» Wedding Album

Video Blog: Do you Want to Trash your Dress?

Dani — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:59:12 +0000

Ok, Trash-the-Dress may not be for the faint of heart, but you’ll get to see me in my wedding dress in this week’s Matrimony Monday on, you guessed it, Trash-the-Dress.

DVP Trash the dress

Happy planning,

Dani

Video Blog: Making a Shoot List

Dani — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 13:06:28 +0000

A shoot list is simply a list o photographs you want your photographer to take. This week’s Matrimony Monday discusses why I like one.

DVP Shoot List

Happy Planning,

Dani

Video Blog: Including Children in Your Wedding Ceremony

Dani — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 13:58:54 +0000

I love kids, but they do bring an element of ”the unscripted” to a wedding day. This week’s Matrimony Monday talks about kids and getting the best pictures you can of the important “shorties” in your life.

DVP Kids

Happy Planning,

Dani

Video Blog: Choosing a Location

Dani — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 13:00:37 +0000

Welcome to this week’s Matrimony Monday. On today’s web blog, I am discussing locations for formal wedding portraits.

DVP Web Blog: Locations

Happy planning,

Dani

Video Blog: Taking Studio Shots for your Wedding Photos

Dani — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 13:01:30 +0000

I love natural light, but adding some studio shots to your wedding album is a great way to mix it up a bit. This Matrimony Monday’s video blog chats about just that: studio pics!

DVP Studio Shoots

Happy Planning,

Dani

The Benefits of a Second Photographer at your Wedding

Dani — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 13:00:19 +0000

Having a second photographer isn’t a frivolous expense. In fact, most photographers are like me and don’t make any money by having a second photographer at your wedding. The couple hundred dollars it costs you to have a photographer at the groom’s place, and a second photographer at the wedding goes right to the hired second photographer.

So why do I like to have my couples to have two photographers? Truth, it’s no longer all about the bride. That’s right ladies, the eighties are over and we now have to share our wedding day with our guy. (And, though I occasionally have a hankering for fluorescent t-shirts, the wedding dresses of the 80′s were just a little much and are thankfully over.)

Pictures of the groom getting ready too tells the whole story
The right second photographer will be able to make the guys comfortable, as well as capture those moments that happen at his “getting ready” spot. Just as there are corsages to pin and hair to primp where the girls are getting ready, the boys too do their own thing. Perhaps there’s a golf game or a road hockey game. (And, hopefully no one gets hurt!) Most likely, the groom’s parents will be at this location. Mom’s get just as emotional when their boys get married as they do when it’s their girls turn to walk down the aisle.

The point is, without a second photographer the first portion of the album will be all about you, and the girls in your wedding party.

At the ceremony
Now, I’m not saying the a ceremony can’t be covered by one photographer, but having another there provides additional coverage. If you are getting married at a church with a balcony then while one photographer gets the “ground level” action, the other can run up to the balcony for an additional point of view.

The two points of view also provide for exceptional album layouts.

For one wedding I shot, the couple had a helicopter fly over the ceremony and grab a couple wide shots. Now, I’m not suggesting everyone hires a helicopter, but you have to admit it’s pretty cool.

A Different view for the formals
Sometimes that other view really contributes to the overall story. While I was shooting this…
This is what Kyle shot.

Kind of cool, don’t you think?

The dinner and reception
Usually, the primary photographer can field the reception, but if you’re worried that something might be missed a second photographer ensures that there is full coverage.

Better candids
I just can’t be in all places at once. A second photographer can get the different angles. Here are two candids that my second Kyle caught these two gems while I was getting close-ups of the bouquet.

At the end of the day, we are all constrained by the reality of our wedding budget, but if you can swing it a second wedding photographer contributes greatly to the overall telling of your wedding day story.

Happy planning,

Dani

Choosing Pictures for Parent Albums

Dani — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 11:00:58 +0000

You may not even know what a parent book is. (And that’s OK; that’s why I have this blog.) A parent book is an album that is prepared specifically for the parent’s of the bride and groom. (There may be more than two if there are divorced parents in the mix.) In most cases the album is designed once and then the album is printed for each set of parents. It is usually physically smaller than the album that is created for the bride and groom, but not always.

Jenna with her Attendants

A parent album can be any number of pages; 12, 24, or 30 are common page numbers, and often it contains many of the same pictures you have chosen for your own wedding album. The album should tell the story of your wedding day and reflect the photographic style that better reflects your parent’s. (This might be the same as your own, but my experience is that parents do prefer the more traditional photos.)

Jenna with her Parents

It is a good idea to talk to your parents about what they would like in their album. Perhaps they would like more pictures of the church or ceremony then you selected for your own album.

Jenna and Dan: The View

You’ll need to keep in mind the number of “detailed” photos that were included in your package. If you pick too many new pictures, you’ll risk going over your allotted amount. Of course, if you feel that these photos better express the day from your parent’s perspective, we can work together to determine which to include without inflating the price past your budget.

Happy planning,

Dani