Frequently Asked
Questions

Jump to questions about:

General wedding, Our Style, business, for photographers

Whether you’re at the beginning of planning your wedding or just curious, this is the place for answers to all your wedding photography questions.

Coverage + Travel

Questions related to your wedding day, engagement sessions, travel, what’s included, products & delivery, and much more.

I’m based in central Iowa between Des Moines & Iowa City, with a studio in my hometown of Grinnell. While the majority of the weddings I photograph are within about 2 hours of my studio, I’ve photographed weddings across the midwest and internationally and would LOVE to travel for yours!

The majority of our couples choose to have two photographers at their wedding (myself, and a second shooter). We do have wedding photography package that includes one photographer if that’s an option you would prefer.

Our most popular collection includes 10 hours of wedding coverage on your wedding day. Our second most popular is a multi-day option, which is wonderful for destination weddings or couples who would love photo coverage of their welcome dinner or other festivities.

Yes, absolutely! We love photographing our couples prior to their wedding as an additional special experience for you, but it’s also a wonderful opportunity to break the ice.

The vast majority of local weddings do not incur travel fees. If it’s within an hour drive from my studio, there are no charges for travel. Beyond the first hour, we do charge for travel. Weddings in Des Moines, Ames, Pella, and most of Iowa City do not incur any travel fees. Weddings beyond 2 hours require accommodations as well. We LOVE travel and would be happy to give you a quote for your wedding!

We require a retainer to book your date, and then 50% is due 6 months out, and the final balance is due 30 days prior to your date. We accept credit cards, bank transfers, and check.

Wedding images are delivered within 6-8 weeks and engagement session images are delivered within 2-3 weeks. All images are delivered using an online gallery where you can access, download, print, and share your images.

We typically deliver between 75-100 images per hour of coverage, though it is often higher. However, this really depends on the size and complexity of your day.

Yes, please print your photos! We offer options to print directly through us so that your final products are delivered straight to you. You can also print on your own, though we cannot guarantee quality & color when clients choose to print using 3rd party

All of our couples receive a personal print release, which is sufficient for 99.9% of situations. Per US copyright law, the original creator retains the original copyright. If you are interested in a commercial license, please let us know.

We include a wedding book or album for each couple we work with. They are beautiful heirlooms that you will adore! You can learn more about albums here.

You’re welcome to share online as you please as long as it is legal. Many of our couples choose to share images online using social media, while others keep things private. If you choose to share online, we always appreciate if you can tag or credit us!

Style + Approach

Answers to your questions about how I approach your day as a photographer & my style/approach as an artist.

My style is often described as timeless, true to color, crisp, and bright. Nostalgic, romantic, and sophisticated are other descriptions of our style. But truly, our style is inspired by our couples and their day. We desire for our photos to be an accurate representation of the emotions, feelings, moments, and colors of your day. No crazy filters or awkward posing prompts that aren’t genuine, just a natural and relaxed environment for beautiful photographs that allow the realness of your day to shine through.

Of course. These legacy photos of your family are often very important to our couples and their families. We will of course take these photos if they are a priority for you. We will also give you a recommended list (which you can customize) and make the process as smooth as possible on your wedding day.

Classic black and white photos have that timeless appeal to them, so yes, I share them quite a bit because I love them. I do not guarantee a specific number of black and white photos in each gallery, it’s purely an artistic decision when I decide to either photograph on black and white film or edit black and white. In general, most weddings it is not more than 50-100 photos in black and white, but it truly does vary.

We hear this a lot from couples, they love how our photos have a balance of candid, posed, and editorial, and yet the couples feel natural and alive in each of those images, not overly staged or forced. It’s a delicate balance, and something that comes with trusting me as your photographer.

My approach to working with a couple is something I call art-directed posing, which basically means as the photographer, I will direct you more generally (where/how I’d like you to stand or move) but the expressions and interactions are going to be very personal to you as a couple and your personalities. This ensures that you have both aesthetically and artistically pleasing photos (good light, composition, pleasing locations) but also ones that are distinctly personal to YOU and your relationship and your day. Ultimately, the magic comes from the two of you and your connection and me being able to highlight that and bring it to the forefront of each photograph.

