gwynemark

Hey Cher, make sure you ask Amanda about your wedding ceremony location photography rules. I had just posted on another thread about this problem but so many of these stops take advantage of their customers. They require them to use their venue photographers and they are NOT any good and even if you bring your own photographer, they take all the available time away and your photographer never gets a chance to photograph you after the ceremony. If you tell them you are bringing your own photographer they are more than accomodating. However, what they dont tell you is that they still give you a resort photographer for free. This is where they steal all the time from your paid photographer. LOL tricky people. Just ask a lot of questions. We have had 2 clients in the past who hired us to go and be their photographers, get shafted. Fortunately we were on the cruise with them and we were able to get amazing shots on other stops. best of luck, Gwyne and Mark

Hey guys, best of luck with your cruise weddings. We are wedding photographers and have shot several cruise weddings and we have a few tips for you from lessons learned. First off, if you are getting married off the ship and they require you to use their photographer, think twice. When a resort requires you to use theirs then they are typically underqualified, low paid employees. You will not be happy with your images and they will pressure sell you images before you ever walk away from the photos being taken. Its crazy! If you are bringing your own photographer, make sure your venue off the boat knows you will NOT be using theirs, even if they insists there is no additional charge. Here is why. These venues want to sell you photos. So they make sure their free photographer takes up all the available time while your paid photographer is required to wait their turn. By the time the FREE photographer is finished, you don't get any time with your paid photographer. This has happened to us twice. The free photographer was horrible and then he spent 20 minutes pressureing them into buying his images and guess what, it was time for the bus to head back to the ship. We make sure its in the contract that we are the only photographers allowed to shoot during and after your wedding. Be very clear and blunt with the venues when booking. They will try to sneak it in somehow. Best of luck everyone on your cruise weddings. So much fun. Gwyne and Mark

The humidity in the area you are getting married is not nearly as bad as it is up in Northern Florida. June is hot but I would think you are safe and it wont be overwhelming. We are photographers in the Destin area and it really isnt "TOO HOT" until July and August. Have your ceremony about an hour to an hour and a half before sunset and things will be much cooler. If your reception is outside, I highly recommend the tent. Not because of heat but because of rain. Its very common to get late afternoon and early evening showers in Florida and we have seen many receptions ruined because they didn't have coverage. Even a 10 minute sprinkle can cause issues. Best of Luck, Gwyne and Mark

Hi, we are photographers in the panhandle and shoot a lot of weddings on the beach so hopefully my advice will help. In our area which is Walton and Okaloosa Co. there are a different set of rules. Okaloosa County: Any event on a beach that will attract more than 49 people (including vendors) requires a permit from the County. Cost is $250 with $100 being refundable 2-4 weeks after the ceremony. Walton County: Permits are required regardless of size. Fees are around $100 Just google walton or Okaloosa county beach wedding permits and I believe you should be able to find the appropriate office to contact. Best of luck, Mark and Gwyne www.gwynemarkphotography.com

Highlands House is pretty nice and we have shot many weddings there. However, I can tell you that they wont let you have reception there without renting the house. They require you to rent the entire house in order to get married and have a reception there. We have photographed many, many weddings there and we do think its a great location. Its nice to have the green and the beach to utilize. Gwyne and Mark Gwyne and Mark

Hey Olga, Yes, the SD Hilton is expensive for receptions for sure. For a party of 25 such as yours I suggest renting a beach house instead of going somewhere large like the Hilton. You can find some great deals at VRBO is Vacation Rentals By Owner Good luck and if you have any further questions about our area just send me a note. take care, Gwyne and Mark

Awwww!!!! BLUSH!

Hey Laybar, the links seem to work fine. Do you have flash on your computer? Do you get the little window on the black screen to appear? If you can get that far but the video wont play then you can at least look at the photos individually. Just select the little arrow in the bottom righ corner and then select the little rubiks cube looking button next to it. All the photos will be displayed in a gallery at that point and you can browse through them.

Alyssa, did you ever get all the sand out of dress? Kona sand was thick and relentless to say the least.

Going to Hawaii for 2 weeks takes a toll on the EMAIL inbox as well as the VOICEmail box. Geesh, been working non-stop just to get back to people. Our dang AUTOREPLY on our email didnt work so nobody understood why we didnt write them back for 2 weeks. HA! None the less we are catching up and will be working HARD on Alyssa's photos this week and next. I may send her a few more teasers over the weekend. HA! isnt that a tease in itself. GOD I LOVE MY JOB! Anyway, let me tell you something that Alyssa's review doesnt say. Alyssa and Karrem are just flat out amazing people. Heck, everyone in the wedding party was a lot of fun and great people. Treated us like family. thanks for a great time guys!

Hey girl, we have them and love them. So conveinent. Just beware of wear and tear. One of the plates locking KNUB is wearing down and sometimes slips off when lifting. Not good if its overhead. HA

awww, thanks Alyssa..... (blush)

Hey Tammy, I am not sure about Maui but a great photog who lives on the big island (does travel to maui) is James Rubio. We are photographers and hired him to do our wedding renewal this Sept. Big Island Wedding Photographer, Hawaii, Hilo, Kona, Big Island Wedding Photography | James Rubio HIs prices are very reasonable and he does great work. Good luck!

We are trying to pick an all-inclusive for a week over New Years. We have neveer been to Dreams before so I thought to ask you ladies. Would this be a good place to celebrate the new years without our kids? If not, any other recommendations? We have shot several weddings in Jamaica and the Bahamas so we want to try somewhere else for a vacation.

Good news! We had booekd through Continental orioginally so they were the host airlines for all the flights. They had booked us on 2 Aloha flights and you guessed it, an ATA flight from LA to Maui. Oh what a pain when I first called. The lady on the phone said I would have to pay a change fee and the increased fare to get on another airline for our flight from LA. UGHGHH! So I then talk to Alyssa and THAKFULLY! they got their wedding moved to the Big Island .WOO HOO! I called back and got another person with continental and they not only changed all of our flights with no change fees, but they sent us a wopping $60 is vouchers because the rate went down a bit. HA! it just goes to show you that not all customer service agents are the same. The first girl could have cared less about our problem yet the 2nd guy went out of his way to accomodate us.