Hiring a Professional Photographer and Videographer for your party!

After experiencing the recent loss of very important members of my family, including my own mother and father in law, and sadly realizing there were too many missed photo opportunities, it has become very clear to me of the amazing gift I provide to each and every one of my clients. In addition to the everlasting memories felt within our hearts, photos of our loved ones leave us something tangible to hold onto.

“I can’t believe no one took pictures!” How many times have you said or heard this after an amazing party? This happens because people actually choose to enjoy their party rather than experience it through a camera lens. Planning a party or celebration can be fun, exciting, and stressful. I have seen one too many times the emphasis being placed on the small details of the event rather than what really counts. Will your guests really notice if the napkins are the wrong shade of pink? Do they really want to take home another candle wrapped in tulle? The answer to these questions is “Probably Not.” They are simply looking forward to coming to your party to have fun and to create everlasting memories.

When planning an event there are key factors that become very important,. Your guests will be looking forward to a wonderful day out. Good food and entertainment will be what they remember most. For you, after all the excitement and stress over of planning the “perfect party”, in the end it will be your photographic memories that will enable you to remember your special day for years to come. Don’t forget to also hire a videographer to bring those photographic memories back to life!

Hiring a photographer for your party is a decision that can be very confusing especially if it is the first time hiring one. There are many factors that go into making this decision. Some questions typically asked are “What type of photographer do I hire? How will I know they are good? Many people may not realize, but you do have options when making this decision. Here are several:

Instant Candid Photography/Photo Favors: This is the one to hire when you are looking for “instant gratification” and capturing the moment. Photographers who offer this type service are hired to come to any type of event including sweet sixteen celebrations, bat/bar mitzvahs, wedding receptions, etc. and take candid photos of you and your guests when the party is in full swing. These photographers have the ability to print the photos while they are there in a variety of framing options such as fun decorative and solid colored frames, magnets, key chains, etc and a variety of sizes including (2”x 3”), (4” x 6”) and (“5x 7“). Guests are usually pleasantly surprised and impressed when they find that photos that were taken of them enjoying themselves during a party are ready to be taken home by the end of the celebration.
A CD/ROM is typically offered to the client and includes all of the photos that were taken during their party. This type of photographer has the ability to combine taking once in a lifetime photos and producing keepsakes for your guests. Keep in mind that these are candid, action photos taken in available lighting, with the purpose of capturing “life as it happens” rather than achieving studio perfection.

Photo Booth Rentals: This type of photography service has recently become quite popular. A photo booth is brought to an event and is operated by an attendant. Guests have the ability to gather together inside the booth and take photos with or without props. These photos are printed out in strips in either color or black and white, and are made available to the guests to take home. Scrapbooks can also be made for the Host of the event and sent home with them by the end of the event. The question is do you want your guests spending their time waiting in line to get their pictures taken or on the dance floor where the party should be happening.

Studio Portrait Photographer: Looking for a beautifully-enhanced flush-mount photo album, or enlarged wall portraits to remember your special day? Then you will want to consider hiring a photographer who will not only take the pictures but who will be taking the time after your special event to enhancing and processing those images into the best they can be. A studio portrait photographer spends time with you before, during, and after your event to ensure your pictures are exactly what you want. However, these are posed photos for the most part, and may not capture the spirit of the event or living character of your guests in that moment.

Videographer: This is a service that I believe in addition to your photographer, is a must have at any event. One of the biggest regrets I have heard over and over again from clients after their events are over, is that they wished they had hired a videographer. You will never get a second chance to relive that special day. Your photography freezes each moment in time, yet your video will bring those memories back to life, time and time again. I for one, know how priceless a video becomes, when you can experience the unique voices, mannerisms and personalities of friends and loved ones that may have passed away since that milestone event.

