Behind the Wedding Lens... Part I of III

Alrighty... Wedding photography is my business, but I'll try to talk about it from a consumer's standpoint as best I can, and point out some of the most important tips & tricks.

First of all, while you're shopping, be VERY cautious of friends, family, or other amateur photographers offering to take photos for you for your wedding day for a drastically reduced price. Not to offend any of them, of course, as many of them may be quite handy with a camera! There are BIG reasons to go with a professional company, and I'll list the most important ones below.

- Price: There are professional photographers out there for just about any budget. If you don't see something in your range on a photographer's price list, ASK. They may be able to negotiate features in their packages to fit your budget.

- Liability: What if your family friend gets sick? What if your uncle's computer crashes and all of the images are lost? What if your sister's boyfriend's cousin's camera malfunctions halfway through the wedding? Professional studios should have backup photographers, backup hard drives, and backup cameras, not to mention insurance. Protect your investment!

- Editing: Your accomplished amateur may have a fancy camera, but do they have software to handle editing bulk photos? Trust me, you do NOT want to sift through 3000 images to find your favorites. Your photographer will filter for blinking eyes, awkward faces, and perfect exposure and focus in your images.

And lastly, you want your friends and family to be able to ENJOY your wedding instead of having to work! You can always tell them to feel free to shoot as much as they'd like, and their images can supplement your photographer's. Just be sure to mention to give the professional photographer priority in taking a shot, and discuss it with your photographer so they know someone else will be taking some photos.

If you do absolutely need a less expensive photographer, search for a freelance photographer who can prove professional experience or affiliation.

More on photography in the next post!

Happy wedding planning... see you soon!

Cory

The Whirlwind World of Weddings

A bride in the money booth at the 2nd Open House... brides (including me!) will do nearly anything to help manage the cost of their weddings!

Working with The Wedding Showcase, I've really gotten a decent handle on how many wedding services work, just so I can better understand how to describe our partners to clients when they have basic questions. I have to say, though, that it came in most important when I started shopping for MY wedding!

Yep, I'm a Bride-to-Be myself... our wedding is coming up in 6 1/2 weeks! And MAN, so you really get put through the trials as a bride when planning your wedding. Really, though, the best part about being in cahoots with so many awesome wedding professionals is all the objective advice I've gotten. So I've decided that each week for a series of weeks, I'm going to share some of those insider insights with you!

I know the most about wedding photography, since that's my field, so I'll start with that in the next post... I know you'll be holding your breath in the meantime. ;)

- Cory

Open House #2

Very happy with our Open House last week. We had a lot of people come through, check us out, talk to us and even win some nice things. Between the money booth and the diamond dig in the cupcakes (plus our giveaways) I think it was well worth it for all to come up. Cory (Prelude photographer) spent some time working out a package that one of the couples could afford. We trimmed things down and made it fit them and everyone was happy. And then they won our $1,000 package :) So now they are CRAZY EXCITED they can get so much more. It's nice when things work out.

So now we're past our open houses and on to Wedding stuff. I'll start talking about that tomorrow. -Matt (from Prelude)

Mall wedding show

Late night last night helping everyone put together booths and stuff. I'm just printing a few last minute things (coupons, info, etc) and then off to the show. Luckily we have nice weather (nice enough) so we expect a nice turnout.
-Matt

Wedding Showcase Open House #1!

Wedding Showcase Open House #1 is going on RIGHT NOW! We're having a great time over here, we're about to do our big drawing where brides can win over $4000 in services!

I'm drinking a slushie, snacking on cake samples and hors d'oeuvres, and talking weddings with a bunch of brides. What a great way to spend the evening! We love meeting new people, and we especially love when people win prizes and they're so excited about what they've won.

If you didn't make it tonight, we're having another Open House on Friday, February 11th from 5pm-9pm... complete with our free food & drink, a money booth to try your luck in, and ONLY on February 11th, we're doing a DIAMOND DIG in some wedding cake for a DIAMOND NECKLACE... if you dig it out, you get to keep it! :) Just don't forget to clean it up before you wear it. :)

So we'll see you at Great Lakes Mall in Mentor on Feb 11th, over inside Prelude Photography down the Dillard's South corridor!

