Questions you may want to ask your wedding photographers...

What are your wedding photography prices?

Wedding photography prices vary depending upon the level of service, the hours of wedding photography coverage and the other specifics of your personal requirements. Since every wedding is as different as the people getting married, we often customize packages to suit each client’s particular needs, taking into account special circumstances or requests. Most wedding photography packages include an unlimited number of images captured, the rights to all of the images for personal use, a website with story telling slideshow with music for family and friends to view and an online image proofing gallery with shopping cart. Some packages also include a DVD of digital negatives as well as a range of custom albums from Leather Craftsman and Aspinal of London. Each package also includes a panoramic wedding portrait of everyone attending your wedding and a 12" x 36" black and white print. Go to our Wedding Photography Prices page for more details.

How do we book you as a wedding photographer?

Feel free to give a call at 206-633 0656 or drop me an email to check my availability. We can set up a consultation to discuss your wedding plans and photography needs. Once you have decided to book, I do ask for a retainer to reserve the date. Please note that I book only one wedding for each date, so dates are limited and will be filled on a first-come, first-serve basis.

What is the standard length of time for wedding photographers coverage?

Your wedding day schedule and photographic needs will dictate the length of time and how much wedding photography you will need. We usually recommend a minimum of 6 hours of coverage. Just as the best stories flow from beginning to middle to end, telling the story of your wedding day in a narrative style requires me to be there as the various chapters unfold throughout the day.

How many photographs do you shoot at a wedding? How many do we get to keep?

On average, I capture between 1800 and 3000 digital images over the course of a 6- to 7- hour wedding. Once we edit out the blinking eyes, duplicate photos, and other undesirable images, we end up delivering between 900 and 1000 photos, depending upon how long the day was and what occurred. Rest assured, your event will be well documented. You’ll have lots of images to choose for your album and all those frames you’ll want to fill.

Do you use film or do digital wedding photography? Color or black and white wedding photography ?

I bring 3 or 4 cameras and use a combination of film and digital capture. About 90% of my weddings are shot with Canon EOS 5D Mark II digital cameras. For clients who prefer the classic look of black and white 35mm photojournalism, I shoot with a pair of Leica rangefinders. At all weddings I also use a larger-format Fuji 6x17 panorama camera with black and white film to make a group panoramic photo of the wedding. Of course, color images from digital cameras can later be processed as black and white photos in postproduction.

Do you offer wedding albums? Do you offer coffee table wedding books?

Yes. I offer leather-covered albums handmade by Aspinal of London or Leather Craftsman, or the latest digital coffee table style book custom designed albums. For a detailed look of wedding album photos of our wedding photo albums look under the information menu and see our wedding albums page. To see photos of our custom coffee table wedding books go to our wedding books page.

Do you travel to photograph a wedding? Do you do destination wedding photography?

Absolutely. I am based in Seattle but frequently travel across the country. I also keep a current passport for international travel.
Every year I travel to photograph destination weddings across the United States and around the world. I welcome the opportunity to travel to your destination wedding wherever it may be. For travel packages only minimum travel expenses, detailed in the contract are charged. These typically include airfare, hotel, meals and car rental if needed. There are no hidden charges or surprises in the bill. Usually these costs are greatly offset by not having to pay local sales tax on wedding photography on out of state weddings. In just the past few years I have travelled to photograph international destination weddings in Italy, India, Mexico, Czech Republic, and do destination wedding photography in New York City, NY, New Jersey, Sante Fe, New Mexico, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Orange County, CA, Mendacino and Napa, CA, San Antonio, TX, Sun Valley, ID, Portland, OR, and Washington DC.

How are you on the wedding day?

You’re the ones everyone should be paying attention to, not me, so the answer is ubiquitous and unobtrusive. I'm always around, observing and shooting, but never directing the action or adding anything to the scene that wasn't there. I believe the best images come from natural, unscripted moments that are honest and real. The same goes for our post-production style—your personal preferences will take center stage.

