Catholic Wedding

Wedding Report

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Recently TheKnot.com came out with it’s yearly wedding report. This is based on a survey of brides done right after their ceremony asking them, among other things what they spent on each category for their wedding. I want to share a few fun facts from this report:

The average wedding: $28,427 (excluding the honeymoon)
Most expensive place to get married: Manhattan, $76,678
Least Expensive Place to Get Married: Alaska, $15,504
Average Marrying Age: Bride, 29; Groom, 31
Average Number of Guests: 139
Average Number of Bridesmaids: 4 to 5
Average Number of Groomsmen: 4 to 5
Most Popular Month to Get Engaged: December (16%)
Average Length of Engagement: 14 months
Most Popular Month to Get Married: June (17%)

I’m going to add some to this list based on the Knoxville area, most popular months are April, May, June, September & October. We have a much longer wedding season then most areas due to the climate and the beauty of our outdoor venues.
The average cost of a wedding in Knoxville is right at $26,500.

Here is the break down of what brides spent in each category:

2012 Average Wedding Budget Breakdown

Category                           2012 National Average Spend         2011 National Average Spend
Overall Wedding            $28,427                                                 $27,021
Venue                               $12,905                                                 $12,116
Photographer                    $2,379                                                    $2,299
Wedding Planner              $1,847                                                     $1,753
Reception Band                 $3,084                                                    $3,122
Reception DJ                         $988                                                       $929
Florist/Decor                      $1,997                                                     $1,894
Videographer                      $1,619                                                      $1,486
Wedding Dress                   $1,211                                                        $1,121
Groom’s Tuxedo                   $230                                                          $215
Wedding Cake                       $560                                                          $535
Ceremony Site                     $1,711                                                        $1,599
Ceremony Musicians           $554                                                           $536
Invitations                             $453                                                           $440
Limousine                              $708                                                           $669
Favors                                     $289                                                           $285
Rehearsal Dinner                $1,135                                                        $1,078
Engagement Ring               $5,431                                                        $5,130
Catering (price per person)    $63                                                             $61
Figures based on respondents who hired a professional vendor for the service.

Now I highlighted two categories I want to bring to your attention, photography and videography.  The reason is very simple, every category on this is a one time cost item.  In other words, at the end of the night those items are gone or thrown away.  The only thing you have left at the end of the day are memories and the only way to capture those memories is with photography & videography.  What’s more important to you, the flowers that die the next day or the memories from your wedding day?

7 Minute Movie

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My wife and daughter are really excited about the new “Twilight: Breaking Dawn, Part 2″ moving coming out this weekend.  It’s all they have talked about for weeks.  I think they have seen the trailer online about a dozen times or more the past few weeks.  I, myself, am not a fan of the Twilight movies and will send them off for a “girls night out” fun that mothers and daughters love to share.  I’m sure most of you reading this blog are planning to see it as well.  Think about this as you are going to the movies this weekend.

You stand in line to get your tickets (if you haven’t purchased them online already) that cost you in the area of $9.00 each.  More if you see the IMAX version of a movie.  Then you have to have some popcorn, a cold drink and maybe even a little candy.  When all is said and done, you’ve spend close to $20 and you haven’t even seen the first frame of film yet.  As you sit down in the theater and wait for the movie to start you are so excited and just can’t wait for the movie to begin.  I mean, you’ve only waited almost a year or more for this final chapter of the Twilight Saga.  Then the lights dim and the music starts.  After what seems like 30 minutes of movie trailers and commercials, which I still don’t get, the feature presentation starts.

7 minutes later, it’s over.  That’s right, 7 minutes.  That’s the whole thing, the entire movie; 7 minutes.  You waited months, spend $20 to see a seven minute movie?   How mad would you be?  How upset do you think the others in the theater would be?  I know if I spend $20 or more for a movie, it better be more then 7 minutes long.  But, that’s what brides are paying for today and some of them may not even know it until it too late.

