How to ask brides/clients to be patient?

[haring]

I am a wedding photographer. Brides always want me to select single photos and send to them before delivery date. I am not really talking about thank you card but other photos with family remembers.
I would love to do it for them and send them but the only problem that it really messes up my workflow. I allocate equal time for everybody's wedding. It is hard to pull the drives, go through the wedding photos, selecting them and editing them before final delivery while I am still editing somebody else's wedding. It takes a long time and this way I feel that I will never be able to meet my deadlines.

The best example is father's day. Everybody wants to have a photo with their father...

How do you do it? Are sending clients/brides photos after their wedding before the delivery date or you ask them to wait for the final product? If you ask them how do you ask them to be patient?

[Gulag]

Interesting question but there are always right questions and wrong questions and this one is wrong one.

[Jim Pascoe]

It depends on how long your 'delivery date' is after the wedding.  Personally, within reason, if the bride wants it she gets it.  All my work is from referral though and so it pays to keep the customer happy.  Actually this year I made a resolution to edit a wedding on the Monday after shooting that weekend.  Worked well up till a couple of weeks ago - now one week behind!  I had drifted to 2-3 weeks last year so I'm not doing badly.

Jim

[PeterAit]

How do you do it? Are sending clients/brides photos after their wedding before the delivery date or you ask them to wait for the final product? If you ask them how do you ask them to be patient?

"I'd love to get you a few prints right away, young lady, but it takes me quite a while to retouch that mustache you are sporting."

[kaelaria]

I see similar questions fro some local wedding photogs - usually those with absolutely HORRIBLE turnaround times, stretching from weeks to months.  Those of us with better workflows deliver in 1-2 weeks or simply outsource it for a proper turnaround time.  I would suggest one of the two if you can't deliver your photos quickly in a reasonable timeframe like others.

[slackercruster]

Tell them upfront how it works. Get them to sign the paper that they know how it all works.

[Jim Pascoe]

Tell them upfront how it works. Get them to sign the paper that they know how it all works.

I can't really agree with the second part of this statement. In 16 years photographing weddings I find that doing a good job and working with your customer is the way to succeed.  I agree that it's good to explain how you normally work, but is it really necessary to get them to sign a contract with too many small details?  Not questioning your way of working personally, but there is a school of thought with wedding photographers that contracts and Term's and Conditions need to cover everything, and quite often they become very skewed toward what suits the photographer rather than providing a good service.  I have already admitted above that my editing times do slip, but let's face it, except in extenuating circumstances or unless you are going on holiday the day after the wedding, then there is no logical reason not to edit the pictures within a week of the wedding.

Jim

[Ian Shreds]

Set yourself very strict turnaround targets, but always give a longer turnaround to the client. e.g. "it will be 7/10/14 (as appropriate) days to send you the proofs", but always turn them out quicker.  The bride gets what she wants quickly and thinks you are wonderful for getting them out in say 3/7/10 days, despite the fact you quoted slightly longer.  Win/Win situation.

Of course the first rule of wedding photography is:- the bride is always right!

So make sure you stay on the right side of her. (or him if it is a 'civil' wedding).

If they are going away, make sure that you know when they are back, otherwise the package my end up stuck in the depot.


Any special days such as forthcoming Christmas/Birthdays/Fathers/Mothers Days etc.....why not send out invites for reprints say 6 weeks in advance with a deadline imposed for orders. Get the extra business and give yourself time to produce the goods.

[haring]

Set yourself very strict turnaround targets, but always give a longer turnaround to the client. e.g. "it will be 7/10/14 (as appropriate) days to send you the proofs", but always turn them out quicker.  The bride gets what she wants quickly and thinks you are wonderful for getting them out in say 3/7/10 days, despite the fact you quoted slightly longer.  Win/Win situation.

Of course the first rule of wedding photography is:- the bride is always right!

So make sure you stay on the right side of her. (or him if it is a 'civil' wedding).

If they are going away, make sure that you know when they are back, otherwise the package my end up stuck in the depot.


Any special days such as forthcoming Christmas/Birthdays/Fathers/Mothers Days etc.....why not send out invites for reprints say 6 weeks in advance with a deadline imposed for orders. Get the extra business and give yourself time to produce the goods.

Yes, I guess the problem is turnaround time. I am trying hard to edit faster but I don't want the product to be lower quality. Also, artisitc wedding photos just don't get created overnight. If you rush them they will  look average...

