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The Process of Using Mood Boards for Your Engagement Session Prep

Your engagement photoshoot is the first of the many photography sessions you will be having throughout your wedding. And, like everything in life, for the best results, you have to do a bit of research and preparation.

Good thing there are mood boards! Choosing outfits, hair styles, locations and even poses can now easily be searched and pinned to these inspiration boards. Here at Saiaf Films, we share to you the process how you can use mood boards to ensure smooth synergy with your Multicultural Tempe Wedding Photographer.




1. Create Boards

We want to be on the same page as you are to achieve exactly what you are looking for. We want these images to portray and represent you as a couple, as well as your individual personalities coming together. In light of that, we encourage you to do some fun homework. Search and save sample photos that you like from the internet, blogs, Pinterest, websites, online magazines, etc. Feel free to also search and save photos that you absolutely DON’T like as well. Knowing what you DON’T like is equally important for us, too!

2. Add Comments

Using the sample photos you’ve saved, create a (private) Pinterest Board. Add a short comment to each photo stating why or what you exactly like (or don’t like) in each image, whether it be the poses, style, props, vibe or lighting. The more specific you are in your description, the more your Tucson Wedding Photography can customize for you.

3. Ask for Photographer’s Input

Once your board is set, share it to your Tempe Most Affordable Wedding Videographer so they can study it. Ask for their inputs, answer any of their questions pertaining to your preferred style and be open to their ideas and suggestions. Over email, or better yet over a cup of coffee, discuss, brainstorm and talk through ideas and potential locations for your engagement session.

4. Schedule Your Session

Next, schedule your session to allow for the maximum use of the ‘golden hours’ before sunset, and for that reason, your timeliness that day is very important! Ideally, we want to shoot during the last two to three hours before sunset.

5. Plan for Props

Bring props that represent you individually or as a couple, and we will incorporate them into our session for some added personalization and personality. We love props and they sure make photos look more interesting, so give this one some thought as it might require pre-planning and shopping.

7 Things Every Wedding Photographer Should Know

Do you want to become a successful Affordable Wedding Photographer in Tempe? Having the best photography gear is only the first step. There’s a lot you need to know in order to capture wedding photos like a professional. In this guide, we’ll share 7 things every photographer should know before going to shoot a wedding ceremony.

Mind the Dress Code

All too often, wedding photographers don’t consider dress code as important as it should be. Wearing casual clothes on meetings before the wedding is acceptable, but wearing the same style on weddings is a no-no. Even if it’s a casual beach wedding. You are there as the Best Surprise South Asian Wedding Videographer, so dress like one.


Always Have a Backup

You should always carry a backup camera, lenses, memory cards, flash, and any other necessary gadget. If you can’t spend on getting a backup of everything, consider renting equipment until you can.

Another option to raise funds is to rent out your own photography gear. This will also connect you with other wedding photographers in town, and you may get more work on combined projects.

Shoot with an Assistant

Reaching out to other Best Tempe Asian Wedding Photography is a great way to network professionally. You can ask for the favor of becoming your second photographer, and then act as the second photographer in their events in return.


Be Alert and Act Fast

Wedding photographers need to pay attention and be quick to capture fleeting moments, which will surely make the couple happy when they see the wedding album later. We recommend you to use longer lenses to shoot details of a wedding from a distance.

Agree on the Details in Advance

Couples often demand extra poses during the wedding shoot, which may eat up a lot more time than you planned. It is better to sign a photography contract with the number of poses for the bride and groom separately. Agreeing on the details in advance will help you and your client to know exactly what to expect before the shoot.

Consider Using Fun Props

It’s a great idea to bring props for the couple, bridesmaids, groomsmen and even for the family. Using these props, you can add humor and inspiration to the wedding photos, because too much serious posing can make the photos dull.

Use Natural Lighting

For the most professional results, it’s important to know how to shoot a wedding without a flash. Photography lighting is very important in weddings. You should practice shooting the wedding with natural lights. It helps to understand shadow details and camera settings for low light.

