Maine

On to Catering and Photographer...Reviews?

We have the site booked! YEAH! Now I am moving on to catering and photography. Phew, this has been crazy, fun, stressful:)

The site is in Mid Coast Maine, we have some catering leads but would love to know if anyone has any glowing reccoemdations.

Also looking for a photographer, we do not want to spend an arm and a leg, any suggestions on this would also be great!

Thanks guys!

Re: On to Catering and Photographer...Reviews?

  • LillyBean7LillyBean7 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    my spelling is awful today:)
  • hcorr34hcorr34 member
    First Anniversary Name Dropper 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Where in the MidCoast region?  It's kind of a big area.

    My photographer is based in Bath, but I know she travels.  http://www.michellemcdougalphotography.com/ She's not the cheapest out there, but she definitely isn't the most expensive either.  Photography is important to me, so I wanted to spend money to hire someone that I knew would do an excellent job!
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  • edited December 2011
    We are using FInest Kind Catering in North Yarmouth (link) for a BBQ.  We've had a tasting and we like her food a lot, and she's been great to work with.  

    Our photographer is based in Frankfort (http://www.marikobrownphotography.com/) but she'll travel.  She was kind of in the mid-range of the price options we looked at.  She brings her husband as an assistant and second shooter if necessary, and we felt like we got along well with both of them and were comfortable working with them.  
  • edited December 2011
    Our photographers are based out of NH, and I love their work!  I think they offer very reasonable packages and you get two shooters (husband and wife team).  They are called Birch Blaze Photography.   www.birchblazephotography.com

    For caterers, we are using the Good Food Store out of Bethel and I completely love them!  Probably too far for Mid-Coast though.

    Good luck!
    Married 9.4.11
  • edited December 2011
    Our photographers are based out of NH, and I love their work!  I think they offer very reasonable packages and you get two shooters (husband and wife team).  They are called Birch Blaze Photography.   www.birchblazephotography.com

    For caterers, we are using the Good Food Store out of Bethel and I completely love them!  Probably too far for Mid-Coast though.

    Good luck!
    Married 9.4.11
  • edited December 2011
    We aren't using a caterer so I don't have any recommnedations for you there. 

    A lot of the past girls on this board have used Claire Norton for photography, She offers a flat rate for the whole day $1500.  I would recommend my photographer because she's great, but the photographer was our splurge.  Her name is Shannon Post.
  • plato79plato79 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011
    I'm working with Clare Norton. We just had our engagement session and she did an amazing job. I absolutely cannot wait for her to shoot our wedding! I actually had other vendors tell me, "Even if you don't hire me, you should hire Clare." I tend to think they are right...haha. That being said, photography is an art and it's all about what kind of style you like. You can check our her website (also has a link to the blog on her site): http://www.snapshotsbyclare.com/ I thought her rates were very reasonable and for her talent level, can't be beat. 

    Good luck! The other girls gave you some awesome suggestions too - I looked at many of their photographers as well.
    Wedding Countdown Ticker June 3, 2011!
  • edited December 2011
    We didn't use a caterer.

    We used Portrait New England for our photography team (husband and wife) and were really impressed with their work, their prices, and they were really great at getting my husband to relax (he's not very camera-friendly). They are located between Augusta and Belfast but cover all of New England. I'm not sure what is considered reasonable in Maine for photography because we had originally started looking at Boston photographers, and they are REALLY expensive. We ended up getting full day coverage, 2 photographers, an album and parent albums, an engagement session (basically- we got the works) for just under $2k. They had a lot of different options and they worked with us to get everything we wanted within our budget. They are not very well known yet and that's why I think they were able to give us such a good deal.

    www.portraitnewengland.com
  • edited December 2011
    I do photography on the side and have done several weddings...I charge about $500 and you get an album and DVD with all pics (no watermarks). I dont think you should have to sell your first born for wedding photography. I do have a website momentsphotomaine.com
    A friend of mine is doing my pictures and she does a great job too. Check out Photos by Sandy on FB :)
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • LHB2011LHB2011 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We are using Chi Chi Chef in Camden for catering - she's been awesome. And our photographer is also great - Blush Photography.  We went with Beth because photography was important to us and we ultimately decided to splurge (she's about mid-range, but our budget wasn't huge), but her assistant is cheaper.
    We also considered David Wright who is in Camden, he was really great to talk to.
    BabyFruit Ticker
  • jena.n.rossjena.n.ross member
    Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We used a culinary student friend to help us with our DIY menu, so no help there.

    But I can caution you against Jennifer Lamoreau, out of the Auburn area.  Her prices are reasonable, but we were unhappy with her work (and it's not like we can just do this again), and her complete lack of professionalism when dealing with our concerns.  


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  • edited December 2011
    Where in the midcoast are you getting married? I would highly recommend The Blue Elephant Events and Catering. They are my caterer and they have been so fantastic and easy to work with. I know they travel to the midcoast area. Check out their website (www.blueelephantcatering.com) and give them a call! Happy planning! 
  • edited December 2011
    I also am using Blue Elephant. They have been wonderful!
  • LillyBean7LillyBean7 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    The location is in Harpswell:) Thanks ladies for all your suggestions! Yes, LHB, Chi Chi is on my list, so I will be checking them out. Thanks Jena for the warning, very good to know. Also thank you for the heads up on Claire, I will check out her work. I have taken photos as a hobby for over 10 years, done the occasional friends wedding and senior portraits so spending 2000-3000 on pictures just seems crazy to me!

    Thanks SO much!!
  • edited December 2011
    Our photographers are from NY but they are a couple who is planning a wedding in Maine for October 2011 so they gave me a deal for everything. I am from NY as well but I am getting married in Maine too which is how I met them. I know they are looking for weddings up that way so they can get some planning done. You may want to look into them either way. They have great rates for what you get.


    Hope this info helps.
    Karen
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