Spotlight on JS Photography

This past week, Angela got a chance to sit and talk with Jeff from J.S Photography to be able to give our clients the scoop on photographers. They had a short Q & A session so read on to hear what Jeff had to say regarding choosing a photographer, and what to be looking for.

Angela: When looking for a photographer for your special event, what are the top three things you should consider?

Jeff: *Education* - An education is the foundation upon which a career is built. Make sure that your photographer has a degree specifically in photography.Photography is a very technical and challenging field, and taking a few classes is not sufficient for a solid foundation. Would you hire a lawyer without a law degree or without having passed the BAR to represent you?
*Experience* - Following education, nothing is more important than experience. Experienced photographers have hundreds of weddings under their belts, have seen it all, and can handle any situation on your wedding day. You are encouraged to ask for references from past brides and wedding vendors. Because a true professional photographer has an established reputation in your community, you can rely on them before, during, and after your wedding. In fact, they may well become your family photographer for life.
** *Low Pressure* -- Don't be pressured into signing a contract immediately. Choosing a studio to entrust your memories with is an extremely important decision and you need to complete your research. Professionals are confident with their abilities and products and will never coerce you to make a decision that you are not comfortable with. Be wary of high-pressure sales tactics.
Angela: What are some of the advantages in having two photographers verses one?

Jeff: Two photographers will provide you with different perspectives throughout the event, for example while one photographer is doing family portraits the second photographer might be catching a precious moment with the flower girl.

Angela: Why should the photographer have liability insurance?

Jeff: **Liability & Indemnity Insurance are very important to help protect your family and your guests. Employing a photographer without proper insurance can expose the bride and groom to liability. In fact, most venues require proof of insurance. Make sure your photographer also has a business license; anyone who does not is operating illegally.

Angela: Can anyone join the Professional Photographer's Association (PPA)?

Jeff: Although _anyone _can join professional organizations such as the Professional Photographers of America just by paying the dues, these organizations provide photographers with valuable continuing education opportunities. Just having a PPA or WPPI logo on a website gives very little information to the consumer and does not indicate the level of dedication a photographer has. Once again, choosing a professional with an education in photography from a university is the best way to ensure your memories are in the hands of a true dedicated professional. Usually choosing a photographer is the most overwhelming task a bride and groom have when planning a wedding, that is because photography is an unlicensed profession. Anyone can pick up a camera, create a website, and call themselves a photographer, despite a lack of training, education, experience or even legal business licensing and insurance! Sadly, many who represent themselves as a professional photographer don't meet even basic standards of education and training one would take for granted in other professions. Most new photographers don't realize that it takes a lot of time, money, and energy as well as a lifetime of dedication to become a great photographer, therefore many new studios come and go in a short period of time.

Jeff and Sabrina both hold a Master of Fine Arts in photography from the University of Florida. The MFA is the highest degree achievable in photography from an accredited university, Jeff and Sabrina also hold a BFA in photography as well as a Certified Professional Photographer degree from the PPA. JS Photography is the only studio in Florida with such qualifications.
To learn more about Jeff and Sabrina's qualifications feel free to visit this page on their web site http://www.jsphoto.com/about-js-photography.html

Kelly and Nick Banks said "I Do" in March

I know this is back tracking a little, but I had to put Kelly and Nick on the blog. They had to have been the sweetest couple I have ever met and their kids were just adorable. I had the privilege of working with Kelly and Nick in the latter part of the planning process, and what a pleasure it was to get to know this family!

Their ceremony and reception both took place in their beautiful Tioga neighborhood. The ceremony was nestled back behind the gardens of the Clubhouse where they later had their reception.

Olive You Eat Well did the catering and the cake, Wayne's World provided the music (and believe me- guests tore up the dance floor - especially our younger crowd!) and Bella Blooms provided the beautiful flowers.

Nick and Kelly went simple, and never has simple looked so elegant. As you can see in the photos captured by Mary from Caroline Johnson Photography, this was truly a fairy tale wedding come true. You can see the love between Kelly and Nick and it was so amazing to be able to witness that!

Picture Perfect...or maybe not..

