Wedding Photographers tips to budgeting for your wedding

Alright guys. This isn’t going to be your traditional wedding budget advice, alloting a certain percentage of your budget towards a variety of different things.

1. Write out your must-haves for your wedding. It may be your dream dress, your dream location, your photographer, or your favorite band. Don’t go and look up the exact dress, the exact price, or details just yet, but have fun dreaming! Don’t go overboard with NEEDING everything. Be smart and try to keep your list short. Go over the list with your partner, see if there’s anything to add and just making sure your visions somewhat align!

2. Write a list of things that you just don’t care too much about. You may still prioritize it and want good quality, but you’re okay with finding an alternative way to make it happen. Maybe you don’t need a fancy, expensive venue and could opt for renting a cheaper Pavillion or finding a space in the National Forest. Maybe you don’t need an extravagant dress and you can find a perfect dress for under $100 or maybe you don’t need a photographer for the entire day. Don’t ask your friends just yet. Keep thinking about what YOU want. It’s your wedding day after all!

3. Start hunting and looking up those dream vendors from your first list. Shop around, ask the questions, learn more about what kind of coverage you need, get quotes, and make a pro and cons list if you’re stuck. Once you have your list, dig a little deeper and really think about what’s important to you. Think about the relationships you want to have with these people, the experiences and think about who has the potential to fit the bill.

4. Alright. Now that you have some numbers to work with, it can probably feel a little overwhelming. You may have no idea how you’re going to pay for all of this and you’re starting to panic. Not to worry, more ideas to come. From a wedding industry point of view, scratch the blog posts on how much to pay for a photographer or how to split up your budget. Lets think about what you NEED VS. WANT.

Well lets be serious, I guess we don’t NEED any of the wedding stuff, but you know what I mean

A wedding day is quite the big event for taking a risk on a vendor we’re just not sure about. While I 100% believe that we have to make the right choices for ourselves and that’s only up to us to know, I think there is a time and a place to cut budgets for your wedding day. I always recommend hiring vendors that are familiar with weddings, know the flow of how they run and are confident in their skills!

If photography is TOP on your list and you already can’t wait to get your pictures back, then skimping out on a cheaper photographer to save some money could really cost ya in the end. Read the reviews, ask the questions, ask for recommendations, do the research and make sure it’s the right fit.

5. So how do I get the money to pay for this? Well gosh. Coming from someone who created a business with no college education, I’m the queen of alternative ways to make money! You may have a budget to work with and potentially could have gotten help from family. Amazing if so, but don’t fret if not! Here are some ways to make money alternatively to save up for your wedding!

• If you’re doing wedding registries, look into websites that allow you to register with vendors or for experiences! Rather than paying for your houseware, you can put it towards your dream wedding band!
• Get a second job if you have spare time! Maybe it could be something fun and easy, but just enough to stash a little cash away
• Are you crafty or handy at doing anything? Think of things you can make or services you can sell. Or maybe you can cut corners on making wooden signs for your wedding rather than buying
• Do you have clothes you can sell or furniture you can get rid of? These are easy little things that can add up in your wedding piggy bank!

Where there’s a will, there’s a way.

A few more ways to cut corners…

• Don’t have a wedding party
• Find a way to make gifts for your guests for free or skip this altogether
• Find a cheaper alternative venue like National Forest Land or a local park (check with your local areas)
• Find a white bridesmaids dress instead
• Your favorite photographer for 1/2 the day
• Hire local hourly work if possible (bartender, servers)
• Look into a weekday wedding for cheaper venue costs. Offseason is another route, but not always recommended depending on location