weddings 101

How to make your wedding photos last as long as your memories of this extra-special day.

1. Make Copies. The best way to preserve digital images is to make copies. You can do this a few different ways: save them to your computer hard drive and/or to an external hard drive, make copies for your parents or a trusted friend, store a copy in a safety deposit box or a safe. I know this may sound a little overkill, but trust us, hard drives fail, things break, and people accidentally delete things!

2. Get Organized. If your photographer hasn’t already organized your files for you, go ahead and organize your photos into categories on your computer, dividing the images into folders like “Bride Getting Ready,” “Groom Getting Ready,” “Ceremony,” “Reception,” etc. Another thing we find to be helpful is to make a folder on your computer and copy all of your favorite shots into it. This will make ordering product, printing, and sharing your favorites much easier.

3. Order Prints. Whether you plan on printing pictures yourself, or buying them from your photographer, print some photos right away. We’re talking within a day or two of receiving your images. I’m telling you, life gets busy and before you know it, you’ll have other things to do!

4. Ensure Quality. Please do not print your images at a low-end lab. You’ve paid a good amount of money for fantastic images, so do them  justice by using a high-end print lab. Most professional photographers will calibrate their editing to a specific pro print lab. As not all labs put the same care and consideration into calibrating their printers, or using quality inks and papers, we recommend getting prints through your photographer. If you can’t get photos printed by your photographer’s pro lab, ask where they recommend you print that would be calibrated to their editing style.

5. Make Keepsakes. This goes along with the previous points of printing your photos. Besides making actual paper prints, there are a lot of great products that your photographer should be able to offer you. That includes canvases, custom cards, keepsake books, and luxury albums. Your wedding day is the start of a new family. You’ll be so happy that you created a precious keepsake for you and future generations. As much as we live in a digital age, your future family members are going to want to see and touch something tangible to appreciate your wedding day.

6. Consider The Fine Print. Remember that five-page document you signed at the beginning of your wedding planning process? Well, that contract still applies to you. Take some time to refresh your memory about what your photographer expects you will do and will not do with those digital files. For example, our contract states that it is up to us to give images to your wedding vendors. We want to know where the images are going, and how they are being used. Even though you have personal-use rights, most photographers keep copyrights on the digital images. Another thing people often forget is to not edit, crop, or change the photos in any way.

7. Communicate With Your Photographer. Be sure to tell your photographer if you have any issues with them posting any or all images of your wedding online. We understand that some people are more private than others, or that particular jobs require privacy. Don’t assume your photographer will not want to use your gorgeous images for advertising or blogging. Communication is key!

8. Give Feedback: Don’t forget to give feedback to your photographer. After hours of editing your images, we’re dying to know how you like them! Like many photographers, we want to know what you love, or maybe what you wish we’d did differently so that we can do what we can to help, and all feel great about the experience.

Image: Manifesto Photography