tipping?

laurad75 · April 2016

Both my photographer and DJ are the owners of their business. Do I still tip them? Internet search says no but internet search also says I can do a honeyfund and b-list so...

banana468 · April 2016

laurad75 said:

Both my photographer and DJ are the owners of their business. Do I still tip them? Internet search says no but internet search also says I can do a honeyfund and b-list so...

I'd tip them. For the DJ I'd tip the day of. For the photographer, I'd tip once you receive photos.

NowIAmSyp · April 2016

I tipped everyone- owner or not- since I was incredibly happy with them and they all did such an amazing job. It doesn't have to be a huge amount- but it's certainly a nice way to say "thank you" to people who play an important role in/at your wedding

laurad75 · April 2016

That sounds good. Thank you.

SP29 · April 2016

I also tipped. I think of tips as "thank you for excellent service, more than I expected" vs. something that NEEDS to be given (yes, I do always tip at a restaurant).

charlotte989875 · April 2016

Tipped the DJ and photobooth guy, but not out photographer. It took forever to get photos back, she was hard to get a hold of after and we had to make special arrangements for someone to pick up our pictures in person because she didn't want to mail them.

We tipped our coordinator, bartenders (even though it was included in our contractor), DJ, and baker, I think that's it.

SP29 · April 2016

charlotte989875 said:

Tipped the DJ and photobooth guy, but not out photographer. It took forever to get photos back, she was hard to get a hold of after and we had to make special arrangements for someone to pick up our pictures in person because she didn't want to mail them.

We tipped our coordinator, bartenders (even though it was included in our contractor), DJ, and baker, I think that's it.

We also did not tip our photographer, because it took 7 months with a registered letter stating we would take legal action for us to get our photos. We definitely do not tip for bad service. The DJ and baker, yes. Bartender and servers were from the venue which included a 20% gratuity charge.

[Deleted User] · April 2016

I tipped everyone for my wedding if they were the owner or not. My personal feeling, which I know is not one shared by everyone is, that a tip is an extra way of saying thank you for doing a great job. I don't feel it's right not to tip an owner because they are the one that is taking the risk of going out on their own & starting a business. Sometimes owners take a lesser pay to get their business off the ground. I wouldn't not tip my hair stylist just because she is the owner of the salon, she still made me look amazing on my wedding day. I do agree with people that when it comes to the photographer to wait to tip until you at least see the photos since they are the one vendor you can't judge their work until you see it developed. But if you see your photos & love them & got them in a timely manner, why not tip them at that later time.

madamerwin · April 2016

Our photographer was the only vendor who also owned their business, and we did tip him at the end of the night (along with the DJ, bartenders, and servers). He was just AMAZING. He was with us on the wedding day from 8am-11pm, and he was just so enthusiastic and diligent in his work. We knew the pictures would be delivered on time and that they would be awesome, so we just tipped him at the end of the evening.

Granted, we had many personal references for him and had seen him in action at other weddings, so we were confident that he would deliver. Had he been some random we hired, we may not have tipped until we got the photos.

STARMOON44 · April 2016

I still vote no. You don't tip the owner of the business. If the photographer or DJ brought an assistant I would tip that person.

madamerwin · April 2016

STARMOON44 said:

I still vote no. You don't tip the owner of the business. If the photographer or DJ brought an assistant I would tip that person.

Well, you definitely don't have to tip the owner of any business, but in my case, we wanted to give something extra to our photographer for exceeding our expectations. I don't think there is anything wrong with tipping a business owner if you feel they went above and beyond.

laurad75 · April 2016

Thanks all. I like the idea of tipping the photog after I receive the photos. The DJ I will probably tip even though its his own business assuming he's awesome. What would be a good tipping amount for a great DJ?

LtPowers · April 2016

It's traditionally considered gauche to tip the owner of a business. (Independent contractors are a different story, and the line between them can be blurry, so take it with a grain of salt.) The reason is because the business owner sets her own rates; tipping her is a bit of an insult because it presumes that you know better than she does how much her time and effort is worth.

That said, in the wedding industry (and increasingly everywhere) it's a rare proprietor who would actually feel insulted by an offered tip.

madamerwin · April 2016

LtPowers said:

It's traditionally considered gauche to tip the owner of a business. (Independent contractors are a different story, and the line between them can be blurry, so take it with a grain of salt.) The reason is because the business owner sets her own rates; tipping her is a bit of an insult because it presumes that you know better than she does how much her time and effort is worth.

That said, in the wedding industry (and increasingly everywhere) it's a rare proprietor who would actually feel insulted by an offered tip.

I get that for the owner of a business with employees - like our caterer. I tipped the servers, but not the head caterer. But our photographer, while the "business owner," also worked a full-time day job while he was trying to build up his portfolio. I think that's the point you're making with business vs. independent contractor, and I do agree the line can be blurry. I know our photographer appreciated the tip, so I'm not too concerned about being gauche.

LtPowers · April 2016

madamerwin said:

I get that for the owner of a business with employees - like our caterer. I tipped the servers, but not the head caterer. But our photographer, while the "business owner," also worked a full-time day job while he was trying to build up his portfolio. I think that's the point you're making with business vs. independent contractor, and I do agree the line can be blurry. I know our photographer appreciated the tip, so I'm not too concerned about being gauche.

