Photo courtesy of Spindle Photography

Back on the Insider's Tips: Tip #37, I talked about the fun trend of the After Party.  But you don't have to do an After Party to offer your guests this wonderful new creation of the Late Night Snack!  

Just imagine at your reception, your guests have had dinner and now everybody is partying and having a good time.  It gets to be around 10 and out comes the LATE NIGHT SNACK!  It is not only perfect timing but delicious as well!  All guests are happy with their tummy's full!  You might dance a little more before you make your grand exit.  And as you drive away, your guests will be thanking you for the delicious snack before the party ended! (And the fact that they don't have to stop at Waffle House, or some other all night establishment, on the way home, therefore saving them from a terrible stomach ache the following morning!)

Photo courtesy of Kelli + Daniel Taylor Photography

You don't see if often, and of course, it wouldn't work in a church, but for an outside ceremony, it is PERFECT!  After you say "I do" and share your first kiss as husband and wife, your guests throw rose petals or lavender as you exit the ceremony!  

So many wonderful things about this. The first is that you don't have to worry about having enough guests to "fill the picture" at the end of the reception.  Everyone knows that your guest count will dwindle as the evening progresses.  I say that your older guests tend to leave right after you have your 1st dance and cut the cake.  

For your photographer and videographer, they (we) will be excited because the lighting will be excellent if you leave after the ceremony!  

Photo courtesy of Morgan Trinker Photography

And although I don't recommend this, but we have done it a couple of times in twelve years, it does allow you to stay and continue to party and have shorter hours for your photog and videog.  The times when we have done this is when the couple is not planning on a traditional going away from the reception, their reception could even be at a hotel and they just plan to ride upstairs.  They might have tons of friends and family from out of state that they don't get to see very often and really want to stay and play.  (or go to the hotel bar afterwards)  

We like to tell the story of the wedding day so having a formal going away at the reception helps with the natural flow of the video.  But our solution is to do a great "last dance" before your vendors leave.  It is a perfect way to end the day!

Wedding Planner Rachael Grammer with Two Hearts Weddings & Events.  Photo courtesy of Kelli + Daniel Taylor Photography

So if you have been one of the loyal and avid readers of these posts, you know that so many things can pop up during your wedding planning and on the day of.  Things that you might not ever think of unless you go to a lot of weddings and hang out in the background.  We do.  We see most everything that happens - the good, the bad and the ugly.  

Just the other weekend, the band was complaining about their stage not being big enough and not having the electrical requirements that they needed.  How's your knowledge of power requirements???  I don't know about you, but on my wedding day I wanted to be the bride, not an electrician.

What if you change the time you want to leave your reception?  Who is going to have the number of the car company to tell them the new time?  Sure you have it in your wedding book, but where is the book? 

Short a corsage from the florist?  You can't leave that one grandparent without something to wear!  Who is calling the florist???  Who is stressing about this?  You will be!

Imagine the photographer trying to take all of the family pictures, but where is the family?  Uncle Bob is over there, Aunt Sally is still getting ready, Aunt Sue went to sit down in another room.  Who will be yelling trying to get everyone to be in the same room at the same time?  Yep, you again.  

Wedding Planner Ann Marie of Tres Beau Weddings featured here by Allison Lewis Photography

There was one reception that I heard about where the venue had to make a rain call while the ceremony was taking place at a nearby church.  No big deal, right?  Well the florist was already set up and wasn't made aware that the rain call had taken place and everything (but her flowers) were moved inside.  Fortunately she decided to run back by the venue to double check everything 30 minutes prior to the guests arriving.  She was able to redecorate everything before the couple arrive for their reception.  

Photo of Anita with AK Brides.  Photo courtesy of Stacy Richardson Photography

I wonder what you can do to help ensure that these things don't happen?

If the couple had hired a professional wedding planner, none of this would have been an issue.  

Don't make your friends, your mother, (or you) have to deal with this stuff.  You don't want to be interrupted while you are taking pictures or getting dressed in your beautiful wedding gown - hire a professional wedding planner to handle everything for you.  You will just have to trust me on this one - it will be worth the money!!!!

By the way, each of the examples are from an actual wedding.  We even had one this past weekend where the reception site's power was knocked out by a storm right before the wedding.  No power, no AC, nothing for the entire night.  Who do you think had to deal with that?

Photo courtesy of 2b Photography

We are videographers.  We are cinematographers.  We are film makers.  We are video ninjas.  Whatever you want to call us, fine.  We are passionate about the work we do.  The work speaks for itself.  

When you are searching for a videographer (and you should be!!!), look for someone that you connect with.  I feel that you should have an emotional reaction to our work.  Brides call/email us crying because they just watched the clips on our website.  That’s an emotional reaction.  Our brides actually LOVE their wedding film more than their photos most of the time!!  I know, you can't even imagine that now, but it will happen.  That's the part that makes me so crazy.  Just trust me and let us do our job. 

I hear it over and over from bridesmaids and others.  "I just got married last month and I didn't hire a professional videographer for my wedding."  It's unfortunate because you can't go back and redo your wedding day.  If the company you hire knows what they are doing then you are going to get a priceless treasure from your wedding day.   

