Choosing a wedding photographer tips

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CHAIR COVERS OR QUALITY WEDDING PICTURES?

This post is sort of "tongue in cheek" if you would indulge me for a minute.
I have been giving HUGE discounts on wedding photography packages lately. Why am I doing this? A couple of reasons come to mind. First, the state of the current economy. Many, many people are without jobs and/or have lost their homes and let's face it, it could take some time for things to really turn around.

I am trying to help my brides and grooms have the same fantastic wedding photography services that I was once providing at three times the cost.I understand how tough things are right now.

I have had too many brides come to me after their weddings, showing me their wedding pictures with tears running down their faces in disappointment. These are brides that had wanted desperately to hire me because of my work and my reputation, but chose to have a family member or someone that they found on Craig's List to shoot their weddings in order to save money.

One particular bride said "If only I had given up the chair covers, I could have had you shoot my wedding, I'm so sorry now. How many guests really cared or even noticed the chair covers?. I hate my wedding pictures, and it's too late to do anything about it".

For some brides, their wedding pictures are the most important aspect of their wedding budget. Your pictures are the one thing that you will have for the rest of your life. You will look at them time and time again, show them to friends, family and co-workers. They should evoke the same emotions that you felt on your wedding day.

There are literally hundreds of "newbie" wedding photographers popping up every day. The choices for brides are overwhelming. Take your time finding the perfect match for you. Ask questions of each photographer that you interview. How long have they been in business? Are they licensed and insured? Do they belong to professional wedding photography associations? Ask to see a COMPLETE wedding, not just the "best of the best" pictures that they showcase in their albums and on their websites. Be a smart consumer.

If your wedding photography is very important to you and budget is a concern, look at ways to cut back in some other areas (chair covers perhaps?,or using the standard chairs that your venue provides for your reception instead of upgrading to Chivari chairs, have a smaller cake to cut in front of the guests and sheet cakes that are served from a back room (no one will notice, I promise!).

If you skimp on your wedding photography, it WILL show. You WILL be disappointed. No one wants that for you on the most special day of your life.

BRIDES REGRET NOT SPENDING MORE ON PHOTOS.

Brides Regret Not Spending More on Photos
www.digitalweddingforum.com
Well there you have it! Right there in black and white. Good photography is worth paying for but 22% of Brides don’t realize it until after the wedding is over.

Don't be one of those among the unhappy brides. You only have ONE chance to have it done right.

Choose an experienced,licensed, insured professional wedding photographer for the most important day of your life.

WOW! TERRIFIC RESPONSE NOTED FROM MY LOCAL WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY DISCOUNTS!

I am very excited to report an amazing response from couples looking for my wedding photography services for weddings taking place in Oakley, Pittsburg, Brentwood and Antioch, California.

I am offering up to a 70% discount on local wedding photography packages and folks are grabbing up dates fast!

There are many wonderful wedding venues in this area(Antioch Golf course, The Nines at Brentwood Golf Course, Brownstone Gardens in Oakley, The Wedgewood Banquet Center at the Pittsburg Golf Course and Shadow Lakes Golf Club in Brentwood, just to mention a few.)

There are also a multitude of lovely churches in the East Contra County area.

Thanks for your great response to my newest discount offer!

Up to 70% off on wedding photography packages!

For those of you that need a wedding photographer for a Brentwood,Pittsburg,Oakley or Antioch,California wedding, I have a super special offer for you! If you are getting married in one of the above mentioned cities, you can get up to 70% off on your wedding photography and get a second photographer at NO additional cost. This is a limited offer.
I am experienced, licensed and insured and have shot hundreds of weddings. I have produced thousands of beautiful images for my couples over the years. Let me create beautiful memories of your special day!


REMEMBER: JUST BECAUSE SOMEONE OWNS A CAMERA, DOES NOT MEAN THAT THEY ARE A PHOTOGRAPHER.

WEDDING PLANNER GIVES ROBERTA CLAIRE PHOTOGRAPHY A 5 STAR REVIEW!

I was thrilled to receive this review from Diane DuBose, an absolutely wonderful wedding coordinator that I worked with in October. Hope you don't mind me sharing this with you! Diane also does floral design and created this bouquet for the bride.



"Last year, I had one of those weddings that all Wedding Planners dream of having. My bride and groom live in Singapore but were coming back to the Bay Area for their wedding, as the groom was raised here. Every detail was left to my company Details, with the bride and groom making final decisions on key elements. As their photographer ranked as extremely important to them, I began my search to find the caliber of photographer I could attach my name to at the end of the day with no worries. The logical choice was Roberta Claire Photography! You may wonder what sets this individual apart from the rest of the very talented photographers in our area in my opinion? It is her ability to capture the essence of the bride and groom, to gather all the wonderful shots. But more importantly~~~do it without interrupting the flow of the day for the bridal party and guests. Roberta’s low key personality does not ruffle feathers as the day progresses, and she has the ability to work with your time lines and cooperates always with a smile! Now that the out of the norm-above and beyond skills have been discussed—there is her EYE for Photography! The pictures she will capture are phenomenal. My bride and groom loved working with her, are so pleased with their end product, many pictures as well as a wonderful album to share with their families for years to come. For me, their satisfaction means a job well done!"

