gia has written many informative and honest posts about “collaborating with your photographer” and so many articles providing advice for couples regarding wedding photography and light and locations and timing…

with gia’s permission, here is an extract explaining the time, expense and love that is involved in providing a wedding album…

Although I’m not surprised that folks balk at album prices—most people don’t know what goes into making them (!)—a wedding album is really essential, the finishing point of your investment in wedding photography.

I. The Labor

I like to think about the album making process as a labor of love.  It is certainly laborious—even a simple album can sometimes run upwards of thirty hours of labor.  Custom books can amount to much, much more work.  So what goes into making an album that can add up to so much time? Well, here goes:

1. Design time.
   This is a big one.  Perhaps it’s the big one.  Album design is a back and forth process—and sometimes a long one—a collaboration between a photographer and her clients.  Often, there are meetings.  There is always time laying the album out.  An opportunity for client feedback.  Changes to the design. Another opportunity for client feed back and/or a final approval.  Design time is all about decisions: decisions about which album(s) to use, which images will and won’t be included, how to tell the story of the wedding day and best flatter the bride and groom; decisions about making the best overall presentation, including choosing cover treatments (leather vs suede vs book cloth), cover photos, deciding on stamping or imprinting …
2. Editing images.
   Once the images are chosen, and the client has “signed off” on the album design, we begin preparing images to print.  Final color corrections need to be made.  We always take a good second look at images that will be included in a client’s album.  Retouching issues need to be addressed.  The images need to be sized and cropped (if the album’s matted) or inserted into an overall layout (if the album is flush-mounted).
3. Ordering prints from the lab.
   This seems pretty self-explanatory, but this often takes an hour or two depending on the album type.
4. Checking quality.
   When the prints come back from the lab, we check every single print to make sure it’s up to snuff.  If we don’t like a print, we have to send it back to the lab.
5. Assembling the prints & order forms.
   Not my favorite part, for sure.  I check everything about a zillion times.  Prints have to be put in numerical and size order and sometimes hand-trimmed.  I always reference emails and notes to make sure I get everything filled in properly on the order form.
6. Shipping or dropping the order off at the album bindery.
7. Checking quality again.
8. Shipping or dropping the album off to the client.  (Phew!)

II. The Prints

A gorgeous album requires gorgeous and expertly-made photographic prints.

III. The Binding (Album Assembly)

This is actually part materials cost and part labor cost.   The album cover and its pages are certainly a substantial cost in and of themselves, but binding is all about the artisan who actually makes the book.  Handmade albums are more laborious and therefore more costly.

So why is it worth it?

So, although the price of making a wedding album seems high, there is very little markup in the end.  Not only are the materials quite costly, but album-making is also quite labor-intensive—for both the artisans involved and for the photographer.  Ultimately,  your wedding album becomes the official record of your wedding day.  We work tirelessly to ensure that our clients get albums that will become heirlooms.  That’s the goal.  Frankly, your grandkids aren’t going to be interested in a digital photo file.  And neither are your grandparents for that matter.  The albums available to consumers don’t even compare to those available to professional photographers.  And getting expert professional help with the design, printing, and binding is invaluable.  Not to mention that not doing it yourself is pretty grand.  I own my negatives from my wedding (which was back in the all-film days).  I am not sure when I’ll get around to making an album for us … and I think it’s the labor time that’s my hangup (that and the five hundred or so dollars I’d need to spend on prints).

if you are a bride to be, click on the link to gia’s blog…but only if you have a rainy afternoon to soak up the beauty and wisdom contained within…thanks gia

wonderful to catch up with gemma collins, sensational mua and sarsha wetherall, stunning celebrant and meeting david goldberg, the righteous dj…

country folk are fun folk…this is a given…

you may ask what is the story here…but i cant explain…no idea…

thanks hayley and brad for making us so welcome in your celebration…we hope you adore these images as much as we do…

p.s. mike - the traveller who is still away for one more sleep - kicks ass today with the amazing sunset shot (although i did suggest the dog!)

thanks once again to my cousins shaun and liv for the afternoon delight we captured at their property…oh, and sorry babe…as you are still away on your month long charity/work/holiday/bromance…i’m claiming victory with “dad’s kiss”…so there

i love this wedding, love the details, love all the cute children, love the people we laughed and danced with, love the food (oh my word), love that stephen and louise embraced the cold for photos in the vineyard by the light of vehicles, love the guests who - with each member of their table - wrote very very funny poetry about the newlyweds, love the beverely table, love that my cousins dragged me on to the dancefloor for lady gaga when i was saying goodbye, especially loved the hugs from the shane - the quiet serious brother - who after viewing the slideshow on the deck said how much he loved what we completed on the day…

p.s. mike won today…he let me wear his jacket when i was cold, oh, and the pictures under the arch were sweet as

full posts to appear very soon…life is a tad hectic as mike and the booth are cruising the state with roger and kirsty from envy as they raise money for the regional kids…

even though we miss the magix man…i have learnt to change a light bulb and discovered his side of the bed is more comfortable…

stay tuned, oh ye loyal followers…

lucky for me and my totally calm and charming mike, we were blessed with delicious children, clouds in a blue sky, an autumn tree driveway and the most incredible light we have witnessed and soaked up all year…

a little sneak peek for my aunties (but especially for matt and melis as they travel home from their exmouth “childless” honeymoon!)

p.s. thanks so so so much to shaun and liv (our third shooter ) whose driveway we borrowed for the afternoon…the autumn images are SOOC for the photographer stalkers…yes, the light was that gorgeous…

in the desperate few minutes before the limo was to return everyone to cassellas for what was a divine food experience…we played a new game in front of a brand spanking newly painted red wall…i know…i am a bit partial to red walls the red set of pictures just keeps making me laugh

finally…a cake pic for nicole, just cause we think you are awesome