The Booking Process with Danielle Durbin | Film & Photo

I hope you have been enjoying allllll about choosing the BEST wedding photographer for YOU and your day. So far we have covered:

5 Trending Shooting Styles of Photographers

5 Editing Styles of Photographers

8 Questions to Ask Your Photographer Before Booking

SO now let’s say….you know what shooting style you want documenting your day. You know how you want your images edited. And you know you’ve found them. The PERFECT wedding photographer. And let’s just say that you want ME, Danielle Durbin Film & Photo to capture your big day, from beginning to end!! YAY!! Cue the confetti and pop the champagne!!!

But wait…now what? What exactly is the booking process with Danielle Durbin? Let’s get started!

 

The Booking Process

The In-Person Consultation

Maybe we’ve been emailing back and forth a bit since your initial inquiry. Now that you know I’m the gal for you, it’s time for us to meet up in person. Or, if you’re out of state, then we can talk over the phone or even Skype or Facetime. It’s really important to me that we have this chance to connect in real time to make sure that we are the right fit. You can like someone’s photos all you want. But if something doesn’t click between us, it’s going to affect your whole experience. I’m going to be with you your entire wedding day. It’s important to have someone you feel comfortable with.

Online Contract

The next step is for me to send you my contract. This contract protects not only me, but YOU. It covers things like what happens if I can’t make it to your wedding. It also talks about your rights to your images. This is important step in making sure we are all on the same page with our expectations for the day. I hope you read the whole thing and come to me with any questions you have! I’ll be the first to admit that contracts are boring, but we have them for a reason! Once you feel comfortable with the contract, you can either sign it digitally or mail it in with your retainer!

Invoice & Retainer

I ask all my clients for an initial payment that acts as a retainer for their date. This ensures that their wedding day takes that date off my calendar. I can now devote all my time and energy into serving them that day. I turn away all other inquiries and potential bookings for that date, which is why the retainer fee is non-refundable. The remaining balance is due two weeks before the wedding. All payments can be made online with a credit card, so it makes things paperless, fast, and easy to keep track of, or made by check to avoid those pesky credit card processing fees. You’ll also have a receipt for your records.

Welcome to the Danielle Durbin Family!

We’re OFFICIAL!!! Next, we celebrate!! You’ll receive a little “Welcome” letter, a few different timeline ideas to work with, and an engagement style guide. Yep, that’s right!! The ENGAGEMENT SESSION is next! Some couples say this is the BEST part of wedding planning. Why wouldn’t it be? It’s a built in date night, with something tangible to keep forever. All my photo collections come with a gifted, complimentary engagement session, and that gets us started on our wedding journey together.

How far in advanced should I book you?

As soon as you confirm your date! The main reason for this is we are constantly booking 1-2 years out. This is not a category I would save for last.  Plus, it’s a bonus if you can book your photographer and videographer with the same company. If you’re interested in booking video with me as well as photography, be sure to ask!!

I’m not in Pittsburgh. Can I still hire you?

Absolutely 100% hallelujah amen!! Yes, I will travel to you! In fact, I am dying to get myself to a BEACH wedding and get some sandy photos, so if that is you then let’s make magic!! If you are planning a destination wedding, I would be thrilled to come with you and capture the whole experience. It’s still a simple process. Booking me for your destination wedding is the same process as above. I simply add on my travel fees to your package price! We might need a few more phone calls as we lead up to the wedding but the important part at the beginning is securing your wedding date with me by signing the contract and paying the retainer!!

So there you have it! The simple and easy booking process with Danielle Durbin! I hope this was helpful for you. I realize most people have never planned a wedding before, have never had to book a wedding photographer, or gone through this process. I try to make it as simple and yes, even FUN as possible. Next week, we’ll be starting the ENGAGEMENT series where we’ll chat all things engagement photos!! Stay tuned, this is the FUN part!!