I just opened an email update from theweddingreport.com. I read it to keep up on industry trends. This month’s report had something that caused me great concern. Out of the top ten trends for August 2008, number two is: Untrained and inexperienced photographers are proliferating.

Wow! I have watched a lot of trimming and compromising being made during this recession, but hiring an untrained and inexperienced photographer worries me, especially since it really isn’t necessary. Don’t risk your wedding photos to save money. Here are my top six secrets to saving money on your photography while still hiring a pro:

1. Limit the number of hours the photographer will be on-site. Plan your wedding day schedule carefully. Put most of your formalities right at the beginning so the photographer won’t miss any important shots. After your grand entrance, cut your wedding cake, do your first dance, father/daughter dance, followed by the toast. You can shave three or four hours off of your photographer’s time which can save you big money. Have some friends with cameras on-hand to capture the bouquet and garter toss at the end of the evening.
2. Talk to your photographer about getting a few large prints rather than printing an entire album. A great wedding photographer will make your photos look like a model shoot. The resulting prints will look like high-quality art that you will be proud to display.
3. Hire a photographer who is willing to just shoot the event and surrender a high resolution cd with the images to you. You will be able to do anything you want with the photos once you have the cd so you can save up some money and print an album at a later date. Be sure to confirm with the photographer whether or not he will retouch the images prior to giving you the cd. The retouching will cost more, but it will be worth it. Also, be sure to get a signed consent form from the photographer in case the photo lab questions whether or not you have the right to reproduce the images later.
4. Get married on an off-day. Friday and Saturday night are still prime time for photographers. If you hire them midweek, you are bound to be able to negotiate a better price.
5. Ask your favorite wedding photographer if he has an assistant that he trusts to shoot an entire wedding on his own. You will be able to get the assistant for a reduced price. The senior photographer would never risk his reputation sending out an untrained photographer. The result? You will have a great product at a great savings.
6. Schedule a professional photographer to shoot your ceremony and formal portraits. You may have a hard time finding someone who will shoot for just a couple of hours on a Saturday, but with some research, you may get lucky. Most likely, you will only need him for two hours. The photographer might even be able to book another wedding that day, which may increase your chances of hiring one for such a short period of time. With that in mind, you must keep your ceremony running on time so he can get to his next client.

When choosing a photographer, please keep in mind that you will never have a second chance to recapture the events of your wedding day. A wedding photographer is different than any other type of photographer. He has to have a great eye, think quickly on his feet, be able to handle many different personalities and work well under time constraints. You cannot count on just any good photographer being a great wedding photographer.

Now enjoy some of my favorite wedding photos. You will truly understand why I admire and use only the best wedding photographers. They aren’t all outrageously expensive, but they are all immensely talented!

Photo by nuvisionsinphotography.com

Photo by nuvisionsinphotography.com

Photo by Damontucci.com

Photo by Damontucci.com

Photo by nuvisionsinphotography.com

Photo by Karlafountain.com

I received a call from a rather anxious bride last week. She is getting married on September 20th… THIS YEAR. She hadn’t hired anything for it and she and her fiance wanted to do it at their home, that they moved into a month ago! Whewww. This is certainly a challenge, but not impossible.

We did our first walk through with the caterers yesterday. As we were discussing setup and choosing menus it reminded me of how different it is to do a wedding at home rather than a hotel or reception facility; so I thought I would share some of my secrets for a spectacular at-home wedding with you while those differences were on my mind.

• Make sure you have ample parking. The average street isn’t big enough to park fifty to seventy-five cars. If by some chance, your street is big enough, you don’t want your guests to have to hike a mile to get to your wedding. When I plan an at-home wedding, I suggest having guests park off-site and running shuttles back and forth to the house, or hiring a valet service. Both options ensure smooth arrivals and departures.
   
• Make sure you have ample restrooms. Not every home is equipped to with enough bathrooms to handle 150 guests. If your home is on a septic system, you could have some really big problems if you aren’t careful. I suggest renting a portable restroom. Now before you scrunch up your nose and envision the restrooms you see on a construction site, check out this photo…



• I also suggest hiring a restroom attendant. It is nice to have someone dedicated to making sure the restroom is clean and fully stocked. You can typically find one through your caterer and the fee should be reasonable.
   