When hiring a videographer you must ask the same types questions of those asked to your photographers. In addition to the obvious questions, ask if they will be shooting with one camera or two. Although a single camera shoot is a wonderful way to capture the memories of an event, the edited version is becomes very one dimensional and of course may miss some opportunities while working the room. When two cameras are shooting the entire event.at the same time they will ultimately allow for a much better end result. For example take a father daughter dance, while one camera is focused on the Dad, the other is on the daughter. When your video is edited and produced having had both camera’s there allow for the entire emotional feeling of that moment to be relived when you watch it.

Ask to see samples of their work and if a recap is something that you would like to have at the end of your video ask how long it will be. Hiring a videographer in combination with a photographer will be one of the best choices you will make.

How will I know if they are good? If you have question just ask! Verify how long they have been in business, and if they are insured. Always ask for referrals and testimonials. A photographer with a good reputation will have no problem supplying you with a list of past clients, thus enabling you to contact them with any questions you may have regarding their services. Ask to see their work and if they will be the ones actually providing the service. Freelance photographers are sometimes hired from the outside and do not directly work for the company you are hiring. Be sure to check their credentials as well.

If you want to actually enjoy your next event, rather than watching it through a camera lens, hiring someone to take your photos and video for that matter is a smart choice. An instant photography service combines two services into one -Actual real live photo memories for you - as well as party favors for your guests. Photobooths provide your guests with fun props, photo strips, and scrapbooks, a Studio Portrait Photographer, provides you with beautifully perfected albums and wall portraits. Your videographer will bring those memories back to life.

One more thing, please promise me this…Don’t allow yourself to be convinced that your guests will take care of taking the photos for you with their phones or Flip video cameras during your party? Although they will, and I believe have the best intentions, is this the really the type of quality photos you will want to preserve your special day? "What’s good enough for Facebook may not be good enough to preserve your memories.

I hope this information has been helpful to you. Enjoy planning your upcoming special event - and don’t forget to hire a professional photography and videography service that is right for you!

Debbie Ventriello
Next Step Productions
Hot Shots Instant Photo Favors
www.HotShotsPhotoFavor.com
www.FaceBook.com/HotShotsPhotoFavors

I'm Back!

Hello everyone!

I've been away for a while as 2011 proved to be quite challenging as well as emotionally draining on a personal level, and ironically through it all turned out to be one of my best years in business yet! One of the first topics that has been weighing heavily on my mind has a lot to do with my business and protecting its brand.

I could have never imagined five years ago where I would be today. After hiring someone to provide instant photos during my own daughter’s Sweet Sixteen and ultimately not getting what I paid for, I found the best revenge was to start my own business and providing that exact same service to clients. Ultimately that is how Hot Shots Instant Photo Favors was born.

Four years later, we have a proven track record in providing our service to extremely happy clients including the many moms and dads who have trusted us to provide our service to their guests as well as Trump SoHo, Shriners Organization, Christian Brothers Academy, Chai Lifeline, Oak Hill Academy, etc., the list goes on! Many of my clients hire us year after year, proving without a doubt that we are doing something right!

I could never have gotten to where I am today without the support of my family and friends. From that first Sweet Sixteen booking four years ago to now booking up to two events on any given day, we have come a long way and I am incredibly proud of what my incredible team and I have accomplished together.

Ok here goes. I have been contacted time and time again from DJ/Entertainment companies as they are very interested in offering my Hot Shots Instant Photo Favors to their clients. Now I understand that they are in a prime position to book clients since they are the next in line to be hired after the date and hall have been selected.

However, here's the pitch I get from the DJ company "I can get you hundreds of jobs a year, our clients always ask us for Photo Favors, blah, blah, blah.” Yes I have heard that many times before and I'm sure you can. Sounds great huh! Hundreds of jobs a year, yes I thought so too. Here's the kicker, not only do they want to offer my service to their clients, but they want to put THEIR names on MY product. My reply, "I'm sure you can but seriously, I don't think so!"

They seem surprised, “Really! Why? Why would I want your clients to think that your company provided our service after working so hard to build my own phenomenal reputation in this industry. We would not only be there to accommodate the needs of your client, but our Photo Favors are sent home with each and every guest at the celebration, in the hopes that one day they may need our services. When they look on the back of the frames, our business name and information can be found so they are able to contact us should they ever be in need of our services.

