Houston Wedding Photographer – Photographics

Credit for this post goes to Rachel West Designs and the info was so good that I had to share it.  I’ll add a few comments of my own to this as well for further explanation.

One of the most important days of your life is approaching–choosing the right wedding photographer can be a daunting task! Certainly, you want the highest quality of wedding photographs without going broke. You are looking for a wedding photographer who is in tune with your wedding style as you imagine that day. You also want a photographer who is professional, experienced, talented, and a pleasure to work with.

Partnering with the right photographer is easy when you know what to ask. Start by doing a quick phone interview of each wedding photographer to narrow down your choices. Find out first if they are available for your wedding day—if they’re not, it narrows things down immediately. Ask about prices, who will be photographing the wedding, what style of wedding photography they use to shoot weddings (black and white, color, posed photos or candid shots).

After you narrow down your wedding photographer choices, you’ll want to set up a date to interview the photographer. In some large companies, the photographer you talk to might not be the one they send out for your event. Make sure you interview the photographer who will actually be at your wedding and see his/her portfolio, in order to evaluate their style.

You’ll also want to find out what happens if the wedding photographer you choose is fired before or right after your wedding date. It will put your mind at rest if you are assured that your wedding will be photographed even if your photographer is no longer with the company and that you will also have access to your photos no matter what the hiring status of the photographer.

Be sure to ask these questions when interviewing the photographer:

1) Experience Level.

On the most important day of your life, you want someone who is an expert at wedding photography to preserve your memories in a professional manner. Therefore, it’s very important to make sure you ask your wedding photographer questions about their experience.

Is this a job or a hobby for the wedding photographer?  You need to know this because it will show in the quality of the work and their overall attitude toward the job.  If it’s just a hobby, then you may be put on the back burner when a “more important” job comes along (and I have seen that happen.)

Do they have formal training or education in wedding photography?  While formal school education is good, you mainly want someone with experience shooting weddings and not someone who is using your wedding as “practice”.  an experienced wedding photographer will be able to adjust for the variety of lighting situations that a wedding might entail as well as any other surprises that typically occur on a wedding day.

You might be tempted to save money by hiring a novice wedding photographer, but do you want stunning photos that capture your special day or just so-so ones?

Do they frequently photograph weddings?  The more weddings that they have photographed, the better prepared they are to shoot yours!

Some photographers are better at static and posed studio photography than action oriented and “on location” wedding photography. Photographing a wedding involves capturing spontaneous moments, not just poses, so it’s important to have someone who is an expert.

Does the wedding photographer use professional-grade equipment, and do they have back-up equipment available, just in case?

Have they photographed weddings in your chosen location before?

Prior experience in a location gives the wedding photographer an advantage because he’ll know ahead of time what film, filters or flash he/she might need to get the best results.

2) Ask About Their Portfolio.

Photography is an art, so it’s understandable that you may or may not like the style used by the wedding photographer. To make sure you’re going to love the way your wedding is photographed, request to see a portfolio featuring their work.

To make an educated decision, you’ll want to view an entire wedding portfolio from start to finish, not the best few photos from many weddings. Ask what style the wedding photographer uses. Some photographers tend to like more posed shots while others have what is called a photojournalistic style, which involves more candid shots.

Ask if he/she likes to use color photos, black and whites or a mixture. Also, ask if they use a digital camera and retouch the photos to make them black and white, or if they use film.

3) Will They Dress the Part?

Your wedding photographer will be spending a lot of time with you on you on the most important day of your life. It’s crucial that his or her personality blends in, making it a pleasure to have him/her at your side.

If the wedding photographer makes you uneasy in a short interview then don’t hire them for your event!

No matter how charming he is, you’ll want to make sure the wedding photographer will dress the part and look professional while taking those important photos.

Finally, ask about any assistants. Ask if you can meet them and ask about how they will dress and conduct themselves to ensure your wedding goes smoothly.

4) Money and Technical Matters.

Though you don’t want to skimp on wedding photos, it is important to make sure this particular photographer isn’t going to break your budget. Find out ahead of time about how much it will cost to have him/her photograph your wedding.

You’ll want to know how much time you’ll be allotted, and how many rolls of film they’ll take during that time. If the wedding photographer uses digital cameras, ask how many shots they will take to ensure the event is well-documented.

Most photographers offer packages that specify a certain amount of pictures for a set fee. If you don’t see a size of photograph that you want, ask if those packages can be customized to meet your needs.

You’ll also want to ask about the cost of albums and copies, since you’re probably going to fall in love with a lot more of the photos than you bargained!

Ask about deposit and cancellation policies. In order to hold your date, what method of deposit is needed? What are the cancellation policies? If the wedding photographer cancels, will your deposit be refunded?

