As you think about your wedding day we want to first of all thank you for placing your trust in our services on this very special day of yours. You have chosen us among other companies and we want to prove to you and your family and friends that, that choice was a good one. We strive for excellence, but in order to achieve this, we ask that you do the following things. This will ensure the success of your special day.
1. Read the information in this packet, its from over 20 years of experience in doing weddings and can prevent negative things happening on your wedding day.
2. Fill out the worksheets, mail it to us 2 weeks before your wedding (DJ & Photography services). If you are providing any CDs to us please send those along with your worksheets. Digital Music must be in Mp3 format.
3. Any music requests for Video must be given to us in writing (by email or letter) by event date.
4. If using our DJ service, tell the manager of your reception hall that you need an 8 ft table for the DJ. If using our Big Screen Projector, We need 8ft from DJ table to wall.
It is our desire to provide our services to you with Excellence, however if you send the information in late, it increases the possibility of something negative happening on your wedding day. The are many variables & logistics that go into making a successful wedding and we need a certain amount of time to prepare all of our people, so we ask for your help in this matter.
We find some brides try to do too much. There are these demons called Worry and Panic that tends to attack brides before their wedding day. As Franklin Roosevelt said “There is nothing to fear, but fear itself”. In the words of a great philosopher, Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry, Be Happy”. We see brides that let all the minor details get in the way of what is most important, to enjoy your day and have a smile on your face. Our professionals know what they’re doing and have your best interest in mind. You trusted us when you booked us, we ask you to trust us on your wedding day as well, and your special day will be a resounding success. You tell us the results you want, and if you allow us to use our methods, you will be very happy with the end result. It really is this simple.
There are logistical items associated with weddings and receptions that this packet of information will explain. Our pictures online, as well as our videos were done under favorable conditions. Some of the things are beyond our control and beyond your control such as church restrictions, weather, etc. Other things are beyond our control, but within your control such as cooperation with Photographer, Videographer, wedding starting on time, scheduling of events at receptions, restrictions on music for DJ, etc. Our information is designed to help you avoid some potential issues.
A little note about receiving lines. They tend to waste valuable time and although done for the guests, ends up putting them through unnecessary discomfort. It usually works best to go around during the reception and greet your guests, while they are sitting comfortably at their tables. Allowing too much time between the ceremony and reception will cause guests to leave pre-maturely, and receiving lines will cut into valuable time of your photos.
On your wedding day you have many different people and personalities working for you; Officiant, Photographer, Videographer, Caterer, DJ, Coordinator. If one of those people is a little dysfunctional, over controlling, and has a disregard for the other services, it can affect the effectiveness of your other services. Sometimes it can be an over-controlling Catering Head, who tries to tell the DJ when to do the dances, thus completely ruining the flow of the dancing. Sometimes it’s an inexperienced DJ, who doesn’t communicate with the Caterer and Photographer and doesn’t give them any advance warning on when he’s doing an event. (Toast, Cake-Cutting, Garter/Bouquet toss). We are very good at what we do, if allowed to do it uninterrupted. We ask that, in these situations, that you support us. Many times we are doing things in a certain order, and since what we do is different from what an average DJ or Photographer does, a certain vendor or catering head may not realize that we are doing things for a certain reason. For example the DJ, is not just thinking about the music, but, being he is connected with our Photographer and Videographer, he might be doing activities in a certain order due to the effectiveness of the video and pictures. We are more than happy to be flexible with the caterer when it comes to the timing of Dinner, or doing the Cake-Cutting (as long as they don’t ask us to do it right after we have just started the dancing, thus hurting the momentum of getting people on dance floor), since these are things that they are responsible for. We are always very friendly to all you other vendors.
Some churches severely limit what the Videographer and Photographer can do. This will greatly affect the quality of the video and pictures. We suggest that you tell the church how important the video and pictures are to you and many times that will help to give us the freedom that will help the quality of your video and pictures.
Since the success and beauty of the final images are dependant on the cooperation of the subjects; photographer shall not be liable for any subjective issues, such as, but not limited to 1)awkward smiles, 2)facial blemishes, 3)frowns, 4)unpleasant moods, or 5)backgrounds. It is ok for friends and family members to take pictures, however, be aware that this can slow us down, and therefore can 1) take away from the time in taking your portrait shots as well as 2)cause people in your pictures to be looking different directions. We suggest you encourage family and friends to listen and follow the lead of the photographer. TIME IS CRITICAL, during photos, the more interruptions, the fewer photos we will get of the Bride & Groom Portraits. Any extra family pictures we can always get later, but we always want to get to the “money shots”, artistic pictures of Bride & Groom, while the lighting is prime. Although the wedding is a family event, ultimately it is about you two, therefore the bride/groom pictures have to take priority over family shots during prime time for lighting.
With your help, we’ll make your wedding day one that friends and family will talk about for years to come; so sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride and thank you for the honor of serving you on one of the greatest days of your life.
Randy Markham