Photography & DJ Details

We recently had a few details we need to sort out with our photographers and dj company.  The photography package we purchased from our photographers included credit towards a wedding album.  Shortly after signing the contract with them, they informed us that one of the matted albums was discontinued from their supplier.  Of course, it was the album we wanted, and none of the other albums interested us.  So they are doing "research" to see if they can find another supplier for the vertical matted album.  We found that most studios we visited offer the photo-book style albums instead of the traditional album.  While we both think those are pretty cool, we both want to go with the matted style for our album.  We'll keep you posted on that.

The DJ company with which we signed a contract has about 18 DJs on staff.  The first step is to sign a contract with them.  Then, every few months, they hold a "Meet the DJs" night, which is basically like a speed-dating for a DJ.  They have drinks and appetizers, and the purpose is to go around and spent 3-4 minutes with each of their DJs to ask them questions about their style and get to know them.  At the end, we were to write down our top three choices.

The whole event was about two and half hours.  This was great in theory  The problem is that most couples ended up spending 15-20 minutes with each DJ, which significantly cut down on the number of people you could meet.  We ended up being about half an hour late, and only had time to speak to about eight or nine DJs.  So we picked our three and that was it.  If you keep up with our blog, you know that the company we hired is the same one Steve and Kati used.  We met with their DJ, who has since been promoted to a salesperson and is now primarily a backup DJ.  While we liked the DJs we picked for the most part, we decided that we really would have preferred to use him.  We have the option to have him be our DJ, but it will cost us an extra fee to do so, and the jury is still out on whether we will go that route or not.

Photo Opp

After much researching, debating, discussing, analyzing, delaying, walking, budgeting, negotiating, we have officially signed a contract with a photographer!  We decided to go with Mr. Stacey Photography.  The name may throw you off a bit, but as with any interesting name, there is a story.  Mr. Stacey Photography is really two photographers, Stacey and Yola.  Stacey is actually a guy (a pretty cool guy, too).  Due to the common association of the name Stacey to a female, they named their business "Mr." Stacey to avoid confusion.  Why not use his last name?  I don't know, but that's not too important to me at this point.

There were so many factors to consider in this decision, and while it was all about photography, it was so often comparing apples and oranges.  Some studios offered unlimited time, while others included two photographers in their prices.  So it was really difficult to effectively break down and compare the overall value for our money.  In the end, I think it really came down to the quality of their work.  Mary and I both really liked what we saw both online and in their albums during our visits.  the pictures were clear and crisp, yet exciting and truly representative of how we wanted our day captured.  We also both really like their approach to capturing multiple perspectives of our day, e.g. through the eyes of our guests as well as us.

Their service includes a photo album credit as well as a engagement photo session to help us "get comfortable in front of the camera."  Anyone who knows me knows that I like to take a lot pictures, but I'm not used to being in front of the camera too much.  With Stacey and Yola, though, I'm really confident and excited about the great pictures we'll have when all is said and done!

A Little Behind

To say the least, I am a little behind in posting to our blog.  Just when I think to do it, something else comes up and another day goes by.  I'll try to post a few in the next couple days to catch up.

For starters, we made it through the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer weekend.  It was a great experience and I am very glad that I participated.  I was not able to make it for the entire 39 miles, but am proud of how far I got and the decisions I made when I thought it best to stop.  From my estimations, I made it about 28-29 miles.  And although I had some pretty intense pain in my knee and my hips that I needed to recover from for the following 2 days after the walk, I had no long term injuries and I didn't get ANY blisters!  It was great to do this with Jack, Gina, my future sister-in-law, Liz, and our other team members Amy and Robyn.  All of my teammates and I were able to reach our fundraising goals prior to starting the weekend, so that was a relief for all.  Truthfully though, I am also very relieved that the Avon Walk is behind us for this year. 

Bright and early on Monday morning, Jack had to fly to LA for work.  While he was gone, it gave me a chance to fully recover from the walk and to get my act together on what I needed to focus on next, which still catching a movie with my friend (and bridesmaid), Kristen.  Once Jack came back, it has been pretty much full steam ahead to check things off our list.  We spent the entire day on Saturday with my parents working on wedding things, while still having a great time of course.  We were able to discuss SO MANY THINGS and either check things off the list or get the discussion going.  The great thing about having Jack there and doing it in person is that I did not have to be the middle-man.  Too often I talk to Jack about one thing, then say "well, I should probably check with my parents about (blank)", then have to relay their response back to him, and so on.  As you can imagine, this is exhausting.  But since Jack can always occupy himself on his laptop, there was not any wasted time.  I feel like we all discussed so much that I can't really remember what it was to provide a good update, except to say that we are getting VERY close to ordering our invitations and we decided on a photographer.  I have to make one phone call for some clarification with the invitation company and then I'll be ready to place the order.

Last night, Jack and I pretty much planned out the next few weeks for ourselves so that we could really get some of these outstanding items taken care of and off our to do list.  I think it is going to really be a busy few weeks, but I'll be so glad when all these bigger items are taken care of, such as finalizing the limo transportation, visiting tuxedo shops, and registering.

Tonight, Jack and I are going to sign the contract with our photographer.  Hooray!  One more thing off the list.

Photographers & DJs: Round 1

Just a quick update.  We've had appointments (or "consultations" as everyone in the industry has called it) with three photography studios so far.  Mary and I haven't said about any of them, "wow, these guys are it!", however, the photos of two of the studios we did like quite a bit.  We have one more appointment scheduled for tomorrow.  We've been asking all the standard questions like how long is the coverage?  Is there a location limit?  How many photographers?  Do they have back-up photographers?  Are we obligated to purchase an album?  Do we get the high-res digital negatives?  Of course we'll never cover EVERYTHING, but between Mary and I, I think we're doing a pretty good job covering our bases.  Hopefully after a few phone calls and some negotiations, we will have booked our photographer!

Also on the vendor front, we have an appointment with a DJ tomorrow, as well as a good recommendation from a friend of Mary's.  We're pretty sure we'll like the DJ we're meeting tomorrow, as we heard him play at Steve & Kati's wedding.  We're also pretty sure we'll like the other DJ as well, so hopefully we're in a good position.

It seems like the photographer and DJ are some the last really really big decisions we have to make.  Not that the florist and transportation and invitations and all that aren't important, but the two are such important aspects of the event.  I mean, the photos are one of the only things we'll have to help us remember our special day, and having great music is what makes a great party.  After that, it will be a hundred little decisions to make, but, hopefully, it will be much easier to make those decisions!