Wedding planning can be stressful, especially when you have to meet with so many people and it all seems to get pushed to the weekends. Let Ovation Images, Pittsburgh’s Best Wedding Photographers, help! We offer meetings all week long in our Shadyside studio. So don’t add one more meeting to your busy weekend- meet with us about your wedding day photography on a weekday evening. Plus, many of the fantastic restaurants in Shadyside offer you a discount on the night that you meet with us! So don’t think of it as another wedding meeting- make it a date night!

The warm weather this weekend reminded us all that spring certainly is approaching quickly, and that means wedding season is right around the corner! We still have some dates open for 2013, so if you are looking for an award winning wedding photographer contact us today to see if your date is available!

In 11+ years, Ovation Images has photographed over 400 weddings. We are lucky enough to get to know our couples quite well through our meetings and engagement session, plus the wedding and all the follow-up!  Many of our brides from five years ago keep in touch with us through facebook. That is part of what makes our work so rewarding. So it should come as no surprise that we’ve had a thousand discussions with our couples about how they’ve saved money on their wedding–or how they’ve tried to save, or how they didn’t-save-and-wished-they-had! Let us pass along some of the wedding dollars saving ideas we have heard….

Part 1: The Three Big Ticket Items

Discuss saving money on wedding expenses with almost anyone who has been there, and three common threads will definitely come up….

1. Number of Guests. The biggest single impact you can have on the cost of your wedding is controlling your guest list. Unfortunately, many couples consider this to be out of their control. Others booked smaller venues specifically so they could tell uninvited guests that the guest list had to be severely constrained to fit the venue. If you can get away with a strict guest limit, your wedding will cost less–that is guaranteed savings.

2. Non-Saturday Wedding: Every wedding vendor offers discounts for non-Saturday weddings. Even posh downtown reception venues will have a 33% or more discount on their event service for non-Saturday weddings. Memorial Day and Labor Day Fridays and Sundays are surefire dates that will leave more money in your bank account.

3. Know Your Priorities. Get any wedding planner book you want, review the services listed and rank them 1-2-3-4-etc. Be prepared to spend more than you planned on 1, 2 and 3 and be equally prepared to eliminate 9, 10 and 11 to pay for the increase. Sticking to a budget only works if you have your priorities clearly in focus (Ovation Images’ obligatory photography pun!).

Coming in Part 2: Wedding Savings You can Count On!

Have clear goals for your wedding day schedule–and then time things accordingly. Do you want more time for fun with your bridal party? A special photography location? More time alone with Mr. Right? At Ovation Images, we can’t tell you how to plan your day. But we can tell you four common time traps you can avoid!

2. Don’t Allocate Too Much Time For Family Reunion Pictures. Mom wants all the uncles on this side, then that side, then all the nephews and nieces, then…..and YOU have to be in every picture. This is called the “how to miss your own wedding” trap. If Mom has a big family reunion photography agenda, get one of the new breed of “Open Air Photo Booth” where a live photographer takes the pictures and any size group can be accommodated (as offered by Ovation images). Have the DJ tell everyone to be sure and get their picture taken at the Photo Booth. Mission accomplished with no time lost. And everyone will have big fun with it!

3. Don’t Shortchange Your Limo Time. You have smartly allocated extra time for photography at the park or the pillars or your favorite spot in between your wedding and reception. But when that time comes, your limo driver says “well, if we do that, we’re going to run over time and I will have to charge you $175.” Don’t lose your precious photography for want of a ride. Make sure you have enough limo time reserved to accommodate your favorite location photography between your wedding and reception.

4. Don’t Schedule Reception Events Too Late: Don’t put off the dances, garter and bouquet, bridal dance, anniversary dance and any special reception events until late in the evening. People will start to lose focus and leave. At Ovation Images, our recommended reception schedule is: Grand Entrance, cake cutting, first dance (interchangeable), followed by toasts, blessing and dinner. After dinner, do your parent dances, anniversary dance and any events involving the old folks (grandparents dance, memorial dance, etc.).  Now have an open dance floor for 40 minutes. After that, do all your remaining events: garter/bouquet, bridal dance, and so on. Finally, now let your DJ or band open the dance floor for the night. Par-tee!! This is a schedule that ALWAYS works for all your guests–young and old.

One of the many exciting things you can do with your gorgeous Ovation Images engagement photography is create delightful and memorable save-the-date cards. Engagement Photography at your choice of location is included with every Ovation Images wedding photography package specifically because the pictures are so useful–and fun! Here’s what you need to know about save-the-dates:

• When do I send out save the date cards? Five months before your wedding date is about right for people that need to make travel plans–especially if your wedding is on a holiday weekend.
• What if I don’t have my guest list ready five months ahead of time? This is a problem because you could end up sending save-the-dates out to people who later can’t be invited because you have maxed out your space. So you pretty much have to have your guest list done in order to send out your save-the-dates.
• Is there a formal structure for save-the-date cards? No. The formal structure comes in when you send your invitations. Have fun with your save-the-dates! Send them something they will want to keep up even after your wedding!
• Do I want cards or magnets? Cards are less expensive but magnets have become popular. Check the price difference before deciding.
• Can I use my engagement photos on my cards or magnets? If they are Ovation Images photos, the answer is yes–regardless of whether we supply the cards or magnets or you get them elsewhere. With other photographers the answer may not be so clear–check with them.
• How do I design my cards? You can pay a designer or do them yourself online on any number of web sites. With Ovation Images, you have the option of using our designer to custom-design your cards or magnets at no charge, provided that you purchase the cards or magnets from us. Ovation Images custom-designed save-the-date cards and magnets are designed to your exact specifications. You work directly with our designer to get the card you want–even coordinated with your wedding colors if desired! The only limitation is that you must buy the cards and magnets from Ovation Images if we design them.

