This is an article to provide the top tips of what to ask when hiring a wedding photographer and why Arising Images is up to the task.

Brides and grooms have many resources that they can turn to where they can get a comprehensive list of questions to ask when hiring a Michigan wedding photographer. However, most of those lists leave out some vital questions that will help you differentiate between an amateur and a professional photographer.
With so many people losing their jobs in this bad economy, many are picking up their cameras and buying a basic website template and to someone that doesn’t know any better, they can come off looking like a professional who is giving a great deal.
It’s important to be educated so that you know who you are actually hiring and to be able to discern between a professional and an amateur.
So, I’ve put together a list with all the things that I think are really important that will help you to know what you are getting and to know the right questions to ask to be properly educated.

******** Does the photographer have proper insurance?
This is a huge difference between amateur and professional photographers.
A professional photographer should carry two types of insurance.

1) Liability Insurance - this will protect you and your guests in the event of injury at the photographers hands. Some photographers use wired flashes which means power cables might be run across the room that cause a trip hazard.
I heard a story where someone was using continuous lighting which gets MUCH hotter than flashes. The light got too hot, exploded and caught a woman’s hair on fire.
In some cases it can be the photographers negligence and other cases it can be purely an accident. Either way, having liability insurance is extremely important because if something does happen and they get sued without insurance, they go out of business, you get no wedding photos, and your guest who was injured has no recourse.

2) Equipment Insurance - In many cases, newer photographers don’t have insurance on their equipment due to the cost. If their gear gets stolen before your wedding, are they going to have the financial means to buy new equipment? To get proper camera equipment, it can be very expensive. If they can’t afford equipment insurance, there is a good chance they can’t afford new equipment in the event their current equipment gets stolen or damaged.

******** Does the photographer have backup equipment?
Backup equipment is an extremely important thing to have. The fact is, things go wrong and can malfunction. If a piece of equipment fails will your photographer be ready to continue delivering the high quality images that you are paying them to capture?
Backup equipment is typically not something on the radar of an amateur photographer. It’s expensive enough to buy a good set of initial equipment let alone spending thousands of extra dollars on equipment that they may not ever even need. But what if they DO need it?

We carry backup equipment for everything from our cameras and flashes down to cables and batteries so we will never be left unprepared.

******** Does the photographer have a good command of lighting?
Lighting can be a very difficult thing for the average person to be able to notice but it can make a big difference in the overall perception of your photos.
When looking at a photographers portfolio whether online or in person, some red flags to pay attention to are

1) Harsh, ugly shadows on someone’s face from the sun or other strong light source being off to the side where part of the face is lit and there are ugly shadows on the opposite side of the face.
2) Spotty light that causes light patches on peoples faces and clothing from sun coming through the trees and the subjects being positioned poorly.
3) Dark shadows and no light on the eyes.
4) People squinting because they are facing the sun

A good photographer should be able to know how to properly position and light the subjects so that none of the above issues are a problem.
One of the most dreaded situations for an amateur wedding photographer is rain on a wedding day because if they can’t go outside, they have no idea what to do. Bad weather on a wedding day is always a concern but a professional will be able to deal with it and still get you creative and properly lit photos indoors.

One of the things that we pride ourselves on is the ability to create great photos no matter how bad the surroundings or the lighting. Quite often, the natural or ambient light that is available is not sufficient for taking photos so we are prepared to introduce artificial light that will help give your images mood and drama.

Here are a few creative images that we shot with artificial light when we were forced to be inside due to bad weather:

******** Are the photos crisp and sharp?
A professional will use a professional camera capable of producing photographs which can be enlarged and still appear sharp. This is extremely important if you plan on having images printed in a large album or plan to get any enlargements made of any of your photos. Cheaper lenses are manufactured with lower tolerances and will not provide the clarity and sharpness that a professional lens will produce. Amateur/slow lenses can be purchased for as little as $150, while comparable Pro/fast lenses might cost $1500+ for the same range. A fast professional lens will allow a photographer to shoot in low lighting conditions which is extremely important when shooting indoors at a wedding ceremony or reception.
To understand the sharpness in images, it is always best to look through fullsize wedding albums. Anything shown on the web or in small print will quite often hide any lack of sharpness. So look through the wedding albums and if things look a little soft focused…be wary. All that being said, this is not suggesting that you ask a photographer what kind of lens they are shooting with, but rather you should judge for yourself by looking at the photo albums.

