Wedding workflow {Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga lifestyle couples-engagement photographer}

Im a really organised person, love to create different todo lists, put together items in logical order and create a workflow. Today I decided to share with you my wedding photography workflow. Im as a lifestyle wedding photographer travel a lot around Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga areas, sometimes even up North or down South and its important to keep on track with all events and clients | vendors.

A lot of people who are really far from photography business can think that our work as photographers just arrive on location, shoot event and right away deliver the images (believe me I thought that too before joined amazing world of photography), but its so much more! 

Shooting a wedding day can take usually between 5 and 12 hours depends on quantity of events and locations, but pre-wedding process and post wedding production can take weeks and even months! Usually I spend on each wedding at least 80 hours work and even more.

Let see my usual workflow (Im not going to put down quantity of hours | time spend on each item, its easy to guess :)

1. answer for enquiry, follow up

2. organise meeting for discuss wedding details an see if we on the same page

3. create and send quote, contract, questionnaire, invoice. Sometimes send a reminder {in 17 hats - management software}

4. answer for all following questions,

5. contact clients few months before the wedding day, organise an engagement | pre-wedding session (do all session workflow including choose and scout location, shooting, post-processing, deliver the gallery, blogging etc.)

6. contact clients one month before the wedding, send an invoice reminder for final payment, questionnaire

7. organise pre-wedding consultation | meeting, go over all details again {online or via the phone}

8. scout wedding location

9. check last minute changes one week before the wedding

10. prepare equipment, all addresses, directions to location, contact creative team | all vendors

11. shooting wedding according the timeline and any unexpected changes / delays with first dance, cake cutting etc.

12. copy all files, back-up files at the end of the day {Im using two external drives and online Amazine Drive storage to be absolutely secure}

13. culling (choosing best images) - sometimes I move through images twice, as second time allow me to look at images with fresh eye

14. post-processing | retouching images

15. post sneak peek on Facebook or email

16. download images in online gallery and USB stick

17. organise prints | products

18. send to a client letter with link on online gallery (3-4 weeks after wedding day)

19. post USB stick with high resolution files + web quality images and prints | products

20. back up final galleries

21. write and publish a blog post with best images from the wedding day

22. choose best images for portfolio and publications

23. send a gallery link to all creative team

24. submit the gallery for publications, keep on track with publishers (i love to share my images, because Im really happy with results)

25. submit best images for various awards | contests (thats motivate me to do more, progress and move forward :).

26. post wedding results on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media etc.

Im sure its not a full list, probably I forgot some other little details :) But hope you get an idea about how much work involve into the weddings and I love this work :)

Please contact me with any questions!

17hats for wedding photographers {Auckland-Hamilton-Tauranga lifestyle couples-engagement photography}

Sometimes having a wedding photography business can be overwhelming: contacts from wedding couples, enquiries, keeping on track with current clients, meetings around Auckland, Hamilton and Tauranga areas, organise workflow, contacts with other photographers and vendors etc. Thats why I decided to share with you how 17hats made my life so much easier. Truly amazing transformation! :)

1. all my clients base in one place (contacts, emails, phone numbers, addresses);

2. ability to organise different projects for each client;

3. online documentation (life saver!) - quotes, contracts, invoices, wedding questionnaires in one place with ability to create a template;

4. email tracking (you can answer for emails right from 17hats :)

5. todo list | calendar (you can put different events and tasks in the calendar and have a reminder each day);

6. ability to create a workflow and apply it to certain project (I have over 15 todo tasks for each project including contact, meeting with clients, send questionnaire, scout wedding location, prepare equipment, send an invoice, check last minute changes in wedding day timeline, check address, get directions, post a sneak peek on Facebook, send link on online wedding gallery, post USB and print | products etc). You see its a lot to remember and can be hard to keep on track with few weddings in a row and future (next year) enquiries :)

7. bookkeeping (I just love the ability to connect business account to 17hats and categorise all income and spends, my accountant loves it too :)

8. ability to send clients galleries etc.

Im sure there a lot of other opportunities what I still need to discover. I just can tell you 17hats became a game changer for me during last few months what Im using it and Im happy with everything.

I need to mention there another systems for clients bases and keep on track as Pixifi, Tave etc. Im sure people who are using them happy with everything. So its just matter to try and find out what interface suits you the best.

Hope this blog post will be useful for my friends photographers, as I see a lot of discussions and questions in local photographers groups about how to keep all documentation and track clients base etc.

Contact me with any questions! I like open book and happy to help :)

Featured Flower Vendor | Auckland-Hamilton Wedding Photographer

Wedding planning is not an easy thing to do and can be really overwhelming. My brides often asked me about videography, wedding celebrants, flowers and other wedding services and suppliers for their special day. I am happy to help as much as I can.

Thats why I decided to do featured blog posts and give information about some wedding suppliers that I meet at the Wedding Show in Skycity and also who I often work with and can recommend. 

Meet in our Blog today amazing wedding flower business running by Andrea, warm, fun and creative person. When we started talking at the show (her stand with beautiful flowers just catch me) and found out we from the same city (Hamilton, just around the corner from each other) and have a lot common we just can't stop talking and I really enjoyed our following meeting after the show.

So here we go:

"Forever Flowers by Andrea creates unique, artificial flower arrangements for your wedding day.  Our creations are affordable, timeless and tailored to your requirements.  We guarantee quality, professional workmanship and attention to detail.

Forever Flowers by Andrea make bridal bouquets, bridesmaids bouquets, buttonholes, shoulder corsages, wrist corsages, flower girl bouquets, flower girl wands, flower girl baskets, table centrepieces and so much more!"

Please contact Andrea with any questions:

Address:
Forever Flowers by Andrea
Te Rapa, Hamilton

Telephone:
0211086723

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Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}