Frequently Asked Questions

Our goal: for you to have 0 questions when it comes to us and to help you with EVERYTHING that we possibly can which is why our FAQ covers everything we can think of that you might wonder about us or your wedding day. As you can see, we have put more time into helping you than anyone else because we care so much about our couples and want to show you, not tell you, just how dedicated we are to you! We know for many of you that this is your first wedding so let us help to make your wedding day planning fun and not stressful! Please remember, we’re here for you so feel free to call, text, or email us at anytime – we totally get that there are plenty of times you just want a quick answer and don’t want to search our website so keep us posted on any questions, no matter how small, as we truly are here to help! 

We couldn’t find information like this on anyone else’s site and so we spent our entire slow season working hard to create a website that will make you feel so much more relaxed when it comes to wedding day planning. We hope you enjoy! ?

 
 

 

How would you describe your style?

The day of, we’re photojournalist when it makes sense and we pose you when we should! Following your special day (aka editing), we individually edit every single image to ensure they are flawlessly edited (most photographers don’t and if you look at their start to finish weddings, we promise that you’ll see this!) and give you over double what most do, without a cap on the amount of images you receive; we share all the good ones with you! The reason we show us in action at weddings (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/us-in-action/) and our start to finish weddings (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/full-weddings/) is so you KNOW that what we are saying is true! Who else shows you, not tells you, the only two things you really need to know?

Below is a bit more of an in-depth description of our style. 🙂

We’re chameleons, meaning, we adapt to our surroundings! We are photojournalist (the majority of your day), capturing a ton of those candid moments and the raw emotions making up your special day, however, when we’re posing, we do an excellent job (we typically only pose you during the posed photos portion of the day) telling everyone exactly what to do (while having fun with all of you! :)) and knocking out those shots so you can relax and enjoy your guests. We also use the best possible light! Some will say they’re “natural light” photographers, well, let me tell you what we’ve learned from our extensive experience… often indoors, the shadows causing a “spiderweb” effect on your face can be very unflattering! We utilize off camera lighting when it will look best but when natural light is beautiful and most flattering, we’ll use that! I wanted to also quickly address this light and airy feel that is oh so popular right now, our photos are on the lighter, crisp and clean side but this light, airy phase that many are loving unfortunately, we feel often, leaves the people in the shots looking ghost like so we stay away from this and if you actually look, you’ll see this too. Additionally, we love that moody, romantic feel when it makes sense so during golden hour, sunset, night, and first dances, typically the shots will be a bit darker. But when it’s bright outside, we really showcase the vibrant colors and want them to pop!  

Two people awkwardly looking at each other is not an amazing moment. There are times that we will absolutely joke around with your guests at your reception to capture the laughter and love of your day. We’ll say something along the lines of, “the sooner you smile, the sooner I’ll walk away” or really anything cute like that to get a beautiful moment prior to moving on. We’re a fly on the wall when you’re mingling with your guests, working hard to get you those candid moments you’ll love that truly capture the happiness of your day! Another great example of when we’ll lead you to slightly smile would be when you (and your girls) are concentrating during the getting ready portion of the day (if your expression isn’t flattering). We’ve had many couples tell us and write in reviews too that we’re everywhere but not obnoxious. We enjoy your wedding day right alongside you so we’re going to have fun with you and your guests too which allows us for many more wonderful shots than most out there (we average over 1000 delivered images at our weddings, most photographers give you 400-600 and once you see our start to finish weddings you’ll be so confused how they can thoroughly cover your wedding in such a small amount of images!) and this shines through in our weddings! http://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/ We think it’s just silly though to “blend” into the background. We want to have fun with you and this most definitely does produce the best possible shots, truly allowing the laughter and love of your day to be captured in your photos! We know when to stay in the background and when to make sure we’re making you smile. 😊

Our awesome bride said it best…

“The most amazing thing I rave about their service is that not only did I end up with flawless photos of myself and my husband, our bridal parties and families, we also got TONS of pictures of our guests both with and without us in them, posed and candid. This didn’t take at all away from the classic wedding pictures as we got more than enough of those, but having all these other pictures documenting ourselves and our guests throughout the night is something I’ve never seen done before to this level – and I’ve been to a lot of weddings!!! On top of that, they give you all the digital copies without watermark so you can do whatever you please with them on social media, email to guests, print, etc. This increased the value by a million in my mind – and the price was already unbeatable!! We will cherish SB and our photos forever!!!”

What sets SB Photography and Design apart from the other photographers out there?

***How We Stand Apart From ALL Other Wedding Photographers***

Do all photographers blur together for you?

We totally get it and want to share with you very clearly how we stand apart from ALL the others.

1. Two photographers truly equals two photographers with us (and trust us, two photographers are SO important to thoroughly cover it all on the best day of your life). What other photographer do you know that shows you BOTH photographers’ portfolios? Additionally, we are all equally amazing at what we do and you’ll be blown away by our portfolios, which brings me to my next question… what other photographer has two EQUALLY talented photographers offered to you? Who are your top two on our team that you’d love to have at your wedding? We’re willing to bet you’ll love us all but absolutely let us know if you have favorites! 🙂 https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/about-us/

*I want to add an additional comment here: at several of my weddings this season, the videographer had only shot A FEW WEDDINGS! Never choose a team who doesn’t show individual portfolios with a lot of work showcased for EACH photographer or videographer, otherwise, you might be the person who gets the newbie on your special day. 

2. We show “Us in Action” and let’s face it, reviews are great but aren’t always accurate, additionally, you can like the person, but it’s the same as a job interview where you think someone will be wonderful then when you see them in action they’re not always what you expected. We are the ONLY ones we’ve seen that share in VIDEO form what your experience will be like when you choose us – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/us-in-action/

3. We share MANY start to finish weddings (https://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/) because as great as engagement sessions are, this is easy light to shoot in, you must see indoor shots/ how the photographer handles tough lighting conditions. If photographers don’t have their weddings up for the world to see, ask. You’ll learn nearly everything you need to know by clicking through each and every image from these. We have done surveys to see if our award winning photos were as good as we thought and I’m thrilled to say that 100% of couples that looked at our start to finish weddings and compared them to the 5 most popular photographers in our area chose US! 100%. We did not tell them which weddings we’d shot until AFTER and EVERY photographer we showed them was at least double our price!

*2 and 3 on this list (seeing what your experience will be like the day of and what will be delivered to you following) are literally the ONLY two things you need to see and based on thorough research, we believe we are the ONLY ones to show you both!

4. Our website is more thorough, transparent, and helpful than ANYONE else’s. Most of our free time has been spent working on it which shows dedication that no one else has demonstrated which should say something about who we are. https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/

5. We give you a private online gallery where you can hide any images prior to sharing the link. Your guests have the option to order through us OR download images for FREE in full resolution without logo WITH a print release AND you get a flash drive. This is SO convenient for you and your guests absolutely love it!

