If you’ve come across this blog post in the archives, it’s important to know that We offer your Hi Res file s with every single wedding package today.
Why the change and do I have the same views today that I expressed in the post below.
The change is because you, the bride, has requested it and feel that it’s so important that we are happy to oblige. However there are pitfalls if you are basing your choice of photographer on these files alone.
See my new post on the subject of high res wedding files and what having them really means to you.
One of the most common reasons that we aren’t chosen to photograph a couples wedding is in my opinion, the worst reason to base your decision – the hi res files.
You may be thinking, of course that’s your view, you just don’t want to offer the files so you’ll say anything to change my mind. Not true. We have just introduced a new package that includes the hi res files. So, why are we offering these files with our newest and cheapest package and why offerthem now. And, more importantly, why haven’t we offered the files in the past?
The number one reason that we have never offered the hi-res files as part of our packages in the past is whatever our clients have printed elsewhere are a pure reflection of the work we do at Impact. Simply put, if one of our clients has 15c reprints done at a department store (yes, people really do this) they look bad, very bad – so bad in fact, that I have seen people with green skin, seriously!
What do you think their friends and family say when they show off their wedding reprints? Usually, ohh, ummm, these are…. nice. Followed by, so, who was your photographer? What are the chances anyone they show would book Impact for their wedding; none. Sure, I have used an extreme example but the quality of reprints from anyone but a professional lab is just no good.
On top of that, the lab will only print the file you have ordered. No retouching, no enhancement, no skin softening, no vignetting, no creative cropping and no colour balancing. Everything we provide, with EVERY image that leaves the studio, completed by trained professionals that really care about what we provide to our clients. Not some automatic setting on a high output printer being run by a staff member who sees thousands of “average” family snaps paid to keep the auto settings on and the paper spitting out of the machine.
To me, every image created by Impact is a reflection of what we do – it has taken years and years of photographing weddings and portraits to build the reputation we have on the Coast as being the best. It would break my heart to have that taken away through bad printing of reprints – that really scares me.
It is a misconception that we have never offered hi-res files. They have always been offered at a cost and that cost was derived from a figure that was the average reprint order from our weddings. What we are really saying with our reprint costs is, let us organise the prints and you will be assured of quality. We chose that amount because (once again) what people show of our work is an advertisement for our studios – good reprints equal good reputation. In addition to that – when we offer our hi-res files they include all the “worked” files from your album. This way you at least have some chance of getting a quality reprint and we get to maintain our reputation and not leave it totally in the hands of a mini lab.
Why are we offering the files now, and, included with the cheapest package ever? Basically, because we are now in a position where we are able to. We feel confident enough with our reputation that we are able to introduce a package that appeals to those couples that really don’t want a premium album. They want less coverage, they want to have great images captured on the day but have the flexibility to order prints, enlargements or an album at a time that suits their budget or their timetable. I’m hoping that the couples that take this package still come to Impact for their prints and albums when they’re ready. That way the prints they end up with will be of the quality they have seen in our studios.
Obviously we don’t have any control over where they have their prints done, but I believe once they see the difference between worked and unworked files, they’ll come back to us for any orders or printing. The one advantage they will have, no matter who does their printing, is the quality of files and images will be first class and that’s something you don’t get from every photographer! If you start with a below standard image file there is no way you re going to end up with a quality print so you MUST choose your photographer carefully. I believe you should ask to see a complete and “unworked” wedding – if they look good here, they can look fantastic with some polishing.
One final thing to consider with your hi-res files is storage and backup. Will you have a strategy to keep multiple copies at different locations and in a condition that will be usable in decades to come – we do. Once you have possession of your files, they are your responsibility. If anything goes wrong once you have the files, you will have no record of your wedding… ever.
I hope this has shed some light on the subject of hi-res files and whether you really want or need them. If you choose to go with a photographer that supplies the files, I hope you question why and gauge whether they really care about the quality of work leaving their studio or if they purely want your booking to fill another gap in their calendar. If you choose Impact Images and you go for the one and only package that includes the files, we will do everything to inform you of the pitfalls of printing with anyone other than us or at the very least a professional lab with files that have been prepared by someone who really knows what they are doing.
If you really want the best experience, the best photographers, the best digital artists and designers and no worries – book Impact Images and one of our all inclusive wedding collections.