5 Things Your Wedding Photographer Wants You to Stop Doing

Your Best Multicultural Scottsdale Wedding Photographer has a big responsibility on their shoulders: to capture one of the most significant and heavily photographed occasions of your life.

But unless you’re a photographer by profession, it’s easy to forget that the person you’re trusting to capture that very important celebration is a trained professional who’s working while you party.

With that in mind, here are some tips from our wedding photographers here at Saiaf Films for getting amazing photos of your special day—mostly by not doing the following. Couples, planners, and guests, we’d love it if you’d take note. 😉

1. Problematic Color Combinations

You can’t go wrong with classic color palettes. There are no colors that look nice in real life but photograph badly. However, if both of you are wearing all white, you should make your whites look coordinated. Wearing different shades of white can make one look dingy in photos. In engagement sessions, too much print from your outfits can make the photo look chaotic and distracting.

2. We’re Not Mind Readers

Figure out what you want before you hire a Peoria Most Affordable Wedding Videographer—and be realistic about what they can (and can’t) do. Some couples want tons of candid shots; others want a series of posed family portraits. Your photographer won’t know which kinds of photos are most important to you unless you tell them.


3. Questioning Whether You Even Need a Professional

Trust us: you do! Owning an iPhoneX does not make you a photographer. Wedding photography is expensive. A lot of people, when they first shop for the Best Cultural Peoria Wedding Photography, they’re shocked at the prices. There’s a good reason we’re charging those prices. Good photography doesn’t come from good cameras—it comes from good photographers: someone who knows how to use light and has a creative eye. Nothing compares to that.

4. Insisting on Particular Poses

It’s often hard to recreate them exactly, because of different circumstances, lighting, or even a height difference between the couple that makes a certain pose not work. Every couple and their body movement have their natural beauty. Your photographer might not tell you, but he would have studied your facial features and contours. Furthermore, styled poses look amazing, breath-taking, and picture-perfect—on couples who are professional models. But with our years of experience with most couples we’ve worked with, we have realized that most prefer their shoots to look and feel natural and intimate while having fun in a casual laid back setting.


5. Asking for Very Specific Shot List

A wedding day is filled with unique, emotional, unexpected moments. The best thing a couple can do is research to find a Scottsdale Arizona Best Wedding Videography that best fits your style and establish a strong rapport with them. The more we know, the better we can create images to your liking! Aside from a list of must-have family formals, we would also encourage ‘photographer freedom’ to create images specific to that wedding. Rather than attempting to recreate something they’ve seen done before, your images can become the new trend-setting photographs.

How an Engagement Session Can Improve Your Wedding Photography Experience

Did you know every single wedding package we offer here at Saiaf Films includes a complimentary engagement session?

The truth is: We love engagement photographs. They are among our favorite parts of the entire wedding planning process.

Engagement sessions with your Most Affordable Glendale Wedding Photographer can make or break your photography experience. We truly believe that they are SO important not only for documenting the entire wedding, but also for improving how you feel in front of the camera.


1. You Learn How to Pose

Every Scottsdale Best Wedding Videographer is different. Their shooting-style, editing, process and most importantly, in this instance, their preferred poses. Some photographers incorporate prompts that allow for natural, candid photos, while others will tell you EXACTLY what to do with your arms, hands, legs, face, eyes, etc. Either way, it’s important to feel comfortable posing with your wedding photographer and learn how their process works.

2. You Get Comfortable Being Photographed Together

How often do you go out in the middle of a field and snuggle together while someone takes your pictures? Unless you are professional models, the answer is probably never. Being photographed as a couple is not an everyday kind of stuff; it takes getting used to to look nice and natural in photos.