6. We are a small, tight-knit group. Why is this such a perk? Allow me to explain. Small groups are rare but when we started, it was just two of us and we told couples they’d get two photographers. Without a backup, that’s a major risk taken on the best day of your life. Don’t ever, EVER be so cocky to think that your photographers are super human and nothing can happen to them. Always ask them if they have a backup then ask to SEE their backup’s portfolio. Additionally, we’re competitive as a small group and that always helps us to strive to be the absolute best which is so clear when you review our photos. TWO couples booked us this week who had previously booked a husband wife team. One was because the wife was having a bad pregnancy and decided to cancel her weddings and the other was because the couple’s photographers were asked to stand up in their friend’s wedding. Lastly, we will never be a large company since there’s no possible way you can know every photographer is amazing and has a great personality when you get too big. Small teams where you can see everyone is very equal in talent truly are the best and we are so glad we grew from a two person team into this amazing little family. 🙂 Get to know us better here – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/about-us/

7. All others with truly our quality start at 8 hours for $2995 or more and typically with just one photographer included. See our packages here – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/packages-pricing/ *We’ve done the research and know this for a fact. Have you?

We KNOW that all of these things listed above are crucial to creating the best possible experience for you and we strongly encourage you to find another photographer that can say they offer all of this to you. We believe that actions speak louder than words (clearly!) so please review, compare, and SEE for yourself. We are probably the only photographers that urge you to compare us to others. 🙂 We’ve looked at every big name around here (ALL double or triple our price btw) and have yet to find ANYONE who can say they do all of this for their couples. We are the only ones to show you, not tell you, that your experience will be amazing with us. 🙂

We couldn’t have said it any better than our bride though!

Let’s just start from the beginning. After I got engaged, I immediately started looking at photographers because these are the individuals who will capture your day and the memories that you share for a lifetime. I was searching and searching for photographers for a month or two and nothing really caught my eye – the photos were good, but I was looking for something more… more artsy, more unique, just more. The only photographers I was even remotely interested in were charging $8,000 minimum for a base package – NO THANKS! Then I came across SB Photography and Design over Facebook – they were offering a nice, large package for an extremely fair price. I looked through their photos and I was extremely impressed – basically to the point that I thought it was too good to be true. I went to their website and they had so many different packages to choose from – to the point where you can customize it. I immediately emailed them to set up an appointment. My now husband and I met with Adam for this meeting – he was extremely professional, kind, and knowledgeable. We booked with him that day! What is even better, is that the special package that they were offering at the time included our engagement session – BONUS!! Adam shot our engagement session and he definitely made my husband and I feel comfortable – it’s not everyday that you have an hour long photo shoot and still feel like smiling towards the end of it. The turn around time for the photos was very quick and we had a large variety of photos to choose from. SB Photography and Design is also very organized and had us fill out a timeline/survey to make sure our wedding day went off without a hitch – this helped ease our nerves in that everyone was on the same page. The day of, ADAM and our second photographer ERIN arrived early for set up. Let’s say this again – THEY CAME EARLY for set up. During our getting ready photos, first look, and bridal party photos I could begin to see both Adam and Erin’s personalities come alive and they both made all of us feel extremely comfortable. During the ceremony I made sure to take a quick glance around at everyone – I saw one of our photographers roaming around and shooting FROM THE BUSHES – I definitely chuckled at this and thought to myself, “I am so glad we booked them.” Throughout the night they were always around ready to snap shots but I also didn’t feel like they were hovering. At multiple points throughout the dance I saw them shooting photos while standing up on chairs, laying on the floor, you name it – they were everywhere!! I had so many guests saying how impressed they were with our photographers, saying “Did you see them?! They were rolling around on the floor to get the perfect shots! I’ve never seen that before. They really know what they are doing! I wish I had them for my wedding.” We haven’t received our photos back yet because it has only been two weeks but my husband and I CANNOT WAIT to see the photos taken by both Adam and Erin. We especially can’t wait to view the more intimate moments my husband and I shared throughout the night – first look, sunset shoot, and the night shoot. Both Adam and Erin were such a fabulous team to work with and I definitely recommend this company to anyone looking for artistic photographers and a company that doesn’t break the bank – they were SO WORTH IT!! (Review on The Knot)

What is your editing style?

Our images are treated just like our couples, each one unique! We slowly go through and edit each image how we feel it will look best. We are great with post-production and are happy to do edit requests as well. 🙂

Do you help us with wedding day planning and timeline?

Absolutely! You’ll want to read our article (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/) as you will learn SO much, we promise! We totally get that you probably don’t have a lot of experience in this area as you (if we were to take a wild guess) don’t get married every weekend (lol) and that’s where we come in: we are an expert and will use our wealth of knowledge to make your special day aaamazing for you!

We don’t stop there though! We have created another article that shares with you a great timeline leading up to the wedding day. Be sure to take a peek – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/the-perfect-timeline-to-keep-you-organized-leading-up-to-your-wedding-day/

Our goal is to have written and video for everything we can possibly think of that will help you really get to know us as well as assist you in your wedding day planning. We have yet to find anyone else this thorough and we feel that really sharing our expertise and exactly who we are helps you to be more comfortable and confident in us, allowing your experience with both us and as a whole to be incredible on your special day.

Additionally, we’re always here for you so if you don’t like reading or watching videos, you can call, text, or email us and we will help you with anything we can. 🙂

What’s the timeline leading up to the wedding day?

From a general standpoint: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/the-perfect-timeline-to-keep-you-organized-leading-up-to-your-wedding-day/

From a photography standpoint: 

Step 1: 1-2 years in advance, you select your photographer. Be sure to read this article that will ensure you choose the absolute best photographer for you – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/choosing-your-wedding-photographer/

Step 2: Immediately following, start working on your timeline and as I’m sure you guessed, we also have that thoroughly organized for you – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/

Step 3: Check out your questionnaire (around the six month mark or if you’re an overachiever, feel free to review this sooner :)) so you’re prepared and have the answers when you need to fill it out – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-questionnaire/

Step 4: About 2 months prior, (when all final details are pretty well set in stone) fill out your questionnaire.

Step 5: Roughly 2 weeks before your wedding, schedule a final consult to be sure we’re on the same page and you don’t have any questions for us!

We like you to start thinking about your family list, your Pinterest ideas (if you’re a pinner, if not, we have MANY ideas so no worries there!), as well as your timing for the day towards the beginning of your wedding day planning. If you have a good idea for these and it’s in line with what we recommend then you’re doing great! Again, figuring all of this out near the beginning will make things SO easy for you! Just be sure to let us know what questions you have along the way because although we try to have long and short versions of all written on our site and in video form for your convenience, we still are here to help if you’d like to ask us anything at all. Simply call, email, or request to meet (whatever you prefer!) to go over every single question you have. 🙂

What's the time frame recommended for the photographers on my wedding day?

