My fiancée and I have been hard at work planning our wedding, which will be taking place in less than a year. Two of the most important vendors that we wanted to consider for our wedding and had to be booked in advanced are the photographer and officiant.

We looked based on our budget and how much the person’s vision was closely linked to ours. And by ours, I mean Beth’s since the wedding is all about the bride. I personally want her to have what she wants since the only thing I care about is marrying her. And eating good food and having a great time with the people I care about most.

Wedding Photographer: Love & Light Photographs

We met with Jessa of Love & Light Photographs at a Starbucks in Red Bank. Beth learned about her through one of her coworkers since they are good friends. Before meeting her, we checked out her photos and liked her work. When we both met with her, she saw the vision that we were going for and let us know about her plans to photograph our big day. Between those things and the fact that she gave us everything we wanted in our budget, she was the perfect choice for our photographer.

She also recommended a videographer, but that’s another discussion (and possible blog) for another day.

Wedding Officiant: Mitch the Minister

We met with Mitchell Magad, known as Mitch the Minister, at the Skylark Diner (which I’ve blogged about) in Edison. Beth previously looked at him and liked what he had to offer. After meeting him in person, I can see why. He talked about his experience, his thoughts on how the ceremony should go (even giving us new ideas about it) and gave input on some ideas we had. I also enjoyed the fact that he said he was sick of the song from Frozen and would beat the shit out of us if we walked out to it.

Ah, good times. Now that those two vendors are squared away, there’s a lot less pressure.

How hard was it to book the photographer and officiant for your wedding? What qualities were you looking for? Let me know in the comments below or on Twitter @ChrisKeuling!