Diane DuBose, Details www.detailseventsandweddings.com


Diane DuBose
Details
707 416-8840

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER ROBERTA CLAIRE SHOOTS WEDDING AT LOVELY BROWNSTONE GARDENS.

OVERVIEW

Brownstone Gardens in an "outdoor only" venue located just outside the city of Oakley, CA. This is one of the most unique wedding venues that I have had the pleasure of photographing.
The site fee is very reasonable, there is ample parking and the venue does have a bridal room for the bridal party to dress and wait for the ceremony to begin.
The venue has three distinct areas: The Grand Court, The Koi Garden and Bridal Falls. Guests have use of the entire property if you are having both your wedding and reception there.

Tables,chairs, linens,set up,clean up,and a wait staff in uniform are included with your catering package. You can upgrade chairs and linens for an additional fee. I would strongly advise the use of a DOC (Day of Coordinator) for this venue as they do not provide someone to help you to navigate through your wedding day.

Weddings generally take place in the Grand Court (see pictures), which is lovely.

Bar services include wine and beer only.You may bring your own wine, beer, and champagne, but you must hire an insured bartender. The venue is happy to assist you with finding vendors from officiants to DJs and everything in between.

PROS:
Lovely location with lots of foliage and plenty of room for guests to roam around and mingle.

Very reasonable prices.

CONS:
It can get very hot in the Grand Court area during the summer. There is little to no protection from the direct sun.I suggest having chilled bottled water available to guests. I would also advise you to bring your elderly guests into the Grand Court area just before the ceremony, so that they are not sitting in the hot sun on summer wedding days. There is plenty of shaded area where guests can wait adjacent to the Grand Court.

IMPORTANT NEWS FOR ENGAGED COUPLES.

It is with great sadness that I have had five of my longtime, professional photographer associates close their doors and go out of business in just the past three weeks.
I realize that the current economy is a mess and people are trying to save money wherever and whenever they can. I do the same thing, believe me.

There has been a proliferation of "newbies" popping up all over the place that purchase a camera and decide that they are now "wedding photographers.Since this is an unregulated field, ANYONE can say that they are a wedding photographer.

It is a tough job being a truly excellent wedding photographer. It takes YEARS of experience and the investment of thousands and thousands of dollars worth of camera bodies,back up equipment, good lenses, lighting equipment etc to really be prepared to shoot under the very difficult conditions that weddings and receptions often present.

Please think carefully before trusting someone to capture the memories of the most important day of your life. Pick an experienced, licensed, insured, professional photographer. All that you have left after your wedding day are the memories. Make sure that your photographer captures your memories for you by providing you with pictures that represent how you felt on your wedding day, the laughs, the tears of joy, the true emotion that you felt on that day.

YOU CAN'T AFFORD NOT TO HIRE A TRUE PROFESSIONAL.
www.robertaclaire.com

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER ROBERTA CLAIRE SHOOTS WEDDING AT RIOS-LOVELL ESTATE WINERY: VENUE REVIEW INCLUDED IN ARTICLE.

OVERVIEW

Rios-Lovell is located in the beautiful "wine country" area of Livermore,Ca.
As far as wedding and reception locations go,this is one of my all time favorites.I've included pictures from a wedding that I shot there in October that shows a sample of some of the beautiful grounds.

The venue has a lovely garden area and gazebo that will accommodate up to 300 guests. The indoors reception area will hold a MAXIMUM of 230 guests and if you plan on having that many guests, just be aware that it is a very tight squeeze with very little room to move around the tables.

Rios-Lovell has their own winery and provides all beverage service. No outside beverages are allowed.

You must choose from one of the two following catering services: Scott's Garden and Bon Vivant, both of which provide delicious meals (no rubber chicken dinners served here!)

You must also choose from one of the following Dj's: Eastwood Entertainment or Fantasy Sound (both are excellent).

Although the venue has a preferred list of photographers, you may select your own.

Guest chairs and tables are provided by the venue.

The unique thing about Rios-Lovell is that besides the garden area and gazebo,there are vineyards, large grass areas, a pond, and a section of the grounds has an area that looks like it came straight from a European country.

The staff and service are top notch. I highly recommend this wonderful venue.

PROS: Beautiful,spacious grounds,hand painted wall mural behind cake cutting area, great food and service. There is also a very large bridal dressing room overlooking the ceremony site.

CONS: The only con that I can think of is that if you are planning an event with more than 230 guests, this venue will not work for you.

DISCLAIMER:The opinions expressed in this review are solely those of Roberta Claire Berry, owner of Roberta Claire Photography, Oakley, Ca.
This review is based on personal experience. Venues and Vendors are welcome to leave feedback. Solicitations for review will not be accepted. All images taken by Roberta Claire Photography.