Typically, we recommend 2 hours for getting ready shots, 2 hours for posed photos, and lastly, 3.5 hours after dinner is served is often a great time for us to pack up!

If you want a lot of detail shots of the dress, shoes, rings, bouquets etc. as well as many candid moments with your girls and groomsmen shots, then have us arrive about two hours prior to the ceremony if we’re starting at the ceremony site (slightly earlier if we need to allot in travel time to the ceremony site from where you’re getting ready and much earlier if doing a first look with bridal party photos following). Additionally, we typically say two hours for bridal party/ family/ bride and groom posed photos. Lastly, we recommend that we’re at your reception about 3.5 hours after dinner is served. Now, this can change dependent on the size of your family, the amount of guests, the size of your bridal party, what events you have throughout the day, what you want to photograph prior to the ceremony etc. so the 2 hours before the ceremony for getting ready, 2 hours for posed shots (30 minutes for family and the rest is bridal party/ bride and groom), and 3.5 hours for us to stay after dinner is served does depend on these factors. If your wedding is pretty average sized (guests and bridal party) and you love our start to finish weddings on our site, then we’d recommend a timeframe similar to this. *You can customize your package at anytime prior to your wedding day but the pricing for hours (or anything else added in) would be whatever price is offered at that time. You can always subtract hours in the future as well if you find you need less time.

View our article on timeline here: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/

Why do all of your packages include two photographers?

With every package you get TWO CO-shooters, not a lead and “assistant” photographer. All others have one photographer who is clearly better than the other, with us you receive two INCREDIBLE photographers, we urge you to do your research and try to find another that offers you two very equally talented photographers. Check out our small, tight-knit SB family here: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/about-us/#!/meettheteam *We’re willing to bet that you’ll be shocked when we tell you that if you’d like, you can select your TWO photographers from our seriously amazing group. 🙂

Both of us run around to capture every moment and are able to get two different angles of all events. For example, we really love getting the first kiss from behind the alter; what an amazing shot of the bride and groom kissing while their friends and family cheer! Then we’re also able to get a more traditional angle of that very first kiss as husband and wife. Additionally, the very second the groom sees his bride for the first time, both the bride’s face and the groom’s are captured. Group shots go much faster with two photographers as one can pose while the other shoots. At receptions, one photographer can follow the bride and groom while the other is focused on getting every detail/ all those fun guest shots that you’ll be able to look at later and enjoy. After all, you can’t be everywhere at your reception at once, that’s our job and it’s much easier with two photographers. *We’re also happy to split up during the getting ready phase of the day so one can be with the girls and one with the guys. Additionally, if you’d like one photographer to leave group shots early to capture cocktail hour/ the reception details, we’d love to do that for you as well. We don’t care what anyone says, two photographers are vital to ensure a moment is never missed!

We invite you to view our start to finish wedding samples here to see for yourself how much better two photographers cover the day: http://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/

What is EVERYTHING I need to know about engagement sessions with you?

We absolutely love shooting our couple’s engagement sessions! This gives you a chance to become more comfortable with at least one of your photographers because although most likely you’ve already had a consultation with them and are loving their portfolio as well, it’s such a great feeling to know you also love YOUR images they’ve shot prior to your wedding day! Everyone is always very happy with their images (as well as really enjoys their time with us) and it makes our day to give you that additional confidence in us. Also, you become more comfortable with posing (AND you get to see just how good we are at posing! :)) 

First off, these engagement session tips are awesome! Be sure you take a peek – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/19-tips-to-make-the-most-out-of-your-engagement-session/

To stay super organized for you and ensure nothing is missed, we have you fill out a questionnaire prior to your session. See it here – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/engagement-session-questionnaire/

Additionally, our engagement session location suggestions are all such beautiful areas. Check them out – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/engagement-snapshots/

Duration and location of session: Approximately, 60 minutes in the Milwaukee and surrounding areas

When should I schedule my session? Typically our couples will book their favorite season for their session or maybe fall is your wedding date and you want a different scenery for your professional posed engagement photos so you select a snowy session or a beautiful, green summer setting with flowers in full bloom. There really isn’t a right time for your session, however, we do tell our couples that if you have a lot of out-of-town guests then you may want to send out save the dates (or for many other reasons such as it’s a popular wedding date, it’s not on a Saturday, it’s on a holiday weekend etc.) and if you decide to do this, then you’ll want your save the dates mailed out about 7-9 months prior to your wedding date so that would also be something you’ll need to factor in when scheduling a time for your engagement photos as often times, you’ll utilize your images from your session on these!

Wardrobe change limit: none, but we recommend 2 🙂

Price: $399 

Number of images delivered with basic edits: typically 100+ that can be downloaded for FREE in full resolution without logo with print release! Additionally, you are an admin in your own private gallery so this means you can “hide” any images (I’m a girl so I totally get it! :)) prior to sharing with family and friends.

Your favorites edited further: 10 

That covers it all, take a peek at our sessions/ their beautiful locations as well as our tips then let us know when you’re ready to schedule your engagement session with us! 

*We have weddings many of our Friday – Sundays but if not, we’d be very happy to schedule your session on these days. Otherwise, we are free most of our weekdays to book your engagement photos! We recommend from a lighting standpoint starting your session about two hours prior to sunset. 

I see you have engagement session tips above, do you have tips for any of your other sessions/ events?

Do you send a questionnaire prior to our wedding?

Yes and we call you! We will send you a questionnaire prior to your wedding date to get all your details including your must-have shots, Pinterest ideas, the groups of people you’d like photos with and their names, your contact info., event locations and times etc. As I’m sure you guessed, our questionnaires are the most thorough we’ve seen to ensure there is absolutely nothing missed and that your day flows smoothly. Feel free to view it here: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-questionnaire/

We then call you approximately two weeks prior to go over your questionnaire in depth and be sure that you have no further questions for us. We have spoken with a lot of photographers who don’t encourage lists stating that they have done this a million times and your list looks a lot like everyone else’s. We don’t feel this way at all! We encourage and help you to list everything that makes your wedding day unique so we don’t miss it. We know everyone’s wedding is special and we treat it that way. We want to note too that we have developed questionnaires that can be filled out really thoroughly or not quite as detailed so it fits all personalities. 🙂

Do you recommend a first look with my significant other?

This is totally up to you! Here’s a few reasons you might want to do a first look: if everything is at the same spot and you only have a 60 minute cocktail hour then knocking out your bridal party photos is a very good call prior to the ceremony as you’ll be seriously rushing after your ceremony which can be stressful. Basically, if you don’t have a full two hours in between for photos, you’ll probably just want to get them done ahead of time. Additionally, you paid a lot for your cocktail hour so go ahead and enjoy it or relax with your bridal party. 

