Wedding Dilemma #4: Backup or No Backup?

I never really thought of hiring a backup photographer because it means additional expenses. I wasn’t also as impressed with other photographers’ works as I was with Osep&Mimi, so I didn’t really have a choice for a backup photographer yet, if ever I would decide to get one.

But then we had our freenup with NYOi, and everything changed. Suddenly, I wanted to book NYOi as our backup photographer!  We love how our pictures turned out, and we are already comfortable working with them. Plus, they have super low introductory rates. Imagine, I could get them as my backup photographers for only P6,000! Now I’m thinking of adjusting our budget to accommodate them. Waah! The fickleness of the bride strikes again.

Still, I don’t know if we could afford to get NYOi as our backup photographer, even with their low rates. No, scratch that. We could DEFINITELY afford them. The real question is, I’m not sure a backup photographer is worth spending more money for. Now before any violent reactions, let me explain myself. You see, at the start of our wedding planning, I took into consideration how much we could save in the span of two years. Then I drafted a budget that would still leave us P50,000 for our future savings. Now, we could afford a backup photographer since we have enough money in our account, but am I really willing to use money allotted for our future savings to pay for that backup photographer?

Also, Mox didn’t want to have a backup photographer because he didn’t see the need for one one. “May photographer naman tayo eh. Dagdag gastos lang yan,” he would say. And while I do agree with his sentiments, the maarteng bride side of me still wants her backup photographer. Haha!

To help me decide, I listed the reasons why I should and should not get a backup photographer.

WHY I SHOULD GET A BACKUP PHOTOGRAPHER

1. More photos to choose from. This is actually the main selling point for me, especially since I love having my picture taken. Haha! It’s better to choose a backup photographer with a different shooting style from your main photographer since you’ll be getting pictures taken from different perspectives. So if Osep&Mimi’s shots are vibrant and colorful, then the backup photographer can take shots that have a vintage and dreamy effect. Oh diba, best of both worlds.
2. No details will be overlooked. There will be more eyes (and cameras) for other wedding details that the main photographers may overlook. For example, while Osep&Mimi takes the official wedding portraits, then the backup photographer can take candid photos of the guests.

WHY I SHOULD NOT GET A BACKUP PHOTOGRAPHER

1. Additional expenses. A backup photographer’s fee usually ranges between P5,000-P10,000. Plus, this also means having additional mouths to feed, so more supplier meals are needed. So again, more gastos talaga.
2. Backup photographer might overshadow main photographer. Of course, I’m sure naman NYOi won’t do this, but there are actually some cases where the backup photographer actually acts like he/she is the main photographer! Nakakahiya lang pag nangyari ito eh.Magsasapawan lang sina main and backup.
3. I really don’t need one. We plan to only have 150 guests, and I believe Osep&Mimi can handle a wedding of that size perfectly. So there is no pressing need for a backup photographer... well, except for mere kaartehan purposes only. Hehe.

Obviously the cons outweigh the pros here. So I guess, I already have my answer. Oh well, I'm sure a lot of our guests will bring cameras to our wedding. Maybe I'll just grabbed some photos from them. Tipid moves lang. Haha!

Ihanda na ang mga SLRs. Haha!

Wedding Dilemma # 3: First Look or Not?

A few days ago, I asked my fellow W@Wie brides what are their opinions regarding the “First Look”. This is where the bride and groom meet before the wedding ceremony—a break from the tradition where the groom only has his first glance of his bride while she’s walking down the aisle.  Most of them answered that while it is a nice idea, they still like to experience the drama and suspense of seeing their groom for the first time at the ceremony itself. 

I’m also torn with this idea, mostly because I don’t know if my parents would allow me to do this. They are sticklers for tradition, so I’m sure this moment of rebelliousness would not sit well with the both of them. And yes, I would also like to see how Mox would react once he sees me in all my bridal glory walking towards him. Would he cry? Would he laugh? Would he be rendered speechless by my gorgeousness (haha, ang feeling ko!)? I’m just scared that a “first look” session would ruin that special moment for the both of us.

So I listed the pros and cons of the “first look” to help me decide on whether we should do this or not:

PROS

• Less stressful wedding timeline. Photographers don’t have to squeeze family formals and pictures of the bridal party into the cocktail hour because they can already take these photos once the “first look” is done.  So everyone, including the bride and groom, can get to the reception earlier than expected and enjoy the cocktail hour with the rest of the guests.
  

• More time to do romantic shots. Again, the photographers would have more time to take more creative and romantic shots of the bride and groom together. In short, more beautiful pictures to choose from!

