HELP WANTED – NOW HIRING – 4 POSITIONS AVAILABLE

– PHOTOGRAPHER

– PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT

– VIDEOGRAPHER

– VIDEOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANT

We are currently interviewing highly motivated, fun and energetic candidates for 4 positions for our upcoming 2016 wedding season, which starts this coming March.

All positions may start off strictly with “non-shooting” duties, long hours standing up, some heavy lifting, carrying gear bags, holding lights, modifiers and other duties as needed. Positions may evolve into a “shooting” position, for the right person, based on your proven skills set, people skills, energy level and willingness to put in the time and effort it takes to become a shooter for this demanding studio. For all positions, except “assistant”, photography / videography experience is a must.

We are a busy Full Service Photography & Video studio and occasionally you may be asked to help with either the Photo or Video side of our business….or both. Ability to work at a fast pace and multitask is a plus.

Our primary work is Weddings, which occur mostly nights and weekends, so we are looking for people who are willing and able to work almost every Fri-Sun primarily from late afternoon, into the late evening…from Spring through early Winter. (March-December). Most work days are typically 10-12 hours.

Only those candidates who are energetic, self motivated, have reliable transportation, are consistently timely and are willing to put 100% into their work will be considered. A probationary period will occur, followed by a performance evaluation.

Our studio is located in Oxford, MA, which is approx 15 minutes from Worcester (45 minutes from Boston). Consider your commute prior to applying for this position.

If you are interested in being considered for any position, please contact us via email only. We will reply to all inquiries. Serious inquiries only please. Recent samples of your own photography or video work is required.

Send inquiries / resume to:
info@diazdd.com

Ed Diaz
Diaz Digital Discoveries, LLC

Why do our wedding clients and reception venues love us so much?

Our wedding photography and video teams work together smoothly and efficiently.

Since 2005, we have been consistently offering our clients the very best in our wedding photography services.  A few short years afterwards, we began offering wedding video services as well.  Our combined photography & video wedding packages have become our most popular package, outselling any of our other wedding packages and services to date.  More and more clients are choosing us to capture both services, because it truly is the best of both, from one talented and experienced source.  If you are wondering what’s so great about these combined services and what’s so great about us, here are a few of the reasons why our wedding clients and reception venues love us so much.

Award-Winning Talent:  A wedding celebration is probably one of the most difficult events to capture (and get it right) due to the fast pace of the day, the many different milestones that happen and the most important factor that you must get it right the first time, because there are no do-overs.  If you missed the moment…it’s gone.  Try to recreate it and it won’t happen. It just won’t be the same.  It takes hard work and a keen creative eye to create so many images in one day, that will help our clients relive their wedding day.  It also takes skilled people behind the video cameras, to create a cinematic experience of your wedding celebration that cannot be compared to your uncle’s (insert mobile device) video.

We Go All Out:  Here at Diaz Digital Discoveries we create both of these works; professional wedding photography and cinematic wedding films for our clients and we do it filled with passion.  Yes, we love our job!  We love what we do for our clients and they also love us.  We go all out, every single time we do a wedding, because it’s so important to us and we know that it’s so important to you.  But we feel what makes us so special is that in addition to our wedding clients, their families and guests, the wedding venues that we work in, whether it be for the first time, or returning to one of the many wedding venues which have selected us as one of their recommended vendors, all love us so much.  Here are just a few of our goals: (in no certain order because they are all equally important to us)

You Didn’t See Anything:  Our primary goal is to get great moments, to capture emotions and to create stunning images of your wedding day, but we also work very hard to be unobtrusive. We want you to forget that we are even there.  We don’t practice “in your face” photography and video and we capture your celebration from a distance for the most part.  We operate in stealth mode and at times you may see us for just a moment…and then we disappear into the background (like Ninjas)…all while still capturing the milestones and the moments in between.