We only use top of the line canon lenses which will allow us to shoot sharp photos even under tough lighting conditions and dimly lit rooms.

The pics below are just a simulation that will help you to understand what I’m talking about.
This first image looks nice but it’s not crisp, while the second one helps to show off the rich textures in the background. When looking at a wedding album or fullsize images, everything should be very crisp and really pop.

******** Does the photographer have a business/sales tax license?
Since photography has no government testing or regulations that are required, just about anyone with a camera can call themselves a professional photographer. One small check you can do is ask a photographer to see their sales tax license. If they have a sales tax license that means that they are at least attempting to run their business professionally and legally. While it’s nice to get a deal, photographers need to obey the law by paying sales tax. If you find a photographer that has no sales tax license, that should be a huge red flag. If they are not following the law, then what else are they not doing? Will their “business” be around by the time your wedding happens? If they don’t feel obligated to the government, will they feel obligated to YOU?

We are extremely particular about paying sales tax. We even log and pay our sales tax on money that we receive as cash and are definitely not afraid of an audit. From when we started our business, we decided to keep everything above board and we know that will work out in our favor.

******** Will your photographer be editing all your photos?
With the onset of the digital photography revolution there are many advances in image processing and editing which can make a MAJOR impact on your photos. There are many young photographers that haven’t learned how to properly process their images in Photoshop and there are also many photographers who have been in the business for 20-30 years that are struggling to learn all the new techniques.
In my opinion, only half the art is taking the photo and the other half is turning it into something amazing. There are probably many photographers that would disagree with this idea. Half of them are purists and their vision is to capture things exactly as they are. The other half don’t know how to do it so they try to act like a purist.
For me, I love to edit my photos. I use techniques that help make the images pop to give bold and vibrant color, help make the viewers eyes go to where I want, help make the subjects skin smoother or maybe even fix something that they consider a “problem area”.
To me, this is what makes images really stand out and what takes them from being just a straight photo to a work of art.

I truly believe that it is a BIG mistake to hire a “shoot and burn” photographer who is going to shoot your images and burn you a disk of unedited pictures. Everyone I know that did that typically has no beautiful wedding album to show off and no beautiful pics hung on their walls. Many have the intention of getting those things done eventually but it just never happens. All the photographers I know that do this are part time and have more obligations to their other job than they do to wedding photography. Therefore hiring a “shoot and burn” photographer will probably save you a lot of money, but you will not have much to show for it either.

Here’s just a couple of before/after examples that show how much of a difference editing photos can provide. We do color/exposure edits on ALL of the images that we provide so everything from the website, image book, album, DVDs, etc. all looks fantastic.

******** Does your photographer have a 2nd Shooter or assistant?
A second shooter is an incredibly valuable thing to have for multiple reasons. First, your event can be covered from two different angles and two different artistic perspectives.
If one shooter gets caught in a bad spot at a certain part of the ceremony, the other shooter is still there to capture everything.

The way that we work is that I am the primary photographer and it’s my job to capture all the really important elements and meanwhile Cheridy documents lots of candid photos of people interacting along with lots of the subtle details that make your wedding unique. When I need an assistant to hold a light or a reflector to make the image I’m trying to take better, she’s there to help me out. I couldn’t imagine doing this job without her there.
In many cases, I tend to shoot things with a wider angle lens and she tends to shoot more close-ups which provide a much more diversified set of images.

Here’s an example where I was able to get a unique vantage point on the ceremony and while I was doing that, I knew that Cheridy was still on the ground capturing everything that was going on.

******** Make sure you like your photographer!
This may sound like a no-brainer but you would be amazed at how many stories we hear about people’s friend or sister or whomever that had a photographer that seemed rude, bored, and generally not interested in their wedding day.
The person that you hire to be your wedding photographer will be with you the ENTIRE day. You will spend more time with your photographer than you do with the person you are marrying or any member of your family or bridal party. Therefore…MAKE SURE YOU LIKE THEM!!!
We only shoot 20 weddings per year and with those limited number of weddings along with all the time we spend with our clients before the wedding, we have a very strong relationship with each client. Our goal is that when we go to a wedding we want to feel like we’re at our friends wedding. We hope that when we show up on the wedding day, you feel like your friends have arrived to photograph you.
Some of our best friends are people that we met from being hired to photograph their wedding. One of the greatest things about this business is all the wonderful people that we get to meet.

