Frequently Asked Questions
Studio Portraits
Do I have to pay studio fees when booking a portrait?
No - At Harwood Studios you only pay for the portrait. Our cheapest print is only £15 - therefore you can have up to two hours of studio time and only purchase a £15 print from the photo session. Do I have to pay a deposit?
We will not ask for any payment until you have selected your images and the format of your product. Once you have paid for your selected images, we will process your purchase immediately.
How many images will I have to choose from?
During the two hour studio session, we will take an average of anything between 150 to 200 shots - providing you with the maximum of choice.
Can I bring props into the studio?
Anything goes during your studio session - we have had everything from pets through to surf boards in our studio. It’s your experience - enjoy yourself.
When will I be able to view and select the images that I want?
After the studio session we will book you back in for a preview session that is usually no longer than one week later and most times within three days. Again, this is a totally private session which provides you with the time to select the images that you want.
Do I have on obligation to purchase?
Absolutely not. There will be no hard sell from anybody at Harwood Studios. We let our photographs do the talking. Our simple philosophy is that we believe you will be unable to resist purchasing the images because of the outstanding quality of our product.
How long will it take for me to receive my photographs?
This depends totally on the format that you have purchased. If you have simply selected to have prints from the session, then we endeavour to have your prints ready within four working days after the images have been selected. If you have selected a framed print incorporating one of our hand crafted frames, we will usually have your product ready within two working weeks depending upon the size of the frame. If you have selected to have your image printed on one of our high quality ready to hang canvas’, again, this product should be available for collection within two working weeks.
Can I have my purchase delivered?
We prefer all items to be collected from the studio - mainly to provide us with feedback on your purchase and to make sure that you are totally satisfied with the product. But we understand that this is not always possible. Delivery can be arranged through our efficient delivery service with rates based on weight and mileage. Please ask for details when selecting your product at the preview session.
Is it possible to purchase all of the images from the session in digital format?
One of our most popular products is the photo session hi-res dvd. This dvd contains all of your session photographs in both full colour and black and white stored in the lossless tiff format. This will then enable you to get the images printed at whichever outlet you prefer without breaching our copyright regulations. We also provide a session dvd which again contains all of the session images displayed beautifully along with your favourite music tracks to enhance your viewing experience. Please note that you will not be able to print the images from this format and all music must be supplied by the customer.
Will I have to pay extra for professional enhancements to my images?
All selected images will be professionally enhanced by the photographer with no additional charge.
Can I incorporate a makeover with my studio session?
This is one of the most frequent questions that we get asked at the studio. We always try to persuade the client to pursue a more natural portrait rather than have an image which does not reflect your true persona. We believe the natural beauty of your personality will come shining through and provide you with much more confidence than an image enhanced with excessive make-up. But if you have your heart set on including a makeover with your portrait then please specify this at the booking stage and we will organise the rest.
Can I come back at a later date for further purchases?
We hold all clients images on archive for three years minimum. We will endeavour to contact the client once the three years have expired to ensure that they are happy for us to remove the images from our archives.
Art Design
Do you provide customised Art Designs?
Each of our limited edition prints are available to incorporate your own colour scheme. If you like the design but the colours used do not match your own colour scheme - simply bring in a swatch of the colour scheme you desire and the design will be adjusted to suit. A proof of the new design is then approved before the final product is ordered.
How unique are your designs?
We endeavour to only sell one version of each design. But if you desire a design that has already been purchased we will try to include something that is personal to yourself to make the design as unique as possible. Each design comes complete with a certificate of authenticity and the signature of the artist.
Can I commission a limited edition design?
If you have a project in mind that is not covered by the designs shown either in our studio or on this website - you can commission your own design which will be totally unique to yourself and will never be reproduced or displayed in the studio or our website.
Weddings
What is the breakdown of your package costs?
We provide simple package costs to provide some guidelines - but every client is treated individually. The overall cost is based on three simple elements:
- Time spent at the event: From start to finish whether starting at the brides house or the service - we charge a standard hourly rate of £50 per hour which not only covers the cost of the photographers time but also the insurance of the expensive equipment utilised during the day.
- Album Cost: We do have a sample supply of wedding albums but we prefer you to have the maximum level of choice when selecting your album. Check-out the internet or local outlets for your preferred style of album. We will then source the album and charge it at cost to yourself.