The Fun Factor:  Our secondary goal is to make it fun for you, your family and your guests. Our level of high energy cannot be compared. It’s something you need to experience for yourself.  We have heard many times from many people…our clients, their families and wedding guests… how they can’t believe how much fun we are and how fast we move around…(we are everywhere) and always add to that how many weddings they have attended before to compare with.  A wedding is a celebration and a celebration should be fun.  We keep the fun going throughout the day, which allows us to capture the best smiles, reactions and moments from everyone attending.

We Like Hot Meals:  Our third goal is not to make you late for dinner.  We realize that your reception venue has a dinner schedule and we do everything we can to make sure we don’t interfere with that schedule.  Being the primary chef at my own home, I know the feeling of frustration from not being able to serve your “masterpiece dinner” on time.  It’s a feeling I don’t wish upon anyone else, so we capture your wedding, your formals, your families and your other important moments, all within the time frame allotted by your wedding reception venue.  The venue loves us for that and they are very glad to have us return because of they know we won’t be the reason they serve dinner late. Plus, we also like our meals to be served hot. 😉

All For One – One For All:  Our fifth goal is to provide our clients with both wedding photography and video services in one seamless service.  Call us a one-stop-shop. By that we mean, that our amazing photography and  video team work very well together.  Both teams are working towards the same goal…to provide our clients with an unforgettable experience.  We are not competing with each other (like a sole photographer and sole videographer would) to get the best shots for themselves.  We are also very mindful of each other, so as not to get in the way of the important shots…something else you won’t experience when you hire a separate photographer and video crew.  Best part is, you have one less vendor to deal with when you book both services with us.  We have a long list of extremely happy clients, their families and their guests, who rave about our products and services.

If you have experienced us at a wedding celebration, then you are probably recalling that great time when…(fill in the blanks) happened and we caught it. 🙂  If you are getting married and you haven’t experienced our wedding photography and video services, then you don’t know what your missing!  Chances are you already know someone who selected us for their wedding.  Reach out to them and ask them what they thought of us.  Word of mouth is the best way to know for sure.  Read our rave reviews which can be found on our website, Weddingwire, The Knot and our Facebook fan page.  Finally, give us a call, schedule a time to meet with us, get to know us and share your wedding day plans and wishes with us.  Then you will know you have made the right choice.  We capture every single wedding like it is our own and that way, we can be proud to put our DDD name on it.

Find out what our extremely happy clients (and happy venues) already know.   When it comes to wedding photography & video…you’re going to want to choose us.

Did you plan enough time for all your wedding photos?

Planning a wedding is a huge task and it can be difficult to estimate how much time things are going to take throughout the day.  Most couples will get advice from friends or relatives who recently had their own weddings on how to estimate times and create their wedding day timeline.

Many times I am so disappointed when I learn that the “Formal Photography” portion of the day is just about one hour long.  Typically this is the time between the end of the ceremony and the start of the reception and most often is only 60 minutes, especially when the ceremony and reception are in the same location.  Well, that may be 60 minutes on paper, but it never works out that way in real life.

See, in order to get that full hour that is allotted on the timeline, there can be no deviations whatsoever.  This means no receiving line. No distractions. No talking to anyone after the ceremony. No bathroom or smoke breaks. No eating or drinking anything and everyone must stay together until all the photos are done.  Any deviation from this will throw off the timeline and this time loss must be recovered somewhere.  Unfortunately, the time lost is often recovered from what was originally allotted for the formal photo hour.

It’s sad because couples spend lots and lots of money to plan this important day and in most cases, it’s that very couple who ends up with the least amount of formal photos.  Yes, of course the whole day is about you, the newly married couple and you are being photographed throughout the day, in order to tell the story, but when the formal photography part comes, you are missing out.  If we only have one hour to do all of the formal photos, we start with the entire wedding party (how many do you have?), then immediate families on both sides, extended families on both sides, then smaller groups, etc.  Once all of this is done, then it’s time to photograph just the two of you together…oh wait…we now have 10 minutes left before you have to go line up to be introduced for the reception party. 😦

In order to create a full series of beautiful, artistic and story-telling images of your wedding, we need time.  More than just 10 or 15 minutes.  Let’s not even factor in if we are creating a video as well.  Those wedding films that you see us create, take time to create. Just like in Hollywood, we need to film sequences and sometimes, filming those sequences will require a “Take Two” or “Take Three” if they didn’t come out just right.

