As a wedding and elopement photographer, there are a lot of different things that play into the back end of my business, but one of the most important tools I use in my business is my gallery delivery system!  These systems are SO important to a photography business and recently I decided to make the switch from Pixieset to Pic-Time. Today I’m going to give you an inside look at exactly why I decided to make this switch and go over everything that I have been loving about using Pic-Time.  

Why Use an Album Delivery System

As a wedding and elopement photographer, my client experience and how they feel from the second they visit my website to inquire, to when their gallery is delivered via Pic-Time is of utmost importance to me.  When planning an elopement or wedding, you’re investing a LOT of time and money into your wedding experience.  When working with my wedding and elopement clients I want to make sure that my client experience reflects the money and hard work they put into their wedding day.  That experience doesn’t end when the wedding day is over, it ends when you receive your full wedding album and it’s everything you dreamed it would be. Having an album delivery system as reliable as Pic-Time is crucial to providing this side of the wedding day experience.

Pic-Time Vs. Pixieset

Overall, Pic-Time and Pixieset do share their fair bit of similarities.  They both provide an easy experience for photographers needing to deliver large photo files, and they have a great interface for photography clients to view their images.  But what makes them different and what made me make the switch?

How Much Does Pic-Time Cost

The pricing was very similar for both Pic-Time and Pixieset which was nice.  One of my favorite things about both of these platforms is that they both do have a free version which is AMAZING for photographers who might be just starting out and who are not quite ready to make the leap into paying for the platform, but still want to have an amazing client experience as you’re starting out. Both of their starting packages are similarly priced, when you get to their “Professional Packages” though, Pic-Time does end up raising their price $5 more a month than Pixieset. In my opinion, this price increase is warranted though as they do have quite a few more offerings for this package than Pixieset does. To check out Pic-Time’s full pricing break down check out their pricing page here.

What Does Pic-Time Do that Pixieset Does Not?

So what separates the two you might be asking if the pricing is similar as well as the experience for both photographers and their clients? For starters Pic-Time offers slideshow and GIF integration which are incredibly fun and cool tools to use for a wedding gallery. Pic-Time also offers Vimeo and other video platform integration. As a Hawaii based photo and video team this was HUGE for Olson Productions and a large factor in what made me make the switch. Other great features that Pic-Time offers are custom project workflows, welcome messages at the top of each album for your clients, and customizable album colors and layouts to give each album its own distinct and personal feel.

How I Use Pic-Time as an Elopement and Wedding Photographer

Having a phenomenal gallery delivery system as a Hawaii wedding and elopement photographer is essential.  Though yes, as a photographer, you are at the end of the day providing a product, their wedding photos and video, really more than anything we are service providers.  If your client has beautiful photos and video but a horrible experience working with you and receiving their photos, they’re not going to love the end product as much.  This is how I make sure my clients have an amazing experience when delivering their online gallery through Pic-Time.

Gallery Delivery

After my clients’ wedding day, I get home and cull their photos and choose a handful of images that really represent their wedding day.  I’ll take these images, edit them and then put together a sneak peek gallery for them. I put together this small album for them on Pic-Time and get their sneak peeks over to them within a few weeks of their wedding day.  I know how exciting it is in the weeks after your wedding and how you really just want to relive the day over and over again, so getting a sneak peek gallery out is SO important.  With the gallery my clients can also get a taste of how their online gallery works, so that when they receive their final gallery, they know what to expect when viewing their photos.  

Telling Their Story

As a Hawaii photo and video team, we have the BEYOND important job of telling the story of a wedding day, a pregnancy, a proposal, a family, and so many more intimate and once-in-a-lifetime moments. These moments only happen once, and have so many emotions and feelings intertwined. Thus delivering these moments in a way that feels effortless and beautiful is my highest priority. Pic-Time allows me to customize my galleries to create an experience that is just that for my clients. I can create an album that feels like their session and tells their story in the way that it happened.

