Oh, a nervous groom. I’m sorry you’re even in this position and stressing about it. But I do have some ideas. Try not to do it alone. If your bride is going to be up there with you, then share the microphone and keep it short and sweet. So maybe you do the first part, she does a longer middle part and then you do the end kind of bookend her comments. Or if you’re willing to be creative and a little cute and funny, maybe kind of do like a mad libs kind of thing where she does most of the talking, but then you have figured out in advance certain words that you’ll say so she could say well, we want to thank you all for being and then you say here it really means a lot to us that you all took the time. Something like that could be cute. But I say, number one, definitely be yourself. Don’t try to be something that you’re not because it’s going to come off as inauthentic. So don’t be funny if that’s not your normal way of being. Don’t be serious if that’s not your normal way of being. Don’t try to be super emotional if that’s not who you are. So stay true to yourself. Don’t drink too much before you do it. A little liquid courage is fine, but don’t go overboard because that’s not going to be a good luck. And maybe have something waiting for you when you’re done, but definitely in advance. Keep the drinking reasonable. And I would say share that spotlight, share that microphone with your bride. And the things that you should make sure to say are thank yous. Thank yous to your guests for coming. Thank yous to your bridal party, for being so awesome and supportive. Thank you to your families, especially your parents, grandparents, siblings, and definitely, ah, say some wonderful things about your new wife and that’s really all you need to say. So keep it short, keep it sweet, share the mic if you can, and just be yourself. Bye.
Here are some tips and tricks to film a great video that stops the scroll:
You’ve got 3-5 seconds to stop the viewer’s scroll. Be creative… start with a phrase like:
We’ll put your name and bio in the title and links, so you can say something more general like:
Give them your hot take, and don’t hold anything back.
check out how Sal nailed it in this video and so did Megan in this one and Nichole told it straight (from her car).
Do you feel like the industry charges more “because it’s a wedding” and they know it’s an emotional purchase?
Do companies think that they can charge more for weddings since the bride and groom may be willing to spend more on their dream wedding?
Hey wedding pros – is this higher price tag justified? Why? Do you charge more for your service if it is a wedding?
This is a taboo topic, whispered but not discussed… until now.
Welcome to The Uncorked Project!
2 comments
I have been asked this so many times... does the wedding industry inflate prices when they hear it's a wedding?
Here is my honest answer (as a former wedding photographer)... NO. Did I charge more for a wedding than a 50th birthday party or a family portrait session? Yes, absolutely. I charged A LOT more for a wedding.
Was I taking advantage of the emotional sell? Absolutely not.
The main reasons I charged more for a wedding were: the unseen amount of work involved in the 12+ months leading up to the wedding, the skill level needed on the day, the INTENSE pressure to create perfect "portfolio level work" no matter what the reality of the situation- but mostly it is to compensate for the time AFTER the wedding in post production.
Little known fact about wedding photography - the real job is sitting at a computer editing photos. Photographers spend many hours behind the computer carefully selecting and editing photos. They make adjustments, crop, and adjust colors to ensure each image it's best. Don't forget the time it takes for batching, renaming, importing, exporting and uploading the photos and preparing them for delivery.
Do you think this justifies why photographers charge more for weddings than for other types of shoots?
Couldn’t agree more! And on the videography side its an absolute ton of data + editing discipline.
Its a double sided coin- weddings are extremely high pressure but also high reward when we nail it.
Our products (photo video) in particular are the only thing that genuinely will last forever . Having fun and ALSO nailing the product is worth the price of entry and frankly more.