• Hair and make-up would still remain “fresh”. Knowing how emotional I can be, you can bet I’ll be crying buckets during my wedding day. And so, I’m nervous to think how I’d look like during those after-ceremony pictures. Think Eugene Domingo with red nose and puffy eyes. Scary.

• Having a private moment with your husband. This is the main reason why I’d like to do a “first look” session with Mox. A wedding can be stressful and chaotic because you have to follow the timeline to the tee lest you want to run late on your special day. There would be little time to have an intimate moment with your groom, not until the wedding proper is over. With a “first look” session, you would have luxury to hug, kiss, and talk before the wedding funfare begins, without everyone fussing over you. Only you and your husband-to-be (and the photographers) will witness this very emotional moment, making it even more special.

CONS

• It’s against tradition. This would definitely be a problem if you are a traditional bride or if you have traditional parents

• It can kill the suspense of the “aisle reveal”. Most brides dream of seeing their groom’s face light up as they’re walking down the aisle, but a “first look” may dim the groom’s excitement because he has already seen the bride beforehand.

Honestly, I'm all set to doing the "first look" with Mox, provided that my parents wouldn't object. Mox and I are not very showy with our emotions when we are in public, so I bet we’d be trying our hardest not to cry in front of our guests during our wedding day (although, I'll surely fail this one). That's why I would like to have a private moment with him before the ceremony starts because that's when we would tell all our heartfelt feelings to one another without everyone's prying eyes on us. Mox may act all tough and strong when he's with friends, but whenever he's alone with me, that's when his sensitive side appears. So yes, expect a few tears and lots of cheesiness during our "first look" session. While the romantic pictures are a great bonus, I'm just excited that I'd be able to hug, kiss and be with Mox even for just a little while during our special day.

Here are some of my favorite "first look" photos courtesy of Google. Check out how happy and kilig the couples are. :)

 

 

 

 

Wedding Dilemma Part 2: Which Coordinator?

As I mentioned in my previous post, I met with two coordinators yesterday, M Events and The One Exclusive, to see which one of them will I have the "This is it!" feeling. Both of them have great feedbacks from W@W and GirlTalk. Both of them have the same rates, although The One Exclusive also offers emcee services with their package. And most of all, both of them have really nice coordinators, Grace for M Events and Kath for The One Exclusive.

Which is why I am in this dilemma right now. When I met with Grace, I thought I have found my OTD coordinator. She was sweet, easy to talk to, and she explained all the inclusions in their packages efficiently. She even recommended a full band when I told her that I plan to have a band in our reception. I just have to mention her name to the manager to get a discount. Diba, ang bait niya? I was so tempted to book her then and there, but I thought I have to meet with Kath first before making a decision.

Then when I met with Kath, I again had the "This is it!" feeling. Our meeting was very informal; we just shared stories about my wedding preps and their experience as coordinators. She also suggested some affordable suppliers and she even gave some inputs on our church dilemma. Our meeting lasted for almost two hours because we were chatting like long-time friends. As in kwentuhan to the max! When our meeting ended, I was smiling the whole time because I felt that I found a friend for life.

Is it possible to have the "This is it!" feeling with two suppliers? I'm so confused! I don't know who to book!

I am one confused bride.

Wedding Dilemma Part 1: Air-conditioned Church or Not?

The only downside of a long engagement is that we would often change our minds during the wedding preps whenever we would see something that is supposedly better than what we've chosen. The fickle-mindedness of brides (and even grooms) has already bitten me because lately I've been second-guessing some of our decisions regarding our prospective supplier.

The first wedding dilemma is with our church. Ever since we've started planning, I never really thought of holding our wedding in an air-conditioned church because I felt that it was not a necessity to begin with. We've already set a specific budget for our church and an air-conditioned church would cost more than what we could pay for.

At first, we were pretty set on booking Mary the Queen Parish in Greenhills.

But now, I am having second thoughts of booking a non air-conditioned church. Our wedding will be held in the summer, and if today is any indication of how hot  it would be on our wedding, then we would have a problem. Grabe lang sa init ah! I want everyone to be comfortable on our wedding day, without having to worry about sweat stains on their outfits, body odor and crankiness brought by the scorching summer heat. I want everyone to be cool even though it's almost 36 degrees outside.

And because of that, we've thought of having our wedding at Santuario de San Jose, a church in Greenhills that offers air-conditioning.

However, the rate of SSJ costs P10,000 more than Mary the Queen, which is way out of our budget. Mox told me that he's okay with a non air-conditioned church, but I'm still not convinced. We would visit both churches on May 1, so I guess I just have to rely on our "This is it" feeling for our decision.

What about you, which church would you choose?