Welcome to my “Frequently Asked Questions” section of my blog/site! This page is constantly updated with more questions and answers, so make sure to come back soon! Click a question below, and it’ll take you to the section of the page with that particular answer. Enjoy!

Questions:

What should I bring to a shoot?

What type of gear do you use?

I love your style, do you offer studio shots?

Do you offer prints, or should I get them?

I notice that other area photographers have 7,328 weddings up, why don’t you?

What is your philosophy when it comes to your photography?

Do you really have long hair? How long did it take? Are you in a band?

Have you ever been published?

Do you offer wedding albums?

What do you look for in a client?

What is required to book?

I’m a new photographer, and love your stuff! Can I ask questions, or get advice?

Do you accept online payments? Credit/debit cards?

What is your mailing address?

We’re having a wedding in (insert name here of far away town)… Can you still shoot it?

Answers:

What should I bring to a shoot?

It depends, to sum it up. Besides the basics, such as makeup, a few things are nice to have, of course. What type of shoot are we on? If we’re shooting engagement shots, then I always recommend that the couple brings at least 1 extra change of clothing, if they’d prefer to have different outfits during their shoot. This goes for all shoots as well, from smaller portraits, to full on band shoots. I love outdoor and abandoned locations, so water is always a plus, even though I don’t usually require a lot of walking on most shoots. However, it’s nice to have, and is always a plus. Speaking of outdoor and abandoned locations, flip-flops are definitely not recommended (for safety reasons) for those particular locations, due to broken glass sometimes being randomly on the ground.

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What type of gear do you use?

I use many different elements to make up the final look that I have, but I’ll list the basics. I’m shooting with a Nikon D700, with various zoom and prime lenses. For lighting, I’m primarily using an AB-1600 head w/ an Alienbees Vagabond II power pack, for use on locations that don’t provide power. I’ve got many different umbrellas/stands/booms and so on, but definitely love the look that the Softlighters give, and have two of those. I have multiple wireless triggers as well, and 3 other smaller flash units, for use in smaller spaces, and for fast moving shoots (or for crazy awesome shoots). Modifiers, gels, and natural light help round off the list.

I just recently purchased a Thinktank International Airport Security V2.0 bag, and it’s amazing! To sum it up, it’s an amazing gear bag, for people on the go, that also manages all of your other accessories, all in one location. It’s quite secure, and is designed for international use on flights as a carry-on bag, and can hold a whole, whole lot.

I also just received my new Nikkor 17-35mm f/2.8D IF-ED lens, and I love it. It’s a quite fast zoom lens, staying at a constant f2.8. I couldn’t recommend it more!

My favorite cheaper purchase will greatly help in my editing speed. I finally have a Wacom tablet! No more tedious mouse editing for me, why yes.

Another part of my setup that I greatly enjoy is having an assistant at every shoot! That helps so much, seriously. I’m not lazy or anything, just a little tired of the wind deciding that it enjoys my umbrellas more so than me… hehe

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I love your style, do you offer studio shots?

Ahhh!! If you insist, yes, we can use an inside studio backdrop, if you have a good reason to need that… hehe

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Do you offer prints, or should I get them?

Yes I do! I’ve started a new service, called “The Lab”, where you can proof your images online, pick the ones you like, for further editing, and also, buy prints, once I get the final versions up! I’m streamlining a lot of my systems, with that being the first step. You get a high resolution CD/DVD with your final images on them, of course, but allowing us to print the images (which is very affordable) allows us to get a high quality print, that will last a long time, unlike what you’ll get at your local pharmacy!

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I notice that other area photographers have 7,328 weddings up, why don’t you?

This is mainly due to a few different reasons, which I’ll explain! Believe it or not, I shoot quite a lot of non-wedding clients, such as bands, fighters, models, and so on, so I like my site (and blog) to be evenly balanced, and not lean towards one area, or the other. Here’s the other reason: I just recently began shooting weddings again (after I finally got backups of all of my gear; it’d be crazy to go into a wedding without backups!), so I don’t have a million to show just yet. That is the second reason why you don’t see a million weddings up yet as well. This has nothing to do with quality, or anything like that, as everything I shoot is comparable to what you see on my site (and blog). I have a lot of weddings booked throughout 2009 so far, so you’ll see more of them in the future slowly filtering through my site. If I shoot yours, and it doesn’t go up on my site immediately, never fear! It’s pretty random actually when I post shots from a wedding, so don’t hold it against me if you don’t see yours featured on my blog or site right away, hehe

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What is your philosophy when it comes to your photography?

