Tips On Choosing A Wedding Venue : Utah Wedding Photographer

Choosing a venue to hold one of the most important events of your life.. Definitely not an easy decision, unless of course you grew up with your heart dead set on tying the knot at the Plaza Hotel. I know for a fact that I grew up planning to do just that. Not the Plaza Hotel, but something extravagant that would have cost a small fortune. But, because there's always a "but".. We realized it was far more important to have an all around beautiful wedding as opposed to just a spectacular venue with no flowers or cake. We really got the best of both worlds with our venue, Sleepy Ridge. We were actually one of the first several couples to get married there after it was built. Our wedding was December 28th (2009), so we chose to use the whole top floor along with a gorgeous fireplace adorned with lights and pine. Oh boy do I get off-topic.. So back to what I was saying.. you have to consider a lot of different things when choosing a venue. What time of year is it? Is there room for the amount of people you're inviting? Does it fit your rustic (or vintage, classy, contemporary, modern or what have you) concept? How much decorating will you need to do? Do they allow liquor (if you'll be having it)? Do they allow you to hire outside vendors? How late can you stay? How will the venue and lighting impact your photographs? Seriously, there are an endless amount of questions. You'll want to verify how much input and hands on you'll get from the venue's coordinator(s). One of my fave wedding coordinators, Christena, at Snowbird's Cliff Lodge is amazing. She is hands down one of the most professional, hands on coordinators I've had the pleasure of working with. And don't get me wrong, there are a lot of other fabulous coordinators I've worked with as well. If you're not the most creative person, or, you just want a glamourous event without having to take on the stress.. consider hiring a planner.

Here is what I suggest. Sit down with the soon-to-be hubby or wife and search google, visit bridal shows, scroll through sites such as thebrideandgroom.com for venues you'd consider. Make some calls, ask some questions, and narrow down that list to your top venues. Then, schedule a time to go meet with those venues, walk around, envision your wedding day. AND, make sure to visit all of your favorites before making a decision! But make it quickly, venues (and photographers alike), book out up to a year or two in advance for popular dates. So once you're certain, open up that checkbook and put your deposit down! The last thing you want is to lose out on your venue or photographer just because you didn't decide fast enough. So once you know your date, book your venue and photographer, I can't tell you how much stress you'll take off your shoulders.

Happy Wednesday!

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