INFO

Please read the questions and answers section below as well as the “requirements of each shoot” at the end of the Q&A.

You are responsible for all this information prior to shooting.

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS (Q & A)

How is BD Portraits unique? BD Portraits is as unique as it’s subjects, you! Our goal is to make every shoot look as though it was shot for a high-end magazine, for an ad campaign, and even more important – shot just for YOU. We work with our clients on an individual basis with an end result and goal of making you 110% satisfied with your shoot experience.

Where are you located? Our studio is located at 4150 Cedar Avenue, in Minneapolis (MAP BELOW)

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We are about 1 mile away from beautiful Lake Nakomis, and 4-5 blocks from lake Hiawatha. Most of the images you see on our website are shot in or around our studio space. Other locations are shot just about anywhere. We can offer you recommendations, depending on what you’re looking to achieve.

Parking: We recommend parking in front of our studio, on Cedar Avenue. There are no  parking restriction.

Facebook and your photos:  PLEASE…. Please “Like” our studio on Facebook, and “check-in” prior to your shoot! A sneak peek of the photographers favorites from your shoot will first be seen here! You can tag yourself in these photos and get your friends and family excited!

Who is the photographer? What makes him a professional? Please see the ABOUT section in the main menu.

Do you require/schedule a consultation before a shoot? We do NOT require this, and most commonly don’t even recommend it. The way we shoot is simple, you come, we laugh, and we capture photos of you at your very best. Most all the questions can be answered here through this “Q&A.”

What is your specialty? What / Where do you shoot? BD Portraits specializes in professional “high-end” studio portraits. We pride ourselves in being the absolute best at uniquly BOLD portraits. We take the concept of studio lighting control seriously, it’s our lighting that separates us from EVERYONE else… You won’t find another photographer able to match our style, plain and simple. We also know how to take this lighting concept on location as well, offering professionally lit location shoots to individuals wanting something even more unique for a photo session.

What do you cost?  Prices vary… as do all our shoots. We just opened the doors to our brand new studio in Minneapolis, Minnesota – With that we’re offering great specials, and HUGE deals! There couldn’t be a better time, to get the most amazing photos of you and your loved ones, and at a price that everyone CAN afford!

Let us know what type of shoot you are looking for. How many people, how many looks, and when and where you’re looking to shoot. We promise to reply promptly with your individual price quote.

Do you do location shooting? Does this cost more?  We do offer location shoots. There is an additional fee for location shooting, paying for the additional time for travel, equipment transportation, setup, strike down, and any assistance needed for your shoot. It takes a lot more time and skill to be able to make photos look great in a non-controlled setting. We do this better than anyone else, and this is why we offer it to you as an option.

What is a look? A look is usually an outfit change or a location/environment change. For group portrait sessions, a look is a set of photos of a each individual (one look per person) and/or a group(s).

How many looks do I need? What is the minimum amount of of looks you offer? At BD Portraits, our goal is to offer you variety in every shoot… for this reason, our “lowest price” starts at 2 looks… if you require or request that we strictly do “one look”… this will just mean more photos taken of that one look, more background choices, etc. Additional looks give you more images and more variety to order from.  Our shoots on average range from 2-5 looks.

Can I shoot just ONE look? No. Our two look session is our minumum price. If you want one look you will recieve additional time, and shots, as if it were a two look shoot.

Can I make quick changes and use them as one look? Sure! We are here to make you happy and get you what you want. Changing of a t-shirt or top is fine during one look. This way you can have more variety. However, this can also mean less pictures taken of those individual pairings and less choices for you when picking your photos later on. Adding subjects, people, or friends to a look is NOT allowed, this strictly counts as an additional look. It’s to your benefit to purchase more looks so that we both have more time to concentrate on getting you what you need from each look.

How many photos do you take in a shoot? We usually shoot about 20-30 photos per look. We guarantee around 5-15 images, per look, to order from. Our goal at BD Portraits is to get THE BEST photos, not shoot thousands of images that you won’t like or be proud to use. We are your professional, so we know how to do this quickly and efficiently. We also make it easy for you when ordering, by putting our favorites from the shoot FIRST in your private link, so you have a professional opinion to start your decision making.

When do you shoot? We usually schedule shoots in the morning and then in the early afternoon. We try not to schedule more than two shoots a day, for we are here to make this your special day, taking the time needed to get you the absolute best portraits!

Do you offer professional hair and makeup services? Hair and make-up are not included in your shoot price, and it is your responsibility to bring the desired hair and makeup (or talent to do so) to your shoot.

Do you allow time for getting ready if we need it? Your shoot is YOUR time, you can use it however you’d like; however, your sitting strictly starts and ends at the time we agree on. You will NOT get extra time if you come late. We reccomend coming ready to shoot in your first look. If you know you will need more time before or after your shoot just talk to our photographer when you schedule. Our goal is to get you what you need, restrictions are only there to keep us moving and make sure we are both organized and ready for your shoot prior to the start time.

What should I wear? Wardrobe defines YOU in your photos. Other than being comfortable in front of the camera, it is the next most important aspect. Treat this day as though you’re going to your dream job interview, look your best, and DRESS THE PART. Purchase new clothes. If you’re on a budget return them after… we don’t mind working around small tags on clothing.

Additional recommendations of clothing:

• Bring variety to choose from. 1-2 options for each look.

• Bring accessories that work with all your clothes. Often these accessories can also become props, and many times clients like these the best!

• Speaking of props, BRING THEM… ANYTHING that says who you are, or want to be in the portraits.

