Capturing Priceless Moments & Memories

Danielle Brown Photography is based in the Atlanta-metro area as one of the best wedding photographers in Atlanta, winning Best of the Knot and Couples’ Choice annually since 2020. Our studio is located in Marietta. Danielle often meets clients and provides studio portrait sessions there. 

Yes, we can provide a Certificate of Insurance if needed. Please note, a Certificate of Insurance is often required to be issued specifically to the venue for your individual event. Please notify Danielle if needed and any specific information to satisfy your Atlanta wedding venue’s request. Danielle Brown Photography carries a $1 million policy which typically satisfies most wedding or event venues’ requirements.

YES! We would love for you to see reviews left by previous clients. Feel free to leave a review after you’ve had a great experience working with us. Please check out our favorite reviews here. (LINK to REVIEW PAGE) And just because we are firm believers in being super upfront/honest, all of our reviews are referenced where they came from and you’re welcome to check over to the original source at Google, The Knot, Wedding Wire, Thumbtack and Facebook, just to name a few sources.

Honestly, at this point we’ve lost track a bit, I had to check. We photographed 200+ weddings plus portrait sessions and non-wedding events in the last 5+ years.

Yes, from time to time, we do offer date-based promotions or exclusive offers to couples who find us on a specific directory/referral source. Usually, we mention that on our initial contact with you, but if you have a budget you’d like to stay within, please let us know. If working with Danielle is a bit over your anticipated budget, working with one of our associate team members may be a good fit and will save you $200-300.

We also offer a public servant discount, active/retired military, fire/police/EMT and nurses/teachers of 10% off. This discount would not be able to be combined with other discounts or promotions offered.

Generally, we can work with most budgets that are close to our rates.

We also ask for a 25% deposit with your balance being paid within 30 days of your wedding rather than the full contract amount in full upon signing.

We take all of our wedding, event and portrait sessions on a first-come, first-served basis. If you want to work with a specific team member, Danielle or an associate lead, we highly recommend reserving your time with us as soon as possible to avoid someone else grabbing your date!

We do not accept wedding bookings farther out than 24 months.

While we never want to miss a wedding, unfortunately in the days of our post-COVID world, sometimes it’s best for Danielle or your assigned associate to be replaced due to extreme illness. From 2009-2019, Danielle had never missed an assignment, including spraining her ankle at the beginning of a wedding day. Click here to see the wedding I shot on a “bad wheel”.

Due to COVID-19, Danielle personally had to send a substitute photographer for two weddings, one in 2020 and one in 2021, both who successfully stepped in and photographed the respective couples’ wedding. During 2021, Danielle personally replaced one of the associate leads due to a COVID contact leading up to an assigned wedding. We do not take sending a substitute photographer lightly and do so with the highest sensitivity and care for our couples’ (and guests) wellbeing and overall health and safety.

Besides COVID, you would also be supplied a replacement photographer in the event of: temporary inability to perform photographic duties (flu, major broken limb(s)) and/or hospitalization or death. Our metric for sending a replacement is, (A) could the photographer get someone else sick if they attend/perform duties and (B) are they well enough to perform duties to the studio standard? If either situation applies, a replacement will be sent.

We accept cash, check or credit card; credit cards accepted, Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover Card. We also can accept electronic checks in the form of ACH transfer.

No. While we do pay a fee to our financial service company, we do not pass that fee on to our clients as an additional charge.

Sadly, no. As we do not charge a fee to our eCheck and credit card clients, we do not provide a discount if you want to pay cash.

We provide three options for paying your balance:

1. Your balance (75%) is paid in full 30 days prior to your event.
2. Specific amounts on specific dates.
3. A monthly payment. We would divide your total into equal payments depending on how much time is available between providing your deposit and your event date.
   Example: our couple reserves their date in June, with a January wedding date. Their balance would be due in December. We invoiced monthly, 6 equal payments. 

Please note: to streamline our record/bookkeeping process, payments are billed monthly (or less frequently), and $200 or more.

If none of the above options are your preference, please speak to Danielle about what we can do for you or answer any questions regarding studio policies.

Sure, you’re welcome to do that if you wish.

We’re not selling you a used car; we refuse to do a high-pressure sales experience. If we’re a good fit for you, you’ll know it. We provide our couples a 72-hour/3+ day window to review your agreement. As a rule, we’ll consider your date saved during this “soft hold” while you review your agreement and provide your deposit. 