3. Engagement Sessions Help Save Time on the Actual Wedding Day

Learning your photographer’s style and knowing your flattering angles and poses in advance allows your Glendale Arizona Best Wedding Videography to take pictures quickly on the wedding day, rather than wasting time instructing or teaching you how to pose. We have run into instances where we only have 10 minutes with a couple on their wedding day due to running late and getting behind schedule. Thanks to the engagement session, we were still able to capture tons of images with variation, because the couple was prepared and familiar with how having their images works.

4. You Can Use the Photos as Additional Wedding Day Decor

There is something really tacky about using a smartphone selfie on a Save-The-Date, right? That beauty deserves a professional photograph. As does your wedding website, wedding decors, or even your Grandmother’s fridge magnet!

5. They’re Fun

Engagement sessions are fun. It’s fun to dress up. It’s fun to get to know your photographer. It’s fun to just frolic, be all giddy and in love. It’s fun to laugh together. It’s fun to enjoy this season of life. It’s fun to have the Best Scottsdale Wedding Photography follow you around with a fancy camera, rather than a friend with an iPhone taking photos of you, all looking awkward.

Capturing the Essence of an Asian Wedding

Asian weddings are always an extravagant family affair. Draped in tradition, every wedding is unique and filled with unique beauty that deserves to be captured in complete clarity and with passion and care. Here at Saiaf Films, we understand the importance of every part of Asian wedding and will do our utmost to ensure that you get the service you deserve.

So, how do we capture an Asian wedding, and why you should trust our expertise to do exactly that?


What Do We Do?

When it comes to capturing your big day, our experienced photographers and videographers know very well what moments to anticipate, making sure that important events are captured as they unfold naturally. The photography style we offer captures every beautiful, natural moment with ease, with no control, forced expressions or staged situations.

Being among the Best Gilbert Multicultural Wedding Photography teams, we understand that the wedding day is the biggest and the most life-changing moments of your life, and with the effort that has gone into ensuring that everything is perfect, your photographs are a valuable keepsake to keep everything fresh in your memories forever.

Moments might be fleeting, but the memories will last you a lifetime, and with our silent, subtle photography style, we will capture even the most unexpected moments of your big day. Our simple and creative, but undoubtedly distinctive, images are fuelled by passion for what we do, and for our desire of ensuring the beauty of every client’s wedding is captured beautifully.



What Do We Offer?

Many photographers can easily get caught up in posing the perfect photo, and we understand that the last thing you want to do on your big day is spend hours being directed to pose in unnatural ways. As an Affordable Mesa Wedding Photographer, we have our ways in capturing all the right moments without needing to stage a single moment. And even if we do, the couple and family shots that we stage are designed to look perfectly natural.

We have the knowledge and the expertise, not only how to capture each moment, but also in the traditions that any Asian wedding has. We know what moments are the most important and need to be captured with the utmost care and compassion. We are dedicated not only to our craft, but to our clients and the couples that we work with. We know how special your day is, and we want to do everything we can to ensure you have stunning photographs that tells a story—a story you will cherish for a lifetime.

Every Wedding is Unique

Asian weddings can last for several days and we’re aware of that. Each wedding is unique, and as a result, each photography session will be, too. From portrait shots to wedding video, we understand that each day of an Asian wedding is different and we want to work closely with you to use that to both yours and our advantage. It’s your special day, and we know that you want the Best Mesa Cultural Wedding Videographer who listens, so we do exactly that. We guarantee to grant your wishes for your wedding video and photos, while also incorporating our expertise to ensure the best product for you.

Hopefully this has given you a bit of an insight into how we work to capture each and every stunning moment of your wedding. The effort and love that goes into every wedding deserves the Best Gilbert South Asian Wedding Videography team with just as much care and love, and here at Saiaf Films, we aim to provide exactly that every time.


5 Money-Saving Tips for a Wedding on a Budget

Yes, planning a wedding can be stressful even if you have unlimited funds. Now can you imagine trying to do it on a budget?