******** How long does it take to get your pictures and product back?
After your wedding is over, you are in a euphoric state, you are excited, and you can’t wait to relive your wedding day by seeing the photos. If you have to wait too long, the excitement passes. You get back from your honeymoon and get back to work and the daily grind. The anticipation of getting to see your photos is still exciting but it can be frustrating if you have to wait too long. We’ve heard that some photographers take up to a few months just to show proofs and others might take 6 months to a year to show you your wedding album design. This is because they either shoot a lot of weddings and get way behind on the processing or because they have another job that takes precedence.

Since we only shoot roughly 20 weddings per year and have a good relationship with those 20 clients, I am always super excited to see the wedding photos. When we’re done with a wedding and it’s late at night and we’re tired, I still get a rush from seeing all the photos. I’m excited to see YOUR photos. From the minute I walk in the door (literally), I start downloading the images. I back everything up, I look through everything, and while I’m doing that, I typically remember certain images and remember what I wanted to do with those images so I just start working and playing with the photos. Before I know it, it’s 2:00am and I’m still working and having fun with the pics. Unless I’m shooting a job the next day or have other personal commitments, I will work on your pics any free time that I have. I never guarantee this, but with every wedding we have shot in the last 4 years, I have had the photos ready for viewing within a week and sometimes within a few days.
Once the photos are edited, all your products get made immediately including your image book, DVD slideshow, website, etc. Those also are usually done within the week. We’ve had clients come over to pick up their DVD slideshows before their guests have even left town so they can bring the pictures home and watch the slideshows with family.
Once that is done, we start working on your album design immediately and will usually have that ready for viewing within 2-3 weeks from the wedding day.

******** Will your photographer help you get organized, get prepared, and create a plan to get the most out of your day?
We’ve heard many stories about wedding photographers that have zero relationship with their clients. They get hired, and then ask what time to show up. In many cases, they can’t even remember what the bride and groom look like and hope that she’s already wearing her dress when they get there so they can identify her. They don’t know when events are transpiring, have no helpful input on the photo to be taken, don’t have a plan of where to go, don’t know who the important family members are and are overall completely unprepared.

Personally, I think everyone should hire a GOOD wedding planner. Good wedding planners do a fantastic job of coordinating everything and everyone. However, that’s another discussion. Many of the weddings that we shoot do not have a wedding planner which typically leaves the day to be planned by someone with no experience. We found this to be incredibly frustrating because more often than not, things were running later than expected and there was never enough time to get the type of photos that people really wanted.
In 2006, we started creating wedding day itineraries with our clients. We sit down and talk the day out and make sure that all the major things are accounted for along with all the minor things that most people don’t think or plan for. By creating this itinerary, it provides a time for us to all get on the same page and then we know where we’re going, when we’re going there, how long it will take, how long we can be there for, and when we need to move on to the next thing. We will be able to plan out locations and figure out timing and address concerns over lighting and time of day.
We definitely do not act like a wedding planner and we don’t coordinate any other part of the day, but we will help you to keep on schedule since we are the ones with you for the entire day. These itineraries have been a great asset for our clients because they walk away with a formal plan that they can then share with everyone else involved.

One of the other really important things that we do with all of our clients is an engagement shoot. The engagement shoot is a critical part of the pre-wedding process because it’s the time where we get to spend together before the wedding to get to know each other. It’s a chance for you to get in front of the camera and get all the jitters out. Being professionally photographed can be a bit nerve-wracking and it can feel awkward at first. It’s much better to get over that awkwardness BEFORE the wedding day. At the same time, Cheridy and I will get a feel for who you are as a couple. We will learn how you interact together, how you make each other laugh, etc. which will make photographing you on the wedding day much easier. At the same time, when you see the engagement photos, we will get an idea of what types of photos you like and what you don’t like so we can come up with a better plan to capture what you actually want on the wedding day.

