REL Photography -- Prices

You will get more pleasure from your REL photographs or video over the years than any other wedding expense. Wedding photography and videos are my passion. Since I own the company, I can spend as much time as necessary to give you my best. I will personally direct and edit your video, and/or take your photographs.

Most people have to go through the wedding experience before they understand how important really good wedding photographs and video will become. This is a day that will never happen again. Most of the things you spend money on will soon become faded memories. Not your photographs or video. The magical moments will come to life again in your photographs and video, if they are done well. At REL, we want you to view our work. We invite comparison. Your photographs and video will be as individual as you are. REL images are clear and colorful (except for black & white, of course), even when the ambient lighting is dim.

Our videos are steady, unless you like a "jiggly" look. Lots of close-ups. The sound is crystal clear. The coverage is complete. Nothing is missed. The style is your style. The story flows. It's fun! It's exciting! We pay total attention to detail. REL videos are put together with loving care, combining the best of several cameras, or using film-style techniques with a single camera. No careless or sloppy edits. No technical glitches. Pure silk!

Everything about our photography says quality. We don't cut corners like most other photographers. In addition to digital, we still offer large negative professional portrait film photography for it's unique ability to enhance the beauty of people.

What Is Your Style?

The style of your wedding photography is so important. Do you like posed pictures or would you like us to fade into the woodwork, capturing your wedding day as it unfolds? Most people like a combination of formal pictures (for posterity – who knows what you'll want in ten or twenty years) and a lot of photojournalistic-style candid shots of people just having fun. You may like some moody black and white, or other monotone pictures (or video) such as sepia-toned. Pictures that look like drawings or paintings.

You might like to be put into scenes that aren't possible on your wedding day. Maybe there's a special person who can't attend your wedding who you'd like to have in one of the wedding pictures. our goal is to make your photographs and video as suited to your individual needs and personal style as possible. I want you to be absolutely delighted every time you view them.

We put the highest quality into your original images, because if we didn't, we could not give you the quality you deserve. We give you the absolute highest quality for the lowest price we can afford to offer.

Who Should We Please

At REL, we think everything else is secondary to delighting our clients. When we take care of your needs, everything else falls naturally into place. We are truly interested in you. Your dreams. How you want your photographs and video to look and sound. We listen carefully to you so that we can fulfill your needs and desires. Along with our standard packages, we can build your own custom package that will meet your exact requirements.

We guarantee we will do everything possible to give you the most wonderful photographs and/or video. We do very little advertising. Almost all of our business comes from the referrals of previous satisfied clients. We depend on our clients telling others how much they enjoy their photographs and videos. Your satisfaction is our most important goal.

We believe in redundancy. We bring duplicates of everything – cameras, flashes, lenses, microphones, etc. Our flash systems (both on-camera and studio lighting) use more than one flash, so if one flash were to fail, there would still be enough light from the other flash to make a perfect picture. We use back-up video cameras, back-up microphones, and record back-up videotapes.

Technology Rules, Right?

Hardware is important, but it is only one of the parts that determines how much joy you'll get from your wedding photographs and video. We use the absolute best equipment that has been uniquely modified for the very demanding wedding and event environment, but without our exceptional skill and creativity, the promise of this wonderful equipment would go unfulfilled.

Our technology makes it possible to make wall-sized photographs that you can walk right up to and not see the grain or pixels in the picture. Our artistry makes you want a wall-sized print!

We create our videos so that they will not only look wonderful now, but will benefit from future enhancements as technology improves. The camera has no idea what the image is supposed to look like, so we use manual control over all-important functions to get exactly what we want.

Can We Have Fun?

We insist on it! Your wedding day is about having the time of your lives. We believe in having fun and think you do too. This is what your wedding day is all about. Your wishes should be everyone else's command. Why? Because you're the Bride and Groom!

Why Do We Offer Both Large Negative and Digital Photography?

Like other fine photographers, we offer digital photography. Unlike most others, we still offer large negative film-based photography. We are so confident you will love your photographs that we offer you an unconditional money back guarantee.

Most photographers have switched to taking digital wedding photographs, primarily because digital is so much less expensive to produce. Film-based photography has become very expensive. But, large negative film offers some important benefits with people pictures. Professional portrait films are formulated to produce flawless, silky-smooth skin tones. Digital is designed to produce reality. There are times that reality is not the best choice.

Most of our clients will choose us because they like our style, are confident that we will give them the best possible images in their price range, and are comfortable with us. Some will understand that the subtle, but noticeable, ways large negative film-based photographs differ from digital are worth the added cost. We give you the advantages of both film-based and digital photography by using digital where it excels, film where it excels, and both for important shots. We convert the negatives to ultra-high resolution digital files so we can play with the images in Photoshop, and so the images can be included on your CD, if you choose that option.

