The first meeting was with a couple––the husband was the videographer and the wife the photographer. They had a great photo-video package for only $1,600, which was a bit out of my original budget, but since then, I have decided that this is an area I don't want to cut corners with, especially since I am SO particular about photography and because my mother was a photographer for many years. The downside to the package was that I would have to pay for the engagement session separately, and that it only covered four hours––so if I wanted them to take pics before the ceremony, that would be extra. Also, she did not work with an assistant. The package did include two copies of digital negatives and two copies of the DVDs. While I LOVE their videos, I am NOT completely sold on the photography. While the average bride would probably be pleased with the photos (and the price!), I was not completely sold. I really like the couple because they seem down-to-earth and laid back. They are still an option but not my first.
The second meeting was with a OCD (she said so herself!) lawyer turned photographer who has WONDERFULLY crisp beautiful photos. However the wonderful photos did not overwhelm her control-freak (she also said this) aura. She chattered the ENTIRE time 1,000 miles an hour, and I don't think she fully understood the concept that I was having a SMALL wedding, so there wouldn't be a "cocktail" hour. I literally felt drained after listening to her. While I know she will be organized and on point, I don't think it will be worth dealing with her overwhelming personality. Last I checked, it was good protocol to match the speed and personality of your client, not bombard them. Just saying.
Out of the two meetings I did draw a few conclusions. First, I am considering raising my photog budget from $1,000 to $2,000, but only if FH's parents can contribute about $600 and if my mother could pitch in $500. While I am willing to raise our budget, I do feel a bit queasy about dropping so much on pics, but a super duper photog (which I have determined I do want after all), requires some super duper money. So this probably means we'll have to nix videography after all (bummer!), but if the package includes five or more hours of coverage, an engagement shoot, digital photos, AND a photog assistant I'm game for the bigger package, since these are all additional things I would like anyway. An added bonus would be to get at least three photo albums included, but I definitely will NOT hold my breath on that one, since good albums tend to been EXPENSIVE, at least from the photog.
For video, I am thinking about going with my original idea and just have someone run their video camera on a tripod, and that will have to suffice. I am even thinking about sacrificing my ipod music idea as well (though this is only a couple hundred dollars) and I'm even thinking of nixing a limo/driver as well if we do end up splurging on the photography. I don't want our budget to keep ballooning with less important details that aren't that major for me.
The only thing will be convincing FH that it will be worth the $2,000 on photos alone (our original plan was to hire a student photog). He won't be opposed to our parents pitching in, but he may frown a little since my mother is already contributing $1,600 for the reception, plus she's making my jewelry, AND she has to fly out here. But I have decided that we will only get married once, and besides our memories we don't have any other record to leave our children. I realize that other people spend far more on photography, but $2,000 is a pretty big deal since we wanted to keep our budget around $4,000.
So depending on what the verdict is from our parents, I will book a few more interviews with photogs that are around our new budget to see what's out there before making any final decisions.
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