The "Digital Negatives"

THE ORIGINAL HIGH RESOLUTION DIGITAL FILES ARE INCLUDED WITH YOUR WEDDING ALBUM.*

Why do I offer the "digital negatives" included with your wedding album? Because I am not a salesman.

Many photographers will not release the digital files because their pricing models require them to make additional sales after the wedding in order to turn a profit. But because a fee is charged up front for the service and my talent, I can focus on creating great work in a relaxed atmosphere without worrying about how many prints, frames, etc. that I have to sell afterward.

My goal is to provide excellent customer service and build a relaxed and friendly relationship with each customer. So charging the creative fee up front allows me to only be a salesman once, during the initial meeting, because I don't have to sell anything else to make a living. And as a customer, you can rest assured that you won't get hit with any surprise costs after the wedding.

Now, my customers may choose to get their reprints from me, or to upgrade their albums because there are so many good shots, but I don't have to feel pressured to make that happen. In fact, there are plenty of good reasons to buy reprints from me, here are several:

1. When you buy reprints from me, the color and density correction is always right, so the prints will always look beautiful. If you go to Sam's Club, or Costco, the prints will never look as good as they should.
2. Asking your friends and family to make their own orders online is far more convenient than the hassle of having to coordinate multiple orders from all the aunts and uncles. That's a hassle you don't need!
3. While my reprint prices are higher than the mini-print labs at Costco, I don't mark them up for maximum profit, and they are better quality prints. The difference in cost might make a small difference today, but the difference in quality will make a big difference for many years to come.

*So, what if you haven't ordered a wedding album? No problem, you can still add on the "digital negatives" if you want them.

Starks/Moore; The Renaissance Hotel, St. Louis

The Starks/Moore wedding was quite an affair; one of the largest weddings I've photographed. Held at the completely restored Renaissance Grand Ball Room atop the most historic hotel in Saint Louis, the 10 hour wedding celebration was an extravaganza of live music provided by family and friends of the wedding couple. I was truly astounded at the musical talent present among this group of people. And these were by no means amateur musicians; ...how cool is it to go to work and be entertained with a live concert! It was truly amazing. This wedding was so stunning, and there were so many great shots, I may have to blog it again, so stay tuned.

Click the images to enlarge.

The Power of Music

I'm a person who likes solitude. I can be quiet with myself and explore my thoughts for hours. I guess that's useful to keep a person grounded. But today, as life seemed to be bearing down a bit more than usual, I found myself surfing blogs and photography sites searching for a diversion (and some inspriation) from myself and my thoughts. Just as my search for a diversion had become tiresome itself, I came across a site playing a really cool song I'd not heard before. Not sure of the artist, but the song was from a Hotel Costes compilation. I decided to leave the song to repeat in the background while I sorted laundry (the diversion of last resort). Its easy to forget how powerful a little music can be. Now the laundry's sorted and I feel so much better.

Picture Of The Day

I thought I'd throw in a couple of lovely details from a recent wedding just to add a little color to this post. I'll be blogging this wedding in the next few days, so here's a sneek preview.