Monthly Archives: August 2012

Disneyland Vendor Reveal: White Rabbit Photo Boutique

Posted in Disneyland Weddings, Vendor Reveal by

Continuing our new series of “Vendor Reveals”.  Through our Disneymooner forums we’ve found our members have used a number and variety of Vendors for their Disney Wedding and we’ve been asking those Vendors to reveal just a little more about their business……. and themselves!

Our next Vendor Reveal comes to us from the West coast servicing Disneyland Fairytale Weddings.

What is the name of your business/service and what is your offering?
My  business name is the White Rabbit Photo Boutique, and I offer wedding photography, custom invitations, and am just getting a new photo booth(!!!) A lot of people assume that I decided on the White Rabbit name because I’m a Disney fan. It’s semi-true, but the biggest reason was because it was exciting to start my own business, and it felt a little like Alice following the Rabbit down the rabbit hole on her way to a new adventure. It also was whimsical, and I’m a big fan of whimsy.

What is your name, seems obvious I know but maybe it’s different from your business name?

Jenna Henderson

What do you believe makes your business/service unique?
The biggest difference between myself and other photographers, is my training as a visual anthropologist. I had to photograph different cultural events and people, and so I learned to document everything about the environment I was in. Because of this, I’m great at capturing the overall details and feeling of the wedding day, as well as showcasing the personalities of the couple. The thing that ties in weddings to my anthropology training, is that I’ve had art training since I was very young, so I try my best to capture the day in a way that is also beautiful.

How did you get started and how long have you been doing this?
Ack! This is a long story! Many moons ago, I worked at a popular photography studio in the Central Valley as a second shooter. I was working towards my degree in Anthropology, with a minor in Digital Media. I was hoping to eventually get contractual work photographing other cultures in different countries around the world. I loved anthropology, but then I unexpectedly met my husband and didn’t want to travel for years at a time without him. Instead of applying for grad school and anthropology contracts, I used my backup plan and began working as a kindergarten teacher for two years. When we adopted my son, my teaching contract just happened to end because our school was closing. While I was at home raising my son and looking for jobs, I started blogging and posting photos about our life (www.thislittleblog.com). This led to being asked about photographing an engagement shoot, which led to being asked to photograph a pirate wedding, which led to being asked to photograph a proposal in the Dream Suite, which led to being added as a preferred vendor at Disneyland! I couldn’t believe my good fortune, and cried happy tears on the phone when I was told I was being added to their vendor list, because I’m sappy like that!

When not working a wedding at Disneyland (or another venue for that matter) what are you doing?
I love, love, love, to spend time with my husband and son. We are big foodies, so we love to try out new restaurants and cook. Other things I love: walking, hiking, quilting, gardening, and reading. Oh, and I spend a lot of time at Disneyland with my son, who thinks Mickey Mouse is the coolest person on the planet. After mom and dad, of course. 😉

What is your favorite part about your job?
Hands down, getting to photograph people on one of the happiest days of their lives.

What types of wedding packages do you offer Disney brides? (please feel free to add a link for Brides to get more information if applicable)
I have four photography packages starting with escape weddings and moving up. All of my packages include my services for the entire day (I don’t like time limits!) and a beautiful Custom Designed DVD with all of the high resolution images. Brides and Grooms can print images on their own, or have them printed through my professional printing company. I also design albums, do custom framing, engagement books, and anything else you can think of. People are usually surprised when they see my pricing, but I like keeping my pricing affordable because I know what it’s like to pay for a wedding and I think everyone should have the chance for beautiful pictures on their wedding day.

What is your favorite wedding trend right now in relation to your business/service?
I think it would be all the creative details people pull into their weddings. I’m always amazed at how creative and classy the Disney Brides are.

What’s your favorite thing about doing Disney weddings?
This is hard because there are so many things I love about Disney Weddings. I love getting to know the couples because we have a common love of Disney, but I also love working with the Disney Coordinators. They love their job as much as I do, and it is really fun to work with their team. They tell me about how beautiful a dress is going to be, or how neat the details of an upcoming wedding are. It’s great working with people who are so excited about the weddings that I’m going to be photographing. It’s a really fun, rewarding, and positive environment.

What was your strangest request when working a Disney wedding?
I haven’t had any strange requests yet. This is probably because I went to school for anthropology and am still waiting for the day that someone asks me to try a soup that’s made out of bug juice.