Viewing Their Online Gallery

When my clients open up their gallery for the first time they are immediately greeted with one of my favorite images from their wedding day along with aspects of my branding to bring the cohesiveness of my brand into the gallery.  Below the initial image, I have the option to integrate their wedding video from Vimeo so that they can watch their video and then scroll through their gallery reliving all of the amazing moments from their wedding day all in one place.

Video Integration

As I mentioned above, as a Hawaii wedding photo and video team I LOVE being able to integrate my photos and my videos all in the same album!  Not only does it allow us to create a seamless gallery with video, but it also allows for the delivery to occur all in one place which I’m obsessed with.  This way you and your love can relive your EPIC wedding day seamlessly all in one place! You can add video directly to the album, or integrate your Vimeo or Youtube links so that your client can have everything all in one place.

Automation Capabilities

The automation capabilities that Pic-Time has are next-level.  I love that they have templates that I can create for different types of galleries along with email sequences to ensure that not only will my clients receive their photos, but also have all of the information they need to be able to save and print their photos all in one place.  Though I primarily shoot Hawaii weddings and Elopements, I also document babymoons and maternity sessions, engagement sessions, proposals, families, and SO much more. Regardless of the type of session I am delivering, I am able to create workflows specific to the type of client I am serving so that they have the best experience from the second they inquire through the years following their session.

I am able to educate my clients on how to download their images, save their images and order prints all from the same place which keeps things simple and stress-free for them.  Not to mention Pic-Time’s automated emails also help to increase product sales. I can schedule automated emails for anniversaries, first birthdays for their children, or birthday emails for the clients themselves! Photos ALWAYS make some of the best and most personal gifts.

Pic-Time’s Online Store

I can trust Pic-Time to guide my clients through their experience in printing their wedding photos both as prints and in album form.  Pic-Time has a wide array of products I can choose from to offer to my clients. Between framed and matted prints, regular prints, wedding albums and SO much more, it makes fulfilling their printing needs so much easier and seamless.  

Sharing and Saving Their Wedding Images with Pic-Time

One of my highest priorities for my couples after delivering their wedding galleries outside of printing their favorite images is making sure they have all of their digital files saved somewhere safe so they can access them in the future.  I always recommend having their images saved in at LEAST two different locations.  Pic-Time makes saving photos super easy with their downloading capabilities.  My clients are able to download their images directly to their computers as well as directly to places like Dropbox and Google Photos for safekeeping for years to come. 

How Pic-Time Affects My Workflow as a Hawaii Elopement Photographer 

Email Automation

One of my favorite things about being a wedding photographer is getting to know my clients on a personal level and really being present with them during their session and wedding day.  One of the biggest reasons I am able to really take the time getting to know my clients and being present on their wedding day is because I have taken the time to automate all of the small things you might need to know leading up to your day and following your wedding day!  Pic-Time’s automated emails help guide my clients through experiencing their wedding album along with printing and saving their wedding albums safely so they can access their memories for years to come. 

Sharing My Favorite Images for Advertising

One of the most challenging parts of being a Hawaii wedding photographer is managing the various avenues of advertising on a daily basis.  Photo files can be MASSIVE, so storing images on my phone for posting on Instagram or other social medias isn’t always the best option.  Pic-Time has its own application that allows me to access all of my clients galleries, so when I am batching content or making reels from my cell phone I am able to download the images straight from the app and put them right on Instagram.

Pinterest and Facebook

Along with the online app, Pic-Time also has the ability to share photos directly from my clients’ gallery to Pinterest and Facebook.  This is great for me as a business owner, as I am able to easily share images to Pinterest for attracting future clients, and provide inspiration for future engaged couples as they plan their weddings.  This is ALSO great for my clients as they are able to share their images with friends and family on Facebook with the click of a button!

Being able to automate my clients’ gallery delivery workflow and future photo sales as a full-time wedding photographer has been such a game changer for my business as well as my personal life.  I want my clients to print their photos and have them in their homes. I want them to be able to view their images and share them with their loved ones with the click of a button. Pic-Time lets me do all of this and SO much more with ease. That’s what made me make the switch and I am beyond happy that I did. For more photography tips or to see some of my work head on over to my blog page!