General Questions
Where are you based out of?
I’m based out of Atlanta, GA USA in the Johns Creek area.
Are you willing to travel out of Atlanta for our wedding?
Yes! I do both local and destination weddings. No matter it’s a four-hour drive from Atlanta to Savannah, further in other states in the USA or even travel internationally, I am ready and willing to travel anywhere for your big day. There are different photography rate for local vs destination weddings. Please contact me for further details.
Do you do other types of photography besides weddings?
My focuses at Gary Lun Photography are weddings and engagement sessions. However I do occasionally take portraits, family sessions and event photography. I want to make sure I don’t divide myself too thin. If you have a shoot other than weddings and engagements, contact me because I may have a spot for you!
What is your style of photography?
Photography is subjective and I am a strong believer to let my couples determine the style of my photography. That being said, couples in the past have used terms like, natural editing style, timeless photographs, great composition, and many more! In another world, I’ve no clue what my style is and I’ll let you be the judge on it!
Booking questions
We’d like to book you, what do we need to do to make everything official?
Thank you so much! I am honored to capture your big day and I’m super excited! To make everything official, you just need to determine the photography package and its investment, fill out the contract, and pay the 50% deposit retainer. I accept both check and credit card. Every step will be outline and documented in emails to make sure there is no surprises or miscommunication.
We are interested in booking you but aren’t quite ready yet. Can you put a soft hold on our wedding date?
I totally understand especially making such an important decision is a huge commitment. By default, all bookings are first come first serve basis (signed contract with 50% deposit retainer). However, I can put a soft hold on your wedding date for up to 48 hours (2 days). Afterwards, unless further notified by you, the date will be open again.
Engagement session questions
Is it necessary to do an engagement session?
I highly recommend doing an engagement session although it’s not absolutely necessary. But I’d say the time we spent doing the pictures together acts as a rehearsal for your wedding day. You’ll not only get amazing pictures after the shoot but we’ll also get to work with each other so the wedding day will go as smooth as it can be!
How long will our engagement session be?
It can be anywhere from 1-3 hours. Anything less than 1 hour is way too short and I found 2 hours is just about right. With this timeframe you’ll also get to go multiple locations and change an outfit or two.
We’re not sure where to go for our engagement session, can you give us some ideas?
For sure! I’ve a list of places I can recommend for you!
We’re not sure what to wear for our engagement session, can you help us out?
Although I am not a fashion expert, I do recommend wearing solid color clothing. Stay away from heavy stripes/patterns and any holiday color combinations. In another word, just treat it like you both are going on a date!
How much posing instruction do you give during your engagement session?
My goal is to capture as much candid pictures as possible (the moments shot), however, there will be times I’ll pose you two to get the shot you are looking for. Don’t worry, I’ll keep constant communications with you two and make sure you both look and especially feel great!
Pre-wedding meetup questions
What information do we need to have ready before our meeting?
There is no specific items, but at the minimum the wedding date and venue, a rough idea of what photography style/budget you have in mind. Most importantly, your enthusiasm to share with me your story and wedding day vision!
What can we expect from you between the time of booking to our wedding date?
I believe getting the best wedding photographs require a good amount of planning and communication. With that said, well before your wedding day you can expect us to be having phone calls and/or email communications. I’ll also send out a formal “touching base” email with helpful information and to-do items around 2 months before your wedding day. We’ll then schedule a meeting around one month before your wedding to go over all the final details and questions you might have.
What happens if after we book you, you’re not able to photograph our wedding?
So far I have never ran into this situation (touchwood + fingers crossed!). If I am sick I’ll shoot your wedding (as long as I can still get up and walk), if my friend is getting married the same day I’ll shoot your wedding (sorry to my friends). It’ll have to be a ‘knock on wood’ catastrophic unforeseen event for me to not be able to photograph your wedding. If that ever happen, I’ll notify you immediately and I’ve other amazing photographers to step in and capture your big day.
