Getting married May 22nd at SRC - have questions like is photography necessary?

[MontegoBay]

Im getting married at the SRC on May 22nd. We are doing the Beautiful Beginnings wedding. My WC keeps telling me that I should do a photography package with video... After talking with her I agreed to do the $1200.00 package but I am now having second thoughts...

 

Is it necessary? Can a family member take just as good of photos?

 

I am currious because $1200.00 is a pretty basic package... I know it includes a wedding video but you don't even get to keep all the photos on a CD, you get only 40 or so photos that you can "pick".

 

I have heard mixed reviews. Some like their photos and some don't. I am scared to have crappy wedding photos.

 

I would also like to know if you can get married on the private island?

 

Also, in your opinion, what is better - beach or garden ceremony?

 

Beach or garden reception?

 

Thanks for reading the long post!!!

 

Lisa

[carolina24]

photography is a must for us!! we are going with the photog included in the package and then hiring a different photog for the TTD. i think you'd regret it if you didnt get professional pics. the resort should be able to show you the photogs work. plus you never know what kind of pics your guests will take. they want to pay attention to the ceremony and have fun at the reception, so they might miss all the key moments when taking pics.

[echo2_62]

Well FI did not want to get a pro photog at all and at first I was okay to go along with that. After cruising some sites though, I fell in love with the work done by Moments that Matter Photography (they're on this site!) and now we've got them booked! I wasn't too thrilled on having the resort photographer as part of our package but only because it was such a limited number of pictures that we would have ended up with for the price we would have been paying.

 

Having asked around my office with many of the women who have been married for a number of years, the ones that did NOT get pro pics done said they really regretted not having them. Then again the divorced ones are trying to figure out what to do with all their (useless) pics oops!

[TATrisha]

Oh this post just broke my heart!

I personally think wedding photographs are one of the very most important things, and I'm not even saying that because I'm a photographer! These are the heirlooms that you will pass down to your children. These are the images they will look at and ask you about your day, and make believe they are you. Not to mention, YOU looking at your own images. I can simply open my photo book and I feel like I'm right back at my wedding. And it all happens so fast that I'm so very thankful that I spent the money for a good photographer.

 

And can your guests take as good of pictures as a photographer... HIGHLY unlikely. You might by chance have a photographer for a friend, in which case, that'd be very generous of them to take your photos. But otherwise, no. there is a HUGE difference, if you ask me.

 

As for paying $1200 for a resort photographer who is giving you 40 hard copy photos... well, it's better than nothing. I will say that. However, perhaps it'd be better to hire someone outside of your resort?

[blckrevpower]

hi

i will say that i was thinking the same thing you were, but then I saw sites and KNEW I had to hire someone. good luck!

[sweetiecat]

I'm having this dilemma as well. I keep thinking we'll just use the resort photographer, but they don't include enough pictures for the price. They charge $200 for the CD that only includes the photographs that you already paid for in hard copy (so if you get the package with 42 photos, you also can purchase those 42 photos on CD).

 

I'm just not sure if I should do a small package from the resort photographer and supplement it with photographs taken by a friend (not a professional but would be using a top of the line consumer digital SLR camera). The other option would be a professional photographer that wants to get started in destination weddings, or a photographer who is just starting to build their business - and paying for their travel and 3 nights at the hotel. Then again, the quality that I've seen from some of the amazing destination wedding photographers probably wouldn't be there with any of these options. I'm not really interested in getting dressed up another day and going off the resort with a local professional, since it just feels a little off to me since it wouldn't be the wedding day.

 

I know photographs will be one of the only things I can bring back for my family that couldn't make it to the wedding, and one of the only lasting elements from a wedding (other than the promises made and the memories) - I guess I just don't want to spend half of my wedding budget on it.

 

Lisa, on a happier note, I absolutely loved the private island at SRC. I stayed there last year after attending a friend's wedding at Sandals Negril. The island just feels like a true tropical paradise (even though the rest of the resort has more of a British feel). You can snorkel from the back of the island (though that is where the clothing optional beach is), and we saw plenty of awesome fish. I'm not sure if you can have your ceremony on the island or not, but I would do it in a heartbeat if I didn't have my younger brother attending my wedding (we're having it at Beaches Negril instead).

 

The only thing I can say about garden vs. beach is the time of day - if you are having a reception in the evening, there is the possibility of sand fleas (kind of like mosquitoes that live in the sand). Bug spray does work against them, though.

[vdaybride]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tlseege Oh this post just broke my heart! I personally think wedding photographs are one of the very most important things, and I'm not even saying that because I'm a photographer! These are the heirlooms that you will pass down to your children. These are the images they will look at and ask you about your day, and make believe they are you. Not to mention, YOU looking at your own images. I can simply open my photo book and I feel like I'm right back at my wedding. And it all happens so fast that I'm so very thankful that I spent the money for a good photographer. And can your guests take as good of pictures as a photographer... HIGHLY unlikely. You might by chance have a photographer for a friend, in which case, that'd be very generous of them to take your photos. But otherwise, no. there is a HUGE difference, if you ask me. As for paying $1200 for a resort photographer who is giving you 40 hard copy photos... well, it's better than nothing. I will say that. However, perhaps it'd be better to hire someone outside of your resort?

It broke my heart too!!! I could not even imagine getting married and NOT having professional pics taken! I hope that you are able to cut back in other areas if budget is an issue. Maybe you can save on invites by doing them yourself or save the dates by doing the same. In any case you would really regret not having professional pics done. You know auntie betsy will have her finger over the flash during half of the pics.. good luck with your decision

[DWbridetobe]

MontegoBay, I know what you're going through. We're getting married at a Sandals in Saint Lucia, and we're going back and forth on whether to get the photo packages. The prices seem outrageous for what you get, and Sandals REFUSES to let you bring in an outside photographer. I've asked my WC for samples of both the resort photographer and videographer. I'm still waiting to get those, which is what I'll be basing our decision on.

 

Good luck!

[jk1101]

When the wedding is over and you go back home, your wedding photos are what you have to help you remember the event.

 

Your friends/family will do their best, but they will not get the best pictures because they are sharing the time with you, while the photographer is there for just one thing...to take pictures. they know the best way to use the light, the scenery, how to get the best poses from you, etc...if you look at any bride on here and their pro pics vs non pro pics - they are all beautiful but there is a huge difference.

 

Good luck with your decision!

[mnh1983]

Your photos are the only thing you will have after the wedding is over. If you have a friend that is a good photographer, then awesome. But if you are anything like me, photos by friends will end up with everyone having awkward facial expressions and fingers across the frame. :-/

 

If you're not a fan of the photographer at the resort or the price, see if you can find an outside photographer. A lot of photographers will work with you, so you may be able to give a price range and see what you can get for that amount.

 

Good luck figuring it all out!