Why would I want each and every one of those guests to think that it was the DJ company that provided our excellent service instead? With that being said it now becomes apparent that buying into this concept would now have MY potential clients contacting the DJ directly to ask about the Photo favors the client believes were provided by them.

In turn, the DJ will contact us for our service as well as tack on a ridiculous fee simply for the referral and then once again will want to put their name on the service. I am not willing to have another company profit from our great products, good service and professional reputation. Cashing in on the experience and reputation of another person's accomplishments is not in my opinion, an even exchange.

I choose instead to respect and work with many others in this industry, and you all know who you are. Together, we have built incredible business relationships recommending the services of one another based on merit and professionalism, and I continue to enjoy working with all of you. I especially love seeing how we have all grown through the years.

As someone who has worked in this incredible industry for nearly 15 years I have learned alot. Never sell yourself short. No one can sell your product like you or your own trained staff. I leave you with this thought... Stick to your guns, Believe in your dreams, and Never put someone else's name on your product.

So, DebbieVents is back...and believe me I have a lot to say. Stay tuned!

Until I type again.....

To Tip or Not To Tip - That is the Question?

A recent comment from one of my FaceBook Friends in the Wedding/Event Industry, got me thinking. He made a point of sharing his appreciation for a recent gratuity he received at the end of a Wedding Reception.

gra·tu·i·ty
 
1. a gift of money, over and above payment due for service, tip.

Now I do realize that tips/gratuities are given based on the satisfaction of the client for a service provided. In addition, Tips should never be expected, however as a provider of a service I can say they are most definitely appreciated.

I have been in business for three years now, and I can honestly say that only a handful of my clients have actually provided us with a tip at the end of the event. My clients always come over and praise "The wonderful job we did" then typically walk away. I have even had calls the following day thanking us for the incredible job we did, they tell me how extremely happy they were, and how impressed their guests were to take home their photos, even recommend us to their family and friends. Many of these clients did not send us home with a tip. When tips are received in my business, they are automatically divided equally and shared with the team that worked the event. Receiving a tip becomes an unexpected bonus at the end of a job well done validating that the client appreciated our hard work.

I do find it quite interesting, however, that without question, a Banquet Hall makes it very clear upon signing a contract that a 20% gratuity will automatically be added to the final bill. That gratuity is expected whether or not the service was up to the standards of the client, especially since many Banquet Halls require full payment approximately one week prior to their event. Could you imagine the response of a potential client if we, the Photographer, DJ, Florist, Videographer, Band, or any other service provider automatically added a 20% gratuity charge to their contract? Let's face it, if we did that we would be questioned, probably laughed at, and would definitely not get hired.

I look forward to any responses to this post simply out of curiosity. As I have said before although none of us "Expect" a gratuity, I would like to think there must be a better way to let people know how much we really appreciate them, without going to the extreme of placing a "Tip" Jar on our work stations. I am kidding of course!

You can't have ME - Trust My Staff???

I recently became baffled when a potential client contacted me to provide our services for his daughters upcoming Sweet Sixteen Celebration - which was to be held within two weeks of this phone call. Apparently his daughter had been at another party in which we had recently provided our Hot Shots Photo Favors. He could not compliment me enough for how excited he was to want to hire me for his daughters party. A word of mouth client, I thought for sure this job was in the bag!

I thanked him for his compliments and had to let him know immediately that I was already booked for the day, but had another team available for him. This did not make him happy, his immediate response was "NO - I WANT YOU!" I found myself once again thanking him for his complimentary words, however, I explained to him that the team that I would be sending out to his event, was going to provide the same top notch service he was expecting from me. I continued to explain to him that my staff is trained by me, and they know what is expected from them when they go out to a job. Sadly I did not get this job. Would you choose to hire an unknown company over one that had already proven themselves???

This got me thinking of the importance of starting to sell my services as a business, not only selling myself. My clients need to be assured that in my absence they will be guaranteed a team of professionals that will show up at their event if "I" am not available. This will be a key factor as my goal is to continue to grow my business.

