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"Is this the little girl I carried
Is this the little boy at play?
I don't remember growing older
When did they?"
-Sheldon Harnick "Sunrise Sunset" Fiddler on the Roof

Hello,
My name is April and I am a Colorado bar mitzvah photographer. I’ve been photographing bar mitzvahs and bat mitzvahs (as well as B’Nai Mitzvahs and B’Not Mitzvahs) here in the Denver area for over 15 years. I started off doing photography for all kinds of events but there is a special place in my heart for photographing mitzvahs. I really love to see family come together to celebrate such a special milestone. I married into a Jewish family and it’s been such an honor to get to celebrate and learn more about Jewish cultural traditions with them. I have so much respect for how much time, effort, and hard work goes into preparing for this special day. It’s my goal to make sure the photos not only document the day but provide a beautiful, visual retelling for future generations of your family. L'chaim! Many mazels to all the B'nai Mitzvahs I've had the pleasure of photographing over the years. If you have your child’s Bar or Bat Mitzvah on the horizon I'd love to be a part of your special day.

Denver Bar Mitzvah Photographer

Gallery of Denver Mitzvah Photography

Please check out the galleries below to see examples of photos I’ve created at past bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah celebrations here in Denver. It’s important to make sure that the style of my photography matches your expectations for what you’d like to see in your own child’s mitzvah photos.

open gallery

Mitzvah Parties

Mitzvah Services

Because every family’s needs for their bar mitzvah photography vary quite a bit, I don’t offer pre-determined packages. I prefer to create a custom package based on the number of hours that you need. Before you can book your photography package for your child’s mitzvah, you’ll need to find out if your service is allowed to be photographed since many synagogues have rules around what is allowed to be photographed. Some of them only allow photos during the rehearsal while others have allowed me to take just one photo at the end of the service. Others won’t allow any photography during the service at all. You’ll also need to decide if you would like coverage of the kiddush luncheon following the service and if you would like coverage of the evening party if you are having one. Without knowing those main things you’ll have a hard time determining how many hours to put in your bat mitzvah or bar mitzvah package.

Hourly pricing for bar mitzvah and bat mitzvah photography for Denver are below. All packages include the high resolution digital jpegs with a personal print release for printing your own images. Travel outside of the Denver metro area may incur a travel fee based on the distance and difficulty of travel.

I also offer high quality custom albums that can be added on to your mitzvah package. These albums are family heirlooms and each one is made by hand by an independent bookbinding manufacturer in New York. Every photo chosen to be included in your album is completely retouched and there are over 100 different cover materials to choose from with various different cover configurations. Each album is so different and is a beautiful work of art in its own right. I have examples of the beautiful albums I’ve created for past clients in the gallery below. If you would like to see some examples of the interior page designs, please email me and I can share some with you. Albums are an additional add on to the hourly packages outlined above.

I also offer various printed products that can be purchased from your online gallery after the event. Prices for 5x7” and smaller are $25 each, 8x10” are $35 each, 11x14” are $65 each. Prints are 30% off for the first month after your gallery goes live. I also offer framed prints and canvas gallery wraps. Please reach out to see a full price list.

10 hours: $4,600
Please reach out for a custom quote if you need more than 10 hours.

10x10”, 8x12”, and 9x12” Albums: $1,600
Extra pages: $45 each

12x12”, 11x14”, and 10x15” albums: $1,800
Extra pages: $65 each

2 hours: $1,850
3 hours: $2,300

6 hours: $3,350
7 hours: $3,700

8 hours: $4,000
9 hours: $4,300

This cost covers the extra retouching for photos chosen to be in the album, the album design, 10 pages/20 sides inside the album, and the manufacturing of the album itself.

4 hours: $2,650
5 hours: $3,000

Information About Bar Mitzvah Photography

Sample Mitzvah Timeline

Below is a rough guide to how many hours of coverage the average bar and bat mitzvah celebrations can expect to need for the various events that I’m typically asked to cover.

-Pre-Service Portraits: 1 hour
-Family Portraits: 30 min-1.5 hours (This can vary wildly depending on how many family members you would like to include)
-Bar Mitzvah Service or Rehearsal: 1.5-2 hours
-Kiddush Luncheon: 30 min-1 hour
-Evening Party: 2-5 hours

Bar and Bat Mitzvah Pricing & Packages

Hourly Package Prices for Denver Mitzvahs

Bar Mitzvah Album Prices

Photo Print Prices for Denver Bar Mitzvahs

Answers to The Most Frequently Asked Questions Below!

*Will you be the photographer at our bar mitzvah celebration?

