Frequently Asked Questions

who can shoot wedding photography in San Francisco

Phone now (415) 529-5473

Please email us at joymayweddings@gmail.com

At SF City Hall Photography we want you to feel confident and comfortable knowing you have hired a quality, professional service. We will deliver creative and artistic images of your event for less than 1/3 the cost of other high end studios. Our images prove our talent. We promise our calm approach will help make your dream wedding a reality. Here are some key wedding photography questions you should be concerned with and how we address them:

1. Who is SF City Hall Photography? SF City Hall Photography is a team of four professional artists: Joy May- digital artist/painter, Johnny – Main wedding photographer, Agnes – a seasoned wedding photographer/assistant/digital artist and Agnes – a ten year veteran wedding photographer/assistant/digital artist

2. How long have you been in business? Everyone knows there is no substitute for experience. At SF City Hall Photography we have been providing outstanding wedding service for Northern California since 2001. We average 30 weddings per year and have photographed over 300 weddings since 2001. That’s over 10 years of professional experience. Experience, creativity, quality, and service are our trademark.

3. How much do you charge and what is included? Basically, we charge $250 per hour, per photographer. $995 WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY includes: © Copyrights Title (non-exclusive copyrights), All images color corrected , 100 rendered images ( artistic photo editing ), One Photographer , All images on DVD-ROM ( Unlimited Digital Images ), One DVD-VIDEO (Music Video Slideshow), 1 to 4 hours shooting time, Wedding photo album (slip pocket), 200 4×6 photo prints, Online wedding photo album and No travel fee for Northern California. Again, we charge $250 per hour, per photographer. We include all original high resolution digital images on DVD-ROM, with no watermarks. No need to return to us for reprints or enlargements! We require a 50% retainer fee to secure our service for the specific event day. Our availability is limited, as our photographers can only shoot one wedding per day. We are first come, first served.

4. Why do I want the © copyrights? In the USA all creative work is intellectual property, protected by copyrights rights law , for 95 years. All copyright protected images, digital or hard copy, are “proofs”. By default, all photographers own the copyrights (proofs) of your wedding images, and will greatly profit (often thousands of $) from your lifelong reorders, reprints, and enlargements after the wedding. The clients do not own the “proofs”. For example- average price for one 8×10 proof/reprint/enlargement from a wedding photographer/studio is $50. The cost of one 8×10 from WOLF CAMERA is $3.50, if you own the copyrights. Also- all major photo processing companies (Walgreen’s, Wolf Camera, Costco) will recognize professional wedding images and will require certificate of ownership in order to reprint your wedding photos. By signing the certificate of ownership, we legally transfer the nonexclusive copyrights to our clients & the means (DVD-ROM, DVD-Video) to reprint your wedding images, forever. At Joy May Wedding Photography we offer our clients the non-exclusive copyrights (ownership) of all images-IE; all wedding images on DVD-ROM. This is the best long term deal for our clients. Again, our clients get every image we shoot-Our clients own every image we shoot!

5. How many photographers shoot our event? For our $995 (4 hours) service, we include our main wedding photographer. Johnny is a seasoned veteran of over 10 years. He has the experience to make your event memorable and create the beautiful images that you will treasure for a lifetime. If you want an additional creative professional photographer/artist we charge a subsequent rate of $250 per hour. Two photographers for four hours will bill at $1995, plus sales tax.

6. Do you bring “back up” equipment? Yes, we do. Although equipment failure is rare, we won’t let it stop and ruin your special day. At Joy May Wedding Photography we bring enough back up gear to cover any equipment failure.

7. We need photos for eight hours – How do we secure the time? No problem. We can work for as many hours as you need. Again after four hours ($995), we bill at $250 per hour, per day. 8 hours with two photographers will bill at $3995, plus tax.