It’s true that there are people who just happen to be able to host the most outrageous parties on almost no money. But these don’t come easy, you need to be crafty and creative. How? Here are a few tips to help you get started.

1. Buy an Off-the-Rack Wedding Dress

Although it might be almost every bride’s dream to don a designer wedding gown in their Glendale Wedding Photography, sometimes, the cost of getting one could cost an arm and a leg. It’s okay to compromise on the designer, but not the style and class of dress. Nobody will know the brand or the designer of the dress when it’s already on photos anyway.

One of the best ways to do this is to visit sample sales. Once a season comes to an end, trendy bridal designers and salons usually sell their gowns at a deeply discounted price off the rack.

2. Consider E-Invites

Almost everyone has a smartphone and/or computer nowadays. Instead of sending out hundreds of handcrafted invitations that will end up in the trash anyway, why not send out a virtual one? If you have the contact information for everyone you intend to invite, simply have someone design a gorgeous wedding e-invite and send it out to them.

You can have a few hard copies printed out for special guests, but everyone else won’t mind e-invites. They serve the purpose and they are convenient for both parties. Additionally, sending a WhatsApp message is much cheaper and faster than sending out wedding invitations through the post.


3. Book Your Guests in the Nearby Hotel

To significantly reduce transportation costs, you need to take care of this from the start. When choosing a venue for the celebration, consider its vicinity and check if there are hotels nearby. Booking accommodations for your guests in the walking distance from the event eliminates the need for hiring transportation service.

4. Let Family and Friends Pitch In

This doesn’t mean having a friend with DSLR camera be your official Phoenix Wedding Photographer (more of this on the next item). We mean instead of asking for wedding gifts you can use after the wedding, why not fill your registry and let your guests know that you’d appreciate more if they can get you gifts that you can use DURING the wedding, like flowers, bridesmaid dresses, food, or just monetary assistance? Just make sure to confirm with everyone who will be bringing something before the wedding date.

5. Have Your Wedding Photos and Video Shot by the Same Vendor

Scrunching on your Phoenix Arizona Best Wedding Videography does not mean having your friend shot your photos and video—unless, of course, if your friend is a professional wedding photographer. Wedding photographers like us, offer wedding packages that include both photography and videography services. These packages often come in different prices, so couples can choose one that will suit their budget. But no matter what, never let an inexperienced shot your most special day if you do not want the only remembrance you will have on your wedding be ruined forever.

Traditional Asian Wedding Photography Setting

When it comes to Asian wedding photography, the settings of each photo are often just as important as the bride and groom themselves. From stunning scenery to barely any background at all, the range of settings for a traditional Asian photograph are simple, yet effective at capturing the beauty of the big day. Here at Saiaf Films, we’ve decided to take a deeper look into what some of the most popular traditional scenes for the Best Tempe Asian Wedding Photographer really are.

Lighting

The use of lights and lighting in the Gilbert Asian Wedding Photography is arguably the most traditional point on our list. Warm, incandescent lights are highly common at Asian weddings, but this can be difficult to shoot without experience and technical knowledge. For a traditional feel to the photographs, however, there’s – debatably – nothing better. Well, aside from perhaps the use of candles. Candles are notorious for creating a romantic, relaxed atmosphere, and what better for a wedding of any kind? Utilising this in the photos helps bring in an intimate feel to each photograph. Add in a portable light and you can create just the right lighting for your shot without giving up any of the atmosphere.


No Setting

As this post is about traditional wedding scenery, you may be a little confused as to why there’s ‘no setting’. Plain or limited backgrounds are particularly useful when taking portrait photographs. The clothing, accessories and make-up involved in a traditional Asian wedding are often intricate, detailed and stunning, so a plain background can help bring the focus onto the subject of the photo as opposed to the background. The details stand out far more, making it the perfect photography style for portraits.

