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Archive 2013 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?

  
 
mbpautz762
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p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


I recently shot a quick bridal session mainly for practice as it was not full price. The bride has said she does not care for any of the images, and now I am doubting myself and my work. I am very in-experienced, and it has crushed me that she isn't happy with them. She has not said why yet. Has this every happened to the more experienced members here? and if it has, how did you handle it?

I have linked my three favorites below, and here is a link to the set: http://matthewpautz.photodeck.com/-/galleries/client-proofing-galleries/corey2


http://matthewpautz.photodeck.com/-/galleries/client-proofing-galleries/corey2/-/medias/1b932b42-f3a7-11e2-a064-e7d9eeab5844

http://matthewpautz.photodeck.com/-/galleries/client-proofing-galleries/corey2/-/medias/1e592444-f3a7-11e2-9eb4-7daf20ae45d9

http://matthewpautz.photodeck.com/-/galleries/client-proofing-galleries/corey2/-/medias/1c8594ea-f3a7-11e2-960a-0f6fc7ed4f88

Thanks for any help you can give me, I appreciate it!



Jul 23, 2013 at 01:45 PM
jeremy_clay
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p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


Had it happen to me recently, and I am very experienced comparatively. FWIW, I felt similarly; until I spoke more in depth with the client, it turned out to be far more a client issue and not one with my work or images. Your images seem nice enough - I would do as I did and have a proper conversation to unearth a little more information. In my case, I offered a full refund, as well as links to photographers of a high skill level who were still available for the date; they refused both re: wedding. What products (prints/coverage/time/files) have you provided/what have they paid for currently?


Jul 23, 2013 at 01:49 PM
SGallant
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p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


You really need to try and figure out what bothers her by having her tell you.

The one thing that keeps sticking out to me on these are some of the angles. Look at her in DSC_8118. She looks younger, and her chin/neck/cheeks are not changing the look of her face. Then look at her in some of the other shots you linked here. It's like another bride.

Also I would offer either provide her money back or offer to re-shoot if I had to.

And hopefully this thought was not in your head when you approached this. "I recently shot a quick bridal session mainly for practice as it was not full price." I would think if you were practicing or not you would want to do your best.


my $.02 probably more like $.01 these days but hey.



Jul 23, 2013 at 01:56 PM
Robin Usagani
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p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


Dont shoot her wedding.


Jul 23, 2013 at 02:03 PM
mbpautz762
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p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


hahah....the wedding is Saturday
and I need this one to pay my mortgage....but there have been warning signs lately, mainly a lot of special requests (I didnt guarantee anything in the contract but somehow I don't think that would matter) and not understanding why I can't just throw in a bunch of stuff that were in my other . I honestly am worried.

Maybe it's an inconsistent look across the set then? I thought some of it was the 35mm distortion, but several of those were @ 85mm too. Maybe I need work on making the images more flattering in general, but I'm not sure how I would do that in this case



Jul 23, 2013 at 02:09 PM
jeremy_clay
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p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


mbpautz762 wrote:
hahah....the wedding is Saturday
and I need this one to pay my mortgage....but there have been warning signs lately, mainly a lot of special requests (I didnt guarantee anything in the contract but somehow I don't think that would matter) and not understanding why I can't just throw in a bunch of stuff that were in my other . I honestly am worried.

Maybe it's an inconsistent look across the set then? I thought some of it was the 35mm distortion, but several of those were @ 85mm too. Maybe I need work on making the images more flattering in general,
...Show more

Face to face or phone conversation to get the real deal.



Jul 23, 2013 at 02:14 PM
amonline
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p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


I would begin by asking what it is she does not like about the images. You have some very good images there. Of course, not all of them are going to be awesome. Quite a few are shot from very unflattering angles. Any client should understand that not every image will be perfect as well. I would attempt to determine that this is not a self confidence issue. Once I heard what she thought the issue was, I would ask how she thinks it can be corrected. Go from there.


Jul 23, 2013 at 02:15 PM
mbpautz762
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p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


I will definitely call and find out. She prefers email contact, which may be a lot of the problem

So I can learn for next time, which ones specifically stand out as being a poor choice of angle?



Jul 23, 2013 at 02:18 PM
jcolman
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p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


Since you are in the south, like me, perhaps it is a cultural thing. I shoot a lot of brides and many southern brides seem like they want the traditional style of photo.


Jul 23, 2013 at 02:19 PM
amonline
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p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


8133 and 8118 are definitely too high of an angle. 8129 is nice, but I think could benefit from a slight position adjustment. A few more might look better from a slightly different height. Don't take the "angle" remark to heavily. Mainly, those first two I mentioned are the ones that stick out the most.

I would also try some wider "artistic" shots. These are all very close.



