Alan Cooney Photography, 39 Priory Road, Sale, Cheshire, M33 2BU - Telephone. 0161-962 1111 - CONTACT

Planning a Successful Wedding Day ~ Free Advice. (updated January 2010)
By Alan Cooney with over 22 years experience in the Professional Photography business:-

1. TIMES TO ALLOW ~ This can vary depending on location of wedding and reception and also with regard to number of guests involved. But here I will try to give a helpful guide based on past experience from weddings I have photographed.........If you have a church wedding with the typical 45 minute service, then call at a nearby park, and next travel to the hotel in a radius of say 5 miles, then the time to allow is 2.5 hours from the START of the service to the START of the reception. If you choose to have a Full Roman Catholic Mass this can take longer so the time to allow would be 3 hours from Start of service to Start of reception. If you have a small Civil Wedding at One Location then the time to allow would be 1.75 hours, or 2 hours from Start of Ceremony to Start of Reception. If there is a Horse and Carriage involved then additional time must be included in your schedule to cater for this. More info at the Studio. Update 14th November 2004
*** WARNING *** Some hairdressers will make you late for the wedding!
When arranging your hair appointment (including Mum & Bridesmaids) we suggest you add a "flexibility safety gap time" of at least ONE additional SPARE hour BEFORE you are due to be picked up by the wedding cars. If your hair is styled as anticipated, then you have an hour to relax and collect your thoughts before you set off for the wedding. But if the hairdresser is late, or has problems, you are still in time for the wedding ~ hopefully without rushing! You may wish to consider building one or two other "safety gap" periods into your busy wedding day schedule ~ the choice is yours ~ but our reasoning behind these suggestions is to simply avoid anxiety and stress on the day!

2. THE HOTEL ~ You may not be aware, but "some" hotels in South Manchester are now allocating their car parking spaces to guests who are out of the country on holiday! They are often operating a park and ride scheme whereby hotel guests leave their car in the hotel car park, then are ferried back and forth to Manchester Airport in the hotel's mini bus or a taxi. This means that YOU and your WEDDING GUESTS are very likely to have difficulty parking your cars at some of these hotels. So when considering which hotel to choose - VISIT them on a typical Saturday afternoon in the wedding season and see for yourself! Some hotels have a nice garden which can be helpful and convenient for your photographs, but do not assume it will be available for you. There have been previous occasions where the Bride and Groom assumed they would use the hotel garden, only to find it was full of guests from another wedding party who were having their celebrations at the same venue! So, ask the hotel how many weddings they cater for on the same day.
Update 11th October 2004 - Several Manchester and Cheshire hotels have changed their names to include the words "Manchester Airport", or "Manchester International Airport" within their name. On a recent wedding of mine a large number of visiting guests were confused by this and went to the wrong hotel several miles away. As a result of this they were very late arriving at the "right" hotel. Particularly "foreign" visitors to this country assume that these hotels are at, or near to Manchester Airport - when in reality some are miles away!!! This information is not intended to criticise any hotel for naming their hotel by whatever name they choose, but it is intended to warn potential wedding guests of circumstances that may cause them confusion, cause them to be very late, or cause them to miss the wedding ceremony entirely.

3. THE CHURCH ~ If you have chosen to have a church wedding then I imagine it has special significance to you, ie: religious, historic, sentimental, etc. So I am sure you would be most disappointed if having booked a church you are subsequently told by the Vicar that he/she does NOT allow the professional photographer to take photos during the service! Well some Vicars DO, and some Vicars DON'T, so it is important to check this out BEFORE you hand over your hard earned cash to book a church! Understandably the Vicar will not want any distractions during the service, and if you book a true professional photographer he/she will have techniques to take photographs discretely ~ provided the Vicar allows ~ but YOU must tell the Vicar how important it is to YOU to have a photographic record of this very special occasion........after all.......this is the very reason that you chose his/her church in the first place!!! Do not be fobbed off with feeble excuses ~ it is YOUR wedding, and YOU are paying for it!

4. THE PHOTOGRAPHER ~ It is worth taking the time to visit your prospective photographer and view samples of his/her work. Do not waste time talking to a "sales person", but ensure you are meeting the "actual photographer" who would be taking the photographs on your wedding day. Insist on viewing a complete set of wedding pictures (including the rejects) and don't be fooled by anyone who just shows you the "edited highlights". It is important that the photographer is a friendly and approachable person who you can get on with, and therefore someone who can capture your true personality on the wedding day. This will make for more appealing pictures. An experienced photographer ~ like Alan Cooney with over 20 years experience ~ will know how to keep the day moving so your guests are not getting fed up, and also have well practised contingency plans for dealing with the unexpected! eg: If it rains!

5. THE WEDDING CARS or Horse and Carriage ~ When booking these you should advise the company of ALL the trips, and ALL the locations for which you need transport. eg: including the park if you are calling at one in addition to the church and hotel. If you can advise your car firm of all the trips, and the "complete" time duration for which you require them, then you should be able to agree an INCLUSIVE PRICE for the job. However, if you only book them for a minimum time period of say 2 hours or less ~ then it is quite usual for additional surcharges to come into force if you need extra time and/or extra trips. Also please be aware that many car firms are scheduled to attend more than one wedding on the same day, so may not be able to offer you extra time unless you have already arranged it in advance of your wedding day. At Alan Cooney Photography we can help with advice gained on previous weddings for the "right" times to allow when booking your transport ~ this is discussed in detail when you book us to photograph your wedding. If you choose a Horse and Carriage then more time is needed owing to the travelling speed being comparable to a bicycle rather than a car.

6. MANCHESTER CITY CENTRE ~ While some couples choose to marry at venues in the City for its obvious historic character, or its central location, you should take into account the extreme problems for cars, motorists, and parking difficulties. Over the last few years vehicle access has been progressively hindered by the increasing parking restrictions and the unfriendly penalties handed out by Manchester Traffic Wardens. The parking regulations were enforced by wardens working for "Control Plus" and I believe the City Council is soon transferring the contract to NCP. Please be aware that parking restrictions are enforced at ALL times ~ even the evenings, and at weekends ~ I have personally witnessed the wardens at 8.30pm in the evening lifting a car onto the back of a trailer for confiscation, whilst its owner was trying to enjoy an evening meal with friends at a restaurant on Deansgate! Personally I feel its a pity that Manchester City Council has chosen to frighten car owners away like this, while in complete contrast the Trafford Centre (only 6 miles away), can welcome motorists in a friendly manner with plenty of FREE car parking AND easy access!

7. LOCAL WEDDING SUPPLIERS ~ CLICK ~ to see listings of Local Wedding Suppliers that may be of interest to you.

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