[haring]

I can't really agree with the second part of this statement. In 16 years photographing weddings I find that doing a good job and working with your customer is the way to succeed.  I agree that it's good to explain how you normally work, but is it really necessary to get them to sign a contract with too many small details?  Not questioning your way of working personally, but there is a school of thought with wedding photographers that contracts and Term's and Conditions need to cover everything, and quite often they become very skewed toward what suits the photographer rather than providing a good service.  I have already admitted above that my editing times do slip, but let's face it, except in extenuating circumstances or unless you are going on holiday the day after the wedding, then there is no logical reason not to edit the pictures within a week of the wedding.

Jim

I totally agree! What I am going to do is to start editing the last weekend wedding and the oldest wedding. The problem is that the last one was a 4 day long Pakistani wedding. It will take weeks to edit.

[haring]

It depends on how long your 'delivery date' is after the wedding.  Personally, within reason, if the bride wants it she gets it.  All my work is from referral though and so it pays to keep the customer happy.  Actually this year I made a resolution to edit a wedding on the Monday after shooting that weekend.  Worked well up till a couple of weeks ago - now one week behind!  I had drifted to 2-3 weeks last year so I'm not doing badly.

Jim

2-3 weeks...? That's not bad.

[haring]

I see similar questions fro some local wedding photogs - usually those with absolutely HORRIBLE turnaround times, stretching from weeks to months.  Those of us with better workflows deliver in 1-2 weeks or simply outsource it for a proper turnaround time.  I would suggest one of the two if you can't deliver your photos quickly in a reasonable timeframe like others.

Outsourcing is great is you customer base doesn't mind it.... I have tried. The product was below standard and had to re-edit everything. There is a difference in output if you put your hart into your work!!!

[haring]

Tell them upfront how it works. Get them to sign the paper that they know how it all works.

I do! Still they become inpatient.... You know how it works with weddings...

[haring]

Set yourself very strict turnaround targets, but always give a longer turnaround to the client. e.g. "it will be 7/10/14 (as appropriate) days to send you the proofs", but always turn them out quicker.  The bride gets what she wants quickly and thinks you are wonderful for getting them out in say 3/7/10 days, despite the fact you quoted slightly longer.  Win/Win situation.

Of course the first rule of wedding photography is:- the bride is always right!

So make sure you stay on the right side of her. (or him if it is a 'civil' wedding).

If they are going away, make sure that you know when they are back, otherwise the package my end up stuck in the depot.


Any special days such as forthcoming Christmas/Birthdays/Fathers/Mothers Days etc.....why not send out invites for reprints say 6 weeks in advance with a deadline imposed for orders. Get the extra business and give yourself time to produce the goods.

Yes, correct: "the bride is always right! "

[David Eichler]

FYI, Jeff Ascough notes in is blog that, on average, it takes him around 20 hours of work to process the photos and upload them to client galleries.

More info here: http://www.jeffascough.com/haporth-tar/

[melchiorpavone]

I am a wedding photographer. Brides always want me to select single photos and send to them before delivery date. I am not really talking about thank you card but other photos with family remembers.
I would love to do it for them and send them but the only problem that it really messes up my workflow. I allocate equal time for everybody's wedding. It is hard to pull the drives, go through the wedding photos, selecting them and editing them before final delivery while I am still editing somebody else's wedding. It takes a long time and this way I feel that I will never be able to meet my deadlines.

The best example is father's day. Everybody wants to have a photo with their father...

How do you do it? Are sending clients/brides photos after their wedding before the delivery date or you ask them to wait for the final product? If you ask them how do you ask them to be patient?

You wanted to be a "pro", so there you are! Be careful what you wish for: you just might get it!

[Alan Klein]

My daughter's wedding in 2012 took months to get my album.  But they picked the photographer and handled the details.   I thought it best not to complain to my daughter and son-in-law.  But I wouldn't recommend the photographer if someone asked me.   

[melchiorpavone]

I am a wedding photographer. Brides always want me to select single photos and send to them before delivery date. I am not really talking about thank you card but other photos with family remembers.
I would love to do it for them and send them but the only problem that it really messes up my workflow. I allocate equal time for everybody's wedding. It is hard to pull the drives, go through the wedding photos, selecting them and editing them before final delivery while I am still editing somebody else's wedding. It takes a long time and this way I feel that I will never be able to meet my deadlines.

The best example is father's day. Everybody wants to have a photo with their father...

How do you do it? Are sending clients/brides photos after their wedding before the delivery date or you ask them to wait for the final product? If you ask them how do you ask them to be patient?

Raise your prices substantially, so that you have fewer clients and less work, but a bigger payoff. Then you can get done quicker.

[Colorado David]

A friend of mine had an art director tell him that if he cut his rates in half he could work twice as much.  I always wondered if the guy did the math before saying that.

[melchiorpavone]

A friend of mine had an art director tell him that if he cut his rates in half he could work twice as much.  I always wondered if the guy did the math before saying that.

To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.

Oscar Wilde