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Kelly, I just went through an interview like the one you are discussing Wednesday night for shooting a wedding next Fall. I've been working with a good friend who owns a local studio. It allows him to book two wedding shoots on the same day. He shoots one and I shoot the other. His studio brings in more revenue and I get a decent amount doing the second shoot for him. I have a very good "day job," don't have a dedicated permanent studio at home (but can set up a temporary one), and am not interested in doing it full time. It does help subsidize equipment and other expenses for doing my fine art photography. Not unusual for prospective clients to interview their photographer. Fortunately I had the advantage of already having a portfolio. The original was built up by "double shooting" some weddings with him and I've been doing weddings both "solo" and as part of a team for two years. As with any other interview, be yourself and don't fabricate anything. Very, very few prospective clients know what to ask as they don't have any wedding experience to speak of. Even if they attended some as guests, there is near zero likelihood they observed and become familiar with the timing and logistics of conducting a ceremony or reception. This gives you an opportunity to display your knowledge and experience (??) by asking them relevant questions about their wedding. Turn their interview of you into an interview of them to find out the details of their wedding plans, discuss with them the timing and logistics as it applies to you, and how you can best fit your work in with everyone else (DJ, caterer, etc.). I didn't have my normal planning sheets as I went to his studio straight from work, so I had to create one from memory "on the fly" . . . on the back of one of the studio's pricing sheets. See the "planning" section of a tutorial I've written for non-pros shooting a wedding (Part 3). In particular, see the "Must Have" list I have there. The one I use for a "paid" shoot is very similar; it's an updated version of this one that has a few more questions (if there is a hired wedding coordinator, where bride and groom and wedding party will be getting dressed [church, home, etc.], whether the person officiating allows flash during the ceremony, and lines for location/address of wedding and reception dates, times and locations are several that come to mind). One other question that is deliberately *not* on the sheet but that I always ask about tactfully: Are there any pairs or groups of family members attending that I should not try to have standing next to each other in setting up a group shot. If they look at me quizically, I tell them that divorces and similar family rifts happen, and they're sometimes not amicable. I've encountered people who refuse to stand next to someone or even be in the same photograph with them because of it. At the least I want to know if there are both parents and step-parents and if they will all be there so I can be sensitive about who I pose where and how I do family groupings. You *have* shot a full wedding before, including altar returns (formal portraits), and pre-ceremony preparation and reception candids haven't you? If not, tell me (us) and I'll provide some more tips about timing and logistics. I looked at your pricing page on your site. I can't get into pricing methods and strategies publicly on this forum, but you can look into some library resources that will give you several general methods that you might consider in addition to the one you've already set up. One thing I did note was your minimum booking time. I believe you need to adjust that upward for weddings. A traditional wedding ceremony and reception will consume at least 5-7 hours starting about 2 hours before the ceremony and running continuously through the reception long enough for all the main events to occur (first dance, bouquet and garter are usually the last things to happen) and for a little more time for a few more candids after that. Since this wedding will be a casual one, you need to walk through their day to assess how long it will last so they don't book you for two hours and expect complete coverage! -- John
November 24, 2002
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