Wedding please help!!?

Question

Hi hoping to get married in summer (need to save). Could anyone give me any ideas on how much a photographer would be in uk for inside the Registrar outside? Also how much do places cost now a days for sit down meals for approx 60 - 65 people? Any ideas on weddings im stuck and scared. Honest answers please

sorry i forgot to mention which summer. Summer 2009

Answer 1

we planned our wedding over 18 months, and got married on 1st july last year. ours cost around £10-13000 in total;
our photographer cost £1100, cos we used kodak weddings (which incidently has ceased trading now), our honeymoon was about £2000 for a 2 week hol in kenya with safari, my dress and accessories were around £1100, and bridesmaid dresses were £130 each plus accessories-tiaras from ebay-£6 each, and shoes from bhs-£25 a pair (i had 3 bridesmaids) suits cost £100 to hire each, Flowers were around £500 but we didn't have a church wedding so didn't need any for end of pews. we had the ceremony and reception and eve. party in a hotel, and paid £6 per person for the ceremony, £60 per head for a 3 course dinner which included half a bottle of wine per person, and a glass of bubbly for toasts, and then it was about £14 per person for the eve. buffet. we had around 60 in the day and about 130 in the evening.
i made all my own save the date cards, invitations, favours, name cards, buying kits from lakeland ltd, or from art shops etc.
Hair and make up for me and my bridesmaids cost £220.
there are always lots of little extras, which i have no doubt forgotten about now! it is a pricey business, but if it all goes as perfectly as our wedding did, then it's worth it! Also, you need to book venues asap esp. if you have your heart set on a particular date, as most places get booked up early, particularly in the summer, but like i said, we married in the summer, and managed to stick to our budget, so just go for it! start now with the little things you can afford, and continue to save for the more expensive things. Oh! with our photographer, we paid a little bit each month over the year before the wedding, i'm sure you would be able to find another who would let you pay like that. we wouldn't have been able to afford ours if we had to pay outright, but i would recommend a professional photographer, i love our photos, and can't imagine them being less than perfect if id got a sub-standard photographer to take them!
Good luck with everything!

Answer 2

Hiya, a decent photographer costs anwhere between £400-£1500 but i wouldn't spend the latter. As for venues for food, ring round a few or email them and get them to send you info for wedding receptions with full price list including wine packages, canapes etc. Or if you are hiring caterers, meet up with them and negotiate a menu and price that suits your needs and budget. I suggest you start booking all the big things now as summer is the most popular and you'll be surprised how early places get booked up. If a day other than a saturday is a possibility, this can often bring the price way down as can out of season weddings. Do some research and don't worry, it'll all be fine :)

Answer 3

It is difficult. I am Scotland and have a daughter being married this summer. The middle wedding package from local well known photographers is about £1300 but at wedding fayres there were photographers whose worked looked good and their medium package around £900, cheaper in both cases for a basic packages. Hotels here start for meals from About £29 but 3 star hotels start from around £34 upwards. Restaurant could be glad of a booking of 60 - 65 people and may agree to a special menu at a pretty good price. We did this for a smaller number for a graduation and it worked out well. In hotels/restaurants over and above you have wine with meal and drinks to consider. This would add anything from £10 - £20 per head depending on what you want. Take it you don't intend having the best of champagne etc? Hall wedddings can work out cheaper again. You may have to pay for the hire of the hall but you can usually get a decent caterer to provide a nice menu or buffet at a very reasonable price. Some halls allow you to bring your own alcohol in, others have a bar. Where I live you normally have an evening buffet as well but understand wedding receptions work differently depending where you live. To be honest everything related to weddings is MONEY, minute you mention wedding everything seems to zoom up. Lots of cost cutting ways if you think about it as in some guest a good photographer, someone who can do flowers own transport etc etc. Basic list would be fees for the registrar, cars, rings, flowers, invitations,band/disco, venue, outfits for wedding party, wedding cake. There can be umpteen additional thinks but if on a tight budget you could eliminate. Referring to things such as DVD, bridesmaid/best man gifts, wedding favours, make up, bridal party hair being done,coach to transport guests etc. Don't be scared, first of all sit down and calmly right a list of all the people who will be attending. Use some of the basic things in this posting and attempt to find out locally what the costs would be. After that you can decide what you think you can afford and work from there. Also if you are being married on a week day always ask for a discount. lots of places do this as in cars, venue and things like that. Again cutting corners you can make your own invitations or buy ready made ones from a stationers or card shop. Watch out for the sales as the packs are often greatly reduced or if a shop is closing down. Although probably not banking on it you may be surprised that family will offer to pay certain things and you may receive money gifts as wedding presents. If you are having a wedding list organise this about 3 months before the wedding. Argos is great for a second list or even a main list if you are starting from scratch. Lots of things, especially electric, cutlery, dinnerware are the same as in the big department stores but cheaper. Hope this has helped a bit. Good luck!