Yes, I am the one who will be photographing at your family’s bar or bat mitzvah event. I may bring a non-shooting assistant to help me for part of the day and there is also an option to add on a second photographer if it’s needed. I do not contract out other photographers to work under my name in my place so if you book me, I am the photographer who will be there on this special day unless there is a serious emergency that prevents me from being able to physically be there. In the extremely rare circumstance that this may occur, I will work with you to either refund your money so that you can book your own replacement or come up with a solution to help find another competent photographer to fill in for me. I am proud to say that I have been photographing events and weddings in the Denver area since 2006 and have never needed to ask another photographer to take over for any event that I have put on my calendar. That said, I am human and acknowledge that there could be a situation where I need help and that is why I am a part of a large network of professional photographers here in the Denver area that I could lean on in case of an emergency.

*Will we get our retainer back if we need to cancel or change the date of our bar mitzvah event?

No, retainer fees are non-refundable and non-transferrable to new dates. When you make a retainer payment, it is paying for me to reserve that date on my calendar and I can no longer accept other clients for that day.

*Can the hours in my package be split up?

Yes, the hours included in your package may be split up on the day of your bat mitzvah or bar mitzvah celebration. If you need the hours split up between two different dates to accommodate a mitzvah rehearsal, please specify this when reaching out so that I can see if I am able to block off both dates for you. Summer-Fall months may be more difficult to accommodate that kind of split due to a heavier scheduling workload during the busy season.

*How many photos will we get?

This is a tough question to answer because I don’t guarantee a set number of images per hour. I do lean toward a more “quality over quantity” mindset when photographing but that doesn’t mean I won’t keep a sweet moment in your delivered photo set just because it’s not technically perfect. The amount of photos you will receive really depends a lot on the number of hours I will be there, what kind of events you are having me cover (dancing, horah, games, candle lighting ceremony, how many family group photos you need, If I’m allowed to photograph the service and more) I am happy to share some full galleries of every single photo I delivered to past clients since I think that will give you a better idea of what to expect than telling you a specific number would.

*Will we get the rights to print our photos?

Yes, I will send a personal use print release with your photos so that you can show it to your printer if needed. As long as the photos are not being used commercially, you can basically do what you like with them. If you aren’t sure, you can always just reach out and ask, I usually say yes!

*How long until we get to see the photos?

I don’t guarantee exact dates because certain times of the year have a longer turnaround time than others due to a fuller schedule (I’m looking at you, Autumn!), but I aim to deliver the full gallery for you 6-8 weeks after the event though it’s usually closer to 4 weeks in the slower times of the year.

*What can I expect for the retouching of our photos?

After every bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah that I photograph, I will select all of the keeper photos from the day and do a light retouching on them. I don’t include photos with technical deficiencies (flash misfires, blurry/out of focus type of images) or photos with bad expressions and I like to avoid including closed eyes, duplicates, etc…

Every bar or bat mitzvah that I photograph will also have a select portion of my favorite photos completely retouched and shared as a “sneak peek” preview style blog post. These photos get a little bit more attention paid to them (I generally focus more on skin retouching/distractions removed from backgrounds and detailed edits like that) All of the photos delivered to you will be retouched but the ones included in the blog preview will be the most polished. I also do 30% off of prints for a month after the gallery goes live so that you can pick your own favorites to have completely retouched just like the preview photos if you like. Below is a visual example showing the difference between the different levels of retouching.

Original, unretouched image

Lightly retouched image

Fully retouched image

*Do you have experience photographing at our synagogue and party venue?

I have photographed at Temple Emanuel, Temple Sinai, B’Nai Chaim, and Temple Micah here in the Denver area as well as various different party venues. In fact, I have an entire VENUES page of my site with photos of places I’ve photographed at before. Let me know where you’re planning to host your bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah event and I can send you examples if it’s a place I’ve photographed at before.

*How do we book you?

Great question! Go ahead and reach out to me (email is best!) and let me know the date(s) you need coverage for and I can send you a quote. When you are ready to book, I will have you fill out the contract online and you can pay the retainer fee online with a credit card or you can send me a check to reserve the date. Once I have both the signed contract and your retainer fee, your date will be officially reserved on my calendar. Once you are booked with me, I will send you an online questionnaire for you to fill out so that I can make sure I am on the same page with you regarding your plans for your bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah day.

This is the part where you get to tell me about you!

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Contact Me!

I do my very best to return emails as soon as possible but I do head out of Denver for sessions and weddings often. Sometimes your email never makes it to me so if you haven’t heard from me within 48 hours please double check your email spam box and reach out again just in case there is a technical issue. I’d hate to miss the opportunity to speak with you about your bar or bat mitzvah! You're welcome to text or call me at 720-771-7314 if you are worried I haven't received your email.