Looking for a Photographer 2

I asked my sister, KC, if her officemate who is a photo hobbyist, could be our wedding photographer. That way, we could save a lot of money by hiring an amateur instead of a pro. But, she said her officemate cannot commit since they might have a client by January and they might not be able to take a leave from office. :(

I then asked my friend Cheps if she knows somebody to take our pictures. She said her sister and friends are photo enthusiasts and may be able to do wedding shots. Yippee!

Photography services down, now with the albums. Since we are inclined to hiring amateur photographers, I immediately searched the Internet for album makers. And I found out that there are services like that here in the Philippines. One is Picture Shop and the other is Photobook. You can check out ther websites and see their works and rates.

I told Inay about my idea of hiring an amateur yet artistic photographer and then sending our pictures to the album maker. This would definitely lessen the photography costs. Of course, being a mother, she had doubts about this idea. She said the photos may fade, wrinkle, etc. in time.

Then, the next day, much to my surprise, my siblings talked about my so-called foto dilemma without my knowledge. They decided to shoulder the photography costs just to lighten the load for us. Yey!

I sort of defended the Cook and I (you know, EGO). I don't want to give them the impression that we could not afford photo services. I told them that we have a budget for a photographer, but it is not enough to hire a non-traditional photographer.

Still, they insisted on paying, so thank you my wonderful siblings. Mwah!

Looking for a Photographer

We are looking for a photographer who is:
1. artistic
2. shoots non-traditional images
3. charges budget-friendly fees

The thing which I want our photographer to be is someone who can take creative and candid shots (I think it's called "photojournalistic" here). When you look at wedding photo albums here, you'll see the same poses and shots. I am more of a candid shot type of bride. I don't want to be given directions everytime, every move, like a robot. Directions of how to project and pose are welcome but not every single time! I believe that a good photographer worth his price can get the emotions and moment without telling his subject what to do. Check out One Love Photo. Those are the pictures which are uncommon in traditional wedding photos. Those are the pictures that I like! Like! Like!

I found a budget-friendly photographer in Lipa. They have a package for budget-conscious brides like me. I would have settled for them considering that I am having difficulties finding a professional photographer within our budget. But my sister said that the photos are traditional and she knows someone who shoots beautiful photos. I was like, yes yes tell more!

(To be continued...)

invitation designs

My friend Cheps gave me the invite designs that she was working on. I told her I wanted the line "Good things some to those who wait" since The Cook and I have been waiting for this wedding to happen. And now is our time.

Take a look of the designs.

We have yet to meet with her and finalize everything. But her son is sick and she can't make it over the weekend. :( Get well soon Baby Atom!

Baptismal Certificate, where are you?

As we start preparing for our wedding, our first task is to prepare the documents for the Church. We were asked to submit the following:

1. Baptismal and Confirmation Certificates - from the Church
2. Birth certificate - from the National Statistics Office (NSO)
3. CENOMAR (Certificate of Non-Marriage) - from NSO
4. Marriage License - from the municipality hall

Right now, we are having a problem regarding my Baptismal Certificate. It's not in the Books of the Church. Good thing I have my Confirmation certificate (which is given if you were baptized as a Catholic) so they cannot question if I was baptized or not. The personnel which we talked with said that I need to present the original copy of my Baptismal certificate and update their Books. If not, I need to submit an affidavit of loss and a document from my mother and/or Godmother stating that I was indeed baptized as Catholic. Such a hassle...

So now, I asked Inay to dig up all the documents at our house in the hopes of finding the original copy of the Baptismal Certificate. If this elusive Baptismal Certificate never appears, I just might have to produce several documents they needed. Wish me luck!

Pamulungan

We are now starting the wedding preparations. :)

Last Septermber 27, amidst rains due to typhoon Ondoy, the Cook and his family came to our house to formally announce our engagement or "pamulungan".

My relatives from my parent's side also came to our house to "witness" the event. It was heartwarming that even my uncle who is in a wheelchair also came to the "pamulungan". :)

Tragedy

The Philippines was hit by typhoon "Ondoy" (Ketsana) over the weekend. My apartment was affected and good thing The Cook and I were there. He just arrived last Friday amidst pouring rain. Saturday morning, the day where we plan to go to the province, that was when the flood hit our area.

We (correction, He) quickly moved appliances to the cabinets and put my books and shoes in plastic bags. Me, I was standing at the center of the room looking at the flood as it quickly seeped into the bedroom. I was almost crying in disbelief that the place which I call home is suddenly being ransacked by flood. I was in shock. In short, I was a damsel in distress (* kicks meself).

After putting important things into safety, The Cook and I hurriedly left the apartment. He left his luggage above the cabinet since it was heavy. We were shocked at what we saw outside. The flood inside the apartment was knee-deep, outside, it was chest-high! We bravely crossed the flood, holding our bags above our heads. There was no flood outside our street and we waited for a ride there.

We left the apartment at 11am and finally got home at 11pm. 12 hours of waiting rides, commuting and traffic! I was sad that The Cook had to be welcomed by a typhoon. I know he was tired from his flight but he was the one who did all the work in ensuring our safety. He kept assuring me that it was a good thing that we were still in the apartment when the flood happened. We were able to safekeep some of our belongings.

Even it rained hard and flooded in many cities, I still believe that God is merciful. The typhoon could have happened during office/school hours, or at night. But the typhoon hit us on a weekend where everybody was at home, with the family. Stuff that we lose can be replaced, our loved ones, irreplaceable.