You do! I’m going to vent a little before getting to what I really want to say. If I’ve shot your wedding you know by now I know how to bustle, pin boutineres on, get a timeline down in less then 30 seconds all while taking great photos. I was invited to a meeting with some fellow wedding planners yesterday and it dawned on me… why are planners not a part of the vendor checklist? You need a planner just as much as you need a good DJ. In fact, if you’ve hired a bad dj, a good planner will come in handy… I  know because we’ve had our fair share of not so great dj’s and no planner and guess who stepped in to keep it all going… ME! I’m not trying to toot my own horn because believe or not, I’m hired to take your wedding photos not tell you when to go down the aisle. The problem is, if no one is there to tell you when to go down the aisle, how will I get a picture of you coming down the aisle? Does that make sense? I used to be intimidated by planners, why I do not know, but honestly, I love them now! When a planner is hired I finally get to just stay behind the camera and I’m free to be creative and not worry about all the other wedding details. I know this is a flaw, wanting to be in control, keep the day moving smoothly for the bride because this isn’t my job. So ladies I’m going to say it, HIRE A PLANNER! Do you vendors the biggest favor and get someone there on the day of your wedding, take the stress off us and let them run the show and keep things moving.

For all those brides who have hired a planner or a day of coordinator for their big day, I bet they can tell you the day went so smoothly. They don’t know the favors went missing right before the set up, the chair covers were over an hour late, the flowers that were supposed to be on the cake are not on the cake… you know why? Because the planner took care of it without a hint to the bride anything was going on. I was in the brides room recently at a wedding and she asked her planner how everything was and she goes “oh its so beautiful, everythings great, I can’t wait for you to see it all” she made no indications there were a dozen things going on that she was having to take care of because thats her job… keep the bride focused on the happiest day of her life while she deals with the chaos. I wish every bride could budget for a planner, to be able to just enjoy her day and know all her planning and hard work is being taken care of while she says I DO! Alright so I said I’d vent and get to the point so I won’t go any further, you get the idea… hire a professional! You know I always refer my dear friend Meleka with MMJ Events, been working with her for years and I love her creativity and hard work. If she’s unavailable I’ve worked personally with Dina with Scarlet City Events & Emilie with Emilie Duncan Event Planning and they’re both amazing! I’ve met Kasey with Bliss Weddings & Events a couple times and she’s wonderful.  Quite honestly, hiring any of these 4 fabulous planners you cannot go wrong. You won’t regret making this amazing decision!

Okay. I’m done venting. Love you all!

{Ashley}