Here are two examples of Ovation Images custom-design save-the-dates:

Sometimes the little things make a big difference. Here are some little ideas we have seen at Ovation Images that made big positive impact for our brides.

1. Massage: If your hair stylist and makeup artist are coming to you instead of you going to them, hire a massage therapist to be there for you and your girls. It will create a spa-like atmosphere–comfortable and fun. And it will give everyone something to do while they are waiting for the other girls to get done.

2. Relax Your Schedule: Plan the itinerary for the whole day…and then insert ADDITIONAL time above and beyond what you have planned, as follows: 30 minutes before the ceremony, 60 minutes between the ceremony and reception, and 20 minutes to “duck out” during the reception. Leave those time slots open. Let the fun and happiness of the day spontaneously fill that extra time. That is your special time for each other or for whatever you want or need to do that may come up unanticipated.

3. Cappuccino and Craft Beer: A cappuccino bar and craft beers in bottles are delightful, fun additions to any wedding reception. It is just these kinds of touches that send people home all warm and happy from a great day with friends and family!

4. Friends With Talent: Dad sings? Brother is a singer/songwriter? One of your bridesmaids writes poetry? Invite them all to be included in the pageant of your day! That personal involvement will make your day extra-special–for them and for you!

Thinking through the little stuff will take your wedding day to the next level!

You definitely DO want two photographers for your wedding. That way one can focus on you while the other one can capture all the things around you that might otherwise go unappreciated–saving those moments for you to enjoy later.

There are dozens of examples of why you want two photographers. Let’s look at your Grand Entrance. One photographer will have to be locked on your and your bridal party coming into the room. But a second photographer will capture your parents cheering wildly, your bridal party sharing the joy, your Aunts hugging and crying–and all the wedding reception mayhem that goes by in one brilliant, white-light flash. If you want well-done, candid story-telling of your day, then you want two photographers.

Two photographers also provide built-in backup for one another. In the case of Ovation Images, we believe that TWO is the magic number for your wedding. So the two of us, both full time wedding professionals, travel in separate cars, each carrying a full set of backup equipment, both fully insured, and both exceptionally well-trained and experienced. We work together hand-in-glove. But in an emergency, either one can act alone to ensure that you have everything you want from your big day. This is what “two photographers” means to us.

Be sure your wedding photography passes the Two Photographer Test. “One photographer and an assistant” will not get the same results as two trained pros. Two photographers traveling in the same car is a risk–what happens if the car breaks down on the way to your wedding? And finally, are both photographers insured? Most insurance policies do not cover anything when only one photographer has insurance. Be sure to ask your wedding photographer what “two photographers” means to them.

Your wedding hair stylist has a dirty little scheduling secret. She told you to come in at 8:30 AM so she could focus on you and your girls and you could bring some snacks and drinks and make an event out of it! Wow! What fun! Well, not exactly.  This is what she really meant to say “I want you to come in at 8:30 AM because that won’t interfere with my prime time schedule from 11-2. My goal is to get you into an early time slot that none of my other clients want and that way your wedding won’t conflict with my regular schedule.” So what happens? You get your hair done at 9:30AM for your 4PM wedding. It starts to fall out before anyone even sees you! And you have to walk around on tippy-toes all day to take care of your hair. By the time your DJ gets the dance floor jumping at at 10PM, your hair has been in for over 12 hours–and looks like it!  Well, that’s a worse case scenario for sure.  But don’t be fooled.  Be sure to set the time that best suits you and let your hair stylist plan around that. For a 4PM wedding, noon is the right time to get your hair done. For a 2PM wedding, 10AM is about right–later if you can swing it. It will still be a fun event with your girls. Only now it will be on your schedule instead of someone else’s.

Planning your wedding? As you know by now, the devil lurks in the details. Your wedding florist may need some guidance to avoid flowering foolishness. Here are four problems that we want to help you avoid. At Ovation Images, we have unfortunately seen all of these issues dozens of times.

1. Delivery: “All flowers go to the church” does not work if you want pictures with your girls before your ceremony. In that case, you will need the girls bouquets and yours with you wherever you are getting ready. Insist on it.

2. Arrangement Choices: A florist that specializes in weddings and events will have a MUCH larger selection of arrangements and options than a regular neighborhood florist. Talk with your local specialist and you will immediately notice the difference.

3. Boutineer Whoops: Who pins on the boutineers? If your florist won’t be there, make sure they train someone in advance to correctly pin on the boutineers SO THAT THEY STAY PUT. Thee is nothing worse than stepping onto the dance floor with your new husband and realizing that he is dancing with you with his boutineer hanging upside down!

4. No Head Table Vases. Flowers have to lay down on the head table, not stand tall. Anything standing tall in front of you will interfere with your guests seeing your reactions to your toasts, seeing you kissing when they tap their glasses, and those tall vases will ruin all your pictures at the head table. You do not want any floral vases at your head table.