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Cost estimates for flowers, DJ, photography?

gutenmegangutenmegan
First Comment
in DC
Hi all,

I'm talking to the Springfield Country Club about possibly holding my reception there, but it's definitely on the pricey side and will eat up a bunch of my budget. Before I sign any contracts, I want to get a general idea of what I'll be spending on other parts of the receptions. I'm trying to price out very roughly what flowers, a DJ and photography will cost by calling around to various vendors.

That said, can any of you offer any general estimates for these features? I'm pretty blind going into this and would appreciate any information.

Thanks!
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Re: Cost estimates for flowers, DJ, photography?

  • PharmJenPharmJen
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    While my wedding is in Philadelphia and I don't have prices for DC vendors, I just wanted to toss my 2 cents in the ring.  Flowers and photography are 2 wedding elements that have a HUGE price range so it depends on how important each is to you.  For some, spending $5k+ on a photographer is ok because that may be something very important to them.  For others, a very good photog can be found for under $2k.  You can also save $ by choosing a package without engagement pictures and an album.  

    I just booked a florist recently and found my price was dictated by the number of centerpieces I needed and how elaborate I wanted them to be.  I chose a florist who was a little pricier (but mocked EVERYTHING up for me before I even gave a deposit so I saw what I was getting for my money) but I cut costs by skipping out on pew bows and flowers for the cocktail tables and doing only low centerpieces.  If you have a large bridal party, this also adds to the cost. 

    As for DJ's, I found in Philadelphia the going rate was around $1k.

    I recommend giving The Knot's budgeting tool a try and also calling/meeting with vendors you are interested in.  A "resonable" price to one bride may be a dealbreaker for another.  I would just do some homework and shop around for vendors within your budget.  There's a vendor for every budget so don't worry!  Good luck with your planning!

    HTH! 


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  • OFFOFF
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    The going rate for DJs in this area is about $1000 for the good ones. 

    Flowers range depending what type of flowers you are using, the amouont of flowers you want (centerpieces, bouquets, poseys etc), but regardless flowers are a big chunk of your budget.  I have a small wedding with minimal flowers and still ended up spending $4K. 

    Photography also ranges depending on what kind of package you get (like including albums) and how many hours you need.  Photogs in this area ranges from about $2K-$6K depending on what you want.  We got our package for $3K which includes 6 hrs, a photo album and 2 smaller parent albums. 

    I hope this helps!  Good luck searching.   
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  • kiki05kiki05
    First Comment
    edited December 2011

    Flowers can depend also on what you are thinking about doing, time of year and also if you go with someone out of a shop.  I am using someone who doesn't have a shop and does them out of her home BUT she does about 20 weddings a year and does a wonderful job and I'm very happy with it for far less than other places I looked at.   It helps we are getting married in the spring so I had my choice of flowers in season.

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  • dsg728dsg728 member
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Well, let's see. I spent a little under 2000 for my photog. The flowers are as follows, pew posies $35, seems to be the going rate. Each centerpiece is $60, gold urn with hydrageas and roses. bouts $10. Big altar arrangements were $160 each. Bouquet was $170 but I want a huge bouquet, so it's a little higher. Hope that helps some.
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  • razdazzlerazdazzle member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    edited December 2011

    Hey, good post, I found it really helpful in creating our overall budget to figure out what we will spend in each area.  Mostly, I went by what my older sister said was the average when she planned her wedding.  I am getting married on a Sunday night in August, and have found that some vendors will provide discounts for weddings in the “off-season”.

     

    We are in the process of finding a florist now; I budgeted around 3K and am hoping to stick to that price point. 

     

    We are spending around 1,200 for our Harpist (ceremony and cocktail hour music) and DJ (reception).

     

    We are spending around 3K for the photographer; this includes an engagement session, a 30-pg album and two smaller parent albums.  I don’t think you need to spend 7K for a good photographer, but certainly you want to look at sample work before choosing.  I found that there are some great photographers in the 1.5K-3K range, you just have to ask on the knot and do your research!  By the way, I love my photographer – check her our: Kate Pelura, www.katefineart.blogspot.com or www.BrianRayStudios.com




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  • gutenmegangutenmegan
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    Thanks for the detailed info! This was really helpful. Will post when I have my own details all figured out!
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  • snyderasnydera
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    We were able to keep the cost down some on the photography by cutting out albums and prints.  We are spending $2750 for 9 hours the day of, a disc of all images in color and black and white, photos posted online and it included an engagement session.
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