Questions couples ask us

Elena Kay Photography, LLC. It is the only company on your agreement, and every payment goes to it.

Sign the agreement in your client portal and pay the reservation fee. Most bookings pay 50% to reserve the date and 50% one day before the wedding. Your written payment schedule shows your exact amounts and dates.

Cash, or a credit or debit card through Stripe. We do not accept checks. A late payment carries a $200 fee, and final files are released once everything due has been paid.

Tipping your photographers, videographers, and content creator is customary, the same as your other wedding vendors. The suggested amount is 10 to 15% of your contract total. It is never required and never changes your service or delivery, and every dollar goes to the team who worked your day.

Ask to reschedule at least 90 days before the wedding, and your payments move to the new date if it is open. The reservation fee is nonrefundable if you cancel. Payments beyond it are refunded in full more than 180 days out, 50% refunded from 90 to 180 days out, and not refunded inside 90 days. If a storm, a government order, or another cause outside everyone's control stops the wedding, your payments become a credit toward a new date within 18 months.

Every couple signs the same agreement. A change needs a written amendment both sides sign, and any legal review you ask for is at your own cost. You can download a full copy of your signed agreement from your portal at any time.

Plan 1 to 2 hours for the bride getting ready, 1 hour for the groom when he gets ready separately, and 1 hour and 30 minutes for portraits, the wedding party, and family. Ceremony, travel, and reception time come on top of that.

Yes. Send us a written list of family and must have photos before the wedding, and ask one family member or your planner to gather people at the scheduled time. We cannot promise photos with anyone who is late, missing, or not on the list.

Our team carries a lot of equipment. At each location we need reserved or paid parking within one city block of the entrance where available, and a secure place to store gear we can reach all day. Confirm both in writing 14 days before the wedding. If parking is not arranged, parking, garage, and toll costs are added to your final balance.

You do. Parks, beaches, houses of worship, and private properties sometimes charge for photography or require a permit. You arrange and pay for those, plus any parking or admission at those places. We do not advance these payments.

Yes. Ask in writing at least 14 days before the wedding and we will send our certificate of insurance naming the venue or photo location as an additional insured.

For coverage over 4 hours, please plan a meal for each team member. We eat at a quiet point so nothing important is missed.

No. A wedding is a live event that happens once, and we will not pause or restage it. You and your venue choose where the ceremony faces and when it starts. If a late start puts the setting sun behind you, the glare and squinting are part of the day, and we work with the light we are given.

Weather and rain plans belong to you and your venue. We will suggest options, like moving portraits inside when it is cold, but the choice is yours, and if a suggestion is declined we cannot answer for the results. We stop outdoor work when conditions are unsafe, including lightning.

Plan for it. You choose the photo spots, so tell your wedding party and family ahead of time where photos will happen and what to wear. Sand and grass are hard in heels, and not every guest can walk to a beach or garden. We are not responsible when someone cannot reach a spot you chose, or for dirt or damage to dresses, suits, or shoes.

No. Everyone at the wedding appears in the coverage, including guests, children, vendors, and venue staff. We do not search for, blur, or remove people from the files.

We try every time, but venues have trash cans, bus tubs, exit signs, sconces, DJ lights, and trees in the background. We cannot promise a frame free of them, and removing objects in editing is not included unless it is in your package.

Final selection and editing happen after the wedding, so no one can know what was captured until your gallery arrives. We discuss the agreement and your files only with the two of you, and we review any concern once the full gallery is delivered.

No. Every clip is delivered raw, exactly as it was captured on the phone. We do not trim, color, or add music, captions, or transitions, and we do not make finished reels. You pick your favorites and add audio inside the app when you post.

You do. Send us your list of trends with reference links before the wedding, and gather the people at the time you choose. Our content creator films what you set up. We do not find trends or coach the dance.

No. The content creator uses a phone only, with no professional cameras, microphones, lights, or gimbals. Phones struggle in low light, at a distance, and in loud rooms, so image and audio quality are not guaranteed, and toasts or vows may be hard to hear.

No. We never log in to your accounts or ask for passwords. You choose what to post, and the music you add inside each app has to follow that app's rules.

No. Everything is delivered digitally by download link, never on a drive, disc, or memory card. We do not sell prints or albums. When you want them, we point you to independent print and album companies, and we may earn a referral commission when you order through our link.

2 years from each delivery. Download and back up everything before then. After that, files may be deleted. If our archive still has them, we can retrieve them for $500, with no guarantee they still exist.

After both your highlight film and your full edited film are delivered. Raw clips come as recorded, with no editing or audio repair.

We cannot control the room. The DJ, band, venue speakers, microphones supplied by others, wind, and crowd noise all shape what is recorded, and we are not responsible for audio lost to those conditions.