Consultation? What for?

It's all in the details

So you may be wondering - what's involved in a consultation, and why is it necessary?

We state on our website that we always like to have a consultation with our clients before the wedding date, and this is for a number of reasons. The first, and most significant reason, is that we find it always puts our clients' minds at ease. They are often excited and anxious about the thought of having photos and/or video taken at their wedding, and how it is going to work out in real time. So one purpose of the consultation is to answer any and all of your questions about the process, the lead up to the wedding, what happens on the day of, and receiving the final products (which of course means the awesome videos which will make you cry and which you'll love forever!). We don't mind answering questions, no matter how trivial, and indeed want to answer your questions - the more satisfied and confident you are in the lead-up to the wedding, the better it will go for all of us on the day.

How will the space flow? Are there any obstructions or events we can plan fod? 

Another reason for the consultation is for us to nail down the details. We are very detail oriented when it comes to shooting. The more preparation we have, the better. The more information we have about what will be happening, the better. This is particularly important for our observation style of shooting. Essentially, to get the footage we need, we need to be in the right position to shoot it. We can't do much with footage if we either didn't get it in the first place, or we were in the wrong spot at the wrong time. Think of this scenario: we go into a wedding with very little details or knowledge of the exact events of the day - of how people are going to be positioned at the ceremony, where the first look is going to take place, of how the bride and groom are going to enter the reception, etc. We figure we'll just pick it up on the fly, and follow everyone around. But then it turns out that, uh-oh, we weren't sure where the bride was going to be standing for the bouquet toss, and, uh-oh, turns out we were on the wrong side of the room and didn't have a clear view of the bouquet being caught by that lucky girl, because uncle Frank, who is a staggering seven feet tall with shoulders the width of a eighteen-wheeler was standing in front of us and we couldn't get out from behind him. And so it turns out that we didn't capture that detail at all, or it was obscured because of our positioning. 

So, this is an example of why we need as much information as we can get before the wedding. So that we can make sure we're in the position ahead of time, ready to go, and capturing all your unique moments as they happen, without obstruction. These details are super important, and so the consultation works great for nailing down almost the minute by minute play of the wedding day (assuming those details are in place far enough in advance). 

  

We always ask about important friends and family which is a big part of your wedding day!

And last, but not least, the consultation is simply a great way for us to get to know you, ahead of time. There is nothing like face-to-face time with a client, which is why we always prefer to meet in person, or if you're out of province or can't make it, at the very least through a video skype chat. It is much easier to connect with one another when you can see the person's face and hear their voice. Email simply doesn't cut it for this type of interaction, and we think it is vital to establishing our relationship with our clients, which will carry on into the wedding day. Think of it this way: how much easier is it to welcome someone to your special day, camera in hand, when you've already spoken to them, joked and laughed with them, and gone over the minute details of the day, rather than greet a stranger with whom you've only had minimal contact through email?

We make sure to put a lot of effort into these consultations, to reassure you, to comfort you, to encourage and excite you about your wedding. In the end, it helps us all to be more comfortable with each other, which makes the day that much more special, worry-free and magical.