Please note: while you are reviewing your agreement, we will notify you if we receive an inquiry for the same date you are considering.

Absolutely! Depending on your upgrade we may need more or less notice to accommodate your request.

• Adding time: if you’d like to add additional hours you can decide that any time, including just a few minutes before we’re scheduled to leave. If you’re adding time and asking us to start earlier, please provide at least 48-72 hours (2-3 days) notice so we can plan to arrive for the new start time. We’ll just send you an invoice for the additional time added. Unless otherwise noted, additional hours are $200 per hour for a 1 or 2 person photography team.
• Adding additional team members: Your original package may be a one or two photographer team (and is noted as such on your agreement) and you would like to add an additional photographer… no problem! We can upgrade your team to add additional personnel, Dani will offer suggestions/advice if additional team members are needed past two photographers and/or how long multiple photographers are needed for.
• Upgrading your package from one to another: we’re always happy to upgrade your package from either the Romance package to Love/Eternity. We would simply calculate the difference in price and a package modification agreement will be required to contractually agree to any new features/pricing.
• Adding product(s) to your package (album, prints, etc.): depending on your product you’d like to purchase, it may be a better value to upgrade your package rather than add on an a la carte item or items. If purchasing a specific product before or after the wedding, promotional pricing may be available, please feel free to ask.

Please note: we do not allow for downgrading your package to a lesser package.

YES! We love referring other vendors we have worked with, some for 5-10 years, who do a great job for our couples. Please check out the list of DJs, caterers, planners, and other wedding professionals we refer (because they’re AWESOME!) on the regular.

While you don’t have to work with our video team, the benefit of working with our team of videographers is that we have a long-standing relationship with them. We know how they do, and they know how we do. Regardless of our video team or someone we haven’t worked with before, we’re your wedding team and are there to create the best result for you.

Danielle Brown Photography is predominantly a Nikon studio, with an emphasis on top quality gear for top quality results. We use full-frame bodies (the back part of the camera) and professional-level lenses. Our associates are not required to use Nikon. Associates submit a gear list that must pass quality requirements.

Are you a photographer? Thinking of picking up a gig or two associate shooting for us? Click here.

We won’t bore you with a complete checklist of gear we take on the wedding day, but let’s just say, our backup gear has backup gear. It’s not uncommon for our team to have a minimum of two extra cameras, plus backup lenses, backup flashes, batteries, memory cards, etc. Having a catastrophic gear failure on your wedding day is not an option.

Yes, we’re always open to feedback from our couples. If you have some highly specific shots in mind, we’re happy to see examples of what you’re looking for. While we don’t need a shot list of the basics, if you’re seeking a very specific grouping/pose/etc it’s easiest for our couples to communicate their desired specialty shots in a visual way. 

We recommend:

• Emailing (or sharing via Google Drive) a document/texting screenshots of what you’re looking for
• Tagging us on Instagram/other social channel & giving us a heads up “I tagged you on a shot I LOVE and want to do this” via text/email
• Create a Pinterest board and share it with us

We are happy to provide our couples with a shot list of typical/traditional images we look for on your wedding day. 

We aim for moments, and emotions, capturing the day as it happens. From an editing style, our normal look/feel or vibe is colors that are slightly amplified, but still relatively true to life, some describe this as “clean & natural”. From an editing style, most photographers fall into one of three categories, dark & moody, light & airy, or clean & natural. Clean and natural would most accurately describe our editing style.

Personally, we aim for a chill, laid back vibe, taking what we do really seriously and always ready to crack a smile or a joke.

While we do not have a maximum number of images delivered, we do have a minimum number of images in our contract. We guarantee 50 images per shooting hour (or more). Typically, we are delivering closer to 2-3 times our minimum. For example, most of our eight-hour weddings with one photographer are receiving anywhere from 800-1200 or more images rather than the guaranteed 400.

Photographers use the term “culling.” We remove images that have obvious flaws, test shots, and/or duplication. Flaws include blinking, undesirable body motion, poor posing, etc. If the image tells a story or it elevates the story of the moment, it will be kept/included. We include/exclude images based on the quality of the image, not quantity for a minimum or maximum image count.

Culling: the act or process of selecting and removing desirable or undesirable (in this case) photographs from a group.

We charge for travel when mileage and/or travel time exceeds one hour (approximate) drive time or 60-ish miles.