A few years ago a bride's grandmother got very sick the day after the wedding and never recovered.  We had captured some great footage of her at the wedding.  We were able to use every piece of usable footage as a tribute to her grandmother. We even had natural audio of her grandmother laughing.  I don't know if you have ever lost a loved one, but to be able to remember how they looked and sounded is such a gift.

The above example was used to help you understand that a wedding video not only will capture the things that you understandably find important  - your wedding ceremony and vows, your first dance, the funny moment during cake cutting - but it will also capture the things that you might not realize how very important they will become.  

Photo courtesy of Allison Lewis Photography

We recently saw the best arrangement for the parents during the wedding ceremony. To better help you understand what I am talking about, this was a formal church ceremony, the groom's father was the best man, and there wasn't a center aisle.  

So both sets of the parents (bride and groom's) were sitting on the same aisle. But instead of being on the sides, they both scooted to the middle and sat next to each other.  How great is that!  We think it showed a wonderful sense of unity between the families.  Some brides and grooms are not as lucky.  And besides for a lot of weddings, the groom's mom has to sit by herself because her husband is standing with their son on the alter.  Great for pictures and video too!  

Photo courtesy of 2 b Photography

This tip is actually another one of John's.  Don't we love it when he chimes in from time to time!  

John says to not make any major decisions - like buying a dress, booking a venue, etc., the first week after you get engaged.  Take a little time to enjoy your new sparkly ring.  There is so much excitement right after an engagement, but don't let that excitement cause you to make bad decisions.

Booking the first venue you see, or the first dress you put on because you just sooooo excited and can't wait to start getting ready for the wedding, it might turn out to be a bad thing.  Take the time to make an educated decision so that you won't have any regrets. I doubt many venues or dress shops will give you a refund if you change your mind.

And you know what else would help...hiring a professional wedding planner.  They will be able to lead you in the right direction!  AND save you money in the process!  

Photo courtesy of 509 Photo

Ok, here is a tip that you won't find anywhere else.  

Please remind your wedding party (and yourself) that although prayers during the ceremony are a time that most of the wedding guests have their eyes closed, the video camera is still running.  All adjustments to dresses, pants, body parts, etc. should wait until the ceremony is over. Jesus (and the videographer's camera) are watching! Probably not something you want on your video...

Please remember that we live in one of the hottest states in the summer!  Outdoor summer weddings are beautiful, but they are HOT!  A couple of cute wash bins full of ice and water bottles is a nice thing to do for your guests.  

Put them by the guest book, by the ceremony location, wherever you can.  If a guest arrives 20 minutes before to get a good seat and the ceremony is about 30 minutes long, they will be sitting out in the hot heat for almost an hour before the reception starts.  So buy a lot - you won't waste it!  The alternative could be guests passing out due to the extreme heat.   

An alternative to water it a cute lemonade stand or even lemonade favors! It is a great way to put your unique spin on the favors while replenishing your guests' thirst!

Photo courtesy of Allison Lewis Photography

Photo courtesy of Eternal Reflections Photography by Alyson

This next tip I am pretty excited to share!  I think we have seen it only a handful of times, but it is high-impact.  

Not too many times do we see a bride want to wear her mother's vintage wedding dress, but taking the dress and having a seamstress turn into into a short, cute party dress for the wedding rehearsal dinner = brilliant!   

The dress pictured below was worn for the 2nd half of the reception. The bride took her mom's dress and remade it into a short dress, so she was ready to dance the night away!

You can also make a beautiful handkerchief made from your mother's wedding dress.  

There are so many ways to incorporate meaningful heirlooms into your wedding day. It just takes thinking outside the box! Maybe a vintage broach bouquet should be a topic soon?

Photo courtesy of Amanda Pair Photography

Whether you like it or not, you and your groom are responsible for getting people out on the dance floor.  Well, at least partly.  You can have a great band or DJ, but your guests want to see you out there having fun.  

I am not saying that you have to physically drag everyone and force them to dance.  We have seen when planners guide their couple to the dance floor, the guests start to dance.  When they see you having a great time and dancing, they want to come out on the dance floor too.  

One more bonus:  Your photographer and videographer can capture some great memories because everyone is out there dancing and having a great time!  

Party on the Moon | Photo courtesy of Allison Lewis Photography

Quick and easy tip of the week:  The later in the wedding reception that you cut your cake, the less will be eaten.  A lot of the older crowd will leave once the cake is cut, so your crowd will thin out just a bit, but do you really want 5 layers of cake in your mom's freezer?  So why not have your introduction, go straight into the first dances (bride and groom, daddy and daughter, mom and son) and then go cut your cake.  Then you can party with the band and do what you want to do!  

Yay, you're married!  Wonderful, let's start the celebration.  But wait, where is the minister?  You need him to sign the marriage license.  Ugh.  Read on to find out about this cool tip we saw recently at a wedding.

The couple and minister signed the marriage license right during the wedding ceremony! It was perfect!  Right after the couple lit the unity candle, they signed it.  And it was done.  No need to chase after anyone after the ceremony.  Cross it off your to-do list.  Plus it is a great time and place for a photo/video opportunity! 

Photo courtesy of Unplugged Photography / Rabbi Barry