Ideally, it would be amazing to have Two Hours to photograph all of the formals.  This may seem like a lot of time, but it really isn’t.  Those couples that do give us this time end up with lots more beautiful, creative and artistic photos and they are so happy they did.

You wouldn’t plan such an important day, invest so much money and pay so much attention to all the details, without allowing enough time for photography or video, would you?  Just remember… after your wedding is over, all you will have left is vague memories of the day, your wedding rings, photos/video and perhaps a wedding album.  We want to be able to capture you at your best and create beautiful wedding album designs like this one shown.  In order to do this, we need time.  The more time we have, the better.

When planning your wedding day, be sure to factor-in enough time for photography and/or video!

Then & Now: A Look Back at 10 Years

As some of you may know, this year we celebrate our 10th anniversary in business.  We have been extremely blessed over the last decade with lots of great clients, new found friendships and we have been doing a lot of reflecting on the past ten years.  I still can’t believe that it has been that long since I made the decision to create my photography business.  I can vividly remember how scared I was, putting myself (and my work) out there for the whole world to see and judge.  It has to be one of the scariest/bravest moments in my life.  Were it not for all the support I received from my wife, friends and family, I never would have done it.  I owe a great deal to all of them!

Throughout the years of creating portraits and photographing many, many weddings our growth came about slowly I think…sometimes even unnoticed, over the weeks, months and years.  In order to see how much I have grown and what I have learned, I decided to conduct my own experiment.  I decided to compare “apples to apples”, so to speak.

My very first client (victim) was Jennie, pictured above.  She was very instrumental in helping me from the very beginning.  She was extremely patient with me as I struggled with learning posing, lighting and all the technical aspects of photography, at the start of my career.  I am eternally grateful to her for this!  After serving her time as my victim, I then photographed Jennie’s boudoir session. I like to think that it was those boudoir photos, that were responsible for the future events in Jennie’s life…that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

Fast forward…over the past ten years, I have had the honor and pleasure to photograph Jennie’s engagement session, her wedding, her maternity session, her first baby, her maternity session (2nd child) and we are currently working on photographing the baby #2  stages. Over the years, she has been one of our most valued VIP clients and we have also grown to be good friends.

To celebrate our 10th year in business, I called upon Jennie once again and asked her if she would be willing to come in for a session.  I explained that I wanted to see if had learned anything in the last 10 years and that I was going to use the photos from her 2005 session to compare them with current ones.  Without hesitation she agreed to come in.  That’s why I think she’s so amazing.  She is always so willing to help…no matter what.

Well, I’m happy to say that after comparing the photos, I am very happy with the results and more importantly, so is Jennie.  I think to look at progress is an important step in the learning process.  Sometimes we move so fast in life that we forget to stop and take a look back.  It was a fun experiment and I’m glad I did it, because now I have new energy to move forward in my career and continue perfecting my craft.  Let’s see how much more I can learn in another ten years.

A million thank yous Jennie!  You look as beautiful as ever…10 years later!  🙂

Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video Wins a WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Award® 2015

Oxford, MA – January 15, 2015 – WeddingWire, the nation’s leading online wedding marketplace, named Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video as a winner of the prestigious WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Awards® 2015 for Photography in Oxford!

The WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Awards® 2015 recognizes the top five percent of wedding professionals in the WeddingWire Network who demonstrate excellence in quality, service, responsiveness and professionalism. The esteemed awards are given to the top local wedding vendors in more than 20 service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, based on their professional achievements from the previous year.

While many industry award winners are selected by the host organization, the WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Awards® winners are determined solely based on reviews from real newlyweds and their experiences working with Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video. Award-winning vendors are distinguished for the quality, quantity, consistency and timeliness of the reviews they have received from their past clients.