• 70-120 miles (1-2 hour drive) – a nominal travel fee may be incurred or waived depending on the timeline
• 120-180 miles (2-4 hour drive) – est. travel fee of $300-500 depending on the current prices of gas and accommodation
• 180+ miles (4 hour+ drive) – est. travel fee of $400-600+ depending on the current prices of gas and accommodation
• Destinations requiring air travel – please ask for a custom quote; travel fees to destinations requiring air travel would factor in airfare, accommodation, and possibly local transportation expenses such as car rental

Please note: Depending on when and where your wedding is and the package you reserve, we may be willing to waive the travel fee.

We offer two options for privacy. One option is to blog your images under a false name; that way if anyone searches your specific name, your images will not appear associated with you. A full privacy option is available for a $500 fee.

Unfortunately, we do not permit a secondary professional team to work alongside us for whatever reason you’re concerned about. It’s not an ego thing, it’s an eyeball thing. Especially for group shots or posed portraits, having 2 teams trying to get the same thing will cause conflict between the two teams. And by extension, conflict within the people being photographed. It’s the same reason if you have 2 photographers on our team, during family/bridal party formals, we give very clear direction who we want the group to look at. This prevents half the group from looking in the wrong direction. If you’re concerned that the team is insufficiently staffed to get everything, let’s talk. We are happy to provide as many photographers as needed to cover your wedding to ensure everything important to you. At this point professionally (and personally), we don’t miss much ?

We are here for it. If your wedding is so kick @$$ awesome that a publication wants to put it on their blog or print it in a magazine, we are 100% on board. Where were you considering submitting your wedding? Give us a heads up where you want to submit for publication. We’ll happily submit your wedding to be published with that or another publication/website. We ask that you not submit your images directly, as a little extra tweaking may make your great images even more incredible and we don’t miss the opportunity to do that. 

Yes! We love to share. All we ask is that you give us the opportunity to share images to your vendors rather than distributing your images to them directly. We ask other vendors to agree to certain terms, nothing scary, just credit/tagging for social media, etc.

We have. It’s so important to us to give special consideration and attention to friends and family who have functional needs and/or disabilities. If you have any family or friend(s) with disabilities or extra consideration we can be attentive to, please let us know how we can help them to have the best wedding experience possible.

Yes, we have worked with both cats and dogs for portrait sessions and dogs during actual wedding days. We highly recommend there is a minimum of one human handler per one or two animals. Your animal handler(s) will help get the dog(s) attention during the shoot and make sure they are safe and attended to while they are not in front of the camera.

Yes. One of the benefits of having a second photographer is we can be in two places at once. Generally, we only split our team if we have multiple locations at the same time. Having two photographers in the same place at the same time gives you multiple angles for great moments.

Awesome! Just read us in and make sure we know about whatever’s going on! Notes on your timeline work great so we know where and when.

We will often go over a timeline with you and/or your planner, if you have one. Missing major moments is not a thing because of planning and communication.

It’s not uncommon for someone planning a surprise for the bride or groom. Get your surprise captured from the best angles. Give us a heads-up!

Yes, we appreciate when our couples provide us dinner. Depending on the photographer assigned to your wedding, your photographer may have dietary restrictions to be considerate of. Alcoholic beverages are not consumed by our team while working; we do appreciate access to water and/or soft drinks as available. Normally, it’s best to allow the photo and/or video team to eat while your guests are eating. (None of your guests want pictures while they’re eating.) Plus, we don’t want to miss anything after dinner like toasts/cake cutting/etc.

Getting ready pictures? Yes. Family pictures? Yes. Bridal Party pictures? Yes. Bride & groom portraits? Yes. Reception pictures? Yes. We take all the pictures based on the agreed-upon timeframe. Some of our couples over the years have decided they want less of one part of the day and more of another. If you want your coverage to focus on getting ready through the end of formal portraits, we can do that. If you want zero getting-ready pictures, start at the beginning of the ceremony through your grand exit, we can do that too. Feel free to discuss the appropriate window of time for our Atlanta wedding photography team to capture all the best moments of your wedding day.

If you’re worried we might miss something, don’t be. As a seasoned (some have said the best) wedding photographer in Atlanta, we have standard shots we are watching for, stage or otherwise make sure happen, provided that applies to your wedding, of course! Let us know if you’d like to see our standard shot list for any given wedding day.

