Questions about a family favor (kinda long)

DanielleH910

My cousin went to school for film and shoots short movies, to supplement his income in-between movies he shoots weddings.  He offered to film our wedding for my FI and I to expand his wedding portfolio
When he asked what I wanted I asked just for the ceremony because he is a guest and wouldn't want him worrying about anything at the reception, he says he has a friend he works with sometimes that could do the reception for me.

So here's my question, they both live in Florida (I'm in NJ, as is the wedding) to thank them for such a generous offer I wanted to pay for their plane tickets, do you think that is enough?  Would you suggest I also pay for their hotel rooms? Or maybe just give them some money?

I hate the idea of having a guest work even though he offered,  so should I just ask that his friend film everything so that my cousin could relax and just enjoy the day? 

andyandhillary

1.  Do you trust this friend of his enough?  Or even your cousin for that matter and the quality of their work?
2.  Depending on how expensive the flights are that may be plenty.  I don't mean to sound cheap but if you add up hotel, flights, etc you may as well hire a local videographer who you can trust their quality and all those technical issues. 

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

I'd pay for their plane tickets, and maybe get them each a gift card or bottle of wine (if they can take it back with them). For your cousin, I'm assuming he'd pay for his own hotel room anyway, as he would be invited as just a guest no matter what. For the friend it might be a little stickier. Maybe ask the cousin what the friend expects? Are they staying with your cousin's family, maybe? Or sharing a hotel room? In that case, I wouldn't worry about it.

tidetravel

I would caution against using family or family friends for "professional" services .  If something goes wrong, you have no real recourse of action without potentially damaging the relationship.  If the video isn't all that important to you, then by all means accept the gift.  However, if it is important to you, hire a professional and get a contract.

That being said, I think offering to pay for their flights is more than enough.

scoetto

Paying for the flights is more than enough. Except for the cousin's friend who would be "hired" as a professional. I would probably pay for his room only.

But I also would hire a local photog and have the cousin as a guest.

DanielleH910

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_questions-family-favor-kinda-long?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:941a025f-b2d3-4dc4-a726-9e0ab3763b26Post:0bdce93d-1a20-446c-bcb6-57f1582deaac">Re: Questions about a family favor (kinda long)</a>:
[QUOTE]I would caution against using family or family friends for "professional" services .  If something goes wrong, you have no real recourse of action without potentially damaging the relationship.  If the video isn't all that important to you, then by all means accept the gift.  However, if it is important to you, hire a professional and get a contract. That being said, I think offering to pay for their flights is more than enough.
Posted by tidetravel[/QUOTE]

We weren't even planning on getting a videographer so this is just kind of a bonus for us, and even after he offered I just wanted the ceremony, but when he suggested his friend may be able to do the reception, I thought that would be even better.