 

In the winter, the sun sets as early as 4:30 pm so this is something else you’ll want to factor in. If the sun goes down early, you’ll need to ensure you have plenty of time for photos following your ceremony. Keep in mind, it typically takes 10-15 minutes following your ceremony for guests to file out which most of the time you have to wait for before starting posed pictures and 30 minutes for family photos prior to even starting bridal party so that means if you have a 3:30 pm ceremony in December and the sun sets around 4:30 pm, if it’s a typical 30 minute ceremony, you’ll run out of light before you even start your bride/ groom and other bridal party images.

 

Keep in mind too, first looks are so sweet! It’s almost like seeing your significant other for the first time twice on your wedding day as you get that amazing moment to say “hey” before the day gets too crazy and we always give you a few minutes alone after we’ve snapped some great first look shots. *We recommend tapping, covering eyes, and bear hugs for the first look. They’re all super cute ways to do a first look and I’m smiling as I write this. When your significant other sees you coming down the aisle, even if you’ve done a first look, they still have that exact same emotion and yet it’s different because now you’re in front of your family and friends. This is why we say it’s essentially like two first looks as one is with an audience and one isn’t so you get to experience two wonderful feelings. Based on our couples’ feedback, we don’t feel doing a first look takes away from the emotion when the walking down the aisle is actually happening.

 

If after reading all of this, you still feel that a first look isn’t for you then we completely get it! Just be sure you allot proper time in between and you’ve went over timeline with your photographer so there’s no lighting issues or anything else you may not have thought of! Like we previously stated, it takes 10-15 minutes for guests to file out of the church, a couple hours total for all posed photos, and 10-15 minutes to freshen up/ bustle prior to the grand entrance, plus the DJ normally wants you lined up 10-15 minutes before your reception entrance so be realistic with how much time you really have for photos as well.

Can I do a first look with my dad that moment right before walking into the ceremony?

So we try to be as efficient as possible throughout your day to ensure you get the maximum number you can of incredible photos from us! This means that typically one of us stands halfway up the aisle and the other all the way down during the processional so we can get many wonderful photos from the best possible spots. Trying to run up to get that moment with you and dad can be difficult as well as distracting. If you want us to stay back with you, we’ll have less down the aisle photos obviously as one of us is with you but then, yes, you can get that shot. 🙂 Another great option is that we can get a beautiful first look with dad (or anyone else for that matter!) prior to us preparing for the ceremony. 🙂

What do you wear to weddings?

Wonderful question – our attire is dress pants, dress shirts etc. We dress business professional with no flashy colors!

What do you bring with to my wedding?

We’ve got you covered with this extensive bridal emergency kit!
https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/emergency-kits/

Additionally, we have wooden hangers, command strips (so we can hang those wooden hangers anywhere!), white umbrellas, and a thank you banner. 

Also, we have a binder with your Pinterest and questionnaire printed to ensure we don’t miss a thing on the best day of your life! 

As you can see from literally everything about us, we are prepared, organized, and beyond helpful so we can take all stress out of not only wedding planning but also the wedding day itself. 🙂

Do you need to have shot at our venue before?

This is a GREAT question. Most venues in the area we’ve shot at multiple times. If we haven’t shot there, it’s fun for us to do our first meeting with you there if you’d like as we’d really love to see the beautiful space that you’ve carefully selected to celebrate some of the BEST moments of your life in. 🙂 Keep in mind too, we shoot every single weekend so we are VERY experienced in arriving early and scouting out locations. Regardless of whether we’ve shot there or not, prior to even seeing you, we’re carefully selecting exactly what we’ll be shooting where. If there’s a need to go to a venue prior or if you want to explore it with us and share your vision, then we’ll most definitely do that. After all, hanging out with one of our amazing couples plus seeing their incredible venue equates to a very fun day for us! 🙂 But since we’re professionals that shoot every weekend, we promise, we will shoot your venue flawlessly, whether we’ve been there or not prior to your wedding day!

Do you want to meet us prior to our wedding date?

Absolutely, if you booked online, please schedule a consult with us well before your date – getting to know you is one of our absolute favorite things to do! 🙂

What’s the timeline leading up to the wedding day?

Step 1: Generally, 1-2 years in advance, you select your photographer. Be sure to read this article that will ensure you choose the absolute best photographer for you – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/choosing-your-wedding-photographer/

Step 2: Immediately following, start working on your timeline and as I’m sure you guessed, we also have that thoroughly organized for you – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/

Step 3: Check out your questionnaire (around the six month mark or if you’re an overachiever, feel free to review this sooner :)) so you’re prepared and have the answers when you need to fill it out – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-questionnaire/

Step 4: About 2 months prior, (when all final details are pretty well set in stone) fill out your questionnaire.

Step 5: Roughly 2 weeks before your wedding, schedule a final consult to be sure we’re on the same page and you don’t have any questions for us!

We like you to start thinking about your family list, your Pinterest ideas (if you’re a pinner, if not, we have MANY ideas so no worries there!), as well as your timing for the day towards the beginning of your wedding day planning. If you have a good idea for these and it’s in line with what we recommend then you’re doing great! Again, figuring all of this out near the beginning will make things SO easy for you! Just be sure to let us know what questions you have along the way because although we try to have long and short versions of all written on our site and in video form for your convenience, we still are here to help if you’d like to ask us anything at all. Simply call, email, or request to meet (whatever you prefer!) to go over every single question you have. 🙂

Could you give me a couple sample wedding day timelines?

It’s your day and we want you to do whatever you want! These are to simply act as a helpful guide for you! If you like our start to finish weddings on our site, we recommend similar timelines to these.

Scenario #1 – Wedding at 1 Location without a First Look

*Plan to have photographers arrive at end of hair/ make up (don’t worry, if you’re already done, we can fake it!)*

1:00 – 1:45 Photographers arrive and start details shots (dress(es), shoes, rings, other jewelry etc.) *If possible, both photographers together.

1:45 – 2:30 Photographers split up and one goes with the guys for getting ready and one with the girls

2:30 – 2:40 Bride first look with Father/Relative (if desired)

2:30 – 3:00 Both photographers prepare for the ceremony (this gives a little wiggle room in case girls start to run a bit late (or guys, we won’t be sexist here! ;))

3:00 – 3:30 Ceremony – 30 minutes in length

3:30 – 3:40 Guests File Out of Ceremony

3:40 – 4:10 Family Photos

*Add 15 minutes for large extended family combinations.

*Subtract 10 minutes for small/immediate family photos only.

4:10 – 5:40 Bridal party photos including the entire wedding party, bridesmaids and groomsmen, and the bride and groom.