******** Does your photographer have any awards or publications?
One way to tell that your photographer is experienced is to find out if they have won any awards or been published in any magazines. There is so much competition that it’s helpful to know that the photographer you are looking at stands out from the crowd and one way to do that is to see if they get recognized in their industry. When I go to buy a car, I am much more interested to hear that it was a Consumer Reports top pick as opposed to reading about how great the car is directly on the manufacturer website.

We have been published in numerous magazines not only in the wedding industry, but also in the photography industry. We have had a number of weddings featured in magazines such as The Knot Michigan, In Frame Bride Magazine, and Style Magazine. We have also been published in Professional Photographer magazine and Rangefinder Magazine which are two of the biggest national magazines in our industry.
We’ve been voted as one of the top photographers in Detroit since 2007, won awards for album design, and even been asked to speak at a national photography convention called Imaging USA.

******** Is your photographer full time or part time?
Knowing this will give you a better sense of their experience and commitment level. In itself, being a part time photographer is not a bad thing. I worked part time as a photographer for my first few years while I was building my business. However, I was not able to truly dedicate myself to my business or to my clients until I left the corporate world to do this full time. When you have to rely on your business to support your family, everything changes and you understand the value of every client and have the time and availability to properly take care of that client in a timely manner. When I had another job, my time and availability was very limited when it came to meeting people, calling people back, getting work done, etc. I had to do everything on weeknights because typically weekends I was busy shooting. I also had personal things on some weeknights which then left me very little time to run my business or too exhausted to run it effectively. Time is the biggest issue. When I had another job, I didn’t have the time to learn new skills, develop my style and technique, or practice new things because my time was taken up by my full time job and any free time I did have was spent shooting, editing photos and somehow trying to balance family, church, and other responsibilities.

******** Make sure the style fits what you are looking for and that you don’t skimp!
Coming from a photographer, I’m sure this sounds like a sales ploy. However, we learned from first hand experience to find what you want and not skimp on it.
When Cheridy and I got married in 2001, we weren’t shooting weddings. We didn’t know anything about the business and honestly we didn’t even know that creative photography existed and didn’t want to pay thousands of dollars for the traditional and boring stuff which is all we had ever seen. We didn’t spend any time researching it and we decided to skimp on our wedding photography. We had a friend who did it as a side business shoot photos for us. We got what we paid for…not much. His camera was on manual for most of the ceremony and he didn’t know it, so pretty much all of our photos were significantly underexposed. We didn’t give him any time to shoot good photos because we didn’t know we needed to and he didn’t tell us. We were left horribly disappointed but…we got what we paid for.

There were a few things that nobody told us.
1) Creative, beautiful, and artistic photography DOES exist.
2) The wedding day is a blur and the photos are the only thing that you have left after the wedding is over. Neither myself or my wife can remember even half of our wedding let alone who was there.
3) The wedding photos are more than something just of US. They are a family heirloom. The wedding album gets passed on to children and stays in the family forever. We didn’t think about that until our son was born and then we started seeing all the amazing photos and albums that we get to do for our clients and realized that we didn’t have anything like that to pass on to our son when we are gone.

W ended up being very blessed by an opportunity where we dressed up and got wedding photos taken in 2009…8 years after our wedding. But now, at least we can say we have some amazing photos. I wish we would have done that back then.
It’s always nice to save money and get a good deal but make sure that you know what you will be getting and that you will be happy if you get what you pay for.

Overall part of our bad experience is what helped led us on the road to do what we do now so were are grateful for every experience we’ve had whether positive or negative, they all helped us to grow.

Yesterday we spent a short time out at the Palazzo Grande banquet and event center in Shelby Township. They just opened up a couple years ago and have an amazing establishment for a Michigan wedding or event.
Yesterday they had a bridal show in conjunction with Viviano’s flowers and we were out there for a short time just to take some photos.

When I got home I spent some time in Corel Painter to add my own touch to the images.

Here are just a couple other photos that I liked a lot.

It’s been a long time since I’ve done any kind of “best of” post. We were blessed with winning a number of awards, various trophies, and being published in a few magazines so I thought it would be fun just to run through some photos that helped get us where we are. All of the glory that we have received is from God’s blessings…we’re not that good.