If you are working with a planner (full service or wedding day management) versus a more couple-driven approach, we handle things one of two ways. If you’re a DIY couple, we typically like to do a timeline review with you in the weeks leading up to the wedding day. When working with a planner, the planner will send us a timeline and we normally will check in with your planner/you to make sure everyone’s on the same page, etc. If you are not planning to work with a planner, we take a more hands-on approach. We typically have a conference call and walk you through the day for timeline planning. As a rule, we like to do a minute-by-minute review of your timeline anywhere from two weeks to six weeks out, depending on the couple, their plans and respective schedules.

With Danielle Brown Photography, when you have two photographers, the second photographer’s tasks are normally decided based on timeline/logistics considerations and the vision of the lead photographer. Traditionally, the lead photographer is responsible for the main photography with the second photographer getting ancillary shots from other angles/perspectives. We typically recommend a second photographer in the event of:

• The Wedding Couple is getting ready at two different addresses
• If secondary angles are important to the wedding couple. Especially moments where the lead photographer cannot be “in two places at once”
• If major events, like cocktail hour, being photographed are important to the couple

This Atlanta wedding photographer is going to answer your question with a question. What setting do you like? What locations play into your story with your partner? Do you want something formal or casual? Do you want a city look or nature?

As locations go, we’re game! A couple of things to keep in mind for locations:

• Local locations for your session are within 50-60 miles of our Marietta studio.
• Does your desired location have a session fee? Couples are responsible for session fees. 
• Is your location private property? If you’d like to take pictures on someone else’s property, prior approval/permission will needed.

As a rule, we encourage our couples to schedule about an hour for their engagement session. We check in with our couples throughout the session to make sure everyone’s having fun. No one wants to get worn out and turn your engagement session into a chore. Let us know if you’d like to do an extended photo session for your Atlanta engagement photography. 

In an hour, most couples get a variety of locations depending on where you pick to do your Atlanta engagement photography session. Depending on timing and logistics, we suggest couples come dressed in their first outfit if you’d like to do an outfit change. 

Plan your wardrobe look. Layout your outfit with your partner’s or put your outfits on and stand side-by-side. We always recommend coordination. This Atlanta wedding photographer doesn’t normally suggest “matchy-matchy”.

If you wear makeup, using your hair/makeup trial for your engagement session is a great idea. A professional hair/makeup artist will give you a great look perfect for pictures. If you’re doing your own makeup, keep in mind make up looks tend to wash out in pictures. We typically recommend a slightly heavier/darker application for that reason.

We are so honored and excited to see what you do with your Atlanta engagement photography! 

Some suggestions for your engagement photos:

• Save-the-date cards
• Wedding Invitations
• Thank you cards
• Wedding decor and displays/signage
• Wedding website
• Social media posts

All of our full-day wedding photography packages come with some images to say thank you. Check your actual wedding agreement for specifics. Or ask Dani how many digital images come with your Atlanta wedding photography collection.

While we are Atlanta wedding photographers, we do travel! If you’re considering doing your engagement session outside of the Atlanta metro area, talk to Dani about options. Depending on our wedding schedule, we may be able to accommodate a destination engagement session. Travel fees normally apply. Depending on the actual schedule/engagement session location and travel expenses, we may be able to waive your travel fees.

Most of our clients prefer the immediacy of our online gallery with a digital file download option. If you would prefer a USB/thumb drive or other tangible delivery option please let us know. Additional fees may apply for options other than a digital download or  USB.

We normally provide our clients JPEG images. If you prefer a different file format, please speak to Dani at the time of reserving services. Alternate image formats are TIFF or PNG. Raw images are not available in a delivered file format.

If you are downloading your files, we will provide an instructional PDF. This step-by-step walk-through will help you download your files with easy-to-follow screenshots. If you prefer a USB/thumb drive shipped to you, we just need to confirm your mailing address (post-wedding).

No, unless previously discussed, your images will be delivered without a watermark.

You are welcome to post and print! We highly recommend prints, wall art and albums through our top-quality labs. You may take your images to any photo lab of your choice and have prints/etc. made.

A personal use license is an agreement, both referenced in your wedding agreement and when you download files from your personalized gallery site stating you have permission to reproduce and/or use these images for your personal use. The main difference between a personal use license and a commercial use license is that you do not have permission to sell your wedding (or other photographic session’s) images.