*Add 30 minutes if your wedding party has 8 or more couples. It takes time to get everyone posed and we want to ensure you have the time to enjoy the experience with your family and friends

*Subtract 30 minutes if you’re having a smaller bridal party (3 couples or less)

5:40 – 6:00   Arrive at reception and bride bustles/ wedding party freshens up etc. 

6:00 – 6:30 Grand Entrance/ Cake Cutting (if you decided on a large tiered cake typically the venue will have you cut it upon your arrival so they can prepare to serve it immediately following dinner)/ Prayer/ Welcome Toast

6:30 – 8:00 Dinner is served

*Dinner serve times vary with different venues/caterers, but 90 minutes is a good estimate for a medium size wedding. Add 30 minutes to weddings with 250 or more guests or if you’re serving multiple course dinners.

7:15 Speeches/Toast. We recommend that you wait until the head table and parents’ tables have finished eating before the toasts. This way you have a moment to relax and enjoy your meal and the wedding party isn’t eating during the speeches and creating a distraction in the photos.

*Toasts can also be given between salad and entrée courses if the caterer/venue has the time factored in. 

**Depending on when the sun sets, your photographer may have to pull you out during dinner if you want these photos. This only takes 10 minutes.

8:00 – 8:15 Wrap up dinner and mingling.

*You can also do the speed song at this time to get a fun photo with each table!

8:15 – 8:35 First Dances with Bride and Groom, Bride and Father/Relative, and Groom and Mother/Relative.

8:35  Open Dancing for the rest of the evening. You may also have some other reception events scheduled in like the Generations Dance, Garter/Bouquet Toss, Dollar Dance, Full Group Shot, Shoe Game etc.. This would be scheduled and planned out with your DJ/Band for the evening. *Take a peek at our timeline article (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/) for more info on these events and remember, don’t do too many as you really want some time to savor each moment with the people you love most in the world!

8:35 – 9:30/10:00 We recommend having your photographer scheduled for about an hour after the first dance starts. This will allow us to capture all of the special events as well as fun candid moments, we will also take you outside for Night Photos if you’d like!

 

Scenario #2 – Wedding at 1 Location with a First Look

*Plan to have photographers arrive at end of hair/ make up (don’t worry, if you’re already done, we can fake it!)*

12:45 – 1:30  Photographers arrive and start details shots (dress(es), shoes, rings, other jewelry etc.) *If possible, both photographers together.

1:30 – 2:15 Photographers split up and one goes with the guys for getting ready and one with the girls

2:15– 2:20 Bride first look with Father/Relative (if desired)

2:25 – 2:30 First look with Bride and Groom

2:30 – 4:00 Bridal party photos including the entire wedding party, bridesmaids and groomsmen, and the bride and groom.

*Add 30 minutes if your wedding party has 8 or more couples. (It takes time to get everyone posed and we want to ensure you have the time to enjoy the experience with your family and friends!)

*Subtract 30 minutes if you’re having a smaller bridal party (3 couples or less)

4:00 – 4:30 Bride and wedding party freshen up for ceremony. Bride is also out of view from the guests arriving.

(Both photographers prepare for the ceremony)

4:30 – 5:00 Ceremony – 30 minutes in length

5:00 – 5:10 Guests leave for cocktail hour

5:10 – 5:40 Family Photos

*Add 15 minutes for large extended family combinations.

*Subtract 10 minutes for small/immediate family photos only.

5:40 – 6:00   Arrive at reception and bride bustles/ wedding party freshens up etc. 

6:00 – 6:30 Grand Entrance/ Cake Cutting (if you decided on a large tiered cake typically the venue will have you cut it upon your arrival so they can prepare to serve it immediately following dinner)/ Prayer/ Welcome Toast

6:30 – 8:00 Dinner is served

*Dinner serve times vary with different venues/caterers, but 90 minutes is a good estimate for a medium size wedding. Add 30 minutes to weddings with 250 or more guests or if you’re serving multiple course dinners.

7:15 Speeches/Toast. We recommend that you wait until the head table and parents’ tables have finished eating before the toasts. This way you have a moment to relax and enjoy your meal and the wedding party isn’t eating during the speeches and creating a distraction in the photos.

*Toasts can also be given between salad and entrée courses if the caterer/venue has the time factored in. 

**Depending on when the sun sets, your photographer may have to pull you out during dinner if you want these photos. This only takes 10 minutes.

8:00 – 8:15 Wrap up dinner and mingling.

*You can also do the speed song at this time to get a fun photo with each table!

8:15 – 8:35 First Dances with Bride and Groom, Bride and Father/Relative, and Groom and Mother/Relative.

8:35  Open Dancing for the rest of the evening. You may also have some other reception events scheduled in like the Generations Dance, Garter/Bouquet Toss, Dollar Dance, Full Group Shot, Shoe Game etc.. This would be scheduled and planned out with your DJ/Band for the evening. *Take a peek at our timeline article (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-timeline/) for more info on these events and remember, don’t do too many as you really want some time to savor each moment with the people you love most in the world!  

8:35 – 9:30/10:00 We recommend having your photographer scheduled for about an hour after the first dance starts. This will allow us to capture all of the special events as well as fun candid moments, we will also take you outside for Night Photos if you’d like!

  

Scenario #3 – Wedding Ceremony at Church and Reception at Secondary Location (typically without a first look)

*Plan to have photographers arrive at end of hair/ make up (don’t worry, if you’re already done, we can fake it!)*

11:30 – 12:15  Photographers arrive and start details shots (dress(es), shoes, rings, other jewelry etc.) *If possible, both photographers together.

12:15 – 1:00 Photographers split up and one goes with the guys for getting ready and one with the girls

1:00 – 1:10 Bride first look with Father/Relative (if desired)

1:10 – 1:30 Both photographers prepare for the ceremony (this gives a little wiggle room in case girls start to run a bit late (or guys, we won’t be sexist here! ;))

1:30 – 2:30 Ceremony – 60 minutes in length

2:30 – 2:40 Guests File Out of Ceremony

2:40 – 3:10 Family Photos at the Church

*Add 15 minutes for large extended family combinations.

*Subtract 10 minutes for small/immediate family photos only.

3:10 – 5:30 Bridal party photos including the entire wedding party, bridesmaids and groomsmen, and the bride and groom. We suggest 2 hours when traveling for photos as it takes time for the wedding party to load/unload

*Also, make sure to account for travel time and try to limit to 1 photo location that is near the ceremony or reception.

 *Add 30 minutes if your wedding party has 8 or more couples. It takes time to get everyone posed and we want to ensure you have the time to enjoy the experience with your family and friends

*Subtract 30 minutes if you’re having a smaller bridal party (3 couples or less)

5:30 – 6:00  Arrive at reception and bride bustles/ wedding party freshens up etc. 

