WHO ARE YOU? WHAT DOES YOUR NAME MEAN?
We are Nicole and Paul, a husband and wife photography team. We love custom and unique weddings and engagements!! We meet in 2013 and fell in love over photography. Paul had been shooting weddings for over a decade and Nicole had always loved photography. We decided to combine forces and create a wedding photography business where we could help other couples capture their love through images!
We chose the name Nautilus Lens because of a photography and mathematics principle based on the shape of a nautilus shell. Photographers use the nautilus spiral to create compositions that are pleasing to the eye. We selected that name because it is our goal to always strive to capture dynamic images filled with interesting compositions.
IS THIS YOUR REAL JOB?
Yes! Nicole was lucky enough to pursue the business full time and focus on creating guides and helping our couples prepare for their big day! Paul joins her on the weekends for sessions and weddings.
HELP! I DON’T KNOW HOW TO POSE! WHAT DO I DO WITH MY ARMS?
Don’t worry, we got you! We make sure to go over some easy poses that look flattering on any body shape to make sure you always feel comfortable and confident in front of the camera! You can’t mess it up!
Your engagement session is the perfect time to learn our easy poses. Since most people are not models, some people find it awkward to be in front of a camera for more than a few minutes. Before we begin your session, we teach you core poses and throughout your session we help you get into easy and natural poses that also allow for genuine moments. No more stiff and awkward pictures! Once you’re done with the session, you’ll be a pro and totally confident and relaxed for your wedding day!
CAN YOU RECOMMEND OTHER VENDORS?
Yes, we love to recommend other vendors! We only recommend people who we have worked with before and can vouch for how awesome they are!
DO YOU PHOTOGRAPHY LGBTQ WEDDINGS?
Yes, we do! We believe love is love and that everyone deserves to have their special day!
DO YOU PHOTOGRAPH MULTICULTURAL WEDDINGS?
Yes, we love multicultural weddings! The Bay Area is an amazing place full of so much diversity and we love being a part of that! We love getting to know different traditions and cultures and always strive to capture authentic moments!
WHAT ABOUT OFFBEAT WEDDINGS?
We love those too! We have a special place in our hearts for offbeat weddings because they are always so unique and interesting!
DO YOU TRAVEL FOR DESTINATION WEDDINGS?
We sure do! We love seeing new places!
WHAT IS YOUR STYLE?
One of the most important facets of our business is creating a unique and personalized experience for our couples. We believe in teaching our couples posing techniques that look great on everybody and leave openings to also capture real moments. This way you can look more relaxed and confident on the wedding day!
We believe in using and tools and equipment that fits our couples and the kind of wedding they have. Our style blends luminous natural light and romantic shots with colorful and dramatic shots. Our images are often filled with bright, colorful and joyful moments.
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU USE?
Many magazines and weddings blogs will tell you that you need to ask this question but the real important question you should be asking your photographer is whether or not they use professional level gear instead of specific specifications. In every session and wedding we use professional gear and have multiple backups in case of camera or gear malfunction. We use gear that allows us to blend natural light and flash to create and sculpt the right light.
DO YOU DO VIDEO:
We can do video but we have decided to focus solely on our photography craft right now. We may offer it in a few years down the road.
WHAT WILL YOU WEAR TO OUR WEDDING?
We strive to be professional in all that we do and your wedding day or at your session is no different. Whenever we shoot, we wear slacks and a professional button down/blouse and we wear darker colors such as black or blue so we don’t pull any focus from the wedding couple or the bridal party. We do wear sneakers because 8-10 hours on our feet carrying heavy gear is killer on our backs. If you have a specific color you would prefer that we wear to your event just let us know!
CAN YOU PHOTOSHOP THAT?
We love real and we love seeing our couples look like who they really are. We use posing to create flattering positions and only resort to photoshop if there are distractions in the photograph such as a car or a person in the photograph that was not supposed to be there. So unless the image warrants it, or if there is a special request, we do minimal photoshop edits.
DO YOU EDIT THE PHOTOS?
Yes, we go through each photograph and take out any test shots, blinks, duplicates or shots that are not flattering. From there, we go through and make adjustments to exposure, color and cropping to create a cohesive story of the day. We also make sure that the overall look of the photos is aligned with our bright and colorful editing style. We love images that look real so we do minimal photoshop work.
WHEN DO I GET MY PHOTOGRAPHS?
As a previous bride and groom ourselves, we know the excitement of photos which is why we always deliver a sneak peek the day after a wedding or a session! We post them on our Instagram, Facebook page and blog so you can easily tag yourself and share with friends and family!
During the high season(May-October), weddings are delivered in 6-8 weeks and during the rest of the year delivery time is in 4-6 weeks. Engagement sessions take 3-4 weeks. All of your images are delivered through an online gallery where you can download your gallery, share to social media and order prints and canvases!
CAN YOU COPY THIS IMAGE I FOUND ON OR INSTAGRAM?
We love Pinterest and Instagram as much as the next person and we love what an inspiring tool both those platforms have become! While we can be inspired by the images and boards that you show us, we do not copy other photographers work. Not only would that be stealing another artist’s work but it would not be true to our style or the couple we working with. We can create images that are inspired by those images but are rooted in our style and our techniques.
DO YOU HAVE ALBUMS?
Yes! We love creating albums for our couples. We have several different kinds of albums to meet anyone’s budget!
Before we begin work on your album, we like to meet either in person or over the phone to hear what is most important to you. We never outsource our album process so we can tell the most authentic story of the day. You have three rounds of proofs to make sure the album is exactly what you would like. Once we submit your album to our printers, there is a 3-5 day lab printing time and then a 1-3 day shipping time. Your album will be mailed directly to you to enjoy with your loved ones!
Did we miss anything? Drop us a line and we can answer all your questions! You can reach us at (510) 210-3821 or email at info@nautiluslens.com! Happy wedding planning!!!