• Have everything ironed and organize on hangers in groupings of outfitslooks. We will take time to do this prior to your shoot if you don’t it prior, save us the time!

Don’t wear anything distracting. No patterns, large logos, bright colored clothes, stripes, dots, etc. We are looking to make the ultimate connection with you and the camera, make sure your clothes aren’t asking for people to look elsewhere. Earth tones and subtle colors, sometimes bold colors, are best. Take your clothing choices seriously. BD Portraits will go off what you bring to the shoot for locations, and backgrounds.

What if I have a pimple? Welcome to the “E.D.C. Club” (EVERYONE DOES CLUB)… Don’t worry about it! It’s a click of a mouse to get rid of it, and no one will ever know. This is the reality of digital photography today. It’s NOT a problem, and is absolutely not an acceptable reason to cancel a shoot.

With that said, makeup goes an extremely long way (yes, even for the high school boys)… we aren’t talking lipstick and eyeshadow here, just something to cover up anything you don’t want to show off in your photos. If you have a friend who does makeup and/or hair, bring them with. For women we cannot recommend enough that you have someone you trust with your hair and makeup. It gets rid of all the fuss for it that day, so you can concentrate on just being YOU for your shoot.

What other ways can I look my best for my photos? There’s no secret to it, getting your best photos really comes down to how comfortable you are with yourself while being photographed. There are hundreds of “big time celebrities” who aren’t supermodels, yet we see photos of them and think they look amazing! It’s because they have the confidence we all want to have, or at least they know how to ACT LIKE IT in front of a camera.

How well you connect with the camera, is 100% how comfortable and confident you are with yourself, at least for while your being photographed. BD Portraits, knows this is mostly our responsibility during your shoot. It’s what we are great at. Just come EXCITED, and we will take care of the rest.

Suggestions:

• Get lots of rest the day before and day of your photo shoot.

• Drink as much water as your stomach allows the day before your shoot… this does wonders for your skin and energy the next day!

• Bring a friend who can easily make you laugh. (BUT someone you will NOT hold back with when we are asking you to be silly, be happy, be sad.)

• Get a haircut before your shoot.

• Buy new clothes (as mentioned in “what should I wear”).

Have more questions? Want more answers? Please call 952.495.4555 or email us at info@bdportraits.com to book a session.

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MORE IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT BD PORTRAITS, YOUR PHOTOSHOOT, AND YOUR IMAGES

*** You are responsible to read and understand all the information below, prior to your shoot with BD Portraits.

These regulations are required and were created to have your portrait experience run smoothly.

• We proudly offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee of our product. We will work with you until your happy.

• MODEL RELEASE

A signed model release is required for every shoot, no exceptions. A parent or guardian must sign for anyone under 18. Our photographer signs this form at the end of your shoot as well… it is a document of your rights to the images as much as ours. Save time by printing, reading, and signing it before your shoot by clicking here!

• PAYMENT

Payment of your sitting fee is required by the end of your shoot. Full payment is required for orders prior to printing. Acceptable forms of payments are cash, check, paypal, or credit cards. Checks will need to be OK’d prior to printing, and may require more time as well. (When you pay with credit card, it is through paypal… YOU DO NOT NEED A PAYPAL ACCOUNT to do this. (There is an option below the login to pay with a credit card).

• ORDERING

You are required to order your photos/files within TEN DAYS of them being uploaded to our gallery. Our system automatically allots for this time. After TEN DAYS your photos are erased form our online gallery automatically, and a you may be subject to additional fees to reload them on our system. Our goal is to get you your photos fast.

• PRINT & IMAGE RIGHTS

Photographs produced by BD Portraits are protected by the United States Copyright Act, all rights are reserved to BD Portraits and our photographer Brent Dundore. Upon complete payment of the fees due, and when you purchase FILES (not prints) through BD Portraits you are granted limited rights as follows: a) the photographs may be printed for personal use; b) photographs may be printed and gifted to friends and relatives; c) the photographs may be used for self promotion; d) the photographs may be used on personal web sites or on social networking outlets, and/or d) the photographs may be printed or used in a portfolio setting.

You must obtain written permission from and offer compensation to BD Portraits for any other uses of the photographs.

You agree that you will not make photographic prints available for sale to individuals, groups, or third parties in any way, including when you purchase files.

In partial compensation for the services BD Portraits renders, you agree to assign us the irrevocable and unrestricted right to use and publish your photographs for editorial purposes, self promotion, and photographic competitions, as well as our blog, facebook and other website usage. BD Portraits agrees that these photographs will not, in any way, be used for the purpose of intentional ridicule, scandal, reproach, or indignity.

• ONLINE ORDERING & IMAGES TO ORDER FROM

A link to a private gallery of your photos will be send to you within 5 business days after your shoot.

Any artistic and photographic interpretations BD Portraits makes related to your photography will be deemed acceptable and correct. The images we provide you with will be edited at our discretion and therefore may not include all of the images we captured during your session or project. BD Portraits reserves the right to edit and release only those photographs that meet the company artistic standards.

You will be responsible for the safekeeping of all files and prints once they have been delivered. Additional sending of files after 14 days of sending, may be subject to additional fees.

• BE ON TIME!

In cases where you may be late for your appointment, it’s once again important to remember that the session will commence automatically at the agreed upon date and time, even if you are not present. The shoot must also end at the agreed time. In no circumstances will traffic, or any other reason other than an emergency, be accepted to extend your shoot time or reschedule. No refunds are available, you can only reschedule a shoot over 48 hours in advance, and a $25 reschedule fee will apply.