That’s easy! I’ll sum it up with 4 points:

1) Not look local. Nothing against other photographers in the area, of course, as there are definitely some great ones, and that’s not what I’m referring to… I just love it, though, when I get messages like “You’re seriously from Tyler?”
2) Bring an alternative non-boring look to whatever we shoot, from weddings, to bands. I like taking a wedding, setting up a group shot of the wedding party, and shooting it as if they were in a band, for instance, hehe.
3) Deliver a very high quality product, for far less than comparable photographers. I’m not one to undercut competition (as that isn’t an honest practice, definitely), but I love giving my client something that they’d normally pay 4-5 times as much for, for far less. I love photography, so I get a lot out of shooting, and my clients love my product and prices, so they do as well! hehe
4) Lastly, have fun! Shoots can always be stressful for those involved (especially for weddings), so my assistant and I always love to joke around, and be very relaxed at the same time.

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Do you really have long hair? How long did it take? Are you in a band?

Ahhh, this crazy question….

Yes. 3 years. Yes.

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Have you ever been published?

Yes I have been! I’ve only been shooting professionally as my job for about 6-7 months now (as of January 09, I’ve shot for years for fun before the middle of 2008), so I hope to have this list grow greatly throughout ’09. So far, I’ve been published twice in BSCENE, once for a band that was featured that I shot, and secondly for a local guitarist who was also featured by a pretty big spread. I’ve also had my images in the Wedded Bliss, and the Texas Wedding Guide. My goal, however, is to shoot Metallica, and/or Dave Grohl, and be published in Rolling Stone magazine one day… Cross your fingers! hehe

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Do you offer wedding albums?

Of course! I’m currently in the process of figuring out exactly which album company I like the best. It has to offer edgy cover options, custom layouts, be very, very high quality, and lastly, be affordable! I’ve narrowed it down to roughly 3 companies, so stay tuned for more information in the next few days.

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What do you look for in a client?

What? I get to choose? Amazing!

Hehe, it’s quite simple. I prefer clients that prefer me, not for my price, but for my product. I was reading a friend of mine’s blog the other day, and read his philosophy on that, and it summed up how I felt quite perfectly. I want a client that enjoys my style, wants something edgy, and as far from traditional as possible… Something professional, but very artistic… Something unique, and not local looking, while still being local. If you fit the above guidelines, then please, send me a comment, and lets create something amazing!

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What is required to book?

It matters what type of shoot we’ll be doing. Are you booking a wedding? If so, as of March of 2009, we’re requiring a deposit of $500 to officially save the date, which keeps us from giving your date to another client. I get tons of emails asking when we’re available, so make sure to get your name down in the calendar as early as possible.

Are you booking any other shoot, or design project? If so, we require a deposit of 50% of whatever I initially quote you! All deposits, a policy that every other photographer or designer uses, is non-refundable, of course. Easy enough, eh? hehe

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I’m a new photographer, and love your stuff! Can I ask questions, or get advice?

Call me immediately!

Seriously though. I love helping people who are starting out, because I was there once! I looked up to people I thought were amazing at the time, and asked around, and sometimes, even got a response! I have no secrets, and will answer anything I’m asked, to the best of my abilities, of course. From lighting, to camera gear, to hair products, feel free to send me an email! Unless it is about hair products. If so, I’ll forward it to a female friend of mine, who can better help you… hehe

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Do you accept online payments? Credit/debit cards?

That we do! We accept all major credit cards, and can do so online too now! We use Google Checkout, and no longer accept PayPal (long story, hehe). We always accept checks, and cash as well, so you shouldn’t have a hard time finding a way to get a deposit or final payment to us!

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What is your mailing address?

Glad you asked! It has changed recently, since I have a new apartment, which I love tremendously… Here’s where to send contracts, and anything else you’d like to send me:

Matthew Hogan
408 N Broadway, Apt 504
Tyler, TX 75702

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We’re having a wedding in (insert name here of far away town)… Can you still shoot it?

Of course we can! We love destination shoots, and weddings. All we ask, in return, is a few favors! Here’s what they are:

1) $0.30 per mile traveled, there and back, to be added to the final payment (which is far less than what the national average is, to save our clients money)
2) Hotel room, or place to stay, if it will be a late wedding, so that we won’t have to drive back, while sleeping… hehe

And, on rare occasions…
3) Plane tickets for 2, if it’s extreeeemely far away (as in more than 12-14 hours of driving, from Tyler to your city of choice)

If the location is extremely amazing (like Hawaii or something), and everything is provided for us (travel/room/etc.), then we might even shoot your wedding for free! If that doesn’t answer your question, or if you have any others dealing with travel, feel free to contact me!

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