Q. How do we book Rising Lotus Photography and Films?
A. Your wedding photography and cinematography needs are deeply important to us, and we want the process to feel personal and effortless. To begin, you can reach out directly to our creative principal photographer at [email protected] or call 813‑416‑5302. It’s never too early to inquire—this ensures your date is still available.
We start with an initial consultation to talk through your vision for your wedding day. We can meet for coffee, visit your home, or connect over Zoom—whatever feels most comfortable for you. During this conversation, we’ll explore your options, review our collections, or design a fully customized collection from our à la carte offerings.
Once you’re ready to move forward, we’ll send an electronic contract for your review and signature. If you’d like any adjustments before signing, simply let us know and we’ll revise it to reflect your needs.
To secure your date, a retainer/initial payment is required at the time of booking. This payment reserves your wedding date on our calendar, covers the initial work and preparation for your collection, and offsets the income lost if the date is canceled. Because of this, the retainer is non‑refundable if you cancel. However, if your wedding date must shift due to circumstances such as a hurricane or a COVID‑related shutdown, we will work with you and your venue to transfer your entire contract—including the retainer—to your new date.
Q. When is the best time of day to schedule a engagement or style wedding portrait session?
A. The best lighting is during the "golden hour" which is one hour before sunset. However, as professionals we can beautifully photograph you at any time - day or night. During our complimentary consultation we will make recommendations on scheduling based on several factors such as light, time restraints, location and personal preference.
Q. How do we pick a location?
A. We recommend choosing a location that is special to you or has some meaning. However, there are so many beautiful places we can choose to best represent the style and artistic direction you prefer. We are willing to travel; however, travel expenses will be added to your collection if travel is over 50 miles to compensate for travel expenses and our time dedicated to travel.
Q. How can I make a payment?
A. We take cash or check plus electronic payments such a Venmo, Zelle or Cashap. If you would like to pay by credit card we can create a Paypal invoice for you. We customize wedding payment installments based on what works best for you. Typically we require a 30% deposit/initial payment/retainer, 40% three months prior and the remaining 30% one month prior to the wedding.
Q. When will I receive my images and how?
A. You will receive all of your images edited, retouched and professionally mastered. For every hour of photography, we spend about 16 hours post-processing to get your wedding photograph collection ready for you. We plan to have your image proofs engagement, and style wedding portrait sessions within 90 days and wedding proofs within 120 days. During the wedding season we will try our hardest to have your images within this time-frame. Depending on the collection you choose, photographs will be sent to you via online client access image gallery and/or a custom USB drive. Your online client-access image gallery gives you the opportunity to share with family and friends. The gallery will be available for one year after your wedding date prior to archival.
Q. When you edit what do you "change" about the image? Can you make me look skinny?
As professional photographers we believe in the natural beauty of the moment and of you. Our skilled and detailed editing is to enhance the natural beauty and provide artistry to the image to convey emotion. We even apply a beauty filter on our footage to help enhance your natural glow. We want you to look your BEST while maintaining an authentic image. We shoot in RAW so every images goes through an editing process for sharpness, contrast, color correction, saturation and artistic affects. When we are photographing we are paying close attention to you and the scenery with the end image in mind. There are certain angles and positions to photograph which are most flattering. However, there is no skinny lens or skinny filter. You are naturally beautiful. We believe photography is capturing what is happening in the moment and our editing process is used creatively and artistically to depict that beauty. All editing and photographic processing is final upon image delivery. Additional photoshop editing is subject to additional fees of $15 per image due to the amount of time it takes to edit, render and professional master each image.
Q. What is your file safety and protection process?
A. Rising Lotus Photography & Films is committed to image file protection to ensure your precious and cherished moments are delivered to you via an Online Gallery and on a customized USB of high resolution images. RAW files from your special day are kept in a fireproof safe until your edited photography collection is delivered to you. Throughout the entire editing process your images are backed up three times. We subscribe to an online file redundancy system as well to ensure your file safety. Once you receive your images we recommend you download them to your hard-drive, a cloud and make an additional copy for safe keeping. Your password protected Online Gallery is available for one year before being archived.
Q. Can I order prints or products?
A. Within your online gallery you have the ability to order beautiful professional print products ranging from custom playbooks, hard drives, prints, canvases, standout boxes, frames art pieces, prints on metal, prints on glass, various cards and much more. There are over 5,000 different print options to best display your photographs. In addition, we offer custom couture art pieces such as dimensional wall art and customs prints on wood. We recommend ordering prints from our website or placing a custom order. The quality of your photographs will be amazing and ensured. You have invested with Rising Lotus to produce high quality images our products are of the best quality.
Q. Do you design Albums or Books?
A. We offer customized couture albums that are specially designed for you to reflect your special day. We even offer custom playbooks to view your wedding films! The albums are very customizable from size, covers, thickness, number of pages and layout. We will ask you a series of questions regarding your preferences and provides you with examples. Typically, we recommend you choosing 20 of your favorite photographs and we will tell the story of your day using those images and others. Prior to print you will be able to proof the album and make changes. These albums are gorgeous and made with the highest quality of materials.
In addition, we offer a "Design It Yourself" option for books on our website. We have a series of templates which you can insert the images you desire. This is a less expensive option for books, however, the quality is still amazing.
Gallery of Custom Couture Albums
Q. Do I get a print release and can I post photographs on social media?
A. We provide personal print release for you to use on all your images. We believe photographs should be fully enjoyed and shared. Please feel free to share on social media sites, tagging Rising Lotus Photography & Films for photo credit. If you remember, feel free to mention Rising Lotus Photograph to your friends and family. We ask that if you are submitted images for publication in a blog or magazine please request written permission from Rising Lotus Photography. We maintain full rights of the images and it is unlawful to sell photographs.
Q. What is my wedding photography and cinematography investment?
A. We offer several different Photography Investment guides featuring our most popular photography collections and a la carte menu of services and products. We realize every wedding is different and can customize to help meet your desires while being mindful of your budget. Our collections start at $3,600 for wedding photography and $2,900 for wedding cinematography. The average couple invests between $5,000 to $8,000. However, we offer customized collections to fit your budget and various discounts. We always recommend scheduling an consultation to discuss the unique details of your wedding day so we can best help you select a collection that fits your needs, desires and budget.
