The "B" Word & Weddings | Part 1
It's the infamous word: Budget
Some couples we meet can barely say this vile word without breaking into an argument. In fact, if it didn’t have 6 letters, I’d swear it was one of those “4 letter words”.
Just so we are all on the same page, whether you say you are on a budget or not, you are on a budget, you just don't know where your money is going.
So your best bet is to have a written budget.
Throughout our wedding photography journey, we have met couples with budgets both large and small and we have realized that a beautiful wedding day can be created on any sized budget.
Budgeting Tip #1
Have the “who is paying for what” and the “what TOTAL amount of dollars do we have to spend on our wedding day?” conversation.
If you don’t begin here, then nothing else we have to say below will really be of much help.
Do you have $3,000? $15,000? $50,000? The total amount doesn’t matter, it just matters that you agree on a number and know where you’re starting.
Ideas to discuss regarding the OVERALL BUDGET for your wedding day:
1) What can you save during your engagement? (per month with a total amount)
2) Do you have parents that are willing to give you a certain dollar amount? (total amount)
3) Do you have other ways of earning extra money prior to your wedding (side work, additional hours, etc) (total amount)
4) Do you have a skill that can be traded for ‘in-kind’ services (ie, mechanic, massage therapist, etc)? (total amount)
Now take these four categories and total them up. The “average wedding” in our area has a total budget of around $23,000, so I will use that number to break down each category.
Large or small, we have seen them all! Beauty can be done on any budget!