What’s your most memorable moment that you have taken away from a Disney wedding?
Ack! I am going to sound so silly, but here I go….When I worked at the park ages ago, I used to take the long route and made a point of walking through the castle every morning so I could hear “When You Wish Upon a Star”. My favorite line from the song was when they’d sing, “fate is kind, she brings to those who love”. It happened to play when I walked through the castle on my first shift at Disneyland, so it was special to me. If I heard that part of the song when I walked through castle at the beginning a shift, I knew it was going to be a good day. Not too long ago, I was photographing a Morning Castle Shoot for Tina and On Wa. I walked through the castle and heard that particular part of the song. I had this moment where I felt like things had come full circle, and that I was the luckiest person on the planet to be able to do something I love so much.

JUST FOR FUN
If you were getting married at Disneyland where would you have your ceremony and reception and why?
My husband and I talk about this all the time, and we decided we’d get married in New Orleans Square. We love the atmosphere over there, and think it would make an awesome spot for a wedding. Second runner up is the Mark Twain River Boat.

Who is your favorite Disney character and why?
Alice, of course! I love how logical she is about the quirkiest things. I often feel like I’m having Alice moments.

Which is your favorite Disney attraction and why?
Storybook Land Canal Boats, because I worked there for five years and that attraction was my baby. I have a hard time riding it now, because if I see one single thing misplaced, it makes me want to bring the Attraction Tinker Fairies some cookies so I can get it fixed pronto.

FINALLY
Why should a Disneymooner choose your service?
THIS! Coming from the worst salesperson in the world! I would want a Disneymooner to choose my service because they love my photos. After your wedding, the only thing you’ll have to look back on are your photos and videos! It’s so important to choose a photographer that is going to give you photos that you want for always. My son’s favorite book is our wedding album, and I’m so glad we took the time to find a photographer that we loved! Disneymooners should do the same, and if it happens to be me? Yayyyyyy, that’s awesome! I can’t wait to work with you!

Jenna Henderson
White Rabbit Photo Boutique
Los Angeles/Orange County/Central Valley
1 (909) 293 8064

White Rabbit Photo Boutique Website
jenna@whiterabbitphotoboutique.com

Thanks to Jenna, White Rabbit Photo Boutique for answering our questions as part of our Vendor Reveal series, if you would like your work revealed to our readers please contact yourfairytalewedding@disneymooner.com

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Wedding Planning: Getting the Marriage License

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Next to having an Officiant booked, I’d say making sure you have your marriage license comes pretty close to being the most important detail of the wedding planning.

I remember this causing me far too much stress when I was planning, simply because I wasn’t certain on how to go about it.  Lucky for me, I had the Disneymooners forums to tell me my options and calm the inner panicking bride.  The process for getting your marriage license in the State of Florida is really easy and there are two basic methods.

Be sure to check out the County Clerks website for more details. The current price for a Florida Marriage License is $93.50.

Disney Fairytale Wedding’s requires that all couples acquire a valid FLORIDA marriage license prior to their ceremony. Vow renewals and commitment ceremonies do not require this. Couples options are:

1. In person at a Florida Courthouse

A Florida marriage license is good anywhere in the state so brides from other areas of the state can obtain one at a location convenient for them.  There is no waiting period for out-of-state applicants, but for locals be sure to check the requirements.

Marriage license are good for 60 days from date acquired.  If you are waiting to get your license once you arrive in florida the two closest court houses are:

 Osceola County Courthouse 
2 Courthouse Square, 2nd Floor Kissimmee, FL 34741
407-742-3530
osceolaclerk.com

Orange County Courthouse
425 N. Orange Avenue, Room #355 Orlando, FL 32801
407-836-2067
myorangeclerk.com

2. By Mail

If you are planning on submitting the application by mail:

Some Brides like the idea of having the license in hand before they leave to Florida and submitting my mail and others like having the human interaction to get the paperwork done.

For other information on marriage license, experiences and other helpful tips please join us on our private forums Disneymooner.com

Wedding License with a Side of…Tornadoes?

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Wedding planning can be stressful at the best of times but what happens when a hurricane is on it’s way?  With Tropical Storm Isaac threatening to turn into Hurricane Isaac we wanted to share with you Disneymooner Geneva’s story from our Disneymooner Forums.

Wedding License With a Side of…Tornadoes?