The latest, greatest thing for wedding films is called the short form video.  It’s about 7 to 8 minutes long and only gives you the best parts of your wedding day condensed down to fit into that time frame.  Most Catholic wedding ceremony’s  can be an hour or longer.  Hindu weddings are upwards of 3 hours long.  How do you fit a wedding day into 8 minutes?  My typical wedding day is in the area of 9 to 11 hours long.  I capture in the area of 7 to 9 hours of footage from the wedding day and that’s if I do nothing more then just the ceremony and reception only.  I can’t fathom the work that would be involved in just shrinking 9 hours of footage to just 8 minutes.

The craziest part of all this is the wedding videographer is charging you the same price for an 8 minute video that I charge for a full wedding film that can last on average 90 minutes or more. I don’t understand how they can do that.  I look at it this way, they are charging the same price for a 10th of the work.

Midnight Magic Studios offers brides a full length film of their wedding day.  They get the entire day, from hair and make up to the grand getaway at the end of the night.  No shortcuts, no short form video, nothing but the entire day given to you, the bride.  You didn’t plan an 8 minute wedding day, why try to relive only 8 minutes of it?

Is The Wedding Film Really Worth It?

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Is The Wedding Film Really Worth It?

This has to be one of the most popular questions I hear when brides talk to me about wedding films.  Is it really worth it?  I can’t answer that for you.  That sounds strange, doesn’t it?  I’m a wedding filmmaker and I can’t tell you if a wedding film is worth it or not.  Wasn’t the answer you were looking for, right?

Well there is a reason why I can’t answer that question and the reason is simple; I’m not YOU.  I have found over the years that every bride has something that’s really important to her, something that is key to her.  Some brides put the major importance on flowers and decorations.  Other maybe feel food is more important or the reception.  Every bride is different and everyone of them look at things differently.  So, for me to tell you that a wedding film is really worth it is not my place.  I can tell you that I have worked with brides who thought that the wedding film was the most important part of their wedding and I’ve worked with one bride who was on the fence about the wedding film altogether.  I’ll tell you about her later.

I do, however, think it would be best to hear from brides like you who are thinking about wedding films.  I found a web site not too long ago called WeddingBee.com. This is really just a message board where brides like you can post questions about any part of their wedding; should I invite kids to the wedding?  What kind of music should I play?  Any suggestions on a first dance song?  The list just goes on and on with questions that brides like you have.  Don’t be surprised if you find that question that’s been bugging you for weeks is on the board someplace.

I, of course, go to the video board all the time to see what is being said and today I found this: “How often do you watch your wedding video? Was it worth the cost?“  That one question hits the nail on the head for so many brides like you.  You want to know if this is something your going to watch ever again and is it worth it?  Instead of me giving you the answer, her are some of answers posted on this and other boards with the same question:

“I was one of those people who was very against a video. I thought it was a waste of money and we had splurged so much on our photos. I thought that was enough. My in-laws insisted and insisted. I found one of the least expensive people in my area. Let me tell you, and I would never admit this to (groom) or his family, I am SO SO SO glad they insisted. Our video is AMAZING!! I watch it all the time and it captured moments the photographer couldn’t. I don’t regret it at all and we didn’t go nuts on the cost. Here is our preview cause I love showing it off, but seriously I am am so happy we have it and you don’t have to break the bank on.”

“I did not get a videographer.  That is the only regret of my wedding.  I had an AMAZING photographer and my photos could not have captured everything better, but I still wish I had a video.  That’s the one thing I would change if I could go back.  I say do it:)”

“YES, get one. I can’t tell you how much we love our video and how happy we are that we got one. We booked it super close to the wedding–like 3 weeks before–because we were unsure, but we were SO happy that we did. Hearing our vows over again, getting to see everyone dancing, it was just wonderful. So I would highly highly recommend it!!”

“YES, get one. I can’t tell you how much we love our video and how happy we are that we got one. We booked it super close to the wedding–like 3 weeks before–because we were unsure, but we were SO happy that we did. Hearing our vows over again, getting to see everyone dancing, it was just wonderful. So I would highly highly recommend it!!”

