TERMS: What you can expect when we work together

Photography is a business
Photography is a business, and like any business there are best practices and TERMS that help things run smoothly and avoid confusion - for you as a paying client, and for me as the photographer. My goal is always to make you glad you chose John Crane Photography and to treat you like you're the most important part of my day, because you are. That said, I've learned the hard way that unless you spell things out, people don't know or understand what you expect in return. So please consider this page me spelling things out. If you have further questions please don't hesitate to call directly.

Format
Normally I'll shoot your photographs digitally, unless requested otherwise. I use top quality DSLR cameras & lenses that produce superb-quality imagery up to about 16" x 24." If you want to print larger than this, you may be better off shooting with Medium Format/ film. If you desire your photographs shot with film, I am happy to do so. Cost structure changes in that processing and lab fees go up. Delays are possible in viewing your images when shot on film. Viewing your images via the web when your job is shot on film also takes longer and costs more because your film images need to be scanned in to make them viewable on the computer. I will instead offer to sit down with you with a proof book for us to look through together and we can choose and order your favorite shots this way.

Normal Business Hours
Normally I do not work on weekends. However, Saturdays are negotialbe - Sundays are not. I do not work on nationally recognized holidays or especially holiday weekends, so if your shoot happens just before a holiday, you can expect a delay in getting your images on-line, ready to view. Normal business hours are from 8 to 5 M-F.

Turn Around on your Photographs
After we shoot, every attempt is made to get your images processed and uploaded as quickly as possible. If your shoot happens just before a holiday, you can expect a delay in getting your images on-line, ready to view. Please see the processing section below for a more detailed description of what this involves.

Payment is expected at time of service
Check or cash only. I do not offer terms, I do not barter or trade, and I do not accept credit cards for services (but I do for prints-please see below).

No prints are shown until we receive payment for the time spent on your job
If an invoice is not prepared before hand, one will be sent within 24-hours of our session as confirmation of payment received.

Digital Files
No digital files will be provided. I view them the same as negatives, and no one ever gave away their negatives. This is non-negotiable.

Processing/Photoshop
The first round of processing of your photographs is done by me. I sort through your images and choose the ones I deem good enough to show. Displaying only the best images is the best way to present the highest quality presentation. It also saves you a tremendous amount of time not having to sift through multiples and redundant shots. Any sellable image is posted. During this processing I will take your RAW capture file (if shot digitally) and turn it into a photograph cropped pleasingly, with pleasing color and accurate exposure. From there, please see below in the cost section for additional Photoshop processing options.

The goal is: from these images to have you identify the handful of photographs you wish to order, and spend minimal additional time working on the reduced number of images, rather than spending lots of time on many more images just becasue they were shot - but you'll most likely never order.

Cost
Everyone likes to know how much something is going to cost before agreeing to it, so here's how I work it: I break cost into two categories: Time Spent (preparation and sitting fees - which I term objective costs) and Print Purchases (which I term subjective costs).

Time Spent
Time is the most valuable assett any of us have, and is therefore the most expensive. It can take a tremendous amount of time to put together a photo shoot to make sure that day goes just right for you. Subsequently this time costs money. We serve you as our clients and are paid accordingly. When we spend time at your request, this is objective cost. It is billed for.

Print costs
If you pay a sitting fee, print prices drop. If you don't, print prices go up. Your prints are posted for a period of 1 month after the shoot, during which time you can order as many as you like. After 1 month they are permanently removed.

One lab is fully automated and therefore requires very little of my time to manage. For this reason costs are somewhat lower. In most cases this is a perfectly acceptable product that most clients are extremely pleased with. Framing and matting options are available at additional cost as well, allowing delivery to your door of a final, framed, ready to hang photograph. Credit Cards are accepted. Quality is very high. Turn around once ordered is very fast. It's an excellent system.

A second lab has a less automated but higher-end approach to printing your photographs. Quality difference is noticeable in paper and finish options (canvas, linens, pebble textures, mounting on mattboard, etc.), and presentation is slightly better. This process requires more of my time to manage and help you through some of the decisions, therefore costs more. Credit cards are not accepted when using this lab. I pay for your prints and you pay me. Payment is required before the order is placed in personal check or cash. This product is for the more discrimiating client who is after a truly fine piece of art as the result of our time together.

Deposits to secure your date
A non-refundable deposit secures a shooting date. At that time, a session length is determined. If you book an entire day, you are billed for an entire day. If you book a half day, you are billed for a half day. This allows me to book multiple shoots on the same day if I know one shoot will only take an hour, for example. Rates are $150/hour.

Travel Costs
As part of the hourly fee spent with you I will travel within 50 miles of Fort Collins for no additional cost. Beyond that the client is billed by time or mile (but not both). Which travel billing rate depends on where the location is and what's involved in getting there.

Processing (Photoshop) Costs
After my initial processing, further processing (Photoshop, for example) fees are billed at $100/hour in 15-minute increments.

Shipping Costs
The cost of shipping your prints will be factored into the final print order prices. Normally this is a rather insifgnicant expense. However on larger, framed prints shipped greater distances these costs can be more substantial. If you have questions about shipping please ask during the ordering process.

Refunds
No refunds are offered on deposits if you cancel your shoot. If the shoot is rescheduled for weather reasons we will re-schedule at the earliest convenient time. The goal is to get your photograph taken.

What you own as a result of our shoot
You own the piece of paper that your photograph lives on and are free to display it or give it as a gift. You are not permitted to sell it. You do not own the image itself and you do not own the original files. They remain the photographer's intellectual property and are always treated with respect.

Workshops
I have discontinued workshops.