What It's Like to Work With Us

This is not a contract. It is not a checklist.

It is what I would want to know if I were in your position — standing at the beginning of one of the most significant days of your life, trusting a photographer and filmmaker to be present for all of it.

Here is exactly what that looks like.

We Arrive as People First

We typically arrive one hour before things begin — whether that is at your hotel suite, at home during getting ready, or at the venue itself. The first thing we do when we walk in is not set up equipment. We check in with you.

How are you feeling? Have you eaten? Have you had something to drink?

You would be surprised how often the answer is no. Adrenaline has a way of pushing everything else aside, and a wedding day is unlike any other day — so full, so electric, that basic things like sitting down and having a glass of water simply slip away. We make sure that does not happen.

We come in as people before we come in as photographers. We read the room, feel the energy, and make sure you are genuinely taken care of before anything else begins. The camera comes second. You come first.

The First Look — Why We Recommend It

A first look is the moment before the ceremony when the two of you see each other for the first time that day — privately, just the two of you, before the world joins in.

We are strong advocates for the first look, and here is why: it gives us control.

We position the groom at a location we have already scouted — the light is right, the background is right, the moment is set. When the bride walks in, everything is ready. We capture the reaction, the embrace, the first words. And then we stay. We typically extend this into a full couple shoot of twenty to thirty minutes, which means that by the time the ceremony begins, we already have some of the most extraordinary images of the day in the camera.

It also gives you something rare on a wedding day: a private moment together, before everything becomes shared.

After the Ceremony — Why Timing Matters

If you choose not to do a first look, the couple shoot happens after the ceremony — typically around forty minutes for photography only, or sixty minutes if we are also filming.

Here is something most couples do not know, and something I always make sure to plan for: we do the couple shoot before the congratulations begin.

The reason is simple. After the ceremony, right after you have said your vows, you are still fresh. Your hair is perfect. His suit is clean. You are both in a state of pure emotion — open, unguarded, completely present. That is when the best images happen.

The moment congratulations begin, everyone hugs you. Makeup transfers onto jackets. Hair gets pressed out of shape. And more than that — you shift into a social mode, greeting and thanking, moving from person to person. The intimacy of the ceremony starts to fade.

We protect that window. We use it. And then we send you into your celebration.

The Couple Shoot — You Will Not Have Time to Be Nervous

I hear this often: we are not good in front of a camera.

Here is the truth: we do not give you time to be nervous.

We create an atmosphere where you feel completely at ease. We give you directions you can follow naturally, and in those milliseconds between one movement and the next — that is where the images happen. Not posed. Not stiff. Real.

The images that have defined LEE by LEE KRAMER — emotional, cinematic, authentically in-the-moment — they do not come from couples who are good at posing. They come from couples who felt safe enough to forget the camera was there.

That is what we build. Every time.

If the weather and light cooperate, we also stay for the golden hour — that window in the late afternoon when the sun drops low and everything turns warm and soft. When it works, it is extraordinary.

A Moment Worth Mentioning — The Father of the Bride

One thing I always bring up with couples that they had not planned for: the first look does not have to be only between the two of you.

A quiet moment between a bride and her father — before the ceremony, before the doors open, before the day belongs to everyone — is one of the most emotionally significant things I have ever photographed. The same is true for a mother and her son, or any parent and child on this day.

These are the images that families return to for decades. Not because they were planned, but because someone thought to create the space for them.

I always suggest it. I have never had a family regret it.

During the Ceremony

During the ceremony, we are invisible. You will not hear us. You will not see us positioning ourselves or adjusting equipment. We move quietly, we anticipate, and we are always exactly where we need to be.

The moment between a father and his daughter at the door. The groom's expression when he first sees you walking towards him. The pause before the vows. These are the frames that define a wedding day — and they happen in seconds, without warning, without repetition.

We have been doing this long enough to know where to be before the moment arrives.

The End of the Day

We stay until the celebration is complete — through the wedding cake, through the first dance, and into the beginning of the party. Once the evening is in full swing and we have everything we need, we typically stay an additional twenty minutes to capture the energy of the room before we leave.

You will know in advance exactly when we finish. There are no surprises.

If you are reading this before your wedding day — welcome. This is what working together looks like. This is the care, the structure, and the intention we bring to every single celebration.

If you are reading this because you are considering booking us — we would love to meet you. Come with questions. We have answers.