8. Do you colorize, soften or retouch the digital (jpeg) images? Yes we do! All images are color corrected, with contrast, clarity, saturation and white balance correction. We then rendered 100 (CS5 photoshop) images. These 100 images are cooked to perfection with Joy May’s signature photo editing style. Joy May is one of the few digital artists who devotes this much time creating works of art from your photos. These 100 fully rendered images (and originals) are included at full resolution on DVD. We also include the original, untouched images too! Additional enhanced images are charged at a rate of $50 per image.

9. Can we select the 200-4×6 photo prints? Yes you can! After your event, you can select 200 of your best images. We then print them on 4×6 photo paper. We also provide you with a wedding album that you can fill up with your wedding photos. Please see our terms of service for requirements.

10. Can you put the 4×6 prints in the wedding album? Yes we can. However, please add four weeks to your delivery date. We provide one white wedding album. It is archival photo quality, with optically clear slip pockets. It will hold 200 4×6 prints. Additional wedding albums are for available for $50 each.

11. What is your shooting style? At it’s core, our shooting style is a mixture of unobtrusive photojournalism (candid) and traditional (posed) photography. We feel that this modern approach satisfies everyone from the bride & groom to the parents & grandparents.

12. Do you use professional equipment? Yes, we do. At SF City Hall Photography we use automatic exposure Canon 1D EOS digital SLR cameras with auto-focus Canon EOS EF lenses and camera mounted integrated TTL EOS flash to ensure clean, sharp, high quality images. As we are natural light artists, we do not bring studio equipment (light stands, power packs, umbrellas, lights) to a wedding. All our equipment is professional, industrial grade.

13. You include a DVD-Video. What is that? This DVD is a Music Video Slideshow. It looks like a power point presentation, except with a music soundtrack. This video slideshow is made from Hi-Resolution digital images of your wedding, set to a song , with titles, transitions & fades, on a DVD video format. It is not encrypted and easy to copy onto a computer or DVD burner. Santana’s ”Game of love” is the default song/soundtrack. Copyrights included. You can customize this DVD with your first dance song! One DVD is included with our Joy May Wedding Photography. Please see our YouTube link for samples. Additional DVD copies are available for $50 each.

14. Do you charge for set up and take down? No. Absolutely not. At SF City Hall Photography you are only charged from the moment we start, to the moment we end, as you specify in our contract. We usually arrive 1 hour early (Not billable time) to set up and familiarize ourselves with the locations. If you would like us to inspect the locations before the event, we charge an additional fee of $500 for Northern California.

15. When will our photos & DVD be ready? After your event, your DVDs will be processed and burned and ready for pick-up after 4 weeks. We will send an email bill upon completion.

16. Do we have to prepay for your service? No. Absolutely not. We require a credit card deposit (50%) now, to secure the service for your wedding date. The balance is due upon completion. The balance is paid after the wedding, when you pick-up the photos or DVD video. We accept final payment in cash or credit card.

17. How many digital images are on the DVD- ROM? In a four hour period, we will have a minimum of 200 original (fifty digital images per hour) high resolution digital images on the digital camera. After the event, we burn a DVD-ROM with all these digital JPEG images. In this archival quality DVD media, every image we shoot is included. No watermarks or low resolution images – the JPEG files on your DVD are ready to print! Includes a signed reproduction agreement that enables you to make prints and enlargements whenever you want! Afterwards, you can copy the DVD-ROM, with all your wedding photos, for about 25 cents each. If you had 100 guests (100x .25= $25) at your wedding, you could give everyone a PHOTO DVD for $25. Also, 4×6 reprints from snapfish.com cost 12 cents each. A photo DVD-ROM (jpeg) will also play as a slide-show on most DVD players. Additional DVD-ROM copies are available for $50 each. Copyrights included.

18. Can you make an online gallery for us? Yes we can. This online gallery is included in our service. After final payment, we publish your selected best images on the world wide web. This is the best way to have your family and friends to see, order and print your wedding images, from any part of the world, from any computer. This online gallery is public with your names and wedding date and location. Please read our TOS for requirements.

19. Can we give you a “VIP” photo list? Yes you can. Providing us with a list of very important photos or people (V.I.P.), is the best way to ensure you get the images you want.

