Highlights from the April 2009 Wedding Show at Aotea Centre, Auckland.
www.weddingshow.co.nz
Highlights from the bridal fashion shows
September 7th, 2009Considered a wedding video?
July 15th, 2009I don’t provide wedding video services of any kind, so this is not a plug for anything I’m directly involved in.
When I meet with couples to talk about their wedding plans, I almost always ask if they’re are considering using a professional videographer. if they’re undecided, I share the following story.
I got married in October, 2000. Wedding video wasn’t high on my list of priorities, but thankfully my wife Lisa knew better. All of the things I thought would bother me (feel like I was on camera, acting, nervous about the lens etc) just didn’t eventuate. Most of the time I was completely unaware the camera was nearby – I as just too distracted by much more important things.
Nine years later, our wedding video has been converted to DVD. I’ve sent copies around the world, shared it with DJ friends in the USA at a DJ convention who wanted to know what a Kiwi wedding was like. I don’t know where my wedding photos are though.
My oldest child is now 6 years old, and a few months ago she ended up watching our wedding video. The look on her face as she tried to figure out why she wasn’t add the wedding was priceless. She saw people that are no longer with us, heard them speaking and everything. And even though I was there, I can still see the DVD and see things that photos don’t really show. My parents together, my late grandmother (who passed shortly before my sister’s wedding), people I’d forgotten were even AT the wedding – I could go on.
About a year ago I was having lunch with friends – a couple of professional videographers. During our time together, one of their clients stopped by to pick up another copy of his wedding DVD. His wedding was about 3 months earlier, so I asked him how many times he’d watched the DVD and shown friends. He’d “lost count”. I asked him how many times he’d looked at the wedding photos – and the answer did not compare to the video.
If you’re unsure, please look at what video professionals can offer.
Talk to WHITE Wedding Video or Lavender Weddings for information. Not only are they professional operators, they both run by very nice people.
Garden wedding or outdoor ceremony?
June 4th, 2009There’s some great advice on a local website that may help you plan your outdoor wedding or garden ceremony.
Entertainment for your wedding day – DJ by Nick Logan
How much?
May 31st, 2009This might apply to any industry anywhere in the world. It may work at a used car yard, but should it apply everywhere else too?
How long has your DJ been practising?
May 11th, 2009Ever noticed that even the most senior medical professionals still “practice medicine”. They generally read medical journals, attend training conferences and participate in all manners of continued education in order to stay up to date with the changing trends in their profession.
It’s something that all professionals should do yet very few DJs do.
Here’s a question to ask the professionals involved in your wedding – what was Read the rest of this entry »
How to spot a novice wedding photographer
April 27th, 2009For wedding DJ hire – visit the website!
I’m just a DJ who is also an MC with over 20 years of “entertaining” experience – so what would I know about photography? Having been around as many weddings as I have, a confused, uncertain, casual photographer stands out for all the wrong reasons. Let me explain without sounding biased or naming names…
If you’re looking at a photographer who “has great pictures but is much cheaper than everyone else”, ask yourself WHY that is.
It’s one thing to use a friend or reliable source to capture your wedding day on film, but when you PAY someone and they can’t direct the photography, that’s just wrong. Over the past 12 months, I’ve done a number of weddings where the photographer was unable or unwilling to control the group/family photos which usually happen right after the ceremony.
Whenever I’ve been involved as the MC, it’s been my job to call the names, get them in place, and everything else “every other photographer” should handle, and even call “cheese” on one occasion. While I don’t mind helping make things happen, this is what you pay a professional photographer for.
When a photographer is asking me – the DJ/MC where to take the photos, where to take the bride and groom after the ceremony, who will accompany the bride and groom, and so on, it makes me wonder if I should be charging the more whenever this specific company is involved. After all – I’m doing the work any other photography company would NORMALLY do.
If the photographer is unfamiliar with how a traditional wedding is done simply because they haven’t attended many, that should be a red flag for you.
For what it’s worth, I get get the job done and do what needs to be done to help my clients. I can move guests, help set up family shots and so on, but I’m not a professional. I don’t do it anywhere near as efficiently or quickly as the real pros.
The family photos if left alone will drag every time, and that takes up the time you could be spending enjoying your reception, not to mention bad lighting eating into the photo time too.
Using a family friend or an associate who knows how to take great photos doesn’t count in this discussion. When you’re paying someone who is selling themselves as a professional photographer, then they should do their job, not me.
Talk to the pros! Chris Dillon and Simply Photos, Momentz Photography, Gerald Shacklock, Brett Lees and many more. Let them explain it, they’re better at it than me.
That was all. 
Engaged live on air
April 23rd, 2009CNN is a big network. What strings did THIS guy have to pull to make this happen?
Your Wedding Venue. Service provider, or just a room?
April 15th, 2009This is something I just can’t figure out. You hire a venue for your wedding, you pay them money, but what are they really providing you?
Do you expect your venue to know all the little details of your wedding day? Or is the role of a wedding venue simply that – a great looking location for you and your guests to enjoy?
As a wedding DJ that cares about the little things, it astounds me that so many venues or more to the point the venue staff simply see your wedding as another event, another job. While the majority of venues really do a great job of looking after their clients, there’s a few around Auckland and the rest of the country that almost act like your wedding is an inconvenience.
Listen for the red flags – perhaps staff using words like Read the rest of this entry »
Dunedin host to world’s first Improve-a-Groom
April 7th, 2009As part of The Wedding Show which expanded into Otago this year, the first ever Improve-a-Groom seminar was held.
A great group of guys participated and from all accounts took away some new ideas, direction, and support. I’m looking forward to seeing how this works with an Auckland audience at The Wedding Show at the Aotea Centre in Auckland, April 19.
Video from the Dunedin show coming soon, so for now view highlights below from The Wedding Show at Aotea Centre from September 2008.
TheWeddingShow
Wedding Show Discount Tickets
March 5th, 2009The Wedding Show at Aotea Centre Auckland has made discount vouchers available through it’s website.
Go to www.weddingshow.co.nz, look in the top right corner of the website, and you can print your own voucher.
The Wedding Show - Dunedin and Auckland