“It’s always exciting to start the year by honoring the top-rated wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Network who represent more than two million reviews on our website,” said Timothy Chi, CEO, WeddingWire. “Each of the businesses recognized are committed to quality, professionalism and all around top-notch service. We applaud Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video for their impressive achievements within the wedding industry.”

As a Couples’ Choice Awards® winner, Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video is highlighted within the WeddingWire Network, which is comprised of more than 200,000 wedding professionals throughout North America and abroad.

Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video is proud to be one of the top Photography in Oxford in the WeddingWire Network, which includes leading wedding sites such as WeddingWire, Project Wedding, Brides.com, Martha Stewart Weddings, and Weddingbee. We would like to thank our past clients for taking the time to review our business on WeddingWire. We value all of our clients and truly appreciate the positive feedback that helped us earn the WeddingWire Couples’ Choice Awards® 2015.

For more information about Diaz Digital Discoveries – Photography and Video, please visit our WeddingWire Storefront today at http://www.weddingwire.com/biz/diaz-digital-discoveries–photography-and-video-oxford/71604f5b9bda3c39.html.

To learn more about the Couple’s Choice Awards®, please visit http://www.weddingwire.com/couples-choice-awards.

About WeddingWire
WeddingWire, the leading technology company serving the $100 billion wedding and events industry, is the largest online vertical marketplace connecting engaged couples with event professionals. With more than two million consumer reviews, it is the industry leader in consumer reviews. The site enables engaged couples to search, compare and book from an extensive database of more than 200,000 recently reviewed event professionals, from venues to photographers. WeddingWire provides event professionals with the technology they need to serve their clients, including a SaaS platform, which powers advertising, marketing, and CRM needs of local wedding and events businesses nationwide.

Our Photo/Video Combo Wedding Package Ends Soon!

As of December 31st we will be no longer be offering our Wedding Photo/Video Combo Package. We have rearranged our most popular products and services in order to give our wedding clients more options, freedom of choice and faster delivery methods. With only a small deposit, engaged couples will still be able to book our Photo/Video Combo package until 12/31/14, regardless of when their future wedding date is. Contact us to get in on this really great deal before time runs out!  If you know of anyone getting married…Share this with them! Contact us at: 508-216-5898 or e-mail info@DiazDD.com

To Feed or Not to Feed…That is the Question…

I have seen several articles online written about whether or not a wedding couple should provide their vendors with a meal or not.  Personally, I don’t understand where the confusion lies when it comes to this matter.  I feel it’s pretty simple and sort of a common-sense matter, but nevertheless, there are still many articles that continue to debate this.  Some say yes, you should feed your vendors, some say no, you are paying them, you shouldn’t have to feed them too.

Since I have seen so many of these articles lately and the responses, beliefs and practices all seem to differ, I felt it important enough for me to chime-in with what I feel is the only correct answer to these questions that are so eluding to everyone.  For me, it’s just a common sense thing…if you put yourself in the vendor’s perspective.  Here is how we answer the questions:

Do you require a meal break?  If yes, do you require that the wedding couple provide your meal?

Yes, we do require a meal break.  Although we do not require you to provide us with a meal, we would greatly appreciate it if you did.  We really LIKE food!  Especially during a long day of working.  At most every wedding reception we work, we are each provided with a vendor meal.  This is the norm at  most reception venues.

If you do not plan to provide us with a meal, we just need to know this prior to your wedding day, so we can plan accordingly and bring our own food.  Our team works incredibly hard throughout your wedding day.  We can get pretty hungry during an 8 – 12 hour day of shooting.  You wouldn’t want to work all day long without eating would you??  So, all we ask is that you let us know whether you plan to provide each of us with a meal, or not.

How many breaks do you usually take throughout the day?

We may rest briefly at times during the day if there is downtime, or during dinner time, but otherwise, we are continuously working throughout the day and evening.