Let’s start this off with one of my favorite images from 2009. Cory and Barb had an amazing wedding reception at the Knollwood Country Club in West Bloomfield. For their wedding photos, we setup a photo session at Cranbrook School in Bloomfield Hills. This was a pretty overcast day with flat and boring light so to get a dramatic image, we created the overhead light. The crackly wall was a perfect backdrop.

Mike and Lindsey had their wedding at Cherry Creek Golf Club in Shelby Township, MI. They wanted some really cool and edgy photos so we took them offsight for their shoot and headed to a downtown location. It was a bright sunny day and the sun was creeping over the top of the building to give us this dramatic sun flare:

I love the look of the flare so much that sometimes I create it when it doesn’t exist. Billy and Melissa and their wedding ceremony and reception at the beautiful Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI. We did a lot of their photos at Lovett Hall and Greenfield Village which neighbor the museum in dearborn. This particular photo was taken on one of the stages in the museum shortly after Melissa was dressed and ready to see Billy for the first time.

Being able to use light creatively has saved us on many occasions. We photographed Bryon and Caitlin’s wedding at the beautiful Inn at St. John’s in Plymouth, MI. When we shoot in that area, we often like to go to downtown Northville, MI for photos but when it was time for photos of Bryon and Caitlin, the weather turned miserable and we were stuck doing all their wedding photos inside. It forced us to think outside the box and find ordinary locations where we could use dramatic light to give the photo impact.

Other times when we need to shoot inside are for winter weddings. We photographed Kirk and Lisa’s wedding at the amazing Grosse Pointe Yacht Club in Grosse Point, Michigan. We had some time to do some photos of them before the ceremony while at the church. The location itself didn’t offer much in terms of great backdrops so we again found ourselves thinking outside the box with our use of light to create this fun image that played with shadows.

This is probably one of our most talked about photos that we’ve done because it’s on the verge of being a little too sexy. We’ve had a number of requests to do a photo similar to this.
Scott and Kelly also had their wedding at the Inn at St. Johns in Plymouth. They were lucky enough to have a beautiful day so we headed to the nearby Millrace Village in Northville, MI for their photo shoot. I loved the stone wall and the old wooden bench and it made the perfect scene for this sexy photo.

This photo has always been one of my favorites. Ryan and Melissa had their wedding at the stunning Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, MI. Melissa was wearing one of the most amazing wedding dresses we’ve ever seen by Monique Lhuillier. We did a short photo shoot with Melissa and I loved this little window that we found that had beautiful soft light coming through. It was the perfect light and perfect pose to show off that amazing dress.

Our other favorite dress was worn by Lindsey. This was a dress by Roma Sposa. It was perfect, soft, flowy, and light. It was a spectacular dress. When we were doing photos with Lindsey, we wanted to do something very different with her….something out of a magazine…something unpredictable. We found this really cool textured wall in downtown Utica, MI and we put a towel on the ground and hoped that she would be ok sitting down. We were in an alley after all. However, she was a great sport and had no problem doing anything we asked which helped us to get this photo which is blown up to a large canvas in our studio.

Since the last few have been beautiful brides and beautiful dresses, lets continue that theme. This is a photo of Laurel. Her and Russel had an amazing wedding at Cherry Creek Golf Club in Shelby Township, Michigan. They were one of the sweetest and most humble couples we’ve ever worked with. Laurel’s parents have a beautiful home with some amazing architectural elements to it so we decided to use them. This is a photo at the front door of their home.

Let’s switch gears a little bit. One of the things that can make a great photo is the location. When there is a location that is meaningful to the couple, it makes the photo much more powerful.
Ethan and Sarah were getting married in Golden, CO and had a place up in the mountains. This photo was shot from their driveway with the rolling hillls in the background.

On a similar note, Amanda and Chris were married in Port Huron, MI where both of them are from. We wanted to have some type of landmark in their photo that would represent the location so we went down underneath the Blue Water Bridge that leads to Canada. Their wedding was one of the most memorable we’ve done. The location was Amanda’s parents backyard in one of the largest and most extravagant tents we had ever seen. With a cool breeze and the gentle lapping of the waves, it was an idyllic setting.