6:00 – 6:30 Grand Entrance/ Cake Cutting (if you decided on a large tiered cake typically the venue will have you cut it upon your arrival so they can prepare to serve it immediately following dinner)/ Prayer/ Welcome Toast

6:30 – 8:00 Dinner is served

*Dinner serve times vary with different venues/caterers, but 90 minutes is a good estimate for a medium size wedding. Add 30 minutes to weddings with 250 or more guests or if you’re serving multiple course dinners.

7:15 Speeches/Toast. We recommend that you wait until the head table and parents’ tables have finished eating before the toasts. This way you have a moment to relax and enjoy your meal and the wedding party isn’t eating during the speeches and creating a distraction in the photos.

*Toasts can also be given between salad and entrée courses if the caterer/venue has the time factored in. 

**Depending on when the sun sets, your photographer may have to pull you out during dinner if you want these photos. This only takes 10 minutes.

8:00 – 8:15 Wrap up dinner and mingling.

*You can also do the speed song at this time to get a fun photo with each table!

8:15 – 8:35 First Dances with Bride and Groom, Bride and Father/Relative, and Groom and Mother/Relative.

8:35  Open Dancing for the rest of the evening. You may also have some other reception events scheduled in like the Generations Dance, Garter/Bouquet Toss, etc.. This would be scheduled and planned out with your DJ/Band for the evening.

8:35 – 9:30/10:00 We recommend having your photographer scheduled for about an hour after the first dance starts. This will allow us to capture all of the special events as well as fun candid moments, we will also take you outside for Night Photos if you’d like!

Do you wish to be fed?

Yes please! If we can eat after you and your immediate family, that is oh so greatly appreciated as we have been running around all day without a break and feel refreshed (which can only benefit you!) when we’re able to eat. Often times, the moment we get our food (as we are generally served last) the speeches are starting and we’re unable to eat, leaving me with a headache (to be perfectly honest here) for the remainder of the night. Also, when everyone starts to eat is generally the only time throughout the day where there is nothing for us to do as photographing all stuffing their faces is not a photo anyone wants to be in so eating quickly most likely during the only time when there is nothing happening for a second is definitely best as well as from an efficiency standpoint. I want to address this because I’ve heard it said more than once by brides: “When I work 8 hours, I bring a lunch and don’t have it supplied to me by my employer. Additionally, I don’t get paid for my lunch.” Alright, let’s start out with the fact that trying to keep food in with our camera equipment (we do bring granola bars etc. but that doesn’t cut it for the entire day) is just not a good idea and we don’t like going out to our cars as we hate leaving you when we don’t need to. Additionally, awkwardly eating our lunch in the corner is just weird. Lastly, we scarf down our food in five minutes generally as we work HARD for you and you can clearly see this in our start to finish weddings. We jump up when moments are happening, attempt to get table shots (during dinner when people aren’t eating we’re going around in attempt to get all the tables – asking, who is a couple/ family etc. and if there are any other combinations they want, time permitting, showing them if they’d like to see them, and ending with getting the table as a whole). We also are focusing on all of the details of the room as well. Basically, there is almost always something to shoot so we don’t take a long leisurely 30 minute dinner!

What type of equipment do you use?

We all utilize only professional camera bodies and lenses (we’re rival Canon vs. Nikon users :)). Again, let us show you, not tell you, how high-quality our images are! http://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/

Are you photographing other events on the same day as mine?

Absolutely not! On your special day, your photographers will strictly be shooting your day! No sessions or consults will ever happen on your wedding day. We want to place 100% of our focus and organization on you. 🙂

Is it okay if other people take photos while we’re taking photos?

Absolutely, as long as you’re ok with this. The only time it can become a bit difficult is during the ceremony (which we’ll cover in our following QA :)) and during family photos. When shooting your posed family photos (especially if there’s time constraints) we may just tell all to look at us and be sure the others shooting are right by us in case there are some not listening. If there’s plenty of time, we’re happy to have everyone look at their camera if they want a family shot as well. Be sure they know that they can download our images in full resolution free of charge (or order through us :)) and print/ share too as they receive a print release each time they download! 🙂

Unplugged ceremonies versus allowing guests to shoot during the ceremony? As the expert, what do you suggest?

We love unplugged ceremonies (no one using their cameras during the ceremony and just leaving that in the hands of the professionals) as avoiding a bunch of cellphones being thrust into the aisle in our way during the processional is obviously ideal, however, we don’t push you to do an unplugged ceremony as we don’t think people using their phones is that huge of an issue for us. Many though are never truly 100% present anymore as they’re always looking for that shot to show off on social media, so forcing all to truly soak in the moment can be a great thing! I’d say to get a sign and/ or let all know ahead of time if you do decide to have an unplugged ceremony (most just have a sign you can’t miss when walking into the ceremony site).

Can you share with us a little regarding your post-production process? For example, are all images delivered edited? If so, are they edited as a batch or individually? How intensive is the clean up of images?

This article will go through precisely how thorough we are with your images and what we deliver to you!
https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/choosing-your-wedding-photographer/

Additionally, we’re very much a “what you see is what you get” company so instead of asking us about our post-production process, let us just “show” you! http://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/

We do tell you precisely why going through all images in start to finish weddings is crucial prior to selecting your photographer but hey, we totally get you’re busy. Between planning a wedding and life, you probably don’t have excessive amounts of time so that’s why we’ve created our wedding day snapshots (https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-snapshots/) so you can more quickly see just how flawlessly we cover your day as well as edit your images!

Ask around, you will find just how rare it is that truly full weddings are shared! Contrary to what couples believe, simply having your photographer shoot your engagement session (outdoors in good light is VERY easy to shoot great photos!) will not be a true indicator of how your images will look in all different types of light on your wedding day (some MUCH more tough to shoot than what would be shot at your engagement session). If you do both an engagement session AND see start to finish weddings, you can be confident that you’ll very much enjoy your wedding day images as well! We feel that seeing many weddings from start to finish is enough but if you’d like the added confidence then we absolutely think an engagement session is right for you. 🙂

Can you “skinny me up” or do other specific requests to my photos?

Oh yes, absolutely we can but please don’t misunderstand us! We think you look great and feel all body types are perfect, however, we totally get it – we are all our own worst critics! So if there is something you’d like fixed in every photo of you, whether it be acne, a few lbs shaved off, or anything else, let us know and we’ll do it for a small fee. We want you to fall in love with your images so if there’s anything you’re sensitive about, please do tell us as we want to know. And remember, you’re not alone in this, we all have our features we don’t love about ourselves. 🙂

Do you have recommended vendors?

Absolutely, these vendors are ones that not only have we loved but at least 3 of our brides have raved about them as well!