• Always have a back up plan. In a perfect world it would never rain, snow, be too hot, or too cold on someone’s wedding day, but we all know that the world isn’t perfect! You should plan everything with your guests’ comfort in mind.
   
• Make sure you have a place to move your furniture in case you need to clear space inside your home for guests or make plans to rent a tent. Keep in mind if it is pouring rain, you need a covered walkway for your guests to get to the tent.
   
• Look into air conditioning and heating for the tent. Air conditioning can be expensive, but it is well worth it on a really hot day.
   
• I have little secret for you. In Orlando we have a rental company that will allow brides to reserve a tent, pay for the permitting and then decide 72 hours prior to the wedding whether or not they actually want the tent. If the weather looks gorgeous and the bride decides she doesn’t want it, all she loses is the permitting fee. See if you can strike up a deal like that.
   
• Make sure the caterer has ample space to work. A good rule of thumb is to have at least one car space available in your garage for the caterer to setup his kitchen.
   
• Cut your lawn a day before the tent goes up and ask your gardener (or yourself if you maintain your lawn) to cut the grass as short as possible without injuring it.
   
• If you have your lawn sprayed for bugs, make sure you have it done a few days prior to the wedding. You want to be as bug-free as possible, but you don’t want the chemical smell on your wedding day.
   
• Have bug spray available for your guests, just in case mosquitoes decide to attend the wedding reception. One of my brides supplied dryer sheets for the guests to rub on their skin. The smell was much more pleasant than that of bug spray and it seemed to have worked!
   
• Make sure you have enough power going to the tent. Keep in mind you will have warming lights for the caterer, DJ or band equipment and lighting — that takes a lot of juice!
   
• Above all, hire someone to be in charge. Now I know I may seem biased because I am a wedding planner, but really, do you want to be in charge of all the hustle and bustle of setting up tents, setting up portable restrooms, and receiving equipment deliveries? You should be in your bedroom being pampered by your hair and makeup artist!
   

I am a huge desert lover, so I have been thrilled at the revival of the Viennese dessert presentation at weddings. For those of you not familiar with the Viennese dessert presentation, it is essentially a buffet of different deserts — sometimes they are petite pastries like this photo from Karla Fountain Photography.

Sometimes they are full-sized cakes and pies. (Heaven!)

Some of my clients have elected to minimize their wedding cakes in favor of these desert presentations. As much as I love deserts, I think that the wedding cake is a traditional wedding symbol that shouldn’t be overlooked, especially since now there are so many varieties of flavors and styles. Wedding cakes are a true work of art and can even be used as a focal point in a room.

When choosing a wedding cake, it is important to consider two things first… How many people do you need to serve and where will the wedding cake be displayed? (Hint: If you are going to be in an area that is really hot and humid, stay away from chocolate shavings and spun sugar).

Other than that, make sure to go through a thorough interview process of your pastry chef. Don’t worry, this isn’t too much of a hardship, you get to look at beautiful cakes and taste some samples. Here are my recommendations on how to shop.

• As always, start with your budget. Make sure you know how much you want to spend.
   
• Look through magazines and on the Internet for styles that attract you. Keep in mind that some of those designs can be really expensive. The more intricate the design, the more expensive it will be. Don’t set yourself up to be disappointed.
   
• Set an appointment with a couple of pastry shops. Make sure they know you want to try samples of the cake.
   
• Take your handy Just Marry! Color Wheel, a swatch fabric from your bridesmaids dresses and some lace from your gown (lace can be a wonderful starting point for designing your cake).
   
• During the interview, make sure you have good communication with the pastry chef. He or she should be able to advise you on ways to spend your money wisely and still get a fabulous design.

On my recent trip to Jacksonville, I had the opportunity to visit Edgewood Bakery Sandy, the owner, is an amazing designer. The shop was filled with beautiful faux cakes that showed off her work. I asked her to send me some photos to share with you. I only wish you could taste the cake. It was amazing.

I hope you enjoy the photos and that they inspire you to find a creative design that reflects your style AND that you find a cake that tastes as good as it looks… Sandy’s sure do!