This is another wedding where the location was really important to the couple. David and Karlynn really wanted the wedding photos to show that they were in Lansing so we took this really fun photo with the state capitol building in the background. This was another photo we loved so much, we have a large canvas print hanging on our wall in the studio.

Wyatt and Kelly got in Detroit and had their wedding reception at the Detroit Athletic Club in downtown Detroit, MI. Both of them were really excited to have some aspects of Detroit in their photos. This photo was shot up on the rooftop looking down into Comerica Park where there was a baseball game going on. The lights from the stadium provided a really unique element to the photo.

I love this photo because it’s fun and different. Evan and Mary were also married in Detroit and they had their reception at the beautiful Roostertail right on the Detroit river. The view from there is outstanding as the whole venue is surrounded by glass so there is lots of amazing evening light that comes in. For their photos we were downtown and wanted to do something fun and different with the bridal party.

One more Detroit wedding. Cliff and Arneshia were married at the Rattlesnake Club which is also right on the Detroit river. The club is a very unique venue best known for the amazing dinners. We were doing Cliff and Neshia’s photos downtown and we were just about down when I had an idea. I loved the moody storm clouds in the sky and I wanted to do a photo that would look really dramatic with no distractions. I took them into a parking lot and I remember Cliff questioning my judgment and wondering what kind of photo I would be able to get while laying on the ground in a parking lot. After he saw the photo…it became an instant favorite. It always feels good when a client thinks you’re crazy but loves the end result!

Mike and Tori had a memorable wedding ceremony and reception at the Michigan League on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor. 90% of their guests were from out of town and they had a LOT of guests!! Mel Ball and Colours performed that night and they had the dance floor PACKED the entire time! I always loved this photo because of the band, the lights, the crazy party, etc.

Speaking of crazy parties…Mark and Christina had a wild wedding reception at Penna’s in Sterling Heights, MI. The dancing started off with a bang and kept on going. At one point money was being thrown in the air and we captured this cool shot of the two of them dancing with the money falling.

Abe and Angela also had a wild entrance to their wedding reception at the Diamond Center in Novi, MI. It was by far the largest wedding we had ever photographed with over 700 people. Not only was it a big crowd, but it was a dancing crowd and they definitely had a good time! This photo was taken as Abe and Angela were announced into their reception.

Another crazy crowd and fun entrance happened at Tara and Nate’s wedding at the beautiful Meadowbrook Mansion in Rochester Hills, MI. They also had a party crowd and despite Tara’s broken foot, she tore up the dance floor. They had an amazing ceremony and reception on the grounds of the mansion which made it really convenient for the guests to go right from the ceremony, to the cocktail hour, to the wild party!

Sometimes just to mix things up, we’ll take photos at odd angles just to provide a unique perspective. This is another photo from Russell and Laurel’s wedding. At some point at almost every wedding, I end up laying on the ground but it always leads to some cool photos. For Russell and Laurel’s photos we took them to downtown Mt. Clemens and found some really neat spots to get some creative images.

On a similar note, here’s a photo that I liked a lot shot from above. Mike and Erin’s wedding ceremony was held at St. Hugo of the Hills in West Bloomfield, MI and their reception was at the Italian American Club in Livonia. It was very rainy that day and when the rain cleared, it was hot and muggy so we did some of their photos inside the church after the guests left.

Sometimes the venues themselves can help provide some beautiful photos. Matt and Beth got married at the amazing Grosse Pointe War Memorial which is a beautiful historical structure right on Lake St. Clair in Grosse Pointe, MI. We did their photos shortly after sunrise on the back steps and I love the architecture from the building behind them.

Matt and Adrianne had their wedding ceremony at their church in Troy, MI but their reception was held at the St. Clair Inn which is on the waterfront of Lake St. Clair. We had a perfect sky and a calm day so we went out behind the building to the nearby docks and took some photos of them.