See you there, I gotta go help with the drawing! :)

Cory

Wedding Reception Rentals

Hello there!  I’m Melanie with Sun Rental Center - 

Being involved in the party and event rental industry for over 20 years, I have faced many challenges, met many fabulous people and witnessed several great and memorable events!!!  I love what I do, obviously, 20 years into it!  Planning events and seeing everything come together in the end is so gratifying.  Coming up with the ideas, putting it all together and having a successful event are what keep me coming back for more!

- Melanie

Custom Wedding Jewelry

Hi! I’m Nichole Meyer and I’ve had a little addiction problem for the past six years now.  It happens all the time.  Suddenly, an idea pops into my head and it’s all I can think about.  The next thing I know, I’m buying more crystal.  No, not that kind of “crystal,” thank goodness! The type of crystal I’m referring to sparkles like no other and is the finest crystal used in jewelry design – Swarovski Crystal.

I’ve been custom designing jewelry ever since I left my job of ten years in Corporate America to raise my two little girls who are now ages six and three.  My whole life I’ve always been a bit obsessed with jewelry. From the time I was a little girl, my mom would drag me into antique stores.  While she browsed, I would immediately make a beeline to the vintage jewelry counter.  And today, while others are watching award shows and talking about the gowns, my eye immediately goes to the jewels.  I literally couldn’t stop thinking about Angelina Jolie’s emerald drop earrings for a week after the 2009 Oscars.

I design all types of jewelry, but the pieces I create for brides and their attendants get me the most excited and inspired.  It tickles me to know that on any given weekend, my creations are making their way down the aisle on a beautiful bride, her bridesmaids and flower girls.  As I carefully string each bead and fasten each clasp, I love knowing that my jewelry will soon be framing a smiling face that says “I do” and dangling daintily on the wrist that cuts the cake.

I’d argue that jewelry design is one of the most expensive crafts out there.  Thank goodness I’ve found hundreds of brides who love and appreciate my work enough to wear it on their big day.  Yeah, I’m an addict and a “dealer,” too J

- Nichole Meyer, Owner and Lead Designer - Frosting Accessories

Flip Flops

It may sound tacky, but I wore flip flops on my wedding day.  And I’m not just talking about after the ceremony.  All day, I wore my flips.  They help me to let go. I can be free.   I’m comfortable; I can step outside of my perfectionism.

And I am such a perfectionist; it sometimes gets me into a lot of trouble.  Mostly with myself though.  There are so many stupid things I just simply can’t let myself get away with.  There must not be any dishes in the sink when I go to bed.  All the kids’ toys must be put back exactly where they belong, four times a day.  My eye shadow must match my lip gloss that must match my shirt that must match my socks that must match my shoes that must match my purse and belt and coat.  So when I’m walking out the door, and step on a baby wipe that one of the twins so kindly left out for me and my sock gets all wet, I must go change my whole outfit because that was the only pair of socks that matched everything so perfectly; which is why I prefer flip-flops.  They just go with everything.  It’s simply one thing to make my life a little less crazy and a bit more enjoyable. 

That’s why I wore flip-flops on my wedding day.  Everything was absolutely wonderful and perfect and amazing about my wedding day.  I did things exactly the way I wanted them done.  I know that there is so much pressure from everyone.  “Mom and Dad are paying for this, so I have to do it their way”, “His parents are paying for the reception hall, so they get to chose how it’s decorated”, “Aunt Mae is paying for my dress, so she gets to chose which dress I choose.”  Well, I would say in a polite fashion, “Mom, Dad, Aunt Mae, I appreciate you helping out with my wedding, but you had your wedding, let me have mine”; which is what I did.  This is your day, you can be grateful for any help that you get, but you should be able to pick your colors and flowers, location and shoes.  It’s one of the most important days of your life.  You don’t want anything to ruin that. However, something that I tell all the brides that I meet with, “The most important thing is that at the end of it all, you will be married, and it will have all been worth it.”  But, you may as well enjoy the journey.  So, if you want to wear flip-flops on your wedding day, then do it.  Have fun, relax, happy wedding planning & Bonne Chance!