Jul 23, 2013 at 02:22 PM
NathanHamler
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p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


The work seems good, a few of them i think were a bit too wide angle, for being as close as you are.., but nothing really objectionable aside from that....i think the hands on her hips thing in a few of the photos makes her seem a little wider than she should....it sucks that she has no flowers, as it limits what she can do with her hands.....i always make (suggest) brides bring flowers with them on bridal sessions....makes life easier.....but either way, i would definitely sit down with her and find out what it is she doesn't like....and then try and shoot it again....


Jul 23, 2013 at 02:26 PM
MazeRunner
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p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


That's a lot of pressure for the upcoming wedding then.

Did she find you through referral? And took a look at your work before deciding to hire you (noticed you only have landscape on your website)? Or did she pick you for your pricing? Maybe offer a redo. But definitely find out what she doesn't like and what you can do to get shots she'll like if you plan on doing that wedding.

Your photos range in lighting and composition. Some of my thoughts:
- 8048 and 8049 are very similar, can change hand poses or angle of shot instead of having two very similar
- For 8189, consider converting it to B+W and adjusting for contrast+temperature. Would have been neat to have a full-frontal so you could see her feet & shoes also (if one is going to shoot most of the person's body, might as well do all of it unless it was a rushed shot). She looks a bit big in this photo, so a slightly sideways/profile shot (imagine if she turned another 60 degrees to her counter-clockwise, with both hands grasping a flower that she is smelling--zoomed in) might be a good alternative
- 8133. I like this one. Think an alternate with her head back and arms up behind her head with her eyes closed would be a neat shot
- 8129, looks as if the flash was not bounced, or bounced too close. Lower the flash power by 2/3rds stop to get more even lighting and less highlights. Bounce off umbrella or through it if you aren't lowering the power
- 8090... when I saw this shot, I was thinking, how would several photos of her silhouette look if the light was coming from outside and you were shooting with -1/3rd stop exposure in RAW format (for more dynamic range). Could be +2-3 shots for her wedding here. And the large window would be a quick and simple frame you could play around with?

Shots you may want to add:
- close-up facial shots (through the veil, from different angles, by windows, etc.)
- the silhouette shots!

Just my two cents as a part-time event and wedding photographer, since you asked. But I may be wrong on some points. =D Definitely figure out what makes her happy before you shoot her wedding though. Else if she happens to know a lot of people, she can impede your venture into wedding photography if she really turns out unhappy.



Jul 23, 2013 at 02:48 PM
Ghost
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p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


Sorry to read this. This must take a number in your psyche as you go into the wedding shoot. Second guessing every time you press the shutter button. Best get this resolved ASAP as others suggested.


Jul 23, 2013 at 03:07 PM
sherijohnson
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p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


you certainly have some images in there that she should have liked


Jul 23, 2013 at 03:24 PM
mbpautz762
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p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


thank you all for your replies! I am meeting with them tomorrow to clear the air properly.

I was hired based on a referral, and they did see my wedding portfolio. The website I linked is actually my landscape site (still a work in progress), but I piggybacked some client galleries on there too

I know the images aren't perfect, but then again, for my prices, there should be no expectations for that hahahah

I'm just glad that they aren't horrible, and at least some of them are respectable shots. thank you all!



Jul 23, 2013 at 04:00 PM
scottam10
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p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


This is part of the reason for having an 'engagement' or 'bridal' shoot, you get a chance to find out if there's anything the couple doesn't like so you have a chance to fix it before the wedding

- as others have said, hopefully you can talk to her and find out why she doesn't like them
- perhaps she can show you photos of herself that she does like - see if there are any angles/poses you can use

I can guess you chose the low angle in 8048/8049 for the background; however I think these would have been more flattering if the camera had been a bit higher

I think 8133 is beautiful



Jul 23, 2013 at 04:01 PM
amonline
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p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


scottam10 wrote:
This is part of the reason for having an 'engagement' or 'bridal' shoot, you get a chance to find out if there's anything the couple doesn't like so you have a chance to fix it before the wedding


Word.



Jul 23, 2013 at 04:24 PM
abadass
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p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


NathanHamler wrote:
The work seems good, a few of them i think were a bit too wide angle, for being as close as you are.., but nothing really objectionable aside from that....i think the hands on her hips thing in a few of the photos makes her seem a little wider than she should....it sucks that she has no flowers, as it limits what she can do with her hands.....i always make (suggest) brides bring flowers with them on bridal sessions....makes life easier.....but either way, i would definitely sit down with her and find out what it is she doesn't like....and then
...Show more

+1 flowers could have helped a lot.

8189 - she doesn't look too happy.

7995 - i think a wider angle would've helped a lot. its a nice location with brick walls, natural light and windows. this particular angle doesn't look good up close.



Jul 23, 2013 at 05:31 PM
tobicus
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p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


The pictures are fine; your bride's got issues. Figure those out and shoot the wedding with them in mind.


Jul 23, 2013 at 05:34 PM
TTLKurtis
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p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · How would you react if Bride says she doesn't like her bridal photos?


I think it's obvious the only answer is Hara-Kiri:




Jul 23, 2013 at 05:41 PM
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