Unfortunately in this business, too many people have taken this risk and unfortunately been burned by "Thinking" they hired a specific company only to find that the people who show up at their parties are not even actual staff members, but were hired for this "One job only".
This happens when contracted companies outsource services just to secure another job on the calendar when they have run out of their own staff to provide a particular service to a client. Unfortunately this reputation follows this industry due to the fact that may clients have been burned without ever seeing it coming. This type of reputation in the industry does not allow for potential clients to always "Trust" a company when they are told they cannot meet the people who will be at their event. As a professional who takes my business and my clients very seriously, I find it incredibly disturbing when I find reputable companies searching on sites like Craigs list who are actually looking to hire Photographers, DJ's, and Videographers to outsource for dates they have already booked through their own companies sometimes as little as a week away from an event. At the risk of their own contracted clients who hired them to provide a service for a "Once in a Lifetime Special Occasion", How could a company feel good about sending an unknown out to a job with their own Company name at stake?

As my business continues to grow, it has become apparent that although I have built this business from the beginning with a combination of my Outgoing Personality, and Quality Service, it is now crucial that I now not only sell the business because of who I am but need to showcase my incredible staff as well as an equal part of importance to the success of this business. I would not be where I am today without them.

This past weekend I am proud to say this task was accomplished. I had double booked an event and sent out a staff that I knew would do an amazing job! They had been working with me for over a year, and they were ready to go out on their own. I will say, however, that when I contacted the client, who I had worked for in the past, she too was "concerned and disappointed" that "I" was not going to be at her event. I did reassure her, however, that I would not have been willing to take a chance of ruining my company reputation by sending people to her event that were not capable of providing the quality service she had expected. I am happy to say that my girls did an incredible job, and my client was extremely happy. She has already booked us again, without hesitation, for another event.

I continue to learn a lot along the way as I continue to grow my business. We have come a long way since the beginning. Based on my own experience working in the Event Industry for the past ten years I believe I have seen it all. I have without a doubt learned "What Not to Do" based on my own personal experiences when hiring companies for my own events, as well as observations I have made while working with vendors in the industry on a regular basis.

As I continue to grow Customer Service will continue to be a top priority since my word of mouth business is something to be proud of and not to be taken for granted.

Training, motivating, and showcasing my incredible staff is also a key part in the continued success and growth of this business. Let's face it, I could not be doing this alone, and could not be prouder to be surrounded by my amazing staff.

My goal is to continue to provide the best Quality Service to my clients and prove to them that I would never be willing to sacrifice Quality over Quantity. I will continue to surround myself with the best staff possible, proving that when you hire a "Hot Shots Photo Favor Team" for an event....it will be a trained "Hot Shots Photo Favor Team" you will get!

When hiring Hot Shots Photo Favors for your next upcoming celebration... remember...

If you can't have "ME"...the answer is...."YES"....You can Trust MY Staff!

Opportunity continues to Knock on my Door

I find it incredibly amazing that as I continue to work from my home opportunity continues to come my way. Networking is the key. Since the launch of http://www.newjerseybirthdayparty.com/ , we have launched 14 additional Metro Area Birthday Party Websites including Manhattan, Staten Island, Philadelphia, Rockland, Westchester, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Suffolk, Nassau, Delaware, Fairfield, Hartford, and even Hudson Valley.

I still can't believe the opportunity to be the exclusive Marketing and Sales Rep has pretty much fallen into my lap from a simple phone call about six months ago to advertise my own small business here in New Jersey. That phone call has changed my life. Not only has it allowed me the opportunity to continue to work from home, but allows me to meet on a daily basis through e-mail and phone contact, people who also work in my industry. I have never even personally met Debbie Kleinman, who by the way lives in Florida, or the other three women who are involved with the building of the Birthday Party Websites, but together we are building a Mini Empire and have never even met!