- Number of Prints: Obviously the style and type of album usually determines how many prints you can have. We will work together with yourself to design the layout of the album so that you can have total control over the end result.
Our pricing objective with weddings is to provide total transparency with all of the costs so that you know exactly what you are paying for at all times.
When do I have to pay for the wedding?
We request that 10% of the total balance is paid at the booking stage. This enables us to secure the date within the diary. We then request full payment of the outstanding balance to be paid no later than 30 days before the event itself.
What preparations do you take for the day itself?
At Harwood Studios we pride ourselves in providing you with total support throughout the wedding arrangements. We will contact the venues in question to organise the locations for the various shoots. Preliminary photography will be taken and shown to you well in advance of the event to establish the best locations for the various photography shoots throughout the day. Once confirmed, these locations will be sent to the best man to ensure that all involved will be aware of the itinerary well in advance. We will also attend any rehearsals that may have been organised so that the camera positions can be confirmed.
How many photographs will be taken during the day?
This depends on the duration of the booking. For a complete day including the preparations at the bride’s house through to the reception, we will take in excess of 500 photographs for your selection. Our primary objective will be to take the clients traditional itinerary of images - but we will also take many non-conventional shots which will try to capture the more natural emotions of the day. These images tend to be the most treasured photographs of the day itself.
How do we select the images for our album?
We will provide you with a dvd which will contain all of the images taken during the day. The images will be categorised into the various stages of the ceremony and also contain a unique reference number which is used when ordering your preferred prints. This dvd is then yours to keep. If you wish, we can provide further copies of this dvd to friends and family so that they can order their own customised wedding albums or prints. Once you have selected your images, we will arrange a time that is convenient to yourselves to come back into the studio to organise the layout of your album and the size of each print.
How long will it take to get our album?
Within a fortnight of the selection and layout process your wedding album will be available for collection. Any further re-prints for friends and family or further albums will be offered at a reduced rate including a 25% discount on print prices. Alternatively, you can purchase the hi-resolution images on dvd so that you can obtain your own prints at any other outlet without breaching our copyright regulations.
Video
What is your pricing structure for recording events?
In most ways, our pricing structure is similar to that of photographing events and is based on two main elements:
- Event Recording: An hourly rate of £50 per hour is charged against the recording of each event. The duration of the event is discussed and arranged at the booking stage.
- Post-Production: Editing and post-production is also charge at £50 per hour. The length and style of editing is arranged at the booking stage. Any minor deviations will be incorporated in the total price agreed at the booking stage of the event. Major changes in the post-production stage will result in further costs being added to the overall initial cost.
What formats can the event be recorded in?
We record each event using the latest HD (High Definition) hardware and software. Not all households presently possess the required setup to display the video in high definition format - so a master copy of the HD footage is stored at the studio whilst the footage is downgraded so that the video can be viewed on your equipment. Each production will be presented in either standard 4:3, 16:9 widescreen dvd or vhs format.
Can further copies of the dvd/vhs be purchased from the studio?
Further copies can be purchased from the studio at a much reduced rate. Single dvd’s including packaging can be purchased for £25 and double dvds at £35.
Is there a money back guarantee?
With all of our products and services there is a full non-conditional money back guarantee. Only the deposits are held to secure the dates but the remaining balance is available for refund in the unlikely event that you are not totally satisfied with your final product.
Can you restore or post-produce old video footage?
If you have old photographs or video footage, we can offer you a professional restoration service charged at £50 per hour. If you have holiday footage or a wedding video that needs editing and converting to dvd then Harwood Studios can offer you a professional service to enhance your memories and make sure that they will last forever.
Commercial
What are your rates for commercial Photography or Video?
We charge each project at a standard rate of £50 per hour which includes event photography and recording through to professional enhancements/design and post production. What sort of commercial projects have you undertaken?
We can provide many levels of commercial projects from simple photography and video for website enhancements, outlet art design to enhance your working environment, photography and video for commercial presentations, brochure and documentation design to assist with commercial marketing. We have also worked with many interior designers to bring unique commissioned art designs in line with their own style of product enhancement.
Can the images be purchased to avoid ongoing print costs?
As with all of our photographic projects, the images can be purchased in digital lossless format to enable you to use the images time and time again without breaching our studio copyright regulations.
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