I own a Philadelphia wedding company that offers Photography, Disc Jockey and Videography. My company serves over 200 weddings annually. Often brides come to me and one of the first things they say is they never realized everything was so expensive. It really is a matter of quality. It is not that everything is so expensive, it is just relative. In the Philadelphia area, the average wedding cost is approximately $27,500. That would include 150 to 200 guests at a very nice reception site, with a Photographer, Videographer, and Disc Jockey. It would also include the dress, the flowers, a limousine, etc. If you are able to afford more, you could upgrade the reception site a bit and perhaps get a live band. If you are on a very tight budget, I would suggest a VFW or Fire Hall and cutting out "unessentials", which would include going minimal on flowers and not getting a limousine. I have heard some brides mention not having a Disc Jockey and hooking up an iPod to a boom box. I feel that is a huge mistake, no one is going to dance to an iPod. First off the sound quality would be horrible. Guests at weddings don't remember the food, they don't remember the ceremony, and they don't remember the flowers. What the guests remember is if they had a fun time, and that is absolutely the reason you need a skillful band or Disc Jockey. Some brides would argue that videography is not an essential service. Years ago I would have agreed with you, with the quality of the videos from years past. In recent years, with the introduction of Hi-Definition cameras, professional quality audio equipment, and an array of Hollywood quality video equipment. Wedding videography has made giant leaps and became as essential as photography. I would even argue that it is more important than photography. Imagine watching a professional quality video of your parent's or grandparent's wedding. Seeing your relatives in the prime of their lives and seeing some relatives that might have passed away enjoying themselves in a glorious occasion. The sights and sounds of the day would probably be priceless to you and future generations. Whereas, how often do you look at your parent's wedding album? Have you ever seen it? Most of my clients that come to me on a limited budget for Photography and Disc Jockey services and say they do not want videography. After viewing a couple demo videos of prior weddings, I usually am able to change their minds. When I talk a bride into getting video for her wedding, she thanks me as soon as she sees it. The most common response is, "Our wedding day went by so fast, it was great to relive each moment watching our wedding video. Thank you so much!" If you book a Photographer that offers both Photo and Video, I am positive they would make you a deal on the price and perhaps help with some type of payment options to assist you to be able to afford getting both services. I offer monthly payment options to assist my brides afford the wedding of their dreams, after all it is a once in a lifetime event. If you are on a limited budget and are looking to save on services, the first thing you should cut out is the limo. It is not a vital part of the day, you can have a friend or relative drive you where you need to go. Flowers are also not extremely vital. Your local supermarket can supply some extremely nice floral arrangements for your bouquet and bridesmaids. Invitations don't have to cost you an arm and leg, after all, they are going in the trash almost immediately after they are opened. There are many places online where you can get invitations real cheap. A local invitation place will be much more expensive than finding a source on the internet. Wedding favors could be done yourself at a very cost effective price. There are other spots that you could get away with saving a bit of money, but DJ, photography, and videography are the most essential services for a successful wedding and the memories.
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