Shawn and Derek's Engagement Session

Derek and Shawn had a wonderful engagement session this past Monday.  We even made the rain work for us!!

Justin and Chanell's Engagement Session

I had a great time working with Chanell and Justin's engagement session this past weekend. Their wedding is June 28th and I'm sure it will be excellent!

PROS VS JOES 4. Customer Service

This week I added up the time I spend on my average couple and the number came to 22.5 hours. I included the phone inquires, a 10-hour wedding day, the time it takes me to process proofs, create a wedding album etc....   This is important because I take customer service very seriously. I know some photographers that have gotten caught up in the repetition of this business meaning they look at every wedding and every couple as the same; its become monotonous to them.  For me, every couple is unique and I treat them as such.  This means designing every album that caters to the couple's personalities.  Its almost like you have to "fall in love" with your clients. There are just so many things that change, that have to be covered, and have to be discussed when a couple is planning a wedding that great customer service is a must.

ROMANTIC ENGAGEMENT SESSION

I talked earlier about the importance of engagement sessions, and I think the main point I forgot to add is the importance of the engagement session to the bride and groom.  A lot of couples choose to have their engagement sessions at places they've had their first date at, their first kiss at or maybe just a nice scenic location that has a good vibe to it.  This particular engagement session had meaning because it took place where the groom proposed.  I took the photos at the The Henry Ford Estate in Dearborn, Michigan.  This was the first time I had been there and I was surprised to see a waterfall!  Charles (the groom) said it took him 3 months to find a place to propose but he feels The Henry Ford Estate was the perfect place. 

PROS VS JOES 3.- PEOPLE PERSON

Technical skill and a fancy camera don't mean anything if you have poor communication skills. I meet a lot of new wedding photographers who haven't learned that there is a level of personality, patience and communication that's needed for this gig.  During a weeding day you may encounter a pushy bride's mother, a bossy wedding coordinator, a pastor with rules, a groom with no clue, nosey bride's maids,  a uncle with a camera better than yours and a nervous bride that you have to keep calming down.  This career is not for quiet people, introverts or flat out jerks.

When I was growing up, I noticed how my grandfather seemed to get along with everybody.  He even got along with folks nobody else liked.  As I grew older I understood his mind-set:  he didn't hold judgement against anyone for any reason.  If the guy next door was mean to everyone in the neighborhood than my grandfather understood that the guy was not being mean to him because it was personal; it was just how he was.   That's what my grandfather did throughout his life, accept people for who they were; the good, the bad, and the ugly.

This is a trait that you can't teach, you just have to mature into it.  As a wedding photographer you have to know how to charm the wedding coordinator into giving you 15 more minutes for pictures even though the reception will start late.  You have to build a quick nod of trust with the bridal party because if they don't respect you or your work, than they won't listen to you.

When I interview assistants, I never look for the ones who are experienced with the camera, I look for the ones who love people.  You can teach a person how to use a camera, but you can't teach a person how to be considerate, how to communicate, how to learn and accept people.

LET ME TELL YOUR STORY

A story can be anything.  A pictorial story does not have to be just a wedding.  I had the pleasure of photographing a Sweet 16 B-Day.  I'm not going to discuss it because I would rather you guys follow the story in the album pages posted.

PROS VS JOES 2 -MAKING RAINBOWS OUT OF SPILLED PAINT

MAKING RAINBOWS OUT OF SPILLED PAINT

An old mentor of mine told me many years ago that wedding photographers always have good days.  Why, do you ask?  Because we can't afford to have bad days!  What he was trying to say was that you have to have a good outlook on everything no matter what it is.  If it rains: you can get a good reflection shot of the bride in groom in a puddle.  If you're running out of time for formals:  move faster and concentrate harder because when proofing time comes, the bride and groom don't want to hear, "Well I didn't get any good formals of you guys because I just didn't have enough time."  This is what separates the Pros from the Joes - being able to see something where there is nothing or make a positive out of a negative.  And to be honest: it all has to do with focus and attitude.  The situation is only screwed up if you say and think it is!

This was one of the toughest situations I've been put under as a wedding photographer.  The wedding started late, the receiving line ran longer than expected and we just had a hard time exiting the church to go to the designated spot to take pictures.  

The bride and groom pulled me to the side and said there was no way we could get downtown to take pictures and back in time for the reception. They basically said, "Kahn, we need somewhere to take pictures thats close to the reception."  Now I didn't tell them this, but I couldn't think of nowhere, however I just told them to follow me and I felt I could "wing" it.  

They got in their limo, I got in my car, I called my wife and she gave me directions to a park with gazebo near their reception hall, but when we got there there was another wedding going on!  I got back in the car, starting driving and biting my nails (it felt like the weight of the world was on my shoulders), the limo driver pulled to the side of me and told me to pull over.  He got out the car and told me that the couple only had the limo for 15 more minutes so something had to be done!  So I looked over and saw an office building full of different kinds of stone work and told him to follow me straight over there, and here is the result.

I found the section in the building that didn't have any windows and had the best light, posed and photographed the couple non-stop for 10 minutes.  That left 10 minutes exactly for them to get to the reception.  Everybody was happy.  Rainbows were made out of spilled paint.

We did most of the formals inside the church, but I took about 30 more seconds to get a few outdoor pictures.  The best light was came from the direction of the church which meant I had to place the couple's backs to the street.  Instead of showing the unattractive residential street, I decided to focus on the couple close up.