WHY SHOULD WE HIRE HBP VERSUS ANOTHER PHOTOGRAPHER?
- Boutique Service. Rather than seeking a large volume of photography projects, I take on one job at a time, and focus completely on your goals. You get our undivided attention, which means you get your images quickly, in 1-2 days.
- Heirloom Quality Images. Please take a moment to scroll through my recent Portraiture blog posts to review my work.
- Loyalty Program. Return customers are thanked with automatically reduced product rates. Referrals that result in a booking are rewarded with a $50 gift card to a store of your choice.
- Quality Guarantee. Quality photography is meant to be displayed, treasured, and enjoyed for years. The HBP lab will ensure your prints, canvases, metal mounts, and other products are truly breathtaking. If you aren’t completely satisfied with products ordered from the HBP printer, we will repair and replace or refund your purchase.
CREATIVE FEES AND PORTRAIT PRICING
Please visit my website for creative fee and product information. Please contact me for additional details.
DO YOU HAVE A STUDIO?
Currently, no. However, my home functions as a studio when necessary and if that is your preference. I primarily shoot portraits in my clients’ homes or another location of their choice, such as a park or downtown. I’ll have some ideas if you aren’t sure. Just ask me!
WHAT SHOULD WE WEAR?
DO This:
- Start with bottoms, and think about neutral tones (gray, denim, black, brown). Mix it up a bit; one person can wear a skirt, one wear pants, and another wear cargoes, etc.
- Choose shoes that are in the same tone for everyone (avoid bright colors that will steal the show, unless they are coordinated carefully).
- For tops, choose a common tone for everyone, and then intermix textures and styles according to individual personalities. For example, everyone can wear shades of brown, with one person in a blazer, one in a sweater, and one in a brown tank with a jean jacket.
- Accessories are an appropriate way to add a coordinated pop of color, and to express individuality. For example, add red to the mix with scarves, earrings, belts, or neckties.
DON’T Do This:
- You may want to avoid super bright tones as the main ingredient; for example, sometimes orange shirts make people look, well, orange!
- Likewise, avoid putting one person in a bright tone and everyone else in neutral tones. The bright person will steal all the attention in the final images, making the rest of the family look like the background.
- Patterns, if overused, tend to clash or distract, but there are exceptions. (For example, if one person wears stripes, and the other(s) wear solid colored shirts including the colors of the stripes.)
- Think about your skin tones and hair color. People with black hair may want to avoid black shirts because there will be so little contrast in the final image.
- Too much uniformity. If you choose outfits that look like a uniform, your family will look more like a football team than a family comprised of individual personalities. Allow some self-expression into the mix!
HOW LONG DO PORTRAIT SESSIONS LAST?
As a boutique service, we’ll reserve up to 3 hours for each client on location, but generally, we’ll finish in about 1 – 1.5 hours. Shoots involving children usually wrap quickly; usually, the younger ones tucker out and stop “performing” after about 45 minutes – 1 hour.
WHAT IS THE SESSION LIKE?
People are usually nervous before a session about what to wear, about their physical imperfections, about whether the children will behave…but let’s all take a deep breath, relax, and have a good time! You are in experienced hands, and you will have beautiful images when we are done. The photographer(s) usually arrive prior to the session time to study the area and find interesting, unique places to capture your images. Once we get started, we’ll direct you; that’s our job – to make you comfortable and set up gorgeous shots. For parents of young children, sessions can be a little tiring. But rest assured: we will work around feedings, temper tantrums, runny noses, crying spells, or a kid that refuses to smile or look at the camera. We guarantee you will get photos you absolutely love (if not, see next question). Just be yourselves and play together. That goes for the adults, too! HAVE FUN! And stay relaxed and confident. When you feel good, you will look good.
WHAT IF WE AREN’T HAPPY WITH THE RESULTS?
Then, we will re-shoot at no charge!
WILL MY IMAGES BE POSTED ONLINE?
Yes, in a private gallery with a password for 30 days. You decide who gets to see the gallery and who does not. You may share your password with whomever you choose, or just keep it to yourself.
WILL MY IMAGES BE VIEWED PUBLICLY?
Prior to your shoot, you’ll receive a copy of the optional release form. If you choose to sign it, we’ll write a blog post about your session. We may also select 1 or 2 images for our website portfolio, or use them to promote an auction item, or enter a contest, etc. Without a release, we won’t do any of those things, including a blog post. Please ask us if you have reservations about how we may use photos from your session.
HOW MANY PROOFS WILL YOU PROVIDE?
HBP proofing is online-only. You can expect about 40-60 images to review in your online gallery. Sometimes, there’s more. It varies based on the unique factors and personalities of each creative session.
HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO GET THE IMAGES?
As a boutique service, we provide clients with an email link to a private online gallery in 1-2 days or less. For example, if your session is on Monday evening, you will be able to review your images by Wednesday evening. This speed is part of what makes our service so valuable to our clients.
WHO OWNS THE IMAGES?
HBP always retains the copyright (ownership) of all HBP images. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t make prints – if you purchase the high-resolution digital files.
IF I PURCHASE THE HIGH-RESOLUTION FILES WITH PRINT RELEASE, CAN I GIVE THEM TO MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY?
This is an important and common question in today’s digital age! The answer is no, but your friends and family are certainly welcome to purchase their own set from your online gallery, too! Similarly, the print release that’s included with your purchased high-rez digital files permits you to print the images, but not others.
If this seems strange, think about a digital photo in the same way you think about digital music or movies: it’s illegal to burn copies of a music CD or video you bought somewhere and give them away; the same concept applies to a digital photo. Photos are the intellectual property of their creator, and from the moment the shutter clicks, all of the corresponding rights and protections offered under federal copyright law apply.
IF I BUY THE DIGITAL FILES, CAN I BUY PRINTS FROM ANOTHER PRINTER OR DO I HAVE TO BUY THEM FROM YOUR WEBSITE?
Yes, but we advise against it, for wall- and gallery- sized products in particular. Good photography is only as strong as it’s weakest link; you get what you pay for. I encourage all clients to purchase products from me to ensure quality, even if you have a print release. However, for smaller prints, such as those placed into a memory album, I understand that the investment in high-quality printing might not be as important.
Product quality cannot be guaranteed for images printed at other labs, particularly at discount printers (i.e. CVS, Costco, Wal-Mart, etc.). In contrast, if for any reason you are dissatisfied with prints ordered from the HBP website, we will gladly replace them at no charge. If you make prints at discount labs, you will save money, but your prints may not look like they do on your computer screen – in most cases, they will be darker and more dull. This is because low-cost printers don’t “color-correct” the images; they have lower-quality color printers (literally, with fewer colors of ink cartridges), and/or they compress the data.
CAN I POST THE DIGITAL PHOTOS ON FACEBOOK?
Yes. We encourage it, actually! If you do, please tag Holly Baumann Photography, or give us a credit by listing http://www.hollybaumannphotography.com/ as a caption.
WHAT IF SOMETHING HAPPENS THAT DESTROYS ALL OF MY DIGITAL FILES OR PRINTS?
Rest assured: my entire archive is backed up multiple times. If your digital negatives images are destroyed, we can replace them for a small fee that covers our time in doing so. Likewise, if your printed products are damaged or lost, we can assist you in ordering replacements.
I HAVE A QUESTION THAT YOU DIDN’T ANSWER HERE.
Post your question in the comments below, or on the contact page on my website or email me at holly@hollybaumannphotography.com.