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Should we give you a list of shots we’d like? Will you take some posed photographs?

My focus is on capturing the candid moments of your day, but I also understand the value of having portraits of you and the most important people in your life. Some couples are happy to just do one large group panorama shot of family and guests; for others it’s a few combinations of small groups. A long shot list does change my game plan from capturing the day as it happens to making sure I get all the requests, and makes it likely that I’ll miss some great shots of genuine, natural moments. The best plan is for us to work together to create the images that will be most important to you.

Do your packages include a second photographer?

Most packages beyond the basic include a second photographer. I often work with my wife Jana and when she is unavailable I work with Paul Joseph Brown, a noted photojournalist who has been photographing weddings for some time now.

Do you work with an assistant?

After years of working for newspapers, I’m accustomed to carrying my own gear and taking photographs intuitively and reflexively. I like to minimize distractions in order to blend into the scene and focus on anticipating moments that will make for great photos. For weddings that require a lot of additional lighting, I will hire an assistant to help arrange the equipment so I can always be shooting. We can determine if this is necessary for your wedding when we discuss your plans.

Do you process the wedding photos yourself?

When it comes to postproduction, I work with my wife and partner, designer Jana Sheehan, to edit, process, and optimize the Camera RAW files. We make the prints ourselves, as well as designing the albums.

Where should we put you during the meal and reception?

It works best if I can be seated with and served the same meal as your guests, building rapport with your friends and family so they’ll be more at ease in the photos. It’s best for me to sit and eat when you do, and an ideal seat would be within eyesight of your table so I can keep an eye on you. If you decide to get up between courses, I can get up and follow you for some great candid shots. I’ve never had a client ask me where the photos of them munching their dinner are.

Can we make prints from the dvd we receive?

Yes, you may make prints from the DVD and display the photos for your personal use. If friends and family are interested in prints, they are welcome to order them directly from my online proofing site. The prints will be wrapped and shipped directly to them, saving you some hassle.

How long will it take to get our wedding photos?

During the off season, the web gallery, slideshow, panorama print and DVD can be ready in 4-5 weeks after the wedding, during the high season (June thru October) it can take up to 8-10 weeks depending upon how many weddings we must process. (For every day of photography it can take 5-8 days of processing and editing and website building).

Do you photograph other kinds of events?

Yes, I also photograph bar/bat mitzvahs, rehearsal dinners, corporate events and large parties.

Do you accept credit cards?

Yes, I accept Visa and MasterCard.

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WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY - WEDDING PHOTOJOURNALISM

With skill and experience, Pulitzer prize winning and Seattle wedding photographer Daniel Sheehan does wedding photography in a style that is real, straightforward, subtle and unobtrusive. His wedding photographs use the story telling or narative approach. He delivers lyrical pictures, preserving every significant emotion filled moment of the day. He produces story-telling photographs with a distinctive artistic style. Looking for an international destination wedding photographer? Interested in Seattle Wedding Photography? Contact A Beautiful Day Photography. Seattle and Bellevue wedding photographer and photojournalist Daniel Sheehan captures real candid moments at each wedding. As a wedding photographer he specializes in documentary wedding photography that captures candid emotion and real beauty in a way that only true photojournalism from a highly experienced photojournalist can. A Beautiful Day Photography offers a variety of packages featuring exquisite, documentary-style wedding photography for all budgets and the following locations. Looking for a San Francisco wedding photographer? Or a Los Angeles wedding photographer? The Wedding Photojournalist Association has awarded Daniel Sheehan one of the top honors of international wedding photography. He is one of the most highly ranked wedding photojournalists in the nation.Also erving Portland,OR, New York City, Northern California, San Francisco, Bellevue, WA, Kirkland, WA. We do wedding photography in Redmond, WA, Renton, WA, Bothell, WA, Issaquah, Everett, Lake Forest Park, Bainbridge Island, Tacoma, Olympia, and Mercer Island.