Whenever we go to a wedding reception, I like to photograph the room before all the guests get in their and put down their coats and drinks. Steve and Alicia had a fun wedding ceremony and reception at the Detroit Golf Club in Detroit, MI. I did a long exposure in the room and it brought out lots of fun colors from the up-lighting in the room which I then enhanced as well. I loved the color in this photo:

When we photographed Rob and Rebecca’s wedding at the Inn at St. Johns in Plymouth, MI it was a beautiful day with moody clouds. The Inn at St. John’s is a gigantic complex and I wanted to capture the whole venue along with the sky so I went all the way out to 5 mile Rd. to capture this photo.

This photo is extra special for me because it is the cross hanging in the chapel at our home church of Kensington Community Church in Troy, MI. This cross was hand carved by an amazing artist from our church name Mirca. I loved the dramatic lighting coming down.

When going to a wedding, we always love to photograph the details in the most creative ways possible. One of our favorite details is always the wedding rings. Chad and Jen had a beautiful wedding reception at the Partridge Creek Banquet Center in Clinton Township, MI. During the reception, we borrowed their rings to do some creative photography. Cheridy found these letters that we combined with some backlighting to create this photo.

Keesha and Bobby got married at Beacon Hill Golf Club in Commerce Township, MI
We did a lot of their photos in downtown Milford and when we were with Keesha while she was getting ready, we found this amazing backdrop for their rings which was actually her shoebox. Keesha loves color and style so this image was right up her alley.

One of the things that we look for when shooting weddings is colorful backdrops. We love shooting in downtown areas because it’s easy to find lots of variety of colors and textures with different wood, siding, brick, glass, etc. Eric and Jenny were married at the amazing Royal Park Hotel in downtown Rochester, MI and we took them around Rochester for their pre-wedding photo shoot.
I just love the bold red color from this building.

This photo has always stood out for me and I use this as an example that shows off our style. As mentioned earlier, we love looking for color and texture and finding unique backdrops. We know that our clients will think we’re a little crazy so we usually warm them up to some of our off-the-wall ideas during their engagement shoot. While shooting Scott and Kelly’s engagement photos, we took a photo of the two of them against an awesome green backdrop…which happened to be a dumpster. They thought we were nuts until they saw the resulting photo. It was one of Kelly’s favorite pics from the engagement shoot. On the wedding day we happened to be nearby another dumpster and this time Kelly requested a dumpster shot. This ended up becoming a double page spread in their wedding album.

We’re always looking for unique and different locations. Russ and Delicia ended up being the perfect couple for us because they were into something artsy, unique, and different. This was a wedding we shot out in New York this past summer and Delicia wanted a cool photo with a wall and some graphiti on it. We found a pretty dingy alcove and after moving some trash bags out of the way, we were able to create this really fashionable shot which they ended up using for their wedding thank you cards. This may be too out there for some people, but Russ is a DJ in New York, and Delicia is a dancer and a model and they really wanted something out there and different which we definitely had a lot of fun with!

We just wanted to thank all of our fans and clients for your business and support. Over the last few years we thank you for your votes in the contests we’ve been in for the best wedding photographers in detroit, michigan. Your nominations and votes have helped us to win numerous contests and trophies so we thank you for that and look forward to providing excellent wedding photography for southeastern michigan and destination wedding photography around the world.

Thanks and God Bless!

The Detroit Opera House is summed up by the words “classic elegance.” The decor is exquisite and the theater which turns into the ballroom is very spacious and extravagant. Last year we photographed Bessie and Sina’s wedding there and our jaws dropped when we walked in and saw the room. It was magnificent! I love the spotlights through the auditorium that provided really unique lighting on the whole venue.

Walking through the hallways and seeing the stunning chandeliers made us realize that we were a part of something really special!

The event we photographed their in 2009 was on the same night as a Detroit Tigers game. Comerica Park is right across the street and it made driving and parking very difficult and confusing for a lot of the guests so make sure to check the schedules and have a plan in place in the event of a game.

We loved the open feel to the room and the food was terrific!

Since it’s downtown, there are lots of neat places to go to get some of the most creative wedding photos you’ve ever seen!!

The tudor style mansion at Addison Oaks provides the feel of European excellence. The country atmosphere and lush grounds provide a beautiful setting for your wedding.

We have photographed a number of outdoor ceremonies in their courtyard which provides a quaint atmosphere to get married outside while always having the option to move inside in case of weather concerns.

The main dining room provides ample space and is surrounded by glass walls which provide plenty of natural light for your wedding reception.