“So, there we were…happy to be out of the rain when we realized…hey, there are cops EVERYWHERE…more than you would normally expect to see right when you walk into a courthouse. One was holding the door open and telling us to get inside (rudely). We got through the metal detectors, all the while trying to maintain our sense of humor but everyone seemed tense and we weren’t sure what was going on really. We tried to ask the next cop where the marriage license office was only to be told that we’ll need to wait in courtroom #1. Ooookaaayy…so I nervously asked the next cop, “What exactly have we walked into here?” only to receive this snide reply, “What you’ve walked into is 4 tornadoes in the area, now get into courtroom 1!” I (being in shock that he was being SUCH an a$$) stopped dead in my tracks and then (being the good sailor that I was trained to be) set about following the order. Just then some guy comes out of courtroom 1 saying, “I don’t know what the fire code for that room is, but there are way too many people in that room.” At that point, I was rethinking my decision to go into a room packed shoulder to shoulder with cranky people and I heard Stephen say, “Hang on a sec, honey…we’re not going in there to be packed in with whatever criminals were on trial today.”

Yup, definitely didn’t want to go in after considering that aspect (leave it to the lawyer…) so, while the cops were busy trying to bully fire code guy into submission, we headed for the exit…which was blocked by a security guy who seemed to think it was OK to hold us there against our will. Stephen explained that we would be leaving whether he liked it or not. The security guy was severely confused and stuttered out something about having to clear it with an officer so we turn around and both say at the same time (it was too funny), “We’ll be leaving now.” The cop just shrugged and said, “So?” We turned back to the security guy who was really confused now and muttered something about us being on our own with the tornadoes to which we both laughed and agreed that we’d rather do just that than be stuck in that madhouse for an undetermined amount of time waiting for a tornado to decimate it.

When it was all said and done, we made it back to the untouched courthouse and got our license without incident. Sure did make for an entertaining morning though.

Have you had a funny or stressful wedding planning story that left you a bit overwhelmed?  Share with us!

Look out for our blog post on the many ways to obtain your wedding license when planning a Disney Wedding… coming soon!

Trends We Love: Photo Booths

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By far one of the biggest weddings trends we have seen are Photo Booths, and they are making their way to Disney Fairytale Weddings as well.

Photo Booths are a great way to capture memories is a funny and unique way. Some couples choose to have props for their photo booths to really amp up the fun-filled energy of the wedding. Others choose a more classic approach and go with black and white film strips.

Disney Fairytale Weddings as up with the current trends and we have seen these used at Atlantic Dance Hall as well as other locations( as showcased on their official blog).

As always, we advise you to consult your Disney wedding planner for the cost renting this would cost your event.  As with most additions to your wedding, you can hire an outside vendor to do your photo booth if it is an out of park reception. The prices of these photo booths vary but couples can estimate at a couple thousand dollars.

If that price is too high for a couple to budget or they want the same effect for their reception; here are some fun cheaper ideas:

*get a Polaroid camera and leave a note for guests to take a picture and write a message for the couple.

*Get disposable cameras and have an area for guests to take their picture. You can develop them later and even make them digital and create photo strips online.

Have you had a Photo Booth at your wedding?  we would love to hear your experience and stories.  Please join us on the Disneymooner Forums

Vendor Reveal: Chapman Photography

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WELCOME to the next in our new series of “Vendor Reveals”.  Through our Disneymooner forums we’ve found our members have used a number and variety of Vendors for their Disney Wedding and we’ve been asking those Vendors to reveal just a little more about their business……. and themselves!

Our next Vendor Reveal falls to an “outside” wedding photographer…. a very popular choice amongst Disney Brides

What is the name of your business/service and what is your offering?
Chapman Photography ~ Randy Chapman, specializing in Disney Fairytale weddings and honeymoon Photography.  We also photograph Disney Vacations and Family Reunions!

What is your name? – Randy Chapman

FantasiaSam “shoots” Randy at her own Disney Fairytale Wedding

What makes your business/service unique?
With 17 years shooting Disney Fairytale weddings, I have a great reputation for capturing unique, creative and natural fun moments. Over these years I have extensively communicated with and worked alongside Disney’s staff which aid towards a seamless day for the Bride and Groom!

How did you get started and how long have you been doing this?
I discovered my talents when shooting in New York City,, after shooting great upcoming models for 2 years, I moved back to my native State and City, Orlando Florida, where I pursued my talents in the wedding field.

After shooting weddings for 6 years, I was recognized by Andrea Rotondo in 1997. Andrea was a past Disney Bride in 1996 and founded the Disneymooner list and Unofficial Disney Wedding Guide… Andrea posted a link to my website and from there, history was in the making!!