Do Digital and Large-Negative Photography Really Differ?

The best digital cameras (16+ megapixels) have caught up with the resolution of 35mm film. But their resolution still pales when compared with the 6 x 7 cm negatives, which have the equivalent to a 150MB digital file. There is no need to add the sharpening that is necessary to make digital images appear to be sharp. That sharpening emphasizes skin irregularities, and is not complimentary in portrait photography. More important, the wider exposure latitude and finely-tuned color formulation of professional portrait film produces the glowing images every bride wants.

Large negative photography has so much exposure latitude that spot-on exposure is not necessary to create perfect photographs. The film can record a wider range of contrast than the scene. This benefits you because you will enjoy your wedding day, rather than wait for the photographer to adjust the exposure. And we can be more creative because we can concentrate on creating your unique photographs rather than fooling around with the camera controls, knowing that every frame will produce a perfect exposure, just like the tens of thousands of other wedding pictures we've taken over the years.

Digital sensors cannot encompass the full range of many scenes, especially scenes that are normally found at weddings. Clothing such as black tuxedos and white dresses exceed the contrast range of digital equipment, but not film.

If you still would rather choose to have us use digital photography, don't worry. Whether you choose digital or large negative, we will put the highest quality into your original images. We give you the absolute highest quality for the lowest price we can afford to offer.

We Offer CDs, in Addition to Photographs and Albums

This way, you can save money by either printing your photographs yourself, or taking (or uploading) them to a lab to be printed. Naturally, you can still take advantage of our expertise and creativity by having us make your most important photographs and albums by hand.

On-Camera Backup Video Recording To Be Sure We Will Get the Shot

Electronic devices are very reliable today, but not flawless. We want you to enjoy your wedding day without a thought about your wedding video. That's why we not only use the best cameras for the job - we make a second recording of the main camera while we're recording your wedding, just to be sure that everything goes right.

Remote Video Camera Control - Close-ups Without Distraction

We strive to be invisible while recording your wedding memories. Besides being very discreet, we offer full remote control of our cameras so we can get the intimate close-ups brides love with no worry about the camera guy showing.

Why Use More than One Video Camera?

Multiple video cameras offer additional perspectives, and help us to tell your story. Make it so interesting and lively that you will never get tired of it. Instead of long, static shots, you are delighted by frequent changes of scenery, revealing nuances and new parts of the story. This also makes it possible to give you a much more refined video without distracting focusing or zooming. We can use wireless remote control of our cameras, so we don't become a part of your wedding ceremony. Single-Camera, Film Style offers the multi-camera look for a budget price.

I direct the video. That means that I can control what all of the cameras capture. In this way, I can weave together an aesthetically pleasing flow of images rather than merely assemble pieces that have little relationship to one another. Your video will be like a real movie – only better, because you're the stars!

Is Video Editing Really That Important?

Only if you want to watch your video more than once! At REL, my focus is not on how quickly I can edit a video. It is on how well I can edit it. I use not only my skills as an editor, but also my sensitivity as an artist to create a masterpiece of sights and sounds. Every edit is carefully thought out and meticulously executed to make your video worthy of a lifetime of enjoyment.

Do You Have the Sound Up When You Watch a Movie?

The quality of the audio can make or break your wedding video. Turn down the sound of one of your favorite TV programs or movies to get an idea of how important sound is.

We don't rely on a single wireless or on-camera microphone to capture the sound. We combine multiple studio-grade wired and wireless microphones, recorded on separate audio tracks, and then mix the best tracks into your video, complete with surround sound.

What About Lighting?

We do not use video lighting during the ceremony. Most sites don't allow it, and it really is not necessary. Our cameras produce beautiful pictures under candlelight, sunlight, and the lighting at your site.

For photography, we bring studio lighting for formal pictures taken inside. Fill-flash, light reflectors and natural light outside are blended to create beauty light to make you look your best.

How Will You Be Treated?

You can absolutely depend on us to provide you our best in every way. We will be available to help you design your photography and/or video according to your preferences, and to make it uniquely yours. We will listen to you carefully, ask questions, and offer advice when you ask.

If none of our packages gives you exactly what you need, we will put one together that does. There are no hidden extras or surprises! All video editing is included. Your contract includes all of the details.

We do only one wedding per day and we are yours exclusively on your wedding day. I will personally photograph you, record or direct the recording of your wedding on video, and edit your video. I will not send others to take my place. I will wear a black tuxedo, or other attire you are comfortable with.

There is one common thread in all of the REL products and services: the quality. We give you images and sounds found nowhere else, at any price!