The grounds at Addison Oaks in Leonard provide a beautiful natural backdrop for wedding photographs:

OR, for a more urban style photography session, we could go into downtown Lake Orion which is nearby.

Addison Oaks does a great job of making sure your wedding and event stays on schedule and I also remember that they have one of the most amazing dessert buffets I’ve ever seen!!

The Michigan League is a wonderful place to have a wedding on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor.
Built in 1929 it has lots of charm and historical elements. The Michigan League Ballroom can accommodate between 200-500 for weddings and events.
I love the warm natural woods on the floors and walls along with the tall windows that allow lots of beautiful natural light to come in.

The large dance floor can accommodate a fullsize band and allow space for a huge party to have a good time!

The ballroom can also accommodate a ceremony.

The outside of the building is classic University of Michigan architecture:

Walking around the building itself provides lots of photo opportunities with a cute garden, the bell tower, and other architectural details.

Ann Arbor, MI provides LOTS of fantastic places for wedding photography:

The Henry Ford Museum is one of the most unique venues in the state of Michigan which can provide a once in a lifetime experience for your guests.
When you have your reception there, the reception is actually in the museum which allows the guests full access to a private stroll through the whole museum.

The museum itself is a historic site with beautiful old buildings and exquisite architecture. It’s an incredible place for your Michigan wedding ceremony and reception.

They have a wonderful courtyard which is a perfect place to hold an outdoor ceremony that is sheltered from the wind.

After the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI closes, it gets transformed into a stunning reception location.

The food at the museum is prepared by a world class chef who has been published in magazines for his culinary masterpieces.

The museum is very spacious providing for ample room for the tables and a large dance floor so guests don’t feel cramped.

Another benefit of the Henry Ford Museum is that it is neighbors with the historic site of Greenfield Village. It can be arranged to have an old car drive you around the village for your wedding photos. However, keep in mind that it can be a crowded and public site so it take a while to move around from one place to another so you need to leave ample time when going into Greenfield Village for your wedding photos. Once inside there are lots of neat old buildings that can provide the backdrops for your wedding photos.

Driving around Greenfield Village really takes you back in time.

If you prefer the more classic ballroom feel, the next door Lovett Hall will be the perfect place for your wedding ceremony. It features a large open ballroom with hardwood floors and elegant chandeliers.

Yesterday Jeff and Molly had an incredible wedding with their reception at the outstanding Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, MI.
It was a beautiful winter day with snow on the ground but warm enough to go outside for some photos. Molly had a permanent smile on her face all day.
Blossoms florist did an amazing job with all the flowers and we had the pleasure of working with Jason from Mike Staff Productions who was shooting the video.

This morning we had a blast shooting Matt and Beth’s wedding. They had a short and intimate wedding at the War Memorial which is a beautiful venue right on Lake St. Clair. We had a spectacular sunny morning and Beth braved the chilly air so that we could do all their wedding photos outside around the War Memorial and the Village in Grosse Pointe. We had a lot of laughs with them this morning and were really glad to be a part of their day.

On Wednesday we went to the annual NACE (National Association of Catering Executives) awards banquet. Cheridy is a member of NACE and goes to all their meetings. This year my name was put in the nomination for “Industry Trendsetter” which was interesting because I’m not a NACE member. The competition I was up against were some amazing people who I can call friends. The winner ended up being our good friend Todd Lloyd who is the owner of Chair Covers and Linens (www.linenhero.com).

We were honored with a trophy for “Best Team Event” which was from an amazing wedding that we worked last year at the Royal Park Hotel in Rochester, MI. Click here to read the blog post from that event.

Josh and Amanda had the perfect fall day for their outdoor wedding on the beautiful grounds of Addison Oaks. All day long they laughed and smiled at each other and you could see on their faces how much fun they have together. We did their photo shoot on the grounds of Addison Oaks and took advantage of the fall color for their wedding photos.
Here’s a few favorites from today:

The current issue of InFrame magazine published an article about one of our weddings from earlier this summer. Bessie and Sina had an incredible wedding at the Detroit Opera House back in June. You can read more about it in the article:
http://www.arisingimages.com/blog/images/2009-09/inframe.pdf