Take a peek here – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/recommended-vendors/

We are so excited to share that we’ve also added recommended venues to our website! These have all been carefully selected based on the recommendation of our couple and our experience there! Be sure to check out our incredible venue list complete with images that truly show off the beauty of each space – https://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/gallery/venue/home

Do you recommend hiring a videographer?

We think this is completely up to you! We feel that if you think you’ll be sad not having certain things on video to replay later, then a videographer is right for you. If you wrote your own vows, think the best man’s speech will be funny, have special questions for the shoe game that pertain specifically to the two of you etc. and feel you’d love to relive these moments then we think video is a wonderful plan. 🙂 We will thoroughly cover all moments and beautifully preserve them in your photographs, but video is totally different than photo. 

Are you fine with shooting alongside a videographer?

Absolutely, we work great alongside all vendors as we’re very personable and enjoy everyone we work with! We do ask that you find out if your videographer is more documentary/ photojournalist (in the background capturing the candid moments), if they pose you, or if they’re a mix of both. Be sure to allot time if they need it too during group photos so they’re not taking away any of the time we have for posed shots with you! To keep your special day stress free for you, we promise that we always recommend exactly what will make your day as smooth as possible! 🙂

What are the restrictions for sharing photos online or for publication?

No restrictions with either, they’re yours to share. 🙂 In fact, it makes our entire day for you to post your images online! We’d really love for you to tag us when showing off your photos to the world so we can enjoy them as well! 🙂 Additionally, you absolutely have a full print release to print as you’d like! Your guests receive a print release as well every time they download a photo from our website.

How many weddings will you shoot in a weekend?

All of us have a different number we’re comfortable with. As you can see by our portfolios, our photos are phenomenal and we will absolutely never shoot more than what we know we can enthusiastically and flawlessly cover! Most of us typically shoot 1-2 in a weekend.

Why is your Meet the Team section SO extensive?

Yes, we realize that our “Meet the Team” shares more with you than many photographers share on their entire site. 🙂 This is simply because we love to help and feel that getting to know us as well as being an expert for you in literally all areas when it comes to planning your day helps you to know we’re a fit even before meeting with us! We have all in written and video form on our site that we can think of that could possibly assist you but please know, you can reach out to ANY of us on the team and we’ll answer all questions so don’t feel that our thoroughness with our site means we don’t want you to come to us with questions! We’re truly here to (AND love to!) assist in anything we can so if you don’t want to look around on our site or don’t see an answer (which is near impossible on our site :)) then please don’t hesitate to ask. There is no dumb question and we’ll never get annoyed, it’s your day and before you select us, you need to know you’re making the right decision then after you choose us, you want to have confidence that we’ll always do anything in our power to help your day run as smoothly as possible!

Get to know us more at the following link: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/about-us/

Can I choose my photographer(s)?

Absolutely! The sole purpose though of having such an extensive “Meet the Team” is feeling like you know us; all of us. We want you to see just how similar we are: friendly, organized, and creative with amazing photos. If you love a photo on our site, any of us can recreate it! You can also see what a tight-knit group we are when looking at our “ About Us” section. We enjoy our time with each other both at weddings and recreationally which is all part of creating the best possible experience for you. 🙂 If you’d like to tell us a few of your favorite photographers then we’d love to schedule an in-person meeting with the one(s) available for you! Additionally, we typically will select your second photographer after getting to know you better, which works wonderfully well! If you’d like to choose them too, you most definitely can, and if they’re able to shoot your date, then we’d be glad to add them to your wedding. 🙂 We are all very personable and similar in creativity, which is evident on our pages. 🙂

What other photography company allows you to select BOTH of your photographers? Additionally, who else lets you pick two EQUALLY talented photographers to shoot your day?

Do you have any additional fees?

We don’t have any additional fees throughout the day. It’s our goal to make your experience as stress free as possible, which is why we’ve created our all-inclusive packages.

Are taxes included in the packages?

Yes, everything is included except travel fees if applicable.

Do you customize your packages?

For sure… tell us exactly what you want and we are happy to give you a customized quote. We would never want anything in your package that you don’t need and if we can save you money, we will! Additionally, you can add or subtract items from your package at any point. Products/ services added after booking will be the price listed at that time. 🙂

View our packages and products here: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/pricing/

Do you have backup equipment?

Absolutely, we have back up equipment of everything.

What if my photographer is sick?

We pay a photographer every weekend to be a backup – we would never take that risk when it comes to your wedding! We started with just two of us and this is a huge part of the reason we initially began to grow, as having no backups in case life happens, was simply way too scary for us! We want you to get to know your photographers and love their portfolios so we have a small group that have proven themselves extremely reliable as we understand our clients are very excited to spend their special day with their photographers. 🙂

If you don’t choose us, don’t ever, EVER be so cocky to think that your photographers are super human and nothing can happen to them. Always ask them if they have a backup then ask to SEE their backup’s portfolio. 🙂

How many photos do you take?

In an 8 hour wedding, you’ll typically receive 800-1200 print ready photos. We do not have a cap on the amount of photos you can get. We normally shoot well over 5000 photos throughout the day and are careful to sort through and give you all of your best photos with minimal duplicates, deleting awkward/ blurry etc. and correcting color/ exposure so all of the photos you receive look great and are print ready. Don’t worry, we’ll give you all the good ones! 🙂

Please note, we work SO hard for you. Most photographers give you 400-500 images (and only take around 1500!) and once you view our start to finish weddings you’ll be very confused how they can thoroughly cover all the moments of the best day of your life in such a small amount of photos! 

We invite you to view our start to finish weddings here so you know exactly what you’ll be getting when you choose us – http://photos.sbphotoanddesign.com/

We’d love for you to compare our start to finish wedding samples to anyone else’s! Any professional will be able to send you a link right away to several start to finish weddings so if it’s not on their site, request it! Think about it: on most photographers’ websites, you only view their best of the best images so what will ALL of your images look like? We recommend you find out prior to booking! 🙂

Do you come on the party bus with us?

If we’re able to – we have a lot of equipment in our cars and typically don’t drive together (because if, knock on wood, we’re in an accident, we would both be late or not in attendance at your wedding, which we have lead backup photographers for but we feel it’s smartest to drive separately from each other due to this) so if we can ride with you and that works out, we’d love to. If we’re unable to go on the bus for any reason then we will definitely get some great shots prior to you leaving and join you wherever you’re headed. Leaving vehicles and attempting to get them at the end of the night at a church, hotel, or elsewhere, (when we are so exhausted) typically a distance from the reception site is something we like to avoid but again, either way, we’ll get awesome bus photos. We’ve had couples tell us they loved that we got lots of shots then allowed them to go wild with their group for a short period on the bus as it was their nice, short (and only :)) break from us throughout the day.

What if it rains my entire wedding day?