Wedding day questions
How early and late should photography coverage start on my wedding day?
Every photographer works differently, I personally prefer to capture the complete wedding day as much as possible. Which typically means around 2-3 hours before the ceremony for the getting ready shots (hair, make up, bride’s details, finishing touches etc), followed by a first look or first touch. Then pre-ceremony portraits (bride and groom, bridal party, immediately family), ceremony, post-ceremony portraits (bride and groom, extended family), and the reception. I typically conclude the coverage about 1.5-2 hours into open dancing and leave after wedding exit. Overall, the hours are roughly from 2-10pm.
What attire do you wear to weddings?
Unless it’s a beach wedding, the dress code for guys are in black slacks, black shirts and black dress shoes. Girls are generally in all black as well with black shoes/boots. My goal is to dress professionally and blend in with the crowd.
Is it necessary to have a wedding planner or is a venue coordinator enough?
Although no necessary, from my experience, I highly recommend hiring a professional wedding planner. Nowdays a lot of venues have a coordinator but I’ve noticed that weddings with a professional planner run more smoothly than ones without.
Do you also take traditional, camera-aware photos?
Yes! Although I focus on capturing the moments my overall objective is to tell a complete story of the day of your wedding. That being said there will be some traditional looking at the camera photos. No worries it won’t take much of your time 🙂
How much posing do you provide on the wedding day?
In you wedding day I’ll capture photos in an unobtrusive and distraction free manner. However, I do believe in order to maximize the short amount of time we have and be as efficient as possible, some posing will be needed. Things like where to put your hands, where to stand, which direction to turn your bodies will be communicated. I’d say I do about 50% posing and 50% candid on a wedding day but it really depends.
One tip I always give to couples is that the pictures you see on wedding magazines (eg the Knot magazine) are mostly posing shots. It is very hard (or the photographer got super lucky in timing) to be able to pose such a beautiful couples in such a perfect way. Let alone the bride/groom are usually models who were trained how to pose in their whole career!
Therefore, if you love pictures on wedding magazines, I’d say you may want me to do more posing shots on your wedding day. This is really up to you. We can certainly work out a game plan together!
Do you take any details photos or mainly focus on the moments and portraits of our wedding?
Oh yes! I take lots of detail photos on your wedding day! From the wedding dress, jewelry, rings, floral, guest book, programs etc.
Do you have a second photographer or assistant?
Absolutely! I always bring in a 2nd photographer (perhaps even a 3rd to be assistant)
Is there a limit number of photos you take at a wedding?
There is no limit to the number of photos I take on a wedding. But on average I’ll provide at least 600 photos on a 8 hours wedding. Generally, the more time we have for portraits, less driving between locations, waiting for family and friends to be in the formals shots, the more images I’ll be able to deliver to you!
Post wedding questions
How soon after our wedding can we expect to see the photos?
Usually I deliver the photos on the 6th week after your wedding day.
Are we be able to view and share our wedding photos?
Definitely! I’ll give you access to a personalize online gallery for you to share with friends and families.
Do you do any color correction and editing to the images before we receive them?
Yes I do. Retouching like exposure, temperature, contrast, color, cropping, sharpening and a few other tweaks I do them all!
Do we own the copyright to our photos and what are we allowed to do with them?
Per the contract, we both actually own the copyrights to your wedding photos. You are more than welcome to have rights to share, print, give away, use and basically do anything you want with your wedding photos I delivered as long as it’s not for commercial/monetary usage. If later you decide to sell your wedding photos or use them in a profitable/marketable way, we’ll then need to fill out and sign a separate contract agreement.
What do you intend on doing with our wedding photos?
On my side, I only intend to use your wedding photos to promote Gary Lun Photography. That can be posting our favorite images on the Gary Lun Photography website or other wedding related websites (weddingwire, Facebook, Instagram etc). Rest assure I will never give away your wedding photos to other vendors and third party organizations without your written consent. I keep your identity and your sensitive information my top priority.