Artistique Wedding Photography - Now You are Engaged

www.ArtistiqueWeddingPhotography.com.au

Now You are Engaged

I am writing several blogs, which cover different aspects of planning for your Wedding Day, starting with “setting your wedding date” to “after your wedding”.

I am Principal Photographer at Artistique Wedding Photography based at Toowoon Bay on the Central Coast, NSW. Australia. I have captured hundreds of weddings in my 8 years as a full time professional award winning wedding photographer.  Often I meet couples soon after they have become engaged and other than setting their date and venue, they quite rightly follow the next step which is booking a photographer.  At this stage they may not have booked a Celebrant, Cake Maker, Florist, Make-Up / Hair Stylist, so at our planning meeting, I can give recommendations for suppliers they will need.

Setting your Wedding Date:

Now that you are engaged, you will start thinking about setting your wedding date.  This is one of the most important steps, firstly deciding what time of the year you would like to get married, as you do need to take the weather into account.  I personally love every season, but in particular April and September and these are my most popular months.  (It is now the beginning of September (Spring) as I write this blog, and I have 11 weddings booked this September and October this year).  The beauty of weddings in Spring and  Autumn is you don’t usually  have temperatures as high as during the middle of summer.  I have photographed weddings in the Summer months in 40deg temps, very uncomfortable for everyone and in particular elderly or very young guests, not to mention the bride and bridal party. 

Also think about your flowers, is your favourite flower that you would like in your bouquet available in your chosen season to marry in? 

You need to give yourself plenty of time to plan, don’t rush it, having a longer engagement gives you more time to plan for your special day!

Your Wedding Style:

Think about what type of wedding you would like to have, church, beach, garden etc.  The next step is to decide which venue for ceremony and for your Reception. 

If you have already been recommended a particular photographer, make sure you get a list of their available dates and then check that the venue is available on your chosen date.  Often I have couples contact me as they have been recommended to me and they ask which dates I may be available in any given month, and then they get back to me to book me in.

Your Wedding Budget:

It’s a good idea to set your Budget early on as this will dictate most of your wedding decisions. 

The MoneySmart website of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission reports that in 2017 the average cost of a wedding in Australia was $36,200 but can head up to $65,000. 

Breakdown of Budget Expenditure:

Photography 10%

Stationery 5%

Ceremony / Celebrant  10%

Attire 20%

Styling 15%

Reception / venue 40%

Bridal Fairs / Expos:

Have a look at which Bridal Fairs are on in your area and attend these.  I exhibit annually at the Getting Hitched Expo held on the Central Coast, NSW in June each year.  Many brides come to this popular Expo and mainly gather information from the many suppliers, take it away and then go through everything afterwards.  I have received many bookings over the years, weeks and months after the Expo.   Often individual venues will hold Bridal Open Days, so it may be a good idea to find out when venues of interest are having theirs.