Wedding Photography Roadmap
Every photographer is different in how they operate. To give you an idea of what to expect from our first interaction, all the way through wedding day, I put together a roadmap to remove the mystery of what happens throughout the entire process.
Inquiry
If we haven’t had a chance to meet yet:
Check out my Wedding Photography page to view information on current packages and prices. I like to make all of my pricing available in the Wedding Day Pricing Guide you can download from that page.
If you’d like to see if I’m available to capture your day, feel free to fill out my Contact Form.
If I’m available, next step is to Schedule a Call for a quick meet and greet, talk about what you’re looking for in a photographer, and answer any questions you may have. I like to keep this meeting low-key and stress free. No decisions will need to be made, I want you to have everything you need as you begin narrowing down your photography options.
Booking
Once you’ve made your decision to go with Bigelow Photography 🙂, reach back out with your amazing news and I will put together our contract and invoice to complete the booking online. For bookings over 5 hours, a third of the investment is due to hold your date (or 50% for bookings less than 5 hours).
Once everything is signed and booking fee paid, we are officially booked!
Planning
At any point, if you have questions or want to chat about anything (photography related or not), feel free to use me as a resource as you begin planning your day.
I like to provide the following links to assist you as you put your day together
Example 8-hour Timeline - Feel free to use this timeline as a starting point for yours. Make adjustments based on travel time or adding/removing moments to personalize your day.
Common Wedding Day Moments - Not sure what to include on your Wedding Day? Here are some moments I typically capture and estimates on how much time we’d need to capture them.
Example Family Formals List - I like to make the family formal session as efficient as possible. Having a list helps gets you and your guest back to the party sooner and I provide an example here with all of the information I like to have going into Wedding Day.
I typically like to solidify the timeline and formals list about 2 months from Wedding Day. If at any point you’re not sure about your timeline, feel free to include me. The sooner I can be involved, the sooner I can provide feedback, suggest adjustments, and ensure we have a smooth day while capturing everything important to you.
Engagement Session
If your package includes an engagement session, you can click the following to Schedule Your Engagement Session. The link shows my availability 3 months out. I recommend looking up the sunset time for the day you’re scheduling and trying to book an hour and half before that time. I personally love the lighting during this time of day, but really, anytime where the sun isn’t directly above us will work.
Once you’ve selected your time and day, I will reach out and coordinate a location and meet up spot.
After our session is complete, allow about a week to get your photos back.
Second Payment
For bookings with 3 payments, the second payment is due at the halfway point between booking and Wedding Day
Check In - 2 Months Out
If we haven’t already solidified the timeline for the day, I’ll reach out asking you to Schedule a Call to talk about our Wedding Day gameplan.
After that call we’ll want to ensure we have the following completed:
Timeline (Example 8-hour Timeline & Common Wedding Day Moments)
Family Formal List (Example Family Formals List)
Final Payment - 1 Month Out
For all bookings, the final payment is due one month before Wedding Day.
Wedding Day
Every couple says it, but this day does seem to sneak up on you. Luckily, we’ve been planning for this day and we’re ready for a great day with your family and friends. Honestly, as long as you two say your “I do’s” and there’s food afterwards, people are going to be pretty happy. With everything going on, don’t forget to pause for a moment and take it all in. It’s really cool seeing everyone there together, supporting you and celebrating this amazing moment.
Once everything is said and done, expect to receive a link to your digital Wedding gallery in 4 weeks.
Let me know if you found this helpful or if there are other details you’d like me to include!
