ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHER

I am a hobbyist photographer using this website as a means to put myself through graduate school. I love photography, I love weddings and I believe it shows in my work! Hop over to my blog, or MySpace page to learn more about me! www.eheizerphotography.blogspot.com or http://myspace.com/heizerphotography Something you should know is that my work is the result of trial & error, as well as mentoring. As a hobbyist, I am not professional trained, and do not have a degree in photojournalism. My business is run quite casually, however I believe my work to be art. I'm planning on making the cross over to the world of "professionalism" soon, but I am not quite there yet. With me, what you see is what you get. Sometimes I make mistakes, but more often I get it very, very right.

HOW CAN I REACH YOU?

Please just shoot me off an email with your name, contact information, event date, venue, where you personally live or work (city) and which package you are interested in and I will get back to you, usually within an hour. Because of my own busy schedule, I am very rarely available to speak on the phone in any context. I will provide you will my cell number when we schedule a consultation so you can reach me if you're running late or need to cancel. This is virtually the only time you'll be able to reach me on the phone, other than on the actual wedding day. Please contact me via email, and do plan on 99% of our communication to be through email.

You can find me at: heizer_ea@yahoo.com

You MUST include the following info in your initial email:

Wedding Date
Venue(s)
Package Choice Name!
City you Live in.
 
If you do not include this information, I will not be able to proceed, and I will simply ask you for this information anyway.

If you do not receive a response within 48 HOURS, please re-email me your information.

FOR FAMILY CLIENTS ONLY:
The only information I need from family clients is your Name, Contact Info, How many individuals are in your party and the number and ages of children. If you have a specific plae you would like to shoot your session, please share it, and if you have a date in mind already that is notlisted as "Booked" by a wedding client on the "Availability page, then feel free to request. Oterwise, we will work out a date and time as close to the actual appointment date as possible. Currently I am unable to reserve family session appointments far in advance.  The majority of information on this Information page is not applicable to you.

WHEN SHOULD I BOOK?

We are currently booking and receiving inquiries all the way into 2009. With over 4,000 hits on this website per month, HEIZER PHOTOGRAPHY is currently very, VERY busy. We reccomend that you book your event as soon as you have committed to Heizer Photography being there on your wedding day. For the 2008 brides, please do not hesitate to schedule your consultations. We are receiving several emails a day for 2008 dates and are booking very quickly. Please contact me ASAP to book. If we get too close to your event date, we may not be able to complete the necessary paperwork in time. Please note that our rates are for weddings January through MAY 2008, and that weddings after May, or in 2009 will need a price quote. Travel fees will apply to weddings outside of Sacramento County. Book early and you will save by receiving a guesstimated rate for 2008/2009 rather than the actual rate, which increases quarterly.
 
CONSULTATION INFORMATION
 
Generally speaking, I try to meet each of my clients in person in a public place so all parties are comfortable and can relax while we chat about the event or shoot you are attempting to schedule. Please review my works online, as well as my packages prior to meeting. Also, please be aware that I meet with large nunmbers of clients and potential clients and that very often more than one couple has contacted me about your specific date. If you are very positive about hiring me for your event, please let me know ahead of time, and be prepared to sign papers that day. It is always perfectly fine, and encouraged that you discuss your options fully and that you make the best decision for YOU! However, if you later decide after our meeting that you would like to book me, I cannot guarentee that I am still available.

I do not usually meet clients in their homes, or at event venues. I have found that the best way to evalute a venue for areas in which to set up formal shots, is on the actual wedding day, at the actual time in which I will be shooting. It is difficult to anticipate the conditions on a day many months away, and often the time spent wondering and discussing these issues could be better used to talk about timelines, your expectations and desires in a photographer and the like. Except in very specific and extraordinary instances, or due to other reasons, I will no longer be able to consult with couples at their venues, or in their homes. If you feel your situation requires this, please let me know. Otherwise, I am more than happy to trot off to the closest Starbucks between our homes or offices. :)

ON THE BIG DAY
 
Although I may occasionally bring an assistant with me to help with arrangements and logistical issues, I do work alone. I am a single shooter, and work for myself. It's a one-woman show and it works very well! I have turned a hobby I love into a job I love even more that allows me to continue my education while pursing my creative side as well.


LIGHTING THE RECEPTION

Great article from Weddingpix.com, and something for all brides to consider and think about when lighting the reception hall.

Brides and grooms shopping for a reception venue rarely include “good lighting” in their requirement list, yet negotiating with staff on your wedding day can be a nightmare. It’s important to nail down lighting arrangements well in advance. When a bride is touring a reception site the staff will ‘yes, yes, yes’ her to book the day, so consider getting a guarantee in writing that they will work with the photographer on reception lighting issues during the wedding day.

Ambient light is crucial for a photographer looking to elegantly capture the many memorable moments of your reception, and should be a top priority. Since wedding photojournalists are not spending time staging each photo (i.e., arranging every person in their best light, figuratively and literally), they need to depend on natural light or pre-arranged lighting while capturing the unplanned moments of the reception — wherever they might happen.

What other lighting options should you be thinking about? WPJA award-winner Jessica Miller says her favorite lighting for a reception is in the late afternoon or early evening in a room with lots of windows and natural light streaming in “I love when the sun is setting during the first dance and speeches,” she says, yet a sunset is never guaranteed. If it’s a night wedding, she advises, quadruple the number of candles you think you’ll need for the reception. “Some of these rooms can be extremely dark, which can make the guests feel pretty sleepy and make the photos a little tricky,” she says. “Then it will still be dark and moody, but not so dark you can’t see where you’re walking.”

You can always ask the reception coordinator if the venue has more lighting for darker areas, such as the dance floor.  But that doesn’t mean that wedding photojournalists can pull off wonders.

 

Kuperberg adds a warning for outdoor activities: watch out for trees or buildings that may cast bad shadows. What’s a bad shadow? “If everything is in the shade, that is a good shadow,” she explains. “A bad shadow is when, for instance, when the bride is in the shade and the groom is in the sun, that makes it very difficult to get a good exposure of the two together.”