This one is my favorite:   “The main reason people who got a video don’t watch it is poor quality.  If you have a video professioanlly done, you’ll watch it more often.  We did DIY video for our wedding and my sister had a pro.  I watch her video more than I watch mine because you can hear everything clearly and the picture isn’t all shaky, discolored and grainy. Hers is also like a movie and mine is just random shots.  Sure, you can put the camera on a tripod and make it steady, but you can’t make that tripod move around the room by itself.  That reminds me of my aunt’s wedding video from the 80′s.  The camera guy hardly ever moved. He may as well have been a  tripod. REALLY BORING!  Part of the reason I didn’t want a pro, but with my sister’s video, I learned that things are different now.”

This is my favorite for a number of reasons, but the main reason being that she covers it all.  Brides who say they got a video but never watch it because it’s so bad or hard to watch.  When you hear this, ask them who shot their wedding.  Most likely it was a family member or a friend.  But what gets me the most is that she watches her sisters wedding film more then she watches her own.  Now, there are those on the board who say they have no regret about not having a wedding film made and you may very well be one of those brides, but let me tell you about Ashley:

Ashely contacted me about 6 months before her wedding.  Her friend got married and I had done her wedding film and she wasn’t sure if she wanted one or not.  She told me up front she was on the fence about the whole thing.  Ashley told me she loved the film I had done for her friend and all but she just didn’t think it was something she would watch ever again.  We talked some that evening and at the end of the night, she signed the contract and we shot her wedding in November of 2010.  As I got to know Ashley more over time I found out she had a very close relationship with her grandmother.  A relationship that was very important to her.

As Ashley’s wedding day approached I found out that the chance of her grandmother making it to the wedding was very slim.  Seems her grandmother was not doing well and was in the hospital.  Well, the wedding day arrived and Ashley told me her grandmother would not be able to come. You could tell she was very sad and hurt, but she was going to go through with the wedding with a smile on her face.  As she was getting ready for her wedding, I was outside getting some shots of the church when out of the blue, here comes her grandmother in a wheelchair, with her hospital bracelet still on.  Well, before she saw Ashley, I went over to her and asked if she would want to say a few things to Ashley on her wedding day.  She got teared up and talked to Ashley through the camera for a couple of minutes and went on into the church.

The rest of the day went well and at the reception Ashley got to spend a few minutes with her grandmother.  Just before she took off for her Honeymoon, Ashley gave her grandmother one last hug and off she went on a week long honeymoon.  When she returned late the following Sunday night she was just too tired to go see her grandmother, so she planned to go the next afternoon.  Ashley’s grandmother passed away that Monday morning quietly in her sleep.

When it came time for me to deliver her finished wedding film, Ashley had no idea I had done that little interview with her grandmother.  As I sat and watched the film with them, when her grandmother came up on the screen and talked to Ashley, there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.  Ashley came to me after that and told me that this was the most wonderful thing she ever got.  She has her grandmother with her now for the rest of her life.

So, is a wedding film really worth it?  Ask Ashley, I’m sure she’ll have an answer for you.

Ashley & David’s Wedding Trailer from Midnight Magic Studios on Vimeo.

Cameron & Mart’s Wedding Day

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When I first met with Cameron and Mart, I was truly impressed with this couple.  I’ve been working as a wedding videographer for almost 9 years now and in that time I have gotten pretty good at telling what couples will be together for a long time, a VERY long time or who will be, what we called in the Army, LIFERS.  Meaning, they will hold the “..till death do us part..” part of their vows as forever and not as an option.  Cameron & Mart are LIFERS. You can just see the way they smile when they are around each other and the way their eyes light up when they talk about each otehr They will be celebrating their 20th anniversary in September of 2030 watching their wedding movie and be just as in love then are they were on their wedding day.

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It was great to work with Ashley Hopkins of Ashley Hoskins Photography, she is a great photographer and her work really shows her artistic eye.   The reception was at the beautiful R.T. Lodge in Maryville, TN.  The lodge is set in a beautiful wooded area and would make a great venue for your wedding or reception.

I want to wish Cameron & Mart the best in their future together.