When planning your wedding, there are countless ways to save money- whether you borrow your veil and jewelry from a favorite aunt, or your sweet grandmother-in-law-to-be graciously bakes the wedding cake. In many situations, it is perfectly acceptable and common to utilize your friends and family as vendors for your big day; however, asking them to be your photographer is NOT one of those great, money-saving ideas. Sure, it is a way to cut expenses if you are on a tight budget but, like many times in life, you get what you pay for. The hiring of professional wedding photographers is a growing trend, sparked by increasing popularity of the photojournalistic style. It wasn’t until captivating pictures of celebrity weddings began appearing in magazines that people began realizing the importance of a professional wedding photographer. At the end of the wedding day, when all of the food and cake has been eaten, and all of the flowers are wilting, the pictures are what is left to show of the most amazing day of your life (hopefully!)- one that many women begin planning during adolescence. Of course, you will have memories of the love that was shared and the fun that was had by all, but forty years later it will be the pictures that connect you back to that special day. Is this an area in which you choose to sacrifice quality to save a buck? Remember, that even if you save money by having a friend take pictures at the wedding, you will end up paying much more in the end to have them retouched, edited, and printed. If you are among the lucky brides who happen to have an uncle who is a professional photographer- congratulations! You will have great pictures of your wedding day and won’t pay nearly as much as the rest of us will. For everyone else, bite the bullet and spend the extra money- I promise it will be worth it! Here are a few tips to consider when choosing your wedding photographer:
1. Ask friends, family, and your wedding planner for recommendations. Word of mouth is a very reliable way to get trustworthy, quality vendors that people you know and love have previously worked with.
2. Request to see complete coverage of a photographer’s work. Ask them to show you an album or two of an entire wedding that they were hired to cover.
3. Choose a photographic style that suits you- whether photojournalistic, candid, formal portraits, etc. Ask the photographer what different styles they are able to offer.
4. Consider the photographer’s personality. Make sure that you and your fiancé will get along well with him/her. Unlike the cake baker and the florist, your photographer will be around you all day long, taking close shots and asking you to pose certain ways- you want to make sure their personality isn’t going to clash with yours.
5. Check pricing of packages and, more importantly, what is included in those packages. Perhaps a package is more than you were planning on spending, but is all-inclusive of an album and 200 or more prints- which you would end up paying for later on anyway.
6. Lastly, schedule a follow-up meeting with the photographer you choose (and your wedding planner) to discuss what specific shots you want or don’t want taken, the schedule of when pictures will be taken, and how/when the proofs will be available to you and others to own or purchase.

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Jasmin and Tromma's Wedding and Exciting News

We did this wedding some time ago but I wanted to recap it because they are expecting their first child together. We at A`vie are thrilled to hear that their family is growing.


Tromma's son was able to keep all these guys in line...Look how he did it!


Two handsome guys. They were just hanging around before the ceremony began.

We try to encourage our clients to think about doing names that are special and have meaning to your relationship rather than table numbers. It can give the guests something to talk about.

Jasmin and Tromma were just a delight to work with. They both run such a busy schedule and are so involved with their church, Impact Family Church, that it was hard to find all the time to keep those details together. So they came to us to help them plan their dream wedding. So with enthusiasm we jumped in and were able to make their dreams reality. They were blessed with dear friends to sing at their wedding just to make their ceremony more meaningful; which we always want our couples to find something that is unique and stands out.

The reception was so much fun with Mike Collins from Jay’s Entertainment tearing up the dance floor and getting our guests up and out of their chairs. He has a special talent to always get them up. To wrap up the evening we had some fun with the garter. As you can see in the picture the guy putting on the garter was quite surprised when his blindfold was removed to find a guy sitting there instead the beautiful woman that was there only moments before. His facial expession tells it all. I LOVE IT!!! We will keep you up to date on when they have their baby.

Hotel room blocks..if you do it for the Gators you should do it for your Wedding!

You have heard it before…all the hotels are booked. If you are a true Gator Fan, YOU would never allow that to happen to you for a Gator game. Then why should it be different when you are planning for an event? As long as you are having guests from out of town and they need a room you should see if a hotel block could work for you. Most hotels will do a block for you that is less than what it would be if you were to get a room on its own. You can set it up to have all doubles, all kings or even a mix. You can even add suites if need be. Keep in mind that most hotels want the block to have at least ten rooms, but sometimes they will do less. It all depends on the hotel. The best part is, you get a great price for your guests and you are not responsible for covering the cost of any rooms that don't get booked! To set up a block of rooms you need to talk to the sales area at the hotel. They will give you a special block name that you will give all your guests to call in under to get the special rate. Plan ahead and get a better price for you and your guests!

Attention Brides: An event you MUST attend!

It is our pleasure to invite you join A'vie along with the other top vendors of Gainesville and surrounding areas at the 5th Semi-Annual Florida Bridal Expo.

