Where are you located?
My business, Dawn E. Roscoe Photography, is based in Chicago, Illinois and myself along with a team of very talented photographers, will travel anywhere!
Explain your photography philosophy during the wedding day.
Throughout the day, we photograph and document your wedding day with an artistic photojournalism approach with an emphasis on capturing great moments. Typically, we start with pre-ceremony shots and we actually recommend a minimum of 1 hour of pre-ceremony coverage. We use this time to document the location, family and friends getting ready, details, environment and anything else that will add to your wedding story. This allows us to give you photos from the very beginning of your special day so you have a full picture of how your day started. After the preparation time, we like to do either a first meeting and head to some great location spots to start your couple portrait session along with some wedding party pictures. If you would rather see each other for the first time at the ceremony, we usually do a short family portrait session after the ceremony and then afterwards, travel to our planned locations. We really believe in collaborating together to discover the best location spots around your reception and ceremony area to get some fantastic couple portraits and wedding party pics. A typical couple portrait session lasts around 2 hours which allows us about 2-3 locations. We love this time because it allows us to have some fun and relax with the couple and wedding party while photographing in some unique locations. Upon arrival at the reception, we can take additional couple pictures during your cocktail hour in which the second photographer will stay to document the cocktail time. Afterwards, we take photojournalistic shots during the reception to capture some fun moments before and after your dinner time.
Do you always use (2) photographers for each wedding?
Yes! In my experience, using two photographers for the wedding is essential to capturing every moment during the day. With two photographers, you also receive more images from your wedding than if there was only one photographer for your special day. My team of second photographers has extensive experience in shooting weddings and most have their own wedding web sites as well.
Do you photograph formal family portraits?
Typically, we spend no more than 10-15 minutes just after the ceremony and photograph immediate families on both bride’s side as well as groom’s side. In addition, we photograph quick formal groupings of the bridal parties.
I have a small wedding, less than 10-15 guests. What is your minimum time requirement?
We customize our packages based on the coverage time needed for your wedding day. Although 6 hours of coverage time is recommended, we do photograph smaller weddings that require less than 6 hours of coverage. Please inquire about availability and pricing on the Contact page!
Do you provide High Resolution files?
Yes, we provide high resolution JPEG images sized 8×12”, 300 dpi on a DVD with unlimited printing rights. We provide a signed release so that you may make prints on your own. All photos are edited, color and exposure corrected along with minor retouching and cropping if necessary.
Will the files on the disk be marked with a logo?
There is no branding or marking on the High Resolution files.
Do you shoot black and white or color or mix?
We shoot everything in color and convert images to B&W during our editing process. We also use custom editing techniques for toning and special effects. Black and white images are distributed throughout the DVD which also have custom filters and techniques applied to each image.
Do you provide online proofing?
Yes, all photos are uploaded to Pictage.com where you can view all the images and invite your family and friends to look at everything as well. On Pictage, your family and friends can also buy prints from your wedding and specialty items including canvas prints, holiday cards and small albums.
How many photos do you take?
Each wedding is a completely different story! Typically, with (2) photographers you can expect a range of 60-100 images per hour of coverage.
What are you payment requirements?
We ask for 1/3 retainer of the contracted value to save the date and the residual payment 14 days prior to the wedding.
What is needed to book you?
After a consultation, we will need your wedding coverage time, any A La Carte items you desire, and then generate a contract and send to you. Once you approve and sign the contract, all material along with your deposit must be sent to the studio address. From receipt of the contract and deposit, your contract will be signed and sent to you for your records along with a confirmation email. Once everything is received, your date is confirmed!
What form of payment do you take?
Checks, money orders or Chase Quick Pay.
Do you have liability insurance?
Yes, we have business insurance for all and any emergencies.
What is your turnaround time for the images after the wedding?
We always strive for the best case scenario, but our standard turnaround times vary depending on the season. We usually average 8-10 weeks for Pictage upload and 1-2 weeks after the upload, we will send you the DVD of all the high resolution images.
Do you have a back-up plan just in case you are not able to do our photography after signing the contract?