We can normally find a covered location or utilize umbrellas as well. It is rare that we can’t find a time throughout the day when the rain has stopped to grab you and quickly knock out some awesome outdoor posed shots.

Take a look at Jessica and Chris here to see an example of some beautiful rainy day photos! https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-snapshots/

Do you have snowy samples on your site?

View Katie/ Steve to see how beautifully we cover winter weddings. 🙂  https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-snapshots/

Do you have any fall samples on your site?

Katelyn and Kirby are a great fall example. Check them out here – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/wedding-day-snapshots/

Do you do this full-time?

I’m so thrilled to say that we do. Sheryl Kelley and Adam Aten, the owners, as well as the majority of our wonderful group can say that we do this for a living! 🙂 Get to know us more at the following links: https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/about-us/ and https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/meet-the-team/

Attempting to focus on wedding day post-production and have a day job is near impossible we feel!

What is your travel radius for weddings?

We have an extensive travel radius. We will travel to Southern WI (Madison, Milwaukee, and all areas in between) with no fee. If it’s slightly further a travel fee may incur. We do try to make our travel fees very reasonable and are happy to travel to your wedding destination so please message us if you’re interested and we’ll quote you a travel fee for that particular area.

I see your office is located in Waukesha, WI and your studio in Milwaukee, WI... are you willing to travel out of state?

Yes, if you tell us where your event will be held, we are happy to provide you a quote with travel fee (if applicable).

Pinterest?

Absolutely! We actually ask you if you have a Pinterest and print that prior to your wedding! We even put the photos in the order we will be shooting them on your special day. We are the creative artists and are experienced in posing so no worries if you don’t have ideas (that’s what we’re here for :)) but again, your poses are welcome too. 🙂 We love to see your ideas (we get really excited when viewing your pins! :)) as that does help us to know exactly what you’re going for style wise. 🙂

Do I have to pay extra for a print release or pay for a certain number of prints?

No, your print release is included in your package. We not only give you a flash drive with print release but you’ll also receive a link to your images online in full resolution in your own private gallery (these do expire after 3 months as they’re not usually being utilized at this point but can be reactivated at anytime free of charge). Your guests can download for FREE (and P.S. – I’m a girl and I totally get it, you can “hide” any photos you don’t absolutely love prior to sharing this link as it’s private to you and we’ll only give it to you) and the email address entered in when viewing the gallery will automatically be sent a print release so your guests can also print, share (or order through us) as much as they’d like!

Do I get to pick the photos for my photo book(s) and prints?

You have 60 days after receiving your images to choose your canvases, photo books etc. We don’t know what your favorites are from your special day and really want you to be able to choose these. 🙂 If you don’t select them and we’ve asked you about it with no response, we will simply refund your product. 🙂

*Please let us know if you’d like us to select your images for your products as we will upon request. 🙂

What is the required deposit to book?

We require a $500.00 non-refundable deposit. The rest is due 1 month prior to the wedding date. If you choose to receive the 20% discount for paying in full, your total would be due immediately upon booking.

*Please note, we do state in our contract that you receive all but our $500.00 deposit back if you cancel for any reason, unless the cancellation occurs within 90 days of the event, in which case we will retain all monies paid. We simply offer pay-in-full discounts due to other vendors we’ve partnered with offering this and we want to remain competitive with them.

Do you only shoot weddings?

Oh my goodness, NO! We love love love also shooting boudoir, engagement sessions, families, seniors, pets, and maternity sessions as well as corporate events! 🙂

Check out more information at the following links… 

Boudoir – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/boudoir-photography/

Everything But Weddings – https://www.sbphotoanddesign.com/everything-but-weddings

What are your hours for client consultations?

Again, we do this full-time which means we have a lot of availability and will schedule consultations when it’s most convenient for you (mornings, afternoons, evenings etc). Weekdays (Monday – Thursday) do typically work best as we have weddings the majority of our Friday – Sundays but we’re happy to coordinate a Friday/ Sunday if we’re available. Saturdays are nearly always booked with weddings (but if not, we’re happy to meet! :))

Our office address is 2727 N. Grandview Blvd. Suite 101 Waukesha, WI 53188 and our studio address is: 2612 S. Greeley St. Suite 235 Milwaukee, WI 53207. We’d absolutely love to get to know you better at whichever location is most convenient for you and as you can see by our site, we also have a passion for helping to make your wedding day go as smoothly as possible for you! 🙂

Do you hold dates?

Once you request a consultation (as long as your consultation takes place within 1 week of our response to your initial inquiry) we will hold your date and continue to reserve it for 48 hours after your consultation.

Do you offer discounts for referrals?

Referrals are amazing to us – anyone who loves our company enough to tell their family and friends about us is someone we want to thank! If you mention you were referred, we will add a $50 print credit to your package. As of now, over 50% of our clients are referrals, which is absolutely incredible to us. We are convinced that we have the best couples out there and it makes our entire day when potential wedding clients state that they were referred to us. 🙂

What if my referral books you? *This is a promotion so it may not be applicable in the future, ask us if this offering is still available!

If you refer 1 couple, you receive a $50 print credit. If you refer 3, we’ll give you a LUXURY 8×11 crystal cover album (priced at $999 on our products page!), and lastly, if you refer 5 couples, you get the hours you originally booked FREE!!

*Referred couples must officially be booked with us (invoice paid and contract signed) in order for you to qualify. We know that many of you are at an age where everyone you know seems to be tying the knot. There is nothing that makes us happier than when you share your wonderful experience with your family and friends, which in turn has them excited for us to capture their special day too! We definitely want to thank you for recommending us to others as this seriously makes our entire day! 🙂 *Please note, previous referrals do not count towards this limited time, amazing offering. We’re happy to share why if you ask and will give you a free gift if for some reason you didn’t receive one for a previous referral as we so greatly appreciate you! 🙂

Do you offer military discounts?

If a bride or groom is on active/reserve military duty at the time of the wedding, we are happy to give a $50.00 discount and sincerely appreciate their service to our country. 🙂

Is there an additional fee for traveling to multiple locations in between the ceremony and reception?

Typically no, unless those locations are out of our wedding day travel radius.

Is there a fee for travel time?

No, we arrive at our weddings before our scheduled time and stay after. If we are scheduled at 1 pm, we will be ready to shoot on or prior to 1 pm and if you have 8 hours of coverage we will leave at 9 pm (again, typically a little later). If there are still events going on, we’re happy to stay an additional 30 minutes past your scheduled time free of charge! We know some photographers will set up their first 15 minutes you’re paying them for but don’t worry, with us, we’re there early and typically shooting well before our scheduled time. 🙂

Can I see a copy of your contract?

Absolutely! You can view our contract, in full, right here – sbphotoanddesign.com/our-contract

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