This year's special features include:
3 GRAND PRIZES:
A wedding day package up to $15,000
Honeymoon package- 4 days, 3 nights cruise to the Bahamas
$500 Giftcard to Bed Bath & Beyond
Additional Giveaways:
$150 Shopping Spree at Dillards
$150 Gift Registry at Belk
$150 Gift Registry at Macys
Fashion show featuring bridal gowns, bridesmaids, and mother of the bride dresses from Solutions Bridal
Reception on pre-function patio presented by Party Time Rentals
Q&A sessions hosted by A'vie Weddings and Events, Unforgettable Events, Party Time Rentals, and AP Limousine
Casino room and NFL games for the guys
Tickets are available at Solutions Bridal
$5 in advance and $9 at the door
For more information, call (352) 367-0070

Do you have a questions for the ladies of A'vie??

Need advice on an issue you are having regarding your wedding? Not sure if having a wedding planner is the right thing for you? Want to share a funny wedding story? Post it on our blog! If you have questions or just need a little advice - ask away! Surely there is someone else out there wondering the same thing as you. Our past brides - or any bride for that matter- we would love to hear your wedding stories (or nightmares!).

Why Your IPod is NOT a DJ- a word of advice from the desks at A'vie

As IPod's and other MP3 players become more and more popular, many couples think it's the cheapest and best way to do the music for their reception- WRONG! Well...not exactly, but hear us out. Yes bringing your MP3 player to the reception is cheaper than hiring a DJ, but is it really worth the savings? Let's analyze this. While having the MP3 player stocked with all of your favorite songs is a plus- someone will have to "man" the device. You invited your guests to enjoy the reception - not work at it! Yes, your MP3 player can play the introduction song and the first dance, but it can't talk - it wont tell guests to sit and wait to be dismissed for the buffet, or announce that the toast will be coming up so go fill your drink. You need a master of ceremonies- and your Uncle Joe is hardly that..again..let your guests enjoy your reception. When you and your maid of Honor want to reminisce on your college road trip - the one where you put "Love Shack" on repeat as you drove through the middle of nowhere to get to your best friends' college- you go to the MP3 player, stop the current song midway , search for the next song as the room goes silent only to find out you completely forgot to download it...you will wish you hired a DJ who has endless amounts of songs in their data base - including "Love Shack".
From our experience we can tell you that the guests will more then likely not remember the food on the buffet or what flowers were in the centerpieces. What they will remember however, is whether or not they had a good time and behind every good time is some sort of motivator - a.k.a a DJ! So if you or someone you know is on the fence about whether or not ti hire a DJ or just rely on the good Ole' IPod, do yourself or them a favor - leave it to the pros! Trust us on this one...

Some of the top DJ's in Gainesville:
Jays Entertainment
Solutions Entertainment
Wellspring
TDC

Upcoming Events from Solutions Bridal

You wont want to miss these events so mark them on your calendars!


September 7th: The Florida Bridal Expo
September 12th-14th: Jasmine Colleciton Bridal Trunk Show
September19th-21st: Jasmine Couture Bridal Trunk Show & Jade MOB/ MOG Trunk Show September 25th: BridesmaidNight
September 26th-28th: Lori London Accessories Trunk Show

Please call352.367.0070to schedule your appointment!

Amy and Jacob

Amy and Jacob were a unique couple that I had the privilege to work with on their wedding in June. Why I say, ‘Unique’ is that they just had a sweet spirit about them always. The love of their families and each other. It was so ‘encapsulating’. It always a pleasure working with my clients but sometimes things are almost magical. This is the way I felt with them. Everything from their meeting to their wedding was perfect. Nothing went wrong. I mean ‘NOTHING’. Not even things with their attire. I wasn’t even able to use our ‘Mary Poppin’s’ Bag at this wedding. That broke my heart, but there were some great shots of A'vie in action!

Marisa and Joseph - A Wedding Preview!

You haven’t seen fun until you see Marisa and Joseph’s Engagement shoot with Rob Witzel Photography. We at A`vie were able to make the impossible happen. Marisa and Joseph had their hearts set on having their engagement pictures done at the Harn Museum. If you have ever been there you know that it is a beautiful place that has lots of different elements. Something that photographers and them as well loved. When we first spoke to the Harn they said they don’t do that but then we started to share with them why and their love for this particular museum. After several weeks of working with them we were able to get it approved and set up. All we have to say, is we at A`vie don’t like the word, “NO”!!

As you will see the pictures are ‘out of this world’. The elements ‘JUMPED’ out at you and Marisa and Joseph shined. The pictures show just how much fun you can have with Witzel Photography. We can’t wait to see their wedding pictures come September. They will be getting married at the Baughman Center and off to the reception at Sweetwater Branch