Wedding Tip Wednesday- KNOW THE RULES!

Did you know many ceremony venues have rules that they impose on photographers and videographers? It's important to know and understand these rules when planning your wedding...and to share them with your photographer and videographer!
We do a LOT of beach weddings, but we have done quite a few church weddings over the years and it seems that there are more and more restrictions on what we can do. Many of these were brought about by bad-behaving photographers/videographers who didn't respect the sanctity of the ceremony or the church.
I've seen and heard some crazy things! Videographers standing right at the front of the church, blocking the view of the ring exchange for the groom's parents, photographers walking around the altar, people standing on a pew to get the shot, etc.
Things like that have led to policies that make it more challenging to get the photographs that brides and grooms want. Here's just a few examples of things I've been told:
-You can stand at the back of the aisle and DON'T MOVE from that spot or I'll kick you out.
-No photographs can be taken during the ceremony.
-No flash (and yet the guest's cameras are going off all during the ceremony)
-You can only photograph from the balcony
-If you are a distraction, I'll stop the ceremony and yell at you.
-Tripods are not allowed.
Usually, these statements are followed by something like, "I've seen photographers all over the place, distracting the ceremony..." Here's an example of what can happen when someone doesn't follow the rules:

Now, for the first two scenarios I listed, the bride had no idea that this was the case! After I was told that I couldn't move, I explained it to the bride that my movement was limited and she broke into tears. I managed to talk my way into being allowed halfway down the aisle.
For the second one on the list, the officiants were the bride's uncle and father and she had no idea that they weren't going to allow any photos! It was a very small church, and I convinced them to allow us to shoot from the vestibule, the balcony, and off to the side.

My purpose of this post is to knock churches, but to inform people about something they might not be aware of. Some people get married in their family church, others choose a church for it's beauty or location. Make sure that you know all the details so you're not surprised! You should also make sure that your photographer knows what to expect from the church and from you. If you don't want them blocking views and being a distraction, let them know.

I'll close with this- I've also had instances where the officiant tells us to get the photographs that will make the couple happy. Every priest/pastor is different and some will go with their own policy that may contradict the "house rules." We love those officiants :)

Visit my website to see what kind of photographs can be taken while following the rules- www.samellis.com.

Photographs were meant to live out in the wild!

The digital age is amazing! The novelty of having a camera in your pocket at all times is just incredible and allows us to take snapshots of EVERYTHING. It's revolutionized photography. In fact, I had planned on quitting professional photography just before digital cameras became cost and quality comparable to film cameras. Digital changed my photography forever!
The downside of digital is the glut of images that we have. We take so many photographs that we take them and then forget about them...until Throwback Thursday LOL! To some degree, photographs have become devalued. They're just pixels displayed on whatever screen we view them on. They're temporary! So sad.
But photographs weren't meant to be stored deep in your computer only to be seen when you need to go  back to them. Photographs were meant to be displayed! That's why most of my wedding packages include a print credit so clients can get prints to frame and hang on the wall. I also offer albums that will last generations. Your computer can crash, the dvd can get lost, the technology will change...but prints and albums can last for a hundred years or who knows how long!
The walls of our house are covered with framed prints, canvas prints, and metal prints (very cool). We have pictures of our kids from babies to the most recent Christmas card photo hanging all over the place. There are VOLUMES of photo albums in our living room that we break out from time to time to look at. THIS is where photographs belong. Out in the open, being displayed, enjoyed. I'll admit, I love sharing images online, but they only last until the next image pops up.

Choosing the right wedding photographer- Wedding Wednesday

When you're planning a wedding, there are thousands of decisions to make, but I believe one of the most important ones is choosing your photographer. I know it's cliché, but once the flowers have wilted, the cake and food are gone, and the music stops, all you have left are the photographs. Well, and a video, so the same tips apply :) Make sure you pick the right photographer, here's some tips for you:

• Look at the photographer's full body of work and look at a few complete weddings and album designs. Anyone can take a couple good photographs throughout a day, but can they consistently take great photographs throughout the entire wedding? 
• Find someone whose style you like, don't assume that they will change to fit what you want.
• Meet with them in person if possible. While a lot of my clients come from out of the area, most still meet with me before booking me for their wedding. If you can't meet in person, at least talk on the phone or even Skype. It's the best way to get a feel if you're going to get along with the person or not. You'll be spending a lot of time with your photographer, you want to get along.
• Ask around. Other vendors will tell you if a photographer is good or not. You can also look at online reviews such as Wedding Wire.

Don't just take my word for it, here's what a past client had to say:

I got engaged in September 2012 and was married in September 2013. After we had locked down our wedding date, I went online and researched several photographers as we were to be married in Rehoboth Beach. 
My fiancé and I met with Sam on the same day after interviewing 2 other photographers, who were both lacking the professionalism I was looking for. 
When we got to Sam's studio we were blown away. He had music playing, wedding photos displayed everywhere, and he literally sold us with his affordable wedding day packages and easy going attitude. 
He was extremely responsive the months leading up to the wedding day - AND afterwards. 
One piece of advice I received when choosing a photographer was on your wedding day you want someone who isn't going to cause added stress. Not only did Sam and his team take amazing pictures but we all had a lot of laughs together throughout the day and into the night. 
He also had our wedding photos posted up on the website in a few weeks - the turnaround was awesome. 
I couldn't recommend Sam Ellis more. 

To see what other clients have to say, check out my WeddingWire page.

Wedding Wednesday: You're engaged...now what?

Here are some wedding planning tips to get you started.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! It's Wednesday, so this is the first Wedding Wednesday of the year and the first one in the blog format!
The time between Thanksgiving and New Years is the most popular time of year for marriage proposals! In fact, I proposed to my wife at the stroke of midnight 19 years ago :) Maybe you or someone you know got engaged recently, now what do you do? The easy answer is to start planning, but where do you even begin with that?

Nearly every newly engaged couple I've talked to has told me that they have no idea what they're doing when it comes to planning. While there are a lot of resources out there, it's good to start off with some basic information first, here's my advice.

Of course, I would love to say that you need to find your photographer first, and some people do book their photographer and then base the rest of the decisions around their availability. Most experts recommend getting what are called the "four corners" booked- church or other ceremony venue, reception venue, photographer, and DJ.

Generally speaking, most people decide the time of year they want to get married and begin looking for ceremony and reception venues that are available. Once those are booked and your date is locked in, you can look at booking the other two corners- the photographer and the DJ. Why these two? Because they are vendors who only do one wedding a day. Florists, cake bakers, rental companies, officiants, and other vendors can do more than one wedding so they don't get booked up as quickly. However, they can only do so many weddings in a weekend so it's best not to delay looking for these vendors or you may not be able to get the one you want. As you might imagine, the best florists and bakers have are the first ones to fill their calendars.

For a list of vendors that I've personally worked with and recommend, visit my website, www.samellis.com and go to the Wedding Package and Information page. If you're reading this blog early enough, consider going to the Night Under The Stars Wedding Expo on Friday, January 3rd. Click on the link to find out more information.