Grand Locations

Wedding venues can be expensive, so utilising the space in every way is ideal for the Flagstaff Best Wedding Videography. When it comes to taking photos and videos of the happy couple, or even the family members, using key features of the venue they’ve chosen cannot only give them the best shots, but remind them for years to come of the beautiful location of their wedding. Many Asian weddings are blessed with stunning decoration to rival even the bride’s dress, so bringing them into the photographs for a visually stunning image that has a traditional feel.

The Outdoors

If you truly want a traditional shot, using the outdoors can work to your advantage, especially at venues with stunning gardens. Foliage and a beautiful blue sky are timeless, so if the happy couple are lucky enough to have the right venue and the best weather, capturing the right setting is simple! Open spaces make for perfect family photos for big congregations, and pathways and venue features can make interesting additions to couple portraits.

Family

As with any wedding, the family and guests are usually one of the biggest highlights of a wedding – so use them! Including family in photographs, or groups of smiling guests can not only fill the background of the photos, but can create warmth to the photos. Family is an important value in any Asian culture, so capturing the bride and groom’s loved ones naturally enjoying the day in the background is essential.

4 Ways to Find the Best Wedding Photographer Near You

There are plenty of ways to find the Best Tempe Wedding Photographer near you. We, here at Saiaf Films, are professional photographers and videographer, so we believe we can provide some helpful tips on how and what to look out for when selecting your photographer.

However, before scouring the internet for photographers, first decide what your price range is—as this will largely narrow down your options. Once you have that in mind, you are half way there.


1. Wedding Fairs

Wedding fairs are a great place to find the Best Cultural Yuma Wedding Videographer and photographer. Not only does this give you the opportunity to meet the person face to face, but you will also be able to ask them questions regarding their style of photography.

Usually if the photographer is at the wedding fair, then you know they are established. This is often seen by the fact that they will have to have on display albums full of pictures of the multiple weddings they had.

2. Wedding Websites (WeddingWire, The Knot, etc)

Another great way to look for wedding photographers is through established wedding magazines and websites, like WeddingWire and The Knot. This is an easy way of searching as these websites display actual reviews of clients that the Flagstaff Most Affordable Wedding Photography team has worked for, so you have some check over the quality of the service from the start.

To further browse through the photographer’s works, we recommend checking out their website for portfolios in order to grasp whether the images suit the style you were looking for.


3. Wedding Venues

Another great way to find the Best Wedding Videography in Arizona is to ask your venue coordinator. They can very well recommend a few photographers and videographers that they have worked it in their location. Mostly, these pros have covered multiple weddings in that venue and surely are already experts in finding good angles and spots that makes great photo opportunities.

4. Word of mouth

The final way, and probably the most effective way, we recommend is through word of mouth. Ask your friends and family if they can recommend someone who they have experience working with or have witnessed working in some event they’ve been to.

Although no one wants their wedding to be the same as someone else’s, if you have been to a friend’s wedding and really like their photographs, then there is no issue with using them as for your wedding, too. The photographs will still be personal and there may be less shyness since there is more familiarity.

The Most Common Wedding Photography Myths—Debunked!

Are you, or is anyone you know, a wedding photographer? If so, chances are you’re well-aware of the ridiculous myths and misconceptions floating around about this profession. Not only does it take serious photographic expertise, talent, and dedication to become the Best Tucson Wedding Photography, but it’s also a very important job. After all, a wedding is a couple’s biggest day and they need something to capture and make a memory out of it that will last forever.

Today, here at Saiaf Films, we’re going to address the most common myths about wedding photographers, hoping to put a stop to these misconceptions once and for all!


1. Great photos are a result of good equipment

An artist can produce beautiful work whatever brushes they are given, the skill is in the craft they have developed for many years. The same goes for photography—it is a creative art, the camera is just the tool to capture the moment. You can learn to use the camera, set it up but to get a good photo, you need to know where to point it, what makes a good photo, thinking about light and composition.

Uncle Bob can have the most expensive DSLR, but that doesn’t mean he will produce great photos you truly love.


