Each instance of a situation like this would be case by case. The factors would be:

What is happening in my life the day before?
What is happening in my life the day after?
What time does the coverage starts?
What time does the coverage end?
Am I alone or with an assistant?

Last summer I flew for a 6 hour wedding and had 2 nights in a hotel because I had an early job on Monday and needed to get my assistant back. This summer I am driving for a 6 hour wedding I'm shooting alone and having two nights in a hotel because I want to explore the area as I'm not in a hurry.

In general though, I think 1.5 hours is all I would commit to for safety reasons if having to arrive/depart the day of the event.

Inn's and B&B's are not good for this boy: Getting in late, ice cubes clinking into the small hours, snoring like a bear, etc.

I'd probably survey what is nearby for the above reasons while trying to find an opportunity to land in an unexpected or unusual place for some personal work.

Great question and I'm admittedly torn. While I love connecting directly with my clients to have a better sense of who they are an how we can develop the best relationship possible, sometimes having the buffer of a coordinator acquiring key information in a streamlined and professional manner is a huge time saver.

I think the key to success no matter who you're dealing with is to develop a great relationship: Listen, ask questions, be engaged, go with your gut and don't settle for anything that will prohibit you from getting what YOU need to do a phenomenal job.

Big fans of Mindcastle Studios & Edit 1 Media.

Retainer and cost of airfare are due to secure the date. Both are non-refundable.

Additional travel costs are added to the second and final invoice.

If memory serves me correctly, I believe I took 15 images that had broad variety (high key, low key, flat light, contrasty light, etc.) and sent Colorati the SOOC, my RAW conversion, and then the final image after Photoshop.

It's been smooth sailing since.

A mutually signed contract is a must. I do mine digitally through ShootQ to eliminate the back and forth necessary with a physical copy and to make it easily accessible to both my clients and myself via the cloud.

In an analoge format I would send a copy to them via fax or post and require them to sign and send/fax it back. Once returned, I'd send them a a final that includes your signature.

Ahoy,

Sure. Here are bunch:

http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s11/v29/p612957731-5.jpg
http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s11/v27/p754559104-5.jpg
http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s11/v33/p165043526-5.jpg
http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s3/v25/p813902015-5.jpg
http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s11/v33/p728130113-5.jpg
http://proofs.kipbeelmanphotography.com/img/s6/v6/p1004536361-5.jpg

I usually photograph these with a 50mm or 80mm lens at f/5.6 or f/8. As time has moved on, the things I aim to do are clean up loose sausages (hands in pockets, hands on arms, generally not dangling with no purpose) and get lower.

I don't sharpen any of my film work for the hi-res disc or prints. Anything and everything I put on the web has been sharpened.

Yo Paul! A version of this goes around the various forums again and again. The short answer is that I will respect the wishes of my clients 100% of the time.

In the forums people then often bring up the issues of contests (ISWP, WPPI, etc.). If there was an image that a client had asked me not to blog and I felt that it was so captivating that I could place high in a contest, I'd definitely go to the client and state my case. In the end though, I'd honor their choice about privacy even if they came back with a NO.

Jenny Jimenez & Jonathan Canlas immediately come to mind.

Yes .001% of the time. Two of the last 3 weddings I've shot had the processional going through pretty extreme patches of sun/shade. Center-weighted metering (versus my normal spot mode) and Aperture Priority for this challenging situation performed beautifully both times.

That doesn't bother me at all. I think that would be like cloning out paint on an artist's palette in a self portrait, no?

If a 2nd shooter and I are starting at two different places and plan to rendez-vous later, I shoot a screen shot of http://time.gov with each body - Both of mine and of the 2nd shooters.

If starting together I just have each body take a shot of a clock app in my phone that displays seconds in addition to hours and minutes.

In both cases it's then super easy to sync all the bodies in Photo Mechanic or even Lightroom.

I reduce contrast with the blacks adjustment during RAW processing. Further contrast adjustments are made in Photoshop.

Do it. Tell 'em I sent you. Or don't if you want to be treated politely. J/k ; )

I don't do anything in LR as Colorati handles the RAW conversion. All of my stuff happens in Photoshop based on a sharpening layer, an Alien Skin emulsion, a contrast adjustment layer and a bit of color adjustment. All of that business runs as a Lightroom Export Action.

I'm not sure what else to offer other than being persistently communicative. Like I just mentioned, it took a few tries to get my formula right. Leon was relentless in pursuing satisfaction and it's been working out great since.

Have you tried the other options? ShootDotEdit? Photographers Edit? Lavalu? Fotofafa? Brandon Peterson? Richard Photo Lab? I'm not sure where the magic fairy dust lies, but I believe building a personal relationship with any one of these companies will result in you getting what you want.

Hola,

I use standard and it took a few tries, but they deliver RAW conversions to my liking... I wouldn't use them if it wasn't what I wanted.

Hi. IMHO, I'd prioritize branding if you've not yet done so.

If you believe your branding is spot-on to match your work and speaks to your ideal clients, get a customized blog if you're on a budget or you'd like to break out of the Pro Photo Theme masses.

The Custom option is for developing a unique blog site from scratch to incorporate your own unique vision for appearance, feel and performance with the latest code and SEO enhancements.