5) Ask If You Can Get It In Writing!

You’ll want a contract to protect you in case you’re unhappy with the services of your wedding photographer. If you end up going to court to settle matters, the judge will only be concerned with the conditions written in the contract. Therefore, it’s very important to make sure you get all of the details in writing.

The contact should include:

Expected services, fees, cancellation policy, fee schedule and all aspects of your photo packages written in detail.  Also in the contract, you need to include their expected arrival time and departure time if there are a limited number of hours in your wedding.  For example, if your wedding starts at 3pm, you may want the photographer there at least 30-45 minutes before then…

You’ll also want their name and address, as well as your name and address on the contract. Be certain that the contract has a signature and date for both of you and that you receive a copy of both sides.

I had the pleasure of working with this beautiful bride in my other position at D. R. Horton (she is a marketing GENIUS!!), and when I found out she was getting married, I was equally honored to be chosen as her wedding photographer.  Ashley and Brett were getting married at the San Luis Resort on Galveston Island (yes, Galveston is back and fully recovered from Hurricane Ike) and while it was a bit chilly in temperature, I offered to do an “engagement session” for them the day before (they got married New Year’s Day, so the session was done on New Year’s Eve).

I will post the engagement session shots on another post, but on to the wedding pics!

Did I mention that she is a die hard Texas Longhorn fan?

Hook ‘em

The view of the Gazebo and the San Luis Hotel

The weather cleared up just in time to get more shots!

another view of the couple and the Hotel

I could post pictures of this beautiful couple all day!  Congrats again to Brett and Ashley!

As I continue my series of great wedding venues in the Houston Metro area, we look at Cohen House on the campus of Rice University.  This is another great place to hold your wedding reception and you do not have to be a student or alum to be able to use this wonderful location.  Here is info from their web site:

Special catered functions are held in Cohen House in the area described above, on weekday evenings (Monday through Friday), Saturday during the day, and Saturday evening. Receptions, open houses, and cocktail parties are often held for 50 to 350 people with an hors d’oeuvres/cocktail buffet, and seated-served luncheons and dinners for 40 to 225 people. Cohen House is the general caterer, directed by Manager Ann Swain, with a professional kitchen staff led by Chef Cari Clark. Fully licensed, the Cohen House will provide most any combination of beverage service desired.
For further information, please contact Office Manager, Frances Zientek at (713)348-4000 or by e-mail: club@ruf.rice.edu

I had the pleasure of shooting a wedding at this location this year while assisting a wonderful photographer, Monique Montoya with Perspectives Photography and here are a few shot so you can get an idea of the layout and what they offer

The can accommodate up to 350 people:

there is an elevated dance floor with plenty of room for a band or DJ

WeddingWire, the nation’s leading wedding technology company, has just announced that Nathan Simmons and Photographics is officially WeddingWire Rated 2009! WeddingWire created the annual Rated program to honor wedding professionals, like Nathan Simmons for their excellence and to help brides and grooms easily find the right wedding professionals to match their needs.

“We are excited to unveil WeddingWire Rated 2009, now in its third year. With hundreds of thousands of reviews, WeddingWire has made it easy for engaged couples to find the nation’s very best wedding professionals,” according to Sonny Ganguly, WeddingWire’s Chief Marketing Officer.  “WeddingWire Rated is an excellent way for businesses to showcase their continued success in the wedding industry.”

Nathan Simmons and Photographics has 9 reviews with an average of 5 star rating, making us eligible to hold the Rated title on the WeddingWire Network. Each review has been written by our former clients and includes detailed ratings and insightful descriptions of their experiences with our services. These reviews not only enhance our credibility, but also help differentiate our business within the WeddingWire Network.

Photographics would like to thank our past brides and grooms for taking the time to review our services on WeddingWire.

If you are a past client of Photographics and have yet to provide us with your feedback, visit reviews.weddingwire.com and review our services today.

As a wedding photographer in Houston, I am amazed at the number of beautiful locations and venues in the city that are available for your wedding ceremony or wedding reception.  This week, I’m looking at the Hilton Houston North.  This Hotel is in the Greenspoint area and used to be known as the Wyndham Greenspoint.  Hilton purchased it and remodeled it and it looks great!  There are several large banquet rooms on the main floor and several smaller sized rooms on the 2nd floor with a view of the main lobby.  I shot a wedding recently in the Donatello Ballroom and the big windows and natural lighting really show the place off.

There is also an area in front of the ballroom with plenty of space for your guests if you wanted to hold a cocktail reception while the guests wait for you to arrive,  There is also plenty of space inside the ballroom and a very nice sized dance floor.  the staff is very attentive and the food served at the wedding I attended was excellent.  Parking is free in the Hotel garage and you can visit their web site for more information:

Hilton Houston North