2. Cost is directly related to quality

Many people are under the impression that cost goes hand in hand with quality and to a certain extent—that is true. With that being said, you don’t have to pay an exorbitant amount of money in order to get pictures that are truly breath-taking.

The more you pay does not mean the better they are, and just because they are cheaper does not always mean they are not so good. You can the Best Wedding Photographer in Scottsdale that has started out and shot a few weddings and falls under the more expensive price bracket, yet someone cheaper could have years of experience and produce stunning albums of beautiful photos.

When looking for a wedding photographer you want someone with experience, you want a high consistency of photos that capture the day, you want someone you can easily get along with, and you want someone you trust.

3. Wedding photography is so easy anyone can do it

This is definitely one of the biggest misconceptions out there. Are you really prepared to leave something so important in the hands of a novice and then hope for the best? Most people would answer that question with a definite “no”. Wedding photography is hard work and a skill that is developed over time and experience.

Think about it this way. If you are not completely comfortable with the possibility that your wedding photos will be out of focus, off topic or even non-existent, then you might want to rethink the whole idea about letting just anyone be your Multicultural Wedding Videography Tucson to take your wedding day photos.

It is easy to take a photo, yes, but it’s not so easy to capture hundreds of stunning photos from real time moments that tell a beautiful story of your wedding day. The key is consistency and experience—and only a professional Scottsdale South Asian Wedding Videographer can do that.

Need more insights on the common fallacies about wedding photography and videography? Here are more wedding photography misconceptions you need to know.

4 Popular Wedding Trends in Videography

Your wedding is fast approaching. With regards to your wedding video, it is worth knowing which of the latest trends, styles, and techniques are popularly used by the Best Wedding Videography Scottsdale. After all, years after your wedding, the wedding video will be the only definitive memory you have your big day. We, here at Saiaf Films, have spent a lot of time shooting and editing wedding footage. We have rounded up what we observe to be the latest trends in wedding videography below.


Drone photography

The Flyover

With the advancement of technology comes the update of cool tools that the Best Tempe Asian Wedding Videographer can add to their arsenal. As drones have been easily manoeuvrable and user-friendly, more and more wedding videographers are utilizing them to their advantage. The flyover angle has become a staple in many wedding videos today. If you are having an outdoor wedding, or the exterior of your venue is picture-perfect, ask your videographer if they fly drones. They will make for a breath-taking effect, add some extra oomph to your wedding video and help you remember the (quite literally) big picture of your magical day.

The Little Details

If you’ve watched your parents’ wedding video, you will most likely witness their wedding ceremony via tripod; the toasts through uncles; and the reception by way of the shaky-handed bridesmaid or groomsman. You will see the big picture of what happened that day, but have missed the little details. Today’s videos are exceptional. Your Best Tempe South Asian Wedding Photographer not only captures the big events of the day, but also the little things you spend so much time planning. The polka dots on your groom’s tie, the subtle design in the lace of your white dress or even the spread of cuisine laid out before your guests. Your videographers are capturing it all and highlighting the things you didn’t know needed highlighting.

The Voiceover

No. Ccouples do not have a Morgan Freeman-esque voice narrating their wedding video. Videographers are coupling their audio of speeches, toasts, sermons and vows with their footage of the wedding. You wrote your vows, your friends and family wrote their toasts and your officiant wrote a sermon all for you both. So, why not incorporate all the media captured on your wedding day? Couples will love looking back and hearing what their spouse vowed to them on that day.

The Secret Moments

Videographers are now displaying the more secret, behind the scenes moments from couples’ wedding day. Instead of the plain-Jane video of the obvious wedding day festivities, the Best Wedding Videography Scottsdale are showing the pre-wedding preparations and the intimate footage of the personal photoshoots. The day of the generic “big moment wedding video” is over; now couples are more focused on the secret moments—where all the cute, candid and romantic moments happen.