This results in a distinct blend of posed photographs that don’t feel posed, beautiful smile-at-the-camera photos (we all need some of them, promise!) and 100% completely candid documentary photos as well. It’s a good mix, and you’ll see all of them represented in your wedding gallery.

And one final note: more than half the “candid” photos you see on Pinterest and Instagram aren’t candid at all, they are posed or art directed just like I’ve explained.

First, let me just put you at ease that our website is full of photos of REAL couples who have said this very same thing. I also happen to be married to someone who has said this on multiple occasions. So you are not alone, I promise!

My goal is to help you feel 100% at ease in front of the camera, so yes, I’ll help you out with posing! I think the worst experience is having someone expect you to be good at something you’ve never done before, and if you’ve never had your photograph taken as a couple, that can be an incredibly intimidating experience. I will guide you during your engagement session and wedding day, giving you verbal instructions as well as demonstrations when necessary.

Many people go into their engagement session nervous or stressed, worried they won’t look “good” or it won’t be fun, which I completely understand. After literally every session, every couple comments how they had a wonderful time, it wasn’t difficult, and they actually had fun!

We send each of our couples instructions and a sample family photo list before their wedding for them to fill out. Occasionally we have couples who do something similar with their wedding party, but it’s rare. Prior to your wedding, we will ask you questions about priorities for us as your wedding photographer and any specific details or VIPS you want to make sure we highlight in our coverage. Beyond that, the long shot lists you can find online aren’t necessary for us.

Business

Occasionally I get questions about insurance or other similar questions. You’ll find those answers here

Absolutely.

Should your venue require a certificate of insurance, we are more than happy to supply this. We already have a certificate on file with most venues in the area that require it, however if we don’t, please let us know at least 2 months prior so that we can make sure the venue receives it in time.

My first wedding was in 2007, and I have photographed more than 250 weddings over the years.

In the nearly 16 years I have been a wedding photographer, I have NEVER missed a wedding, and I don’t plan on it. However, should this happen, I have a wonderful network of experienced photographers that I have established over the years that I would draw from to fill in for me.

We do not currently offer videography, however we would be happy to recommend several talented cinematographers to you.

Recently, we have begun offering content creation in addition to our wedding photography services. Please reach out for more info! We highly HIGHLY recommend having either your photo or video team take care of this so as to reduce the too-many-cooks-in-a-kitchen feel to your day.

wedding photography education

For Photographers

Common questions I receive from other photographers can be found here.

For a full list of my equipment and gear, please visit here.

Yes I do! I take on limited 1-on-1 coaching each year, and I also offer group programs as well. You can find more info here.

Yes! I’ve held several workshops in the past and plan to in the future. Get on my email list for details!

My website is a custom built website. I use WordPress KadenceWP theme and it is built using StyleCloud

I’m working on a complete list of tools and resources – check back again soon!

Our second shooter team is made up of experienced photographers who we have vetted and trained. If you are interested in being a non-shooting assistant at a wedding, please reach out to me via email.

Heights Rooftop Wedding Photographer Iowa City

They are more than photographers. They genuinely care for you and will make your day perfect!

dua & scott
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Little Lights on the Lane wedding reception in West Branch Iowa
Bride gets ready with her mom at Hotel Fort Des Moines

inquire

reach out

We take on a limited number of weddings in Des Moines and Iowa each year to ensure that we have the capacity to fully invest in and care for each of our couples. To reserve your date, please inquire!

inquire
World food prize hall of laureates wedding photographer
Little Lights on the Lane wedding photographer in Iowa City
Chicago engagement session with the L train

Timeless & Chic

Jennifer Weinman Photography is a Des Moines Iowa Wedding Photographer who values telling your wedding story and creating editorial, timeless, emotional, authentic imagery that will stand the test of time. We photograph weddings, engagements and Indian Weddings in Des Moines, Iowa as well as Iowa City, Ames, Pella, Quad Cities, Davenport, Cedar Rapids, Chicago, Minneapolis & the Twin Cities and across the midwest. She has also photographed destination weddings in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, and Denmark.