Plain and simple – right?  It’s a simple matter of communication.  If you are going to provide us with a meal, let us know.  If you are not going to provide us with a meal, let us know.  That way we will know what to expect and what to do.

So that should answer these questions for anyone and everyone who keeps wondering what they should do.   Communicate with your vendors and also with your reception venue, so that they know exactly how many vendor meals to provide, if you have chosen to feed your vendors during your wedding reception.  And if you have chosen to feed us….thank you very much in advance! 🙂

1000 Facebook LIKES = $1,000 Giveaway!

As of this posting, we are at 999 LIKES on our Facebook fan page and we are super excited, honored and grateful to all of you who have stuck with us and helped our company grow by spreading the word about our professional photography and video services!  So excited in fact that we have decided to give away one dollar for every like we have received, when we reach the 1,000 milestone!  This contest will take place only on Facebook, so if you have not yet liked our page, get to it!  You won’t want to miss your chance to win your share of our DDD $1,000 Giveaway.

When we hit 1000 likes on our page, we are going to start a $1,000 Giveaway.  Here are the details and how to enter!

10 Questions about us will be posted on our page.  One question each day.  In the comments, correctly answer the question for your chance to win the $100 Gift Card for that day.  Then we will contact you with details on how to claim your gift card.

10 – total winners from among all the entrants with the correct answers will be selected.

10 Gift Cards ($100 each) $1,000 will be awarded to the winners

10 Days only  (Correctly answer the $100 Question of the Day) each day.

10 AM each day (1 Question will be posted at 10 AM each day for 10 days)

10 lucky (and knowledgeable) people are going to win a $100 Gift Card from us for correctly answering the $100 Question of the day.

All existing clients, past clients and people who are not yet clients are all eligible to win the daily $100 Gift Cards.  In fairness to all persons entering the contest, only one gift card per person/family can be won during this contest.  You are unable to win more than one gift card in this 10 day period, although you may continue to participate in the contest if you wish to do so.

Gift cards can be used toward any of our photography or video services and have no expiration date.

Gift Cards cannot be used on previously purchased products or services.  Other restrictions may apply.

Stay tuned to our Facebook page for more information, announcements and updates on this contest!

Thank you all again so very much for all your support and good luck in the contest!

 

 

The Honeymoon is over…after 90 days!

(SPOILER ALERT) – Future Brides may not want to read this until after your wedding day.  This is what really happens after your wedding day…

As your wedding day approaches, so does all the excitement about your big day!  All that planning and preparation comes together to create one amazing celebration, filled with little moments and big memories that will last a lifetime.  Your wedding day celebration is the talk of the town, the next big thing and what everyone is looking forward to sharing with you.  One amazing day and one amazing night with one amazing couple. YOU!

(Fast Forward)

Now, your wedding day has come and gone and yes indeed, it was everything you could have dreamed of and more.  But what happens now?  What happens after your wedding day?  Sadly, as each day goes by, little by little the newness and excitement about your amazing wedding begins to wear off…and then it’s back to business as usual. Reality and life sets in.

The question is…how long does this joy, love, excitement and newness of your wedding last?  How long after your wedding day are you still in the Limelight?  How long will it be before your friends and family are no longer sooo excited about your wedding and everything related to it?  Well, I believe the answer is different for different people.  It really depends on who you ask.  Your close friends and family will all likely have a different response to this question.  But how about the guests who attended your wedding?  How long will it be for them before they are “over it”?  Ask them and I bet some of the responses may make you laugh!  Ask yourself too.  How long before you are over it and no longer want to do “wedding stuff” anymore?