Once again through the power of Networking, I have seen an increase in business with my Hot Shots Instant Photo Favors business, http://www.nextstep-now.com/ , as I am booking more parties than ever. Using my number one skill, Yes I am a Talkaholic, opportunities continue to come my way. I have even recently made a connection that now allows me to offer Vintage Photo Booths as an additional choice for my customers to have at their parties simply by being me and never being afraid to ask.

So I say, let's keep Networking - You never know who you are going to meet!

Sophisticated Seating Charts

As part of my ongoing quest to find new and exciting vendors in the Party/Wedding Industry to offer to my clients, I was completely intrigued when I discovered a very unique way to eliminate the need for those pesky little place cards we pick up and eventually toss away upon the arrival to an event.

I was completely impressed upon finding http://www.bellejardine.com/. This company offers, in my opinion, the most elegant and environmentally-friendly way to direct your guests to their tables - Custom hand-painted seating charts or seating scrolls.

• According to the company's web site, "Seating Charts or seating scrolls are used as an alternative to place cards. A seating chart lists your guest's names and table numbers. Instead of having tens or hundreds of small place cards, all the guest's names are listed in alphabetical order on one chart with their table number beside their name."
  

• The web site goes on further to explain, "The average size of one of my seating charts is 18" x 24"; and is placed on an easel or tabletop near the doorway of the banquet room entrance. Although they are frequently used for Weddings, they can also be used for any event requiring specialized seating, including Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Retirement, Birthday, Holiday Events, etc. Belle Jardine seating charts are created individually for your occasion and make wonderful keepsakes."

So if you're planning a special event, before you opt for the typical place cards, you may want to check out http://www.bellejardine.com/ and impress your guests with an unexpected and impressive guide to their seats!

You'll also have a beautiful keepsake of your event and the guests who attended!

Opportunity Knocks - When you least expect it!

So in these financially challenging economical times, while searching on the internet, in an effort to find some affordable advertising opportunities to promote my home based business - Next Step Productions - http://www.nextstep-now.com/ - my Hot Shots Instant Photo Favor Business - I stumbled upon a new party planning website that was launching here in New Jersey - My curiosity got the best of me and I decided to follow-up with a call to obtain some information regarding this new site.

The Owner and I immediately hit it off and before I knew it I was advertising on the site and became the exclusive Advertising Rep here in New Jersey for http://www.newjerseybirthdayparty.com/.

This opportunity came when I least expected it. I was so intrigued and excited about the unique picture driven concept of this Party Planning Website that I couldn't start to share the site and the opportunity with people in the industry fast enough. I cannot be more excited to become a part of something that I am convinced will be nothing but successful.

Can't imagine where this will lead, but I know that I am enjoying the ride, not only promoting my own home based business, but sharing all of the possibilites with colleagues in the Party and Event industry from this amazing opportunity that fell into my lap.

Teenage Daughters

Today started out like any other, coffee, breakfast, brief hello from my youngest teenage daughter on her way to the computer. When suddenly I was surprised with an unexpected invitation to spend some time with her. That did of course entail a trip to the mall and some shopping, but these days I will take anything I can get.

Although I miss the days when my girls were younger, it is a comfort to know that they are becoming independent young women that I can be proud of. As much as they seem to believe I know nothing at this stage of my life, I can look back and know I must have done something right.

Emotional week got me thinking!!

A friend of mine passed away this week. Although she was quite older than me, she had been a great neighbor and confidant for the past 15 years.

Joannie lived a very simple life, her adoptive parents had already passed, she had no siblings, she was married but never had children. We only found out she was ill about 8 weeks ago and suddenly she was gone.

Joannie lived her life the way she wanted to and left the same way. She had shared with her husband of 47 years that she wanted no treatments, wanted to go to Atlantic City where she loved the slots, and wanted to die at home. Her husband is now completely alone with no family.

Upon her passing, her husband realized that she had known for quite some time that her time was coming to an end. She left him files with blueprints of each room in there house so he would be able to know where to find anything and everything.

Her affairs were all in order. She took care of him while she was alive and made sure he was going to be ok when she was gone. How many of us are ready for this? It got me thinking, how about you?