F.a.q.

Check here for information and answers to some of our frequently asked questions!

I need help planning my session/I would like a chance to tell you my ideas for my session…can you help me get ready?

Absolutely! All of our packages and services include pre-photography consultation. In the planning phase, you can count on us to help you plan and customize your event to suit your needs. After the session or event has concluded, you can trust that we will continue to help you through the selection and post-production process. Also, we love when our clients bring their own ideas to the table…personalize it, because that will make you love your photos even more! We look forward to hearing your thoughts as we help you plan your event or session.

When we book you for our wedding, portrait, or event, will we actually be getting you, or do you send an employee to photograph our event?

For every single event and portrait booked with our company, you’ll actually get our owner and principal photographer, Rachel, not a person you’ve never met/spoken with. We too have heard the horror stories about photographers and other service providers who secure an event with clients, and then hire and send someone the client has never met for the actual day of the wedding or event instead of showing up themselves. This is definitely not the case with us. Depending on the size and scale of your booked event, you might have one or two of Rachel’s assistants in addition to her, but all of our staff members are personally hired and trained/vetted by Rachel before being authorized to work at any event booked by our company. Rest assured, when you book us for your event, you don’t have to worry about a stranger showing up on your important day! Rachel and her team will be with you every step of the way to deliver a personalized professional experience, from the initial booking of your event, to the pre-planning, to the photography and the post-production!

I am interested in knowing what kind of post-production goes into my finished photography/I am interested in special effects being applied to my photography. Can you provide me information on your post-production process?

While we prefer to “get it right in the camera”, we do use post-production software to ensure you’re receiving the perfect image every time. After the conclusion of your session or event and before you see the first set of proof images, your photos will be reviewed by Rachel and our editing team, and minor editing will be applied to most photos; this allows us to offer you everything from minor touch-ups and color correction to creative photo collages and specialty products. If you have an idea for what you’d like to see when it comes to your images, please don’t hesitate to ask us.

Will you provide me with the raw/unedited image files from my session?

Except in cases of low resolution unedited files for the purposes of choosing your initial photos (as in cases where you’re working with a tight deadline, such as needing headshots back quickly for an audition, etc), we do not provide the unedited or raw versions of your photos. We think of it like this: if you went for a great meal at a fantastic restaurant, you wouldn’t want or ask the chef to deliver the ingredients for your dinner to your table and expect you to assemble them yourself; part of your experience and expectation in that scenario would be to have the chef use his skills and talents to properly and thoroughly prepare your meal and deliver it to you ready to enjoy. That’s how we approach preparing your images and why we don’t deliver them to you unedited…we make sure every image is ready to show off for you when you receive it. We’ll do the heavy lifting of editing, perfecting, and polishing your photos so that all you have to do is enjoy them!

Once I’ve decided to hire Rachel Sullivan Photography for my event/portrait/wedding etc, when is payment due?

Unless otherwise specified in your contract, full payment will be due no later than two weeks prior to your event. Also, upon signing the contract and officially hiring Rachel Sullivan Photography, a deposit will be due (typically this will be equal to one fourth of your total fee) and is non-refundable; this is to hold the date for your event.  Remaining balance can be paid in installments by cash, check, or charge, and full details of this will be explained during the contract and consultation phases upon hiring our company. In most cases, payment schedules can be customized to best meet each client’s needs.

What forms of payment do you accept?

We accept personal checks, cash, PayPal, Venmo, and all four major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express). More details about what payment method is best for you can be discussed during your consultation with us, and in many cases, we can negotiate an installment plan to help you manage your payments for goods and services. (Please be aware that payments made via credit card may be subject to additional processing fees.)

I would like to purchase a session or prints for a friend or family member. Do you offer gift certificates?

Why, yes indeed we do! We’re proud to offer gift certificates available in any denomination, these make the perfect gift for a family member, a friend, newlyweds, parents-to-be, or just that special someone who’s hard to shop for. To order gift certificates, send us an email with the amount you’d like, and we’ll be happy to take care of your needs! Gift certificates are good towards sessions, prints and products available from Rachel Sullivan Photography (the only exception being wedding deposits and service fees) and they make a thoughtful, unique gift for any occasion.

I would like to purchase an image I see on your site. Is this a possibility/what are your prices for prints?

We do offer high quality prints in a variety of sizes for several of our photographs. For copyright and personal privacy reasons, certain images cannot be sold. For more info on any photos you may have your eye on, email us and we’d be happy to discuss availability and pricing with you.

Once my session has concluded, can I print my photos, and will they be used by your company for marketing?

Yes, in most cases (unless otherwise agreed upon and specified in your pre-session planning with us), you will have a print release allowing you to print and reproduce your images. We do retain the copyrights to images taken by Rachel Sullivan Photography, and your images may be used at any time on our website or other marketing collateral and in our company portfolio to promote, display, and advertise our company. If you have questions about how your images may be used, don’t hesitate to ask us–we can answer anything you are wondering about and we’re happy to provide you with any info you need. (Please be aware that we reserve the right to request that a photograph be removed from any website if the watermark is no longer intact/visible, if the image has been altered, in cases where the photography is being used in an unauthorized or inappropriate manner, or if the images are being utilized by a third party without our written permission.)

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