Need wedding advice?

Question

I'm gettin married next march so I have plenty of time to plan my wedding. I'm having a hard time finding a place in baton rouge la area that fits my budget. Does anyone have any advice on how to cut costs? I've looked at the knot.com and the weddingchannel.com but i'm still drawing a blank.

Answer 1

Hey I am getting married in June in the Lafayette area and I first of all wanted to tell you that weddingchannel.com and theknot.com are both very wonderful websites but when it came down to the local vendors parts they suck. When I first started planning I looked on there and it didn't help me at all. I don't know much about Baton Rouge but I since you have a little bit of time before you really need to book something just do some research. Go to some bridal expos and call around. You may think that the internet is your most valuable resource right now but honestly it is not. Break out the old phonebook. I promise you there is more in there than you might think. Your first thing you need to do is book your ceremony site and your reception hall to ensure your date and then you should go from there. For your reception hall look into restaurants, hotels, your local American Legion hall, or maybe your park has a recreation hall. Just do alot of research before yuo book something. And somethimes doing the ceremony and reception at the same place doesn't really cut the price at all. Like for instance my reception is going to be at The Manor in St. Martinville (I don't know if you know where that is) and I was planning on doing an outdoor wedding there too. Well to have my wedding there it would be an extra $500 plus my rental for the reception. I decided to not do it there though because I was nervous about the weather. South Louisiana is so unpredictable. So I then began looking for a church and my mom was like why don't you just do it at The Manor it will save you money. You are going to have to rent a limo of you do it somewhere else. Well you see the church we are now doing it at is going to be actually cost around $400 and the limo(which is a hummer...lol!) is going to be free with so many tuxedo rentals. i actually am saving money by not having my wedding there and I get a hummer limo. So just research all of your options before you sign anything or pay anybody. There are amazing cheap photographers out there but you have to look for them. I found that the internet is just good for getting your stuff that you will need later like invitations, dresses, hairstyles, favors, advice. You know that kind of stuff. Book all of your main things first and then you know what you can splurge on and what you can skimp on later. Good Luck! and Congratulations!

Answer 2

I just answered your other identical question and then saw this one. So I'll say a bit more. All the people who shoot weddings, from the hack with a new dSLR to Bambi Cantrell, Monte Zucker and Jeff Ascough had a first one. The ideal way to begin shooting weddings is to have a very good basic understanding of technique and the art of photography, whether that comes from formal education in the classroom, or the school of self-study and hard knocks. On top of that, assisting or interning with an established pro is an immense help. Then add in having the right tools to do the job and knowing how to use them. When all three parts of the wedding photography equation are there, the chance for success goes wayyy up. Take away a piece and the odds of great images fall quite a bit. How much the dip is depends on how much is missing. So, you are missing experience and equipment. Maybe skill, and knowledge too. None of us know how much you have learned in the few months you've been a hobbyist. You may be a great photographer, some people take to it quickly with an innate grasp of light and composition. Then it's a matter of learning how to translate their vision to film (or sensor). Others plod along at novice snapshot level for years, never understanding that a better camera will not make them a better photographer. I don't have a problem with the amateurs who come here asking how to better shoot their first wedding. Most of these first wedding photographers are pressed, cajoled, browbeaten or bushwacked into duty because they are either the family shutterbug, or they have a decent camera, perhaps the only dSLR among the circle of friends. Not every wedding has a budget of thousands or tens of thousands of dollars, and often the B&G would have nothing but disposacam snaps from table cameras if someone refused to do the photography as a favor. Although I am a firm believer in "It's the photographer, NOT the camera", the reality remains that unless he really screws up, he will get shots better than a bunch of kids with a disposables or Aunt Edna with her five year old Kodak Easyshare. Now, if he presented himself asking something like, "I am starting a wedding photography business next week, what camera and lens do I need and what should I name it?", then he deserves whatever raking he gets. But here, this is not the case. He is just a friend trying to help. Plenty of amateurs shoot weddings. Sometimes that ends in heartbreak for everyone, but sometimes it's all OK, even if not perfect. I hope this one will be OK! Good luck, and read those links I sent in the previous answer.

Answer 3

What I did was found a place that did both the ceremony and reception that cut some costs. Another way is to go buffet vs. sit down dinner that also cuts money. I had a 250 person wedding for little over 4000 including dress, cake, place, food, DJ, Hotel rooms for the night before and night of, Tux, centerpeices that my bridesmaids and I made, Invitations and save the date cards, and photographer. Get friends that you know to do things, like if you have someone that is really good at taking pictures ask them if they would like to take pictures at your wedding, I even flew mine in from across the country and still it was 90 percent cheaper then if I had asked someone to do it "professionally" There are little things that cut big costs. Flowers, go to Fred myers and find the flowers you want and have you and your bridesmaids fix them the way that YOU want them, save money and bonding time with the girls.

Answer 4

The first thing to do is to sit down and imagine your dream wedding. The whole nine yards. Then, take the items that you have written down and number them from 1 to whatever in terms of importance. You may find that the place is not as important as flowers. Talk to your local Chamber of Commerce, churches, etc. Also, look at places like flower gardens in the area, national parks, beaches. These have natural decoration. Another interesting idea is to talk to funeral homes with beautiful chapels.. Don't knock this idea until you go look. Many times funeral homes will rent the chapel for a few hundred dollars. They are very beautiful and may not need much decorating. My wedding was held at a historic mansion that is now a funeral home. Many of the guests did not realize that it was a funeral home until days later. Just think outside of the box. It will come to you.

Answer 5

Call the Baton Rouge Chamber of Commerce, or find their website. Most calls I get from out of town clients (I'm a wedding caterer/baker) are referrals from my local Chamber of Commerce.
Also, get on the internet and do a search of Baton Rouge restaurants, caterers, and reception halls.
As for cutting costs, come up with a budget and stick to it. It's hard, but it makes you prioritize with what is really important to you to have at your wedding. (Like, would I rather have a big fancy cake at my reception or a violinist at my ceremony?)

Answer 6

Do you have a local restaurant that you really like, that has room to hold the amount of people that you want to invite. I had to have a small wedding because my mom was terminally ill and I had the wedding at her favorite resturant, and will be having the wedding again March 17th when it was originally planned

Answer 7

If the weather is nice out, you might try having your wedding out in a park or a garden. If it isn't so nice check with your local school and see if you might be able to get to use the gymnasium or something like that for your wedding. I know this sounds silly, going back to school for the wedding, but sometimes they do allow it.

Answer 8

you mean over all. there are lots of ways to cut costs my fiance has a wedding planning book that goes over everything you can have at a wedding and a price range and ways to cost costs for each of them. another thing is have family member pay for stuff and let them be noticed in the wedding bulletin/program or something.

Answer 9

Is there a place like the Elks Lodge or something like that? The trick is to find a place that doesn't specialize in weddings!! Places like that raise their costs because most people are willing to pay that for their big day. We had our reception at the local Elks Lodge and it was beautiful and cheap! They charged us what it cost them for the food and labor and didn't raise the price.

Answer 10

Contact Rev Curt Huckshold. He does ceremonies in a lot of odd places; recently did a ceremony is an old stone house there. Soooo cool for the couple. He will probably be able to help you.