REL Clients Have Their Say

"The best we've ever seen," "it makes the day last forever," "just like a movie and we're the stars," "I really believe a stranger would enjoy watching this," "beyond excellent," "our photographs are wonderful" and "we loved them all" are typical of the compliments we receive on thank you cards from our clients. "It was worth it!" is one of the most frequent sentiments. We always give you more than you pay for!

"We knew that not just anyone would do. We wanted someone who would be fun to be with. Someone who understood how important it was to capture the essence of our wedding day, creating very personal works of art we will cherish forever. Someone who would not compromise on quality. Someone who not only uses the best equipment and film, but who brings duplicates of everything. We wanted the owner of the company to photograph our wedding, not someone who is learning the trade. This is only going to happen once! We got what we wanted. We are so happy we chose REL Photography!"

"We would like to thank you for listening to us, for accurately portraying our wedding as we asked, and for caring about what we thought of the video once it was done. We cannot express to you how happy we were when we sat down with you and watched our video and finally saw that someone who said they could do it, did do it and did it right! The proof is definitely in the end results. We were also impressed with your customer service, how polite you were at the wedding as far as not making us feel like we were on "Candid Camera" and how at ease you were doing your job. It was very obvious you were "in your element" behind the video camera. Your professionalism and courteousness will forever be remembered."

"Our Reflections Video was such a wonderful way to show everyone Our Story. Everyone cheered, and clapped, and loved it! And we can enjoy it again and again. Just pop it in our VCR and enjoy it again on our own TV, whenever we want!"

Standarddigital coverage includes a CD with image files of all pictures taken (up to 100), so you can save money by either printing your photographs yourself, or take (or upload) them to a lab to be printed, and 4 hours of time. $1000. Add a full set of professional 5 inch prints for a special rate. Additional time @ $80/hour. Naturally, you can still take advantage of our expertise and creativity by having us make your most important photographs and albums by hand.

The following plans include large negative photography and gives you the freedom to choose the sizes and forms your photographs will take. A wide variety of albums and folios, mattes, frames, specially priced gift sets, prints mounted on canvas, oil painting renditions, black and white and hand-colored photographs, images on CD or DVD, Web pages, montage videos (digital slide shows), etc., are available.

Deluxe Up to 6 continuous hours and 200 pictures taken. Apply ~~$1600 of~~ the full $2000 cost toward your album and print order. Additional time @ $80/hour Additional pictures taken @ $80/20. Your print order can include items such as a set of original 5 inch photographs, large Bride and Groom and Parents albums, wall-sized portraits, gift sets, a CD of hi-resolution image files of all pictures taken, etc.

Crème de la Crème We will take at least 600 pictures. Coverage includes a pre-wedding photography session with the bride and groom enjoying one of their favorite locations. A large photograph can be included to display beside your guest book, or matted for guests to sign. This package also includes candid photographs of the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner and your entire wedding day. Apply ~~$4000 of~~ the full $5000 cost toward your album and print order. This print order allowance can usually cover the cost of the original 5 inch photographs, large Bride and Groom and Parents albums, wall-sized portraits, gift sets, a CD of hi-resolution image files of all pictures taken, and more.

2008 Video Packages

All packages include complete editing and three standard (4:3) or wide (16:9) DVDs.

Standard Single-camera four-hour @ $1000. Add $80/additional hour, including editing.

Deluxe Two camera, four-hour coverage @ $1400. Editing and a montage of 25 pictures showing you as children and together, set to music, are included. Additional time is available @ $80/hour for one camera.

Deluxe Three camera, four-hour coverage @ $1800. Editing and a montage of 50 pictures showing you as children and together, set to music are included. Additional time is available @ $80/hour for one camera or $120 for two cameras

Rehearsal Highlights of the rehearsal, or the Rehearsal Dinner, set to music. $295.* Both for $495.*

Highlights Your wedding's "greatest hits". Set to your favorite music. Stills montage $495.* Stills and slow-motion $695.*

Crème de la Crème Your Love Story begins with pictures of you as babies, children, and adults, as you tell how you met and your favorite things about each other. I'll show you having fun together in one of your favorite places. Rehearsal scenes, played fast if you like, and your entire wedding day follow. Slow-motion and other romantic effects, and your favorite music add to your enjoyment.

Your Crème de la Crème Love Story comes to a crescendo during the Highlights sequence as I weave together the most memorable moments using video stills and slow-motion, honeymoon pictures and credits, all set to one or two of your favorite songs. As good as it gets. Three ceremony cameras and two cameras for the reception. $3500. Additional cameras are available. Please ask.

Crème de la Crème HD Same features as the previous package, but includes two HD cameras, full HD production, and is delivered via HDV or HD-DVD, when available. $8000.