You may be wondering why I’m even bringing this up?  Well, now that I have you thinking about how others feel about your wedding, after it’s over… here’s why I bring it up. How long after your wedding day do you think your wedding vendors will still be excited about your wedding day?  (Florist, Priest or JP, Limo Driver, Cake Vendor, DJ, Venue Coordinator, Photographer, Videographer) Again, if you were to poll these other wedding vendors, the response would be a bit different for each of them. (kind of funny when you think about it – right?)  Can you picture any of your other wedding vendor’s excitement about your wedding, once the wedding day is over?  LOL

That’s what I really want to know…how long after your wedding day should (I, Me, Photographer) be excited about your wedding?  1 week?  – 1 month? – 6 months?  When is the “Honeymoon” period of your wedding day over for your photographer?  Well, while I can’t speak for anyone else, I can tell you that for me, the Honeymoon is over…after 90 days.  In some cases, up to 180 days.  If you are reading this before your wedding day, this is also something to keep in mind when you are considering what the cost is for your photography or videography.  To my knowledge, no other wedding vendors are still working on your wedding between 90 – 180 days after that one amazing day.

The “honeymoon is over” sounds a bit cold…so let me try to explain this a little more.

BEFORE THE DAY:  Just as you are, we are SUPER excited about anything and everything related to your wedding!  We are looking forward to seeing and capturing every single moment we can find, in order to provide you with a series of images that will tell the story of your day and allow you and your friends and families to relive every amazing moment, again and again, each time you see your wedding album and other images.

WEDDING DAY:  On the day of your wedding we are full of energy throughout the whole day and we want to help make your day fun, stress free and beautiful.  We are down for whatever it takes to make your whole experience unforgettable and we want your friends, family and guests to also have an unforgettable day.

AFTER THE DAY:  3 weeks after your wedding day, we are still super excited about all the amazing moments we captured.  Your photos are now ready and we can’t wait to show them all to you, have you share them with your friends and family and we can’t wait to get started creating your gorgeous, amazing wedding album, wall portraits and other products you are going to order.  We can’t wait to blog about it and post some of our favorite pics on social media for all the world to see, as we wait for you to choose your wedding album selections. That’s when the waiting game begins, the fun starts to fade and reality sets in for us.

You see, here at our studio, we are very sure to inform each and every one of our wedding couples that they have only 90 days after their wedding to make their selections for their wedding album, gift prints and all other products from their wedding.  It is even stated in our wedding contract.  Now, some of you may say wow, 3 months is a long time!  I don’t need that long…I can get it done way sooner than that.  But believe me, all too often we are sending reminder e-mails, phone calls, texts and even feel like we are nagging some of our couples to get it done within the 3 month period.  Most couples are good about this…while some are not.

Why do we even have the 90 day deadline? For two main reasons.  The first reason is strictly hard drive space.  We have only a limited amount of space on our computer hard drives and servers for so many wedding photos and all of the other photos from our other photography services that we create for our clients.  We are a full service studio and we specialize in weddings, but we also do other types of photography.  A full wedding day takes up by far much more space on our hard drives than anything else we do and as much as we would like to, we can’t keep the photos on there forever.  In order to make room for the upcoming work we have, we have to make room on our hard drives.  How do we do this?  Just like you do it at home.  We go through and (gasp) have to delete the oldest jobs on our hard drives, in order to make room for the new photos and videos that will be coming.  If we didn’t do this, we would need to own an Iron Mountain type company in order to store the many thousands of photos and videos we create each year.

The second reason for our 90 day deadline is because after this time period, we have become extremely busy providing an equally awesome experience for our new clients, that we have to prioritize our workload.  So, the further away your wedding day gets, the less time we have to devote to it.  On your wedding day, you are top priority on our To Do List.  Then, as each new job comes through, that client goes to the top of the priority list and your wedding moves down one notch. Each time we have another new client to photograph, your wedding moves down the list again…and again.

Your wedding photos are at the Top of our To Do List right after your wedding day.

The key to making sure that you stay on the upper end of our to do list, is to do work on your end.  Do your homework.  Pick your thank you card photos, gift prints, wedding album selections and all other products you would like to order, within that 90 day period after you have your proofs and they are also online.  That will ensure you have your products back faster and you don’t end up at the very bottom of our to do list.  The 90 day online gallery that we offer with every wedding package is a good tool to help you keep track of how much time you have left.  You will receive several reminder e-mails about your wedding photo gallery and even one that tells you when you only have 10 days left before the gallery expires.  Once the online gallery expires, so does your place at the top of our to do list.