~Abbie Fellenstein~

Candlelight Creations – Cards & Invitations

Cake Boss & Cupcakes

Hi, it's Debbi from Cakes to You!

Has anyone ever tasted Champagne cake? That has become one of our specialties. I just heard about wine flavored cakes too. Can't wait to try that one.

Been watching alot of the foodie shows. I especially enjoy watching Cake Boss. If you have never tuned in, you'll have to catch an episode or two. It's not just about cakes. It's also about family, the bakery's history and the way all the employees (mostly Italians) work together. It's pretty comical and extremely enjoyable. They make some real masterpieces. Masterpieces that also have hefty pricetags. Word has it, most of the cakes start at $1700.00. Wow! I wonder what the highest priced one costs.

Cupcake shows are also a big thing now. These creations put hundreds, sometimes even thousands of cupcakes together to create a massive display. The displays usually have a theme. The show provides each contestant with a carpenter to build the display according to the "cupcaker's" vision.  Of course, these shows also have challenges, where each contestant is vying for not only the title but a cash prize as well. It's amazing the things they can create with cupcakes. About 20 years ago, I started the concept of placing cupcakes together to make one cake that pulls apart. I thought that was ingenious, but that is nothing compared to the cupcake creativity you see now.

There are so many unique flavors too! Too many to mention. It used to be ice cream stores would pride themselve with how many flavors they could offer. Now cupcake flavors have surpassed the number of ice cream flavors Baskin Robbins has to offer. Just think of the possibilities!

Well, until next time always remember... Eat cake first!!!

Debbi

Preparing for a Wedding Floral Consultation

You, the bride,  know how busy you are trying to cover all the details of the wedding. However, there are some things you can do to make the bridal consultations with the florists you interview go more smoothly and  make the best use of your time.

 1)      Take a moment to think of a budget for your wedding flowers. Wedding planners say that flowers are usually 5-10% of the total wedding budget, depending on whether the reception hall offers centerpieces as part of their banquet package.

2)      Collect pictures – bouquets or flowers that you like, pictures of the bride’s and bridesmaids dresses. Bring the pictures to the consultation so that your florist can match your taste to your flowers. If you don’t know the names of flowers, visit the www.aboutflowers.com website to research names, textures and colors of flowers. The site can also give you ideas about availability for the date of your wedding.

 3)      Prepare a list of your wedding party and service details.  A single sheet of paper with the date and time of the service and reception, addresses, numbers of people in the wedding party and names, addresses and phone numbers of the bride and groom can save time with your florist as well as other services  that you are interviewing.

 4)      Research quality florists – Check out the websites of florists in your area. Ask family and friends for recommendations. Your pastor or wedding planner can offer recommendations for good florists in your area. Try to match your florist to the demands of your wedding – a small neighborhood florist may not be a good match if you are having a large outdoor event with 50 centerpieces or an event florist may be overkill if you are having a small family service. Don’t be afraid to interview more than 1 florist. Each florist will have their own interpretation of your wishes and you might find that your ideas will develop as you get input from several sources.

 5)      Listen to your florist’s advice when making your final decision – A quality florist will do their best to match the best design and flower selection to your needs. But they will also make you aware of potential problems with your selections based on flower or color availability and conflicts between the fragility of a flower or design and the time you are expecting the flowers to last. The goal is to produce a floral design that will accent the beauty of your wedding without wilted or broken flowers that don’t last through the reception.

 6)      Have fun with your selection – Selecting your wedding flowers should be a fun experience. Your florist is there to help you with the process. They are happy to show you samples of flowers and designs, customize a bouquet to marry form with the flowers or colors of your choice.

Happy consulting!

- Pat, A Classic Florist