* Price valid only if we also do a wedding video package. Please ask for a quote if you do not also choose a wedding video package.

Reflections Montage & Love Story and Bridal Elegance Videos

Sometimes called digital slide shows, these montages tell your story by blending pictures, voice, and video. Ken Burns-style motion (made popular on PBS programs such as The Civil War) bring your still images to life, using our digital animation stage to gracefully move around an image.

Project on a large screen during your wedding day, then enjoy again whenever you want. Each image is scanned with our graphics studio grade high-resolution scanner, retouched and color-corrected to perfection. We spend as much as ten times as much time on your images as others, but the difference our meticulous work produces is clearly seen. Much more refined than the PowerPoint or shot with a video or digital still camera presentations done by others.

Reflections videos, DVDs, CDs, or Web pages are a montage (slide show) of photographs along with your favorite music. High-resolution digital scanning (not just shooting with a video camera) @ $150 for 25 pictures added, then $2.50 per picture. One VHS tape is included. Add $50 for DVD instead. Adding unedited music from your CD is included. Music editing, retouching, digital effects, graphics, Ken Burns-style motion effects, and voice-over (narration) are available. Please ask for details.

Love Stories feature video of you telling how you met and your thoughts about the wedding (or your voices accompanying pictures of you together, or video of you having fun together in one of your favorite places). Romantic slow-motion and soft image effects and music can be included. From $500.

Bridal Elegance videos explore the Bride's unique look and personality. A lovely gift from the Bride to the Groom, revealing her personality and beauty, using close-ups of details, slow-motion of her whirling and twirling like a model, in a natural setting, to a favorite song. This video is made before the wedding, with the bride in her wedding dress, or other attire. From $500.

Digital Photo Creations

Photo Collages - Several Images In One Photograph

Viewing Quality

Even the highest quality computer monitor cannot begin to show the fine-art quality of an REL Photograph. The pictures in this Web site have less than 1/100 as much detail as the original pictures in order to minimize download time. Compression artifacts make them look mushy. If your monitor can show only 256 (8-bit) or fewer colors, you may see dots and blotches instead of smooth gradations of color (note: these pictures may look alike unless your display is set to 24- or 32-bit color).

The new "High Speed Dialup" services make page loading faster by converting images to lower quality, using higher compression, so the files will be smaller and take less time to download. This does make pages load faster, but the images are essentially ruined in the process. Some of the largest Internet Service Providers have been doing this for years without telling their clients.

These images will look best if displayed on a high quality monitor using 24- or 32-bit true color and a display resolution of at least 800 x 600 pixels, with your browser set to "full screen" or maximized. If you connect to the Internet via aol ® or another service that recompresses images to speed up page loading, please e-mail us. We can send an e-mail with the images you are interested in placed in an HTML-format e-mail, or attached. Better yet, why not call or e-mail to schedule an appointment to see our photographs and videos, or to request samples.

Please use these instructions to set your monitor for best reproduction of the pictures.

"Minutiae"

We wish it weren't necessary to have this disclaimer, but the current legal climate suggests that it is better to include this information. The information contained in this Website is intended to present a general view of services available through REL Photography within our normal service area. This is not an all-inclusive price list. This is not an offer to conduct business over the Web. Complete contact information is not available on this Web site but is included in our printed documents. We reserve the right to set the price and describe the services in a contract made valid by our signature, which you can approve by signing. No business is conducted without this contract. Unless the contract specifically states otherwise, laws of the State of Washington shall apply. We do not consent to personal jurisdiction outside the State of Washington. The name "REL Photography" and the REL logo are copyrighted and registered trademarks. All photographs, images, and text included in this Website are copyrighted by REL Photography and may not be used or reproduced in any form without our written permission, with the exception that you may print a copy of these pages for reference only. All other rights are reserved. Since we book only one event per day, our availability is very limited. The first completed and signed contract we receive that includes a full retainer will reserve a date. The above prices may change, and other charges, such as travel-related expenses for locations more then twenty miles from our Northwest Seattle location, could apply. Please ask for details. Prices included in your contract will not change.

REL Privacy Policy

Any personally identifiable information that you provide REL, such as name, e-mail address, physical address, telephone number or financial information, will be used only for the purpose it was given. REL does not sell, trade, or disclose personally identifiable information to third parties unless required to fulfill your requests, or by law.

REL does not sell products or services for purchase by children. REL does not knowingly solicit or collect customer identifiable information from minors under the age of eighteen. In addition, REL will not knowingly link to any third party web site that solicits or collects customer identifiable information from minors. If you believe that a minor has disclosed personally identifiable information to REL, please contact us at so that the information can be removed.

A Bride's Guide to Wedding Photography and Video