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Just Said Yes June 2019

Alternative ideas needed for capturing the day

Leslie, on February 7, 2019 at 1:10 PM Posted in Planning 0 15
Important: professional photography or videographer is NOT AN OPTION,

i am lookomg for creative and successful ideas on capturing the day with OUT hiring a professional.
I already know about disposable cameras for guests to use... but looking for other ideas. There have to be some.

Again- not interested in hearing on whether I should spend the money on a pro or not. This is my 2nd wedding and I regretted spending a fortune the first time around on a photographer. So please, let’s think about “out of the box” ideas.

There are plenty of conversations on this site already about: spend the $ for a pro. THIS is not that kind of dialogue and won’t be useful here.

Lets be creative!! Thanks!

15 Comments

Latest activity by Brooke, on January 3, 2020 at 12:31 AM
  • Lauren
    Devoted October 2019
    Lauren ·
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    How much more creative do you wanna be then creating a hashtag and asking all of your friends and family to take a bunch of really great pictures because you’re not gonna hire a photographer? Those disposable cameras are terrible quality and not a guarantee at all.


    One of my best friends had a second wedding a couple years ago and should just let all of her close friends know hey, I’m not hiring a photographer, take some great pics! We all dead this is the age of Instagram we know how to take a picture… She had a beautiful album created For like $50
    • Reply
  • Mandy
    VIP May 2019
    Mandy ·
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    Do you have any friends who dabble in photography? By that I mean, they like it, they know what to look for, they have a nice camera (or even phone), they just don't do it professionally by any means. I'd be willing to have a friend do it and just pay them some for their time and the time it would take to send you the photos. There's always (as mentioned) just doing a hashtag and telling people to go crazy with the hopes they will post them or send them to you. I'm not sure if this is a thing.. but maybe renting a nice camera or video recorder for someone you know to use?

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  • Chandra
    Master May 2019
    Chandra ·
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    I know there is a company (sorry cant remember the name) but you can rent some ipod touches(?) and they'll compile the footage into a wedding video for you
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  • Maggie
    Super February 2019
    Maggie ·
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    High school or college art students usually charge very little if you want to make sure there's someone there to capture the big things. Not trying to change your mind on hiring someone if you're dead set against it, but just throwing it out there as an alternative to an expensive pro.

    Other than that I'd just encourage your family and friends to take a ton of pictures, make some nice signs and spread the word. Also, would you consider a photo booth? Those are usually a ton of fun and would capture everyone there.
    • Reply
  • MOB So Cal
    January 2019
    MOB So Cal ·
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    I agree about spreading the word that you won't have a pro and will appreciate any and all images your guests take with phones, etc. I also agree about not bothering with disposables; developing the photos will cost you a small fortune and most will likely be terrible anyway. The good news is virtually all guests will have the equipment to take digital photos. If you happen to have a friend or family member or two who are clearly good amateurs and enjoy it, I'd ask them specifically to "snap away" (not in the "friendor"-sense where you're asking them to do a job rather than be a treasured guest, but just encouraging their typical behavior of taking lots of pics). Despite your clear warning that this isn't what you want to hear, an additional option might be to hire a pro for just an hour or two to help ensure you have some good quality pictures of the most key events of the day (e.g., ceremony, the two of you together, with key family members, etc.). If you absolutely will not regret it if you don't end up with at least a couple really good quality photos of you and H, then skip it. But relying on only amateurs increases the odds the pictures won't be very good quality.

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  • MrsD
    Legend July 2019
    MrsD ·
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    The disposable cameras are a great idea. You could hook an ipad up to a tripod & do a DIY photo booth? You could hook up a go pro up to your officiant, or just place it on a table? Selfie sticks would be fun to have around too for guests to use.

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  • Emilie
    Super April 2019
    Emilie ·
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    We aren't doing pro either.. my boss loves taking pictures (has never done anything but wildlife) but I asked him if he would be interested and he said absolutely! But we also added to our info cards the hashtag we have and asked for people to share their photos and on snapchat we are doing our own filter so that when pictures are taken we can see those as well..
    • Reply
  • L
    Just Said Yes June 2019
    Leslie ·
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    Now we are talking!! Love the DIY photo booth & selfie stick ideas!!! So easy, effective and fun. Thank you!!
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  • Jessica
    Expert June 2025
    Jessica ·
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    Im doing a bouquet cam with my gopro inside my bridal bouquet for important moments like getting married and ceremony & etc.
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  • Christie
    Dedicated October 2019
    Christie ·
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    I had heard somewhere about hiring someone to paint your ceremony. That could be an idea.
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  • L
    Just Said Yes June 2019
    Leslie ·
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    Fab idea!!! Like those live concert painters.... ohhh- instead of the ceremony, the reception!!
    • Reply
  • Courtney
    Super December 2018
    Courtney ·
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    I've heard that it's crazy expensive to get those disposable cameras developed?

    I would just do a hashtag and let everyone know you'd like them to snap as many pics as possible.

    You could also put a selfie stick on each table to encourage people to get group pics

    We had a little handout that was between every other seat that said we want to see the wedding from YOUR point of view because there's no way we will get to see it all. We had a load of pics right away from friends, which was nice because I was literally craving pics and had none of my own. Additionally my husband's friend took quite a few 30-45 second video clips and put them together as a video for us as a gift and IT IS EVERYTHING.

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  • Brooke
    Just Said Yes July 2020
    Brooke ·
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    I'm just curious how you go about that. Because I have a friend that could do the photos. But I'm basically asking her to work the wedding?
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  • Alexis
    Dedicated October 2020
    Alexis ·
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    I dabble in photography and took pictures at a friends wedding with my digital 35mm. I tend to take a lot of pictures anyway so it didn’t feel like work. The posed photos were a little stressful because I don’t have any experience with that, but the candid shots were easy. I had a great time and still felt like a guest even though I was shooting away. Another friend helped me with poses and overall they came out pretty good. I edited as best I could with basic Mac software and put them on a thumb drive.
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  • Brooke
    Just Said Yes July 2020
    Brooke ·
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    Right! I did my friends engagement photos and her engagement party photos. But I'm in her wedding so that's the most she wants me to do haha. Thanks!!
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