"10 Secrets of Wedding Photographers"
That every Bride and Groom should Know

Planning a wedding can be a lot of fun, but at times can be a little stressful. As you are finding out, there are an awful lot of photographers out there calling themselves wedding photographers. In this very difficult economy, many people have thought of taking their hobby of photography and making money from it. They purchase a factory flash and put it on the camera. Overnight, they are a professional wedding photographer.

There are now so many wedding photographers without training that we hear from brides every year saying, "We came to see you, we didn't use you, and now we wish we had." They ask if we can fix their pictures. Of course, this is not what Photoshop was created to do.

Where does this leave the bride and groom? How can they tell who are the real professionals and who aren't? If they are picture editors for a newspaper or magazine, they have learned to recognize great images at a glance. But for the rest of us, it's not so easy. Here are 10 of the top secrets that you might like to know.

Secret #1: Many Never Learned the Necessary Skills The weakened economy has caused many hobbyists to offer their services as wedding photographers. No real thought goes into the decision, because there is no understanding of how hard things can become at a wedding.

As the cameras have become more automatic, hobbyists naturally think the camera is making the picture. The truth is that only a photographic artist can create beautiful images. Wedding Days cannot be done over, but the photographic hobbyist doesn't really care. And because some couples will hire them, often based on low price, they will have samples to show. Be careful - your pictures usually won't look like the samples you see, as countless brides and grooms have discovered these last few years.

Keep in mind that you are not purchasing CDs and albums, you are purchasing MEMORIES and ART. You will be much happier with great photography and a professionally designed album than you will with images on CD. This may mean spending a little more to be happy. Although you can split the cost and purchase the album later, if the images on CD are not great, the album you create later cannot be great. The high quality of the wedding images is a MUST.

How can you guard against this problem? One way is to look for a guarantee.

Solution: Our 100% Guarantee

As far as we know, Charles Jablow Photography is the only photographer offering a guarantee IN WRITING. We want you to relax in the confidence that we know what we are doing. We remove the stress from your wedding day. Please don't misunderstand, we're not saying that we are perfect. To err is human and we can make mistakes, too. But be sure to check out the things that are covered in our Satisfaction Guaranteed section. We are confident you will find our policies to be amazing!

         
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Secret #2: Hobbyists who are now "Professionals" often Get Pushy and Take Over We hear stories all the time from clients whose photographers got very pushy, were not polite to guests, took over and made the entire day about them. That just isn't our style. Charles gets compliments from clients and guests alike about how laid back he is and how he works from the edges, yet gets all the important images. And if he needs to exert control for a short time, he does that, then fades into the background again. Think of it like a referee at a ball game - always present but hardly noticed.

Secret #3: Older Film Photographers Often Don't Update their Style The 3rd most common Secret of photographers is to not update their style. The old styles were good and people enjoyed them, but tastes change. Adding Photojournalism to the formal Portraiture provides brides and grooms the best mix of images to choose from. Most photographers are good at only one or the other. This is a constant irritation to brides after the wedding - so please be aware that on your wedding day, you need both.

Charles has developed both skill sets over many years of being a photographer and has continually updated his style. He has apprenticed with several of the best photographers in America. That's why his albums look amazing.

Secret #4: Throwing Groups Together With No Organization We see this all the time from supposedly professional photographers. Most photographers photograph groups just by packing everyone together. It never looks good. Often, the light is very bad, but they don't have the training to recognize that. As a result, the people in the picture don't look good.

Portraiture skill is a must for wedding photographer, and specifically group portraits. Doing it right does take a little more time and effort, so most photographers today just don't bother.

Secret #5: Ignoring Body Types. You would think that a professional photographer would be good at making people look good, but you'd be wrong. Although top professionals take classes and work hard to make their subjects look good, hobbyists (new professionals) don't know and don't seem to care either. Men and women of all body types can be made to look good. We know of plenty of brides who used other photographers and complained to us about this problem. A word to the wise - this is not the way to capture the beauty of a bride on the most important day of her life.

Secret #6: Not Focusing on Customer Service This is not the "fun stuff" that drives hobbyists or most professionals. We happen to believe that it makes a huge difference to the consumer. We have heard so many stories about photographers who don't answer the phone when customers have a problem they want solved. The photographer may not have the skill to fix it, doesn't have the motivation to fix it, or doesn't want to spend any money to fix it. Meanwhile, the consumer really has no recourse at that point since the photographer has technically met the terms of the contract.

At Charles Jablow Photography, we pride ourselves on our customer service, our very happy clients, and on our ability to please even the most demanding clients. Our reputation is important to us and pleasing you is the reason we're here.

Secret #7: Not Capturing All the Relatives in Groups We have heard so often from brides that their photographers simply forgot many of the relatives they should have captured. Gathering these same people, dressed up, all in one place at one time will not happen again.

Secret #8: Not Seeing Places and How to Pose People in Them We have seen supposedly professional photographers take people into beautiful parks and make ordinary, uninteresting pictures. The people do not look good, groups are forgotten, and memories are lost forever. Don't let this happen to you.

Secret #9: Not Focusing on Album Design This is not something they have ever studied, nor are really interested in. The easiest thing is to outsource album design to the low bidder and be done with it. This is what happens more often than not.

Secret #10: Not Charging Properly Although most of these photographers should be charging budget prices and many are, some want to be paid as much as the pros with experience, training, and ability. With the right personality, they can do this, but the results are not what you would expect. Others charge budget prices and the couple selects them based on a nice personality and a promise, but are so disappointed when they see the results. Couple after couple tell this story, yet each year, new couples are fair game for these photographers.

Secret #11: How Will They Dress? Will they wear a suit or show up extremely casual? I have seen professionals show up in suits my entire life, but in the last few years, I have seen videographers and photographers show up in horrible attire: orange shirts, no ties, no suits, loud pants - and this is to a wedding where all the guests are in suits and dresses. Politeness sometimes seems a thing of the past. The values of professional photographers, passed on through apprenticeship, are simply not there any more. How disappointing that is.

These are your lifetime memories. If you don't use Charles Jablow Photography, please do find yourself someone who is really competent, really interested in your satisfaction, and who is willing to work with you to make sure your lifetime wedding album becomes something beautiful, lasting, and significant in your married life. If you come to us, we guarantee it will be!


"Making Sure You Chose the Right Photographer"

What consistently amazes Charles about photography is the complexity of the craft. There are so many different possibilities and concepts for exposure, composition, lighting, posing, color, emotion, expression, framing, etc. The challenge to the photographer is to craft the proper mix of all of these elements to create the perfect photo. In addition to these challenges, there is the challenge of consistency and timing while doing this under extreme pressure.

Therefore, although it might seem easy to snap the pictures, it requires a high degree of skill and experience to do this well. This skill is the key to taking great pictures and is the reason why there are many photographers, but few great ones. You will have only one chance to capture those moments. If you have the wrong person behind the camera and they miss it, then you miss it forever and no amount of Photoshop will ever get it back.

Choosing Charles Jablow will guarantee that you avoid missed opportunities and disappointments. You will get the right images taken at the right times and those photographs will be perfect. You can relax in the knowledge that you have the area's best photographic team, people who have your total satisfaction as their most important goal. Don't miss out on your date - lock it in by calling Charles now: 703-216-8878.

              
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Call Us Today (703) 216-8878
contact us: info @ charlesjablow.com