20. Do you provide a written contract? Yes we do. Our Terms of Service (T.O.S.) is online. We know the importance a written commitment is to you. Not only does it guarantee our performance but gives you the peace of mind knowing we will be there on the exact date you specify. After the deposit is received, we will email you a receipt of purchase of our Joy May Wedding Photography service. Please read our terms of service.

21. How will you dress? At SF City Hall Photography we know the importance of a professional image and we will dress in black slacks, black dress shirt, and black vest with black dress shoes.

22. Do you charge a travel fee for my wedding? No, absolutely not. There is no travel fee for Northern California. Here is a partial list of some of the cities in our travel radius: Sacramento, Chico, Yuba City, Dixon, Davis, Roseville, Stockton, Lodi, Modesto, Elk Grove, San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland, Santa Rosa, Napa, Calistoga, Mendocino, Fort Bragg, Carmel, Santa Cruz, Oakhurst, Placerville, Lake Tahoe, & Yosemite National Park.

23. Are there any hidden fees? No, absolutely not. There are no additional fees to worry about. Our competitors will profit from price and service obscurity. At SF City Hall Photography we keep our service fee clear, honest, and simple. There is no fine print. Please read our terms of service.

24. Do we have to provide you with a dinner or lunch? No, absolutely not. We know that dinners can be expensive. We believe that it is not your obligation to serve us. However, we will accept an invitation to eat if offered.

25. How can we get a Magazine Style Album? We refer you to http://www.mypublisher.com. We know MAGAZINE ALBUMS can sell for $2,000+ . With our digital images on DVD- ROM and copyrights title, you can do-it-yourself and save! My Publisher has unique tools and publishing software that have enabled hundreds of thousands of customers to create and order custom made, high-quality, coffee-table books in single-copy editions at affordable prices.

26. What distinguishes you from other services? Our business has three great qualities: Experience, exceptional creativity & low price. Please read our Testimonials online to see what our clients say about SF City Hall Photography service!

27. Are Engagement Photos available? Yes , we include an engagement session if you book eight hours and two photographers ($4k-see line 3) for your wedding. This session consists of two hours in and around San Francisco locations, with our main photographer. These digital images are included at full resolution on DVD with the copyrights title. Hair and makeup is available for an additional fee of $500. twenty five enhanced /rendered images included. Non-exclusive copyrights included. Please allow four weeks for delivery.

28. Can you ship our photos, album and DVD to us? Yes we can! U.S.P.S. priority mail shipping within USA is no charge.

29. Is four hours enough time? Yes it is. Our service is expandable. If you need us for more time, we are available. Again, we charge $250 per hour, per photographer, per specific day.

30. We are so busy, we don’t have time to meet. Can we secure our date now with a credit card, and meet with you later? Yes, you can. With a credit card, you can book our wedding photography through our secure servers. Once we receive payment, we will email you a receipt for your Joy May Wedding Photography purchase. Your credit card company (VISA or M/C) will also have a receipt of purchase from SF City Hall Photography on record. Afterwards, we can meet by scheduled appointment or skype-teleconference with you to discuss your concerns and wishes for your event. We do not require that you meet with us before the event. We offer unlimited consultations.

31. Why are your prices so low? What’s the catch? There is no catch. We are aware that wedding photography, digital images and copyrights can run $10,000 for a day. We believe that providing equal access to high quality photography is an important mission. Please visit our Joy May Wedding Gallery to see our imagination. You will love the artistic images and the money you save with our service!

*You can book wedding photography online now with a $500 retainer/deposit. *Please phone (415) 529-5473 before submitting deposit to verify we have your date available. We are now booking for 2016. Also, our availability is limited, as we can only shoot one wedding per day. We can meet, by appointment, to review more samples of our work at our studio. Our business hours are: Monday through Friday from 10am to 5pm.

For more information please read our Terms of Service.

Sincerely, with our best regards,

SF City Hall Photography
(415) 529-5473