Don’t let your wedding end up at the bottom of the queue!

Our studio currently photographs approximately 50 weddings each year, not to mention the many other clients and types of photography that we also do each year, so needless to say we are extremely busy.  And when I say (We) I mean (Me) since I am the one who creates the photos, I am the one who processes the photos, I also print them, I design the wedding albums…yes, I do it all and I love every minute of it, except for the waiting part.  I am only one person and there are only so many hours in one day I can devote to work.  Why don’t I just hire more people?  Because then, I would have to raise my prices by a whole lot more and nobody wants that – right? So, you may be able to see why once your wedding has reached that 90 day period, I may not seem to be as excited about it, as I was before your wedding, or on your wedding day.

Don’t get me wrong… I STILL LOVE YOU and I’m looking forward to our future together.  I would love to be your family photographer and continue to grow the friendship we created and have shared to date.  I will always love your wedding photos and cherish those great moments and memories too, but the honeymoon is over and now I need to make time and space for my other clients too.  I absolutely LOVE photographing weddings and everything about it!  It’s my absolute favorite thing to photograph, but in order to provide each and every one of my clients with an equally amazing experience, I need to set some deadlines and I feel that 90 days is quite a reasonable amount of time for every client.

So, there you have it.  Now you know a little bit more about how things go down here (behind the scenes) at DDD.  Beyond just the work, I also need to (and want to) devote some of my time to my wife, my family, expand my creativity and plain old recreation…I do like my video games!!! 🙂

So, what do you think?  Please feel free to chime in, leave a comment below, as I am curious to know how others feel about this.  Do you think a 90 day deadline is a reasonable amount of time after a wedding?  Is it too much time?  Not enough time?  When should the “Honeymoon” period be over for your wedding photographer?  What are your thoughts?

I often hear “Photography is the most important thing to us!”

When I meet with couples about their wedding day, they often tell me that Professional Photography is the most important thing to them!  That is, until they find out what it costs.  So, then I wonder if what they said is really true.

Let’s examine this for a moment and do some comparisons to see what you (personally) feel would be the most important thing to you on your wedding day.

I feel that whatever the most important item on your wedding day checklist is, should go at the top of the list and whatever is the least important to you should go on the bottom.  You should pay for the most important item first and then you have the remainder of your wedding budget to spread out for everything else, right?  Makes sense to me.  (Every item and detail of your wedding is important, but some more than others.)

More often than not, when I meet with couples, they have already bought their Wedding Dress, booked their Location, DJ, Cake, Limo and sometimes even Flowers.  So, by the time they meet with me, more than half of their wedding budget has been spent, or promised…but photography is the most important thing to them. (Hmmm)

If you want to know how important professional photography REALLY is to you, ask yourself these questions:  (Would you pay / Did you pay)

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Wedding Dress than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Bridal Party Gifts than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Wedding Shoes than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Will you pay / Did you pay more for your DJ or Band than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Limo (or Limos) than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Flowers than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Wedding Cake than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Reception Venue location than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Dinner Selections than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

Would you pay / Did you pay more for your Wedding Rings than you’re willing to pay for your photography?

If you answered Yes to more than one of these, then really…how important is professional photography to you?

Using the above Ten examples, on a scale from 1 – 10 (1 being the highest importance), where do you have Photography on that list?

If it’s not in the top three, then perhaps photography is not really that important to you…or perhaps you may need to reevaluate your list, or your budget.

Every person is different and will have this list in a different order, which is perfectly fine and that’s what makes us all unique.  Where did you place professional photography on your list?

An experienced, talented, professional photographer that can capture all of the amazing images that will be your fondest memories forever…for some people is Priceless!

Are you one of these people?  If so, then invest more in your Professional Photography and have amazing and beautiful memories that you will cherish for a lifetime.

After all, Professional Photography is the most important thing to you…right?  🙂