Dmitriy B.

My grandmother is one of the most special women in my life. She is almost 90 years old and yet she is full of life (sometimes more full of life than I am). My earliest memories are associated with her – she has been there every time I needed help, advice, or a good meal. She is the most kind and understanding person in the world; truly an amazing woman. Every time I visit her, I make it a point to photograph her as much as I can; I want to preserve every memory of her so that my kids could know was an incredible woman she is. A full set from this photoshoot can be seen on my Flickr photostream

Every bride (and even some grooms) dreams of a perfect, fairy-tale wedding day; after all, wedding is one of the most important days in a person’s life. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford a perfect wedding. The average cost of a wedding in the United States is $26,000. Twenty-six thousands dollars! Many people have to start their lives together by going into significant debt just to create that perfect wedding day. Every year we get calls from dozens of brides-to-be who simply cannot afford our services. They have to settle for hiring inexperienced and unknown photographers from Craigs List, renting DJ-in-a-box to keep everyone on the dance floor and asking uncle Bob to videotape the ceremony. Well, here is your chance to create that perfect wedding day and to preserve the memories for yourself and your children. Accents Unlimited, Video Masters of Pittsburgh and Dmitriy Babichenko Photography have partnered to help one couple to create a perfect wedding. Simply submit your love story and you’ll have a chance to win all three services (DJ, photography and videography) for FREE. Send your love story with photographs or video to amazingweddingstories@gmail.com; we’ll post your story on this website and let people vote for the best/most interesting love story. You can submit stories for your friends and family members. There are absolutely no catches – the only caveat is that all three of us have to be available (not have other events booked) on your wedding date. You must submit photographs or videos with your story and include your wedding date; we must receive your submission before December 31st, 2010. For more information on the context, check out www.amazingweddingstory.com We will pick and announce the winner on Valentine’s Day (February 14^th, 2011). Congratulations on your upcoming wedding and good luck!

Lately there is been so much hype about the iPhone; apparently, there is absolutely nothing that it cannot do. Several professional photographers even used it as a camera in model photoshoots. About a month ago I came across a post of fStoppers.com where a photographer used a ring light and an iPhone 4 to do a fashion shoot. Yesterday I saw a similar photoshoot on Terry White`s blog. Hmmm… The iPhone is great, there is no question about that. But… http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=14468275&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=1&color=00ADEF&fullscreen=1&autoplay=0&loop=0

Revenge of Android from Dmitriy Babichenko on Vimeo.

Last night I was looking through my backups, trying to find a few old photographs for a client of mine. While digging through the archives, I came across this goofy thing. I took this photo as a joke at the end of a photoshoot at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in 2008.

QUESTION: Why are photographers so expensive? I’ve seen ads on Craigs list where photographers will photograph my entire wedding for $500.00 ANSWER: This question has been discussed on numerous forums and blogs for years. Over the last 5 or 6 years, the cost of digital cameras has gone down significantly; nowadays virtually everyone can afford an entry level digital SLR. While most people who step up from a point-and-shoot to an SLR use their cameras to enjoy and explore photography, there are some who decide to use their new toys to make extra money on weekends. Unfortunately, most of these weekend warriors think that weddings are the easiest way to make money. Corporate and advertizing photography jobs are difficult to come by without the right contacts, experience and an extensive portfolio. Brides and grooms, on the other hand, make a much easier target. More often than not they are so dazzled by the bargain price tag that they don’t even bother to check the 500-dollar-photographer’s portfolio and references. They don’t bother to ask about experience and equipment; $500 vs, $3,000 – $5,000 that established photographers charge is alas enough for brides and grooms to trust their wedding to a total stranger. Every year I get three or four clients who trusted their wedding to a 500-dollar-photographer. This June a woman called me in tears – she met with me a year ago but decided to go with a friend’s brother who offered to photograph her wedding for $300.00. We met and she showed me the photographs and asked me if there was anything else I could do to make them better. As I started looking through the files in Adobe Bridge I realized that the entire wedding was photographed with a Nikon D40. The pop-up flash was on in all indoor shots and the camera never left the AUTO mode. I did the best I could with the photos, but there is only so much on can do with Photoshop. In the end, she put on her wedding dress, her husband rented a tuxedo and we spent a couple of hours restaging some of the scenes that should have been recorded on her special day. Does this happen to everyone who hires a 500-dollar photographer from Craigs List or asks a relative or a friend to photograph their wedding? Probably not. I’ve met plenty of amateur photographers who take amazing photographs with the most basic of equipment. But photographers like that are few and far between; most of the time you really get what you pay for. Mary of BirchTree Photography wrote an excellent primer on wedding photography prices – it is well worth the read.