should you choose, share your photos on social media, use the digital files to create a custom Christmas card, and save the digital file forever.
Epik Weddings & Events does retain the copyrights on these images and digital files. What does this mean for you as the client? By us keeping the copyrights on your wedding images, this preserves the integrity of the art piece and prevents commercial use without permission.
12. Do you bring your own lighting?
Part of being a photographer is manipulating light to artistically preserve a moment. We bring a variety of lighting equipment that allow us to capture images in just the right light.
13. What will you wear?
Our team comes professionally dressed and ready to blend in – you’ll hardly notice us at all.
Interested in viewing more of our work? Click here to see one of our favorite weddings of 2020. Or view this sample gallery from this Lake Tahoe boho inspired elopement below.
Looking for a wedding photographer for your Lake Tahoe wedding? Set up a no-strings-attched consultation by clicking here.
We also offering wedding videographer services for the Lake Tahoe and Northern Nevada areas. Below is a bite-sized wedding trailer from one of our recent Lake Tahoe weddings.