That could be a special case, where you know the vendor is purposefully underpaying himself for some reason. Though a better way might be to negotiate a higher rate right from the get-go. That way the vendor could better plan his budget and schedule.

madamerwin · April 2016

LtPowers said:

madamerwin said:

I get that for the owner of a business with employees - like our caterer. I tipped the servers, but not the head caterer. But our photographer, while the "business owner," also worked a full-time day job while he was trying to build up his portfolio. I think that's the point you're making with business vs. independent contractor, and I do agree the line can be blurry. I know our photographer appreciated the tip, so I'm not too concerned about being gauche.

That could be a special case, where you know the vendor is purposefully underpaying himself for some reason. Though a better way might be to negotiate a higher rate right from the get-go. That way the vendor could better plan his budget and schedule.

To me, trying to negotiate a higher rate from the get-go would be more insulting than receiving a tip... "Hey photographer, I love your work and want to hire you! However, I know what rate you are worth better than you do and therefore insist on paying you more than you charge." I think that's just weird, but that's my opinion. I paid my photographer the rate he charged, and after the event, when I saw how damn hard he worked all day (and went above and beyond what he was contracted for), I decided he deserved a little more. No one was offended by this, and it seems like an odd thing to get stuck up on.

JediElizabeth · April 2016

madamerwin said:

LtPowers said:

madamerwin said:

I get that for the owner of a business with employees - like our caterer. I tipped the servers, but not the head caterer. But our photographer, while the "business owner," also worked a full-time day job while he was trying to build up his portfolio. I think that's the point you're making with business vs. independent contractor, and I do agree the line can be blurry. I know our photographer appreciated the tip, so I'm not too concerned about being gauche.

That could be a special case, where you know the vendor is purposefully underpaying himself for some reason. Though a better way might be to negotiate a higher rate right from the get-go. That way the vendor could better plan his budget and schedule.

To me, trying to negotiate a higher rate from the get-go would be more insulting than receiving a tip... "Hey photographer, I love your work and want to hire you! However, I know what rate you are worth better than you do and therefore insist on paying you more than you charge." I think that's just weird, but that's my opinion. I paid my photographer the rate he charged, and after the event, when I saw how damn hard he worked all day (and went above and beyond what he was contracted for), I decided he deserved a little more. No one was offended by this, and it seems like an odd thing to get stuck up on.

What about something more like "Our total photography budget is $X higher than you're quoting. Is there any other options/perks you offer that would be worth the extra expense?"

That's what I think when I read "negotiating" a higher price. It's not negotiating if you just say, "Well that's a good price, but we're paying you this much more because you're worth it."

Knottie2017523 · April 2016

how much do you usually tip your vendors?

MesmrEwe · April 2016

I honestly wouldn't tip the photographer since their fee structure is spelled out and extra prints are going to add up.

DJ's are a bit different (what we "tipped" our DJ the night of the wedding was their pay outside of what we paid the company/agent booking them - which was the fee structure even for the owner)... I'd refer to how your contract is structured...

madamerwin · April 2016

JediElizabeth said:

madamerwin said:

LtPowers said:

madamerwin said:

I get that for the owner of a business with employees - like our caterer. I tipped the servers, but not the head caterer. But our photographer, while the "business owner," also worked a full-time day job while he was trying to build up his portfolio. I think that's the point you're making with business vs. independent contractor, and I do agree the line can be blurry. I know our photographer appreciated the tip, so I'm not too concerned about being gauche.

That could be a special case, where you know the vendor is purposefully underpaying himself for some reason. Though a better way might be to negotiate a higher rate right from the get-go. That way the vendor could better plan his budget and schedule.

To me, trying to negotiate a higher rate from the get-go would be more insulting than receiving a tip... "Hey photographer, I love your work and want to hire you! However, I know what rate you are worth better than you do and therefore insist on paying you more than you charge." I think that's just weird, but that's my opinion. I paid my photographer the rate he charged, and after the event, when I saw how damn hard he worked all day (and went above and beyond what he was contracted for), I decided he deserved a little more. No one was offended by this, and it seems like an odd thing to get stuck up on.

What about something more like "Our total photography budget is $X higher than you're quoting. Is there any other options/perks you offer that would be worth the extra expense?"

That's what I think when I read "negotiating" a higher price. It's not negotiating if you just say, "Well that's a good price, but we're paying you this much more because you're worth it."

Considering his package included all-day photography for the wedding, unlimited photos, and an engagement wedding shoot, and travel from 2.5 hours away, there really was not anything extra to add. His next-up package cost another $1k (out of our budget), and included printed photo books, which we did not want. I am talking about handing him $50 after the event (we are not talking about throwing him another $500 or something); I doubt that there were added "perks" he could throw in for such a small amount.

I am not trying to argue here, just stating my opinion that there is nothing inherently wrong with tipping a photographer if they go above and beyond your expectations. Sure, maybe there is a photographer out there who would be horribly offended if you tipped them after the fact, but it feels like we're just splitting hairs now.

ETA: If (general) you want to negotiate a higher fee for your photographer, cool! But we were happy to pay the price he quoted, and then when we saw how well he did, we tipped him. He was thrilled with the tip. Everyone was happy.

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