Answer 4

Hello, I work as a wedding co-ordinator at a hotel, the cost for a photographer all depends on who you book. It ranges from £750.00 upwards.

The price for a sit down meal again depends on the venue. You will normally pay a room hire, then the cost of the meal, drinks package, floral decorations etc...

I would suggest, making appointments to go and see some local hotels (even if you don't want your reception there) and get the Co-ordinators to write up a quote for you.

Bear in mind that wedding co-ordinators don't work weekends, so its best to make an appointment.

Good Luck

Answer 5

Your best bet if pushed for cash is to look for wedding services which offer 'all in' packages. There are companies out there who will do the dress, reception, photographer etc. for a set price and you have a short list of venues.

Alternatively, it is just a case of research and lots of phone calls. Remember you can negotiate - get a quote for where you would like your reception, get teh price, call them back a few days later saying you can get the whole package cheaper elsewhere but you like the feel / ambience / character of the place, can you match the quote? You will be surprised how much you can save by having the courage to ask - I've just saved £15.000 on a house purchase by asking for people to do a better price.

Answer 6

Hi im getting married this year and when I was pricing for my wedding the photographers were very expensive, so where cheaper than others, The first one I went to was £1100 and the other 900 and the albums werent that big, so I got the name off my cousin who she had at her wedding and she is doing it for £500 and the album is massive. All I would say is price around and see if anyone knows any one who does it from home. When I went to the photographers that had a shop they were not the traditional wedding photoes that I had my heart set on, the were all modernised and I was not too keen. But when I went to see this lady she knew exaclty how I wanted them and her ablums that she has done before are stunning.
As for the sit down meals it all depends on where you are having your reception. You will usually have to pay for the room and the meals are usually charged per head. Very I search around to find a decent venue that was failry cheap, Where having everything at the venue the wedding, reception and the evening do. It £100 for everything but the meals are chargerd per head like everywhere is ususally and its £19.95 where were going but it was £23.99 per head at this posh hotel where we were thinking of having it, But you have to remeber its not just the meals its the drink when your guests arrive and the drinkis with the toast as well. Some charge per bottle some charge per head. Its £11.95 pwe bottle at the venue we are having ours at. But where we were going to go the posh place, it was £13.95 per head on top of the meal.

So can be expensive. You tend to set a budget but you never stick to it as whenb you plann a wedding there is so much to think about. Even if its not a church wedding its still as expensive. I was originally getting married in a church but changed my mind and its dearer for us now that it would have been in the church.

If you need anymore advice please email me as Ive just sorted my wedding out thats in July.
Also get you mum to help you they are the best ones as they have bben married themselves.

Answer 7

Unless you are very good at saving, it would be almost impossible to have it in the summer. When I got married, we intended to have a small wedding. Our guest list swelled from 65 to 150 as the more we thought about it, the more people were invited. The average wedding costs about £6,000 and thats a small, no honeymoon one!! I wish you the best of luck though.

Answer 8

thats when i'm getting married our meals are costing around £1800 and it's for around 65 people and that's without drinks.

i dont know how much a photographer costs i'm scared to even think about it we've only just booked the reception and chapel just now.

good luck with your arrangements and wedding x x

Answer 9

i want extra of a backyard form wedding ceremony... like at an exceptionally wonderful southern plantation, have the marriage cerimony in the interior mid-day, with the reception exterior in the evening while it cools down. i want chinese language (or is it jap?) lantern-esque lighting fixtures with yellow roses and accents of orange with the main advantageous colour being white. in user-friendly terms some human beings from the two components of the kin (like 15-25 each and each). and the food would be set up like an stylish buffet. thats all i've got been given so a great way, yet i think of it particularly is going to be the appropriate wedding ceremony for me (if my destiny husband likes it too).

Answer 10

Don't skimp on the photographer. Pay the small fortune for a great photographer. You'll be happier about it later. I had a friend take my wedding pictures and they turned out ok. But they aren't nearly as good as professionally taken photos.