Three options are available for an emergency situation. For the first option, if an emergency situation does occur and Dawn Roscoe (me) is not available to photograph your wedding, the second photographer assigned to your wedding will be the main photographer and if time permits, an additional second photographer will also be assigned. For the second option, we would send an emergency email to our network of independent wedding photographers in Chicago. Usually when emergencies do happen, we do find another wedding professional who is available to shoot the wedding. Lastly, if you are not satisfied with any of the above options, we would refund your money in full including the deposit.
At the end of our contracted wedding agreement for your time, what if we wanted you to stay longer and take more pictures? What would the hourly rate be?
We can usually stay 15-20 minutes overtime without any costs. Over 20 minutes, the rate is $200 per hour.
Do we need to feed you?
Yes, we do ask that you feed us during your dinner time. After 4-5 hours of running around in intense heat, cold, rain and sometimes snow and on our feet photographing everything we see, it is our only time for a break and to get some food and hydration. Our preference is to sit away from the guests, but if you do us to sit at tables, we would be more than happy to honor your request. We usually are able to monitor dinner just in case an impromptu speech or special moments occur so that the dinner segment of your day is also documented.
Our wedding ceremony start time has several hours (3 or more) until the start of the reception. Can you give us a custom quote for photography during the 2 different times of the day?
Our packages are based exclusively on the number of hours contracted and are consecutive. Hours booked are billed consecutively. Unfortunately, we are unable contract an entire day with a break in time because we bill hourly and pay our associates per hour on the job site.
Do you have travel fees?
Travel fees only occur 35 miles outside Chicago city limits. For weddings outside Chicago limits and within neighboring states of Wisconsin and Michigan, travel expenses would include additional mileage and possible overnight hotel rooms. For traveling elsewhere , travel expenses would include hotel rooms, airplane tickets and a small stipend for food.
Are there discounts for your services?
Each package is customized to your needs before, during and after the wedding including wedding day coverage, engagement or After The Day sessions and album options. Since substitutions can be made for not having an engagement session or albums along with customizing each package based on how many hours are needed during the wedding, discounts are not given. Also, included in each package is the editing and post production time which takes approximately 40-50 hours after your wedding and is essential to provide you with the best images and selected images with our special effects and filters.
Are there any other fees?
Additional fees include extensive retouching, cropping and special effects applied to 15 or more photos, and additional hours of coverage during the wedding day.
We would like to see all the pictures that did not make the final DVD including all the RAW images.
Part of the service offered with each package is editing and post-production so you don’t have to go through each photo taken at the wedding. All photos are not given due to a number of reasons including out of focus, over exposure, under exposure, blinking eyes, and other reasons. RAW images are not given since very few printing outlets accept RAW images and also each image constitutes a huge amount of digital space. My image philosophy is quality over quantity which is an important mantra for my business as well.
Are albums included in your packages?
All albums are A La Carte and all packages include a $200 album credit which can be used within 6 months of your wedding date.
Can we order an album after our wedding?
Of course! Since all the albums are A La Carte, you can order your album at any time and you don’t have to include the album pricing in your wedding package.
What albums do you offer?
We use three companies for our albums, Finao, Leather Craftsmen and Vision Art Books. Each company offers different sizes, prices, cover options and finishes which you can customize based on your wedding and your design preferences.
What kind of design style do you offer?
We will design our conceptual album storybook based on a chronological layout of your wedding day, picking our favorites and giving you a few design sessions to customize the book to your liking. We will also ask you to make a list of your favorites as images to include in your personalized book.
Can we see a few album designs?
If you would like to purchase an album, we usually meet for a quick consultation to look over samples and decide which album company is right for you along with size and number of album pages. After you decide on everything, we design the album based on your preferences and cover options.
How do we proof the album you are designing us?
We will send you layouts via email for all the albums and after (2) rounds of changes, you sign off on the all the layouts and send the album to the company.
What is your cutoff date for holiday orders?
November 15 for the deadline to receive a final approval for printing to be back by 12/25.
What is the album turnaround time?
4-6 weeks from design approval.