After 17 years  numerous awards and thousands of Disney weddings, Disney Fairytale Weddings and Honeymoons is my home of 90% of all my weddings.

When not working a wedding at Walt Disney World (or another venue for that matter) what are you doing?
On my days off from shooting Disney weddings, I love shooting Family sessions, Honeymoon couples, engagement shoots, and try to get in 14 miles of biking every other day!!

What is your favorite part about your job?
The favorite part about my job is everything!! What better job can you have, do what you love to and go to work, where that day is one of the happiest days of another person’s life!! Then to see how excited a Bride and Groom are when receiving their photos!!

I also love shooting the engagement this is a great way to get to know my couples before the big day

What types of wedding packages do you offer Disney brides?
My Photography packages are customized for each Couple to fit their budget, in some cases full wedding coverage will include engagement session or Honeymoon session.  There are printed packages on my website www.chapmanphotography.com or email info@chapmanphotography.com   407-841-2300 cell 407-341-0761.  All the Packages include the master DVD with all the copyrights!

What is your favorite wedding trend right now in relation to your business/service?
My Disney couples are less traditional and using a lot of bright colors, props, Trashing the Dress, shooting Honeymoons, Social Networking Facebook for Sneak Peaks. Checkout my Facebook.

What’s your favorite thing about doing Disney weddings?
One of many favorite  experiences of shooting Disney Weddings is working with Disney Fairytale Weddings Staff, they all do a great job. Another is shooting Cinderella’s coach, all the Charters and Monorail.

What was your strangest request when working a Disney Wedding?
I could write the top 10 strangest requests but I will keep it short   A reception at the Grand Floridian  approximately 200 guests and everyone is at their tables eating Cake… the Bride then had the DJ announce my name and request a dance with me…..eeek not a pretty site !!! Hips don’t lie!!!

What’s your most memorable moment that you have taken away from a Disney wedding?
The most Memorable Moment was at the last-minute of a wedding I was shooting my Bride asked me to walk her down the aisle at the Wedding Pavilion as her brother was delayed at the airport.

Also a family of 3 sisters and 1 brother all had their wedding at Disney which I photographed and I’ve been shooting their family portrait sessions every year since!

JUST FOR FUN – we asked Randy to answer these questions

If you were getting married at WDW where would you have your ceremony and reception and why?
If I was to get married at WDW it would be at the Disney Wedding Pavilion this being Florida and the weather changing by the hour, there’s no need for a back-up location plus it has A/C and an awesome location for photos.

My reception would be the Atlantic Dance Hall, because the location is at the Boardwalk which makes for great photos outside.

It also has an outside Balcony great for viewing the Illuminations at Epcot and I can make the photos look like we were there!! The inside is great, no need  for a whole lot of decorations and it has a great dance floor… perfect!

Who is your favorite Disney character and why?
Pluto has always been very playful and fun with photos!!

Which is your favorite Disney attraction and why?
Favorite Disney Attraction is Haunted Mansion, it brings a lot of memories, being born and raised in Orlando, our family went to Disney a lot in the 70’s even though the Haunted Mansion had a 45 min wait I was there. Not really an attraction but I love Eating Around The World at Epcot.

FINALLY

Why should a member of our Disneymooner Forums choose your service?
I believe with my vast knowledge and 17 years specializing in shooting Disney Fairytale Weddings, under very affordable packages, I can be of a great advantage for my future Disney Couples. My Experience in knowing all the great locations for photos whether you choose a Wishes, Escape, or Memories Wedding, I will keep the Wedding Couple on the required timetable throughout the day.

All the Disney Fairytale Wedding Staff  know me and we work great together as a team. I enjoy, being a part of making dreams come true with beautiful wedding photos.

90% of all my weddings are at WDW! I have a great following of past, present and future Disney Wedding Couples including many from the Disneymooners that will give you their experience with me, many have continued to come back to me after their wedding for Vacation shoots and/or Family Sessions around the Walt Disney World Properties, which I believe is a great testament to my work! We also offer Engagement and Honeymoon sessions at any of Walt Disney World Resorts.

Randy Chapman
Disney Weddings  Chapman Photography
Studio 407-841-2300
Cell 407-341-0761
Fax 407-841-2193

www.chapmanphotography.com
Info@chapmanphotography.com
Facebook

Thanks to Randy, Chapman Photography for answering our questions as part of our Vendor Reveal series, if you would like your work revealed to our readers please contact yourfairytalewedding@disneymooner.com