Your Wedding, Perfect As It Gets
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by: Charles Maring
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Word Count: 1679
Your Wedding, Perfect As It Gets
The wedding day is here and you’re so excited about utilizing all of the products and services you paid for. You just know you got some great deals. Your dress, which is stunning, is a replica of a designer dress you once saw. And, you found somebody to make the dress at a fraction of the cost! You read in an online forum about this really great photographer that several brides loved. You visited their site and loved the photographs, so you hired them over the phone. The videographer you hired assured you that he has the best equipment so your video is going to be amazing on your new plasma TV at home. The limo company is in place to arrive and you booked them for two hours so you are good to go. Your DJ is going to be great as well. He plays major clubs in the city and you have a younger crowd so you have it made. And, to top that off, you found a florist that can make the same bouquets and centerpieces as a well-known celebrity party planner you visited and got some designs from even though you knew he was out of your budget. You’ve been smart, a little sneaky, and certainly savvy about planning your wedding!
It is going to be a fantastic wedding! The photographer and video artist arrive and you start to slip on your gown. Everything looks great and you are laughing inside about the bargain you got. Your friends all think you’re gown must have costs $10,000.00. As mom starts to zip up and button the dress you notice that there are strings hanging out of the back of the dress. If you tuck them in, the zipper shows. If you don’t there are strings hanging out the back. You also notice that it fits perfectly at the waist, but your boobs look like they are going to pop out at any second and as you look in the mirror, you are about to freak. Everyone assures you that you look fantastic and those are just minor details. All you can think in your head is “so much for that designer gown”. But, you suck it up and say "that is the glitch of the day." "I am not going to sweat the small stuff."
You are ecstatic as the florist arrives with the bouquets! They are beautiful! You begin to pass out the bouquets to the girls; one for Tammy, one for Jenny, one for Allison, and…. “Where is the fourth bouquet?” Frantically, you try to reach the florist on their cell phone. No answer. The florist is on their way to the ceremony and reception to make sure the décor is coming together. Nobody can reach them and your bridesmaid will just have to walk without one. “How could this mistake be overlooked”, you wonder as you try your best to get beyond it. You simply have to move on and think about what is important. The two of you are getting married!!!!
It’s noon and the limo arrives right on time! Yeah… Going to the chapel. The ceremony itself is beautiful. Everyone is here. Friends, family, and they are all trying to watch as you look into one another’s eyes. For you, the moment is like no other and is about as perfect as it gets. As you turn and face one another, you notice that the videographer is about 3 feet from you with his huge camera, on a huge tripod, and blocking your parents view! You are annoyed to no end, but can’t really say anything or you will disrupt the service. You don’t understand! The video you saw was great! "Guess I forgot to ask if he was unobtrusive", you think to yourself. Oh well, at least your parents can see you get married on the video.
As you leave the ceremony everyone cheers you on and you are on your way to take family photographs at a near by park. You get in the car and start to take off and the limo driver says. "You only have me for 30 more minutes and then I have to go." You ask him to stay extra time so that you can go take pictures and you will gladly pay him. He says “I can’t I have another wedding to get to.” You are frantic. What are you going to do? You argue, but that isn’t doing any good. You just have to hope for the best and hope the photos don’t take that long.
You get to the park and you tell your photographer the scoop. He states that there is no worry that he can work quickly and get it all done. Inside, he is a stress case, but he doesn’t let it show. That is one sign of a great professional. As he begins posing your family your mom says, “Where is your brother Billy and his wife?” You don’t know, your parents don’t know, and neither does anyone else. Did he have directions? Did he know when and where to go? Oh well, you’ll have to do the photos without him. Of course the limo driver reminds you of the time twice during the session so your smile is a little off at this point.
The portraits do move quickly, and suddenly in the distance, Billy arrives. As the photographer re-poses the family and takes the last shot, you see the limo pulling away and leaving you at the park! You simply can’t believe it. But, at least your parents drove! You can catch a ride with them. You’ll arrive at your reception in style in a 2000 Honda Accord. That’s ok. At the very least you are there and ready to live it up.
As you are announced into the reception you can’t believe your eyes. The designs you gave the floral designer are nothing like you are seeing before you. You have the strangest “happy look” on your face anyone has ever seen. You said you wanted the tall centerpieces to be big with lots of air. She took lots of air to mean sparse! No wonder the difference in cost. There are 1/4 of the flowers you expected to see in the center of the tables. And, when you sit down to eat you notice that the centerpieces block your view from the people across from you. The florist never considered that the height had to be perfect. Well, you’ll just have to talk to one another. That is ok to.
As you are announced to the dance floor for your dance as husband and wife, you are both ready. You prepared a special dance and practiced for weeks. As the song begins to play he looks into your eyes and sees a disturbing look. “This isn’t the song! He’s playing the wrong song!” you say to your new husband. Angry in the moment, you stop the first dance and tell the DJ. He searches on his laptop endlessly but just doesn’t have that song in his iTunes library. He does have several great club mixes though that could work.
At the end of the night, your friends have partied like it is 1999. All and all, you had a great night. You are exhausted, but in the end, you got married, which is what it was all about. Even with all the tragedies, it was still a great day, and you begin to dream about your honeymoon and new life together.
It’s been a few weeks of sun and fun. You are tan and when you get home there is an excited message from your photographer stating that all your proofs are ready. You are so psyched to get your photos. You go to pick them up and it all looks boring and average. There is a huge tripod and videographer in all of the shots of you on the alter! Of course that isn’t his fault. But also, there aren’t pictures of the bridal party. Most of the photos are all posed with very little real moments. You ask him and he doesn’t know what to say. But you had read online about how great their photojournalism was….? What you didn’t know is that those brides in the wedding forum online were actually his cousins, friends, and family members who are creating propaganda for him to make him look more successful. He’s really only been in business for a couple of months officially. You saw his portfolio, but the fact is that anyone can take a great photo now and then.
This is the last straw. You are burnt out, and wondering, “how did I not see all of this?” “I did my homework!” You just joined 1000’s of other brides in learning the same lessons hard way. For one, you didn’t ask the right questions to make a smart decision about your event professionals, and relied on sources that are about advertising dollars rather than information with integrity. These are very real stories that I have seen time and time again throughout my career as a wedding photographer. It is written as a sarcastic story to make several points and force couples to see behind the pretty logos and unethical propaganda that some businesses create to entice you to hire and utilize their services.
There is no such thing as a luxury bargain wedding. However, there is one place that has great experts that can help your friends and family find the best value and make smart decisions when planning a wedding. Learn what questions to ask, be entertained, get from the heart information, along with a behind the scenes look from the professional’s prospective at www.togetherinstyle.com. Together In Style is the world’s first and only luxury online wedding talk show with incredible tips and advice from the biggest names in the wedding industry. Your wedding! Perfect as it gets!
About the Author
Based in Manhattan, Charles Maring is a wedding photographer that captured the weddings you read about in the headlines. His photographs receive International Acclaim, and are among the most awarded in the world. Part of Charles’ mission is to share expert advice with couples to help them make smarter decisions and know what questions to ask. He has seen it all in his near 20 year career and is an expert at planning wedding timelines. See Maring's work and vision at Together In Style
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