DPS or Randy Chapman

[Nicci]

Hi everyone

Due to reasons beyond my control we are having to switch from a Custom to an Intimate Wedding. We had originally booked Randy Chapman to be our photographer as i really like his mix of Portrait & Photojournalism style.

I believe included in the price of an intimate you receive 12 photos from DPS. My dilemma is:

Should I cancel Randy Chapman and pay extra for more photos from DPS, as i like the idea of a wedding CD that I can print as many photos as I like, or

Can I keep Randy Chapman and get a discount from FTW for the price of the wedding, or a credit towards the MK/Epcot shoot we both intend to have?

I have emailed my EM asking about the latter a few days ago but i haven't heard anything.

Please help

 

[hmgolden]

Personally, I would keep Randy. But I am biased.

Disney would not discount the cost of your wedding if you choose to use Randy. Some brides have had success getting credits toward a MK Photo shoot, but Disney does not hand them out consistently, so don't expect that.

If you talk to Randy, you can get him to include a hi-res cd of all your photos in your package. He included one in mine.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[PryncessChrysty]

I agree with the above poster, I would also keep Randy. I spoke with him last month while planning our Oct. '05 wedding and he was wonderful! We talked for about 45 minutes and most of our conversation was him telling me about how much he enjoys what he does and he told me stories about some weddings he had recently photographed. From the impression I got, he takes great pride in what he does and he likes to think outside of the box, which is very important to me. I like more candid shots as opposed to more traditional portraits.

We are also having an intimate and Randy's price for that is $575, and well worth it if you ask me! That gives you 2 1/2 hours of photography, the photos in a white album and you choose if you want either the negatives or a CD (I got that right off their contract). Randy told me that in that time, we should have more than 100 photos!

Since we are using Randy for the wedding, we are just going to pay the little bit extra to use DPS for a honeymoon photo shoot in place of the wedding photography. (For some reason, I'm drawing a blank, but I think it's just $50 extra). With that you get two hours of photography in one of the four parks of your choice. However, it has to be during normal business hours, so you are unable to wear your wedding attire. From this shoot, you receive all the pictures and I believe 12 of them are placed in an album.
As far as asking for a credit toward the MK or Epcot bridal portrait session (in wedding attire), they might do this for you. I've read that some people here on the boards have been able to do this. However, I contacted Stephanie at DPS and everytime I asked, she didn't say no, but she just pointed me toward the honeymoon shoot! At that time, I hadn't been assigned my EM yet, so if you talk to yours, she might be able to pull some strings for you.

 

[LUVTGR]

I would keep Randy and try to get the discount for your mk shoot. Randy's pictures are beautiful and he is so easy to work with. We used him for our intimate wedding then he came to dinner w/ us and then went out to the marina for fireworks pictures. He gave us everthing on cd and a book of proofs. I can't say enough about how wonderful he is. We traded our dsp for a honeymoon session for $50. I was not impressed w/ the photographer or the quality of the pics.

 

[nemmie]

Does anyone know if you can have randy chapman for you wedding/recp and then have an mk session (obv. with disney photographer)? i've read so many good reviews about randy that i really feel he's the man for us!

 

[hmgolden]

Yes you can use Randy for your wedding, and still have a MK photo shoot. We did!

 

[Nicci]

Thank you for your help Hmgolden, PrincessChrysty, LUVTGR

Atfer seeing your beautiful pictures ( you look like true princesses) I have decided to pay the extra, and keep Randy Chapman and have the cd aswell. Thank you i didnt know i could have 1 of these.

My EM is trying very hard at the mo to persuade me to have a honeymoon shoot, at a reduced cost for the credit but im not so sure on this. Instead we are asking for a credit towards either the MK or Epcot shoot, as we intend on having both of these. A bit greedy i know but we just couldnt resist.

Wish me luck lol

 

[dreams91]

I had an intimate wedding and we used Randy. This was the best decision I could've made!!! We have way more than 100 photos. He was easy to work with and just a great photographer. My EM told me that I had to work with Stephanie at DPS for any sort of credit. Most the time they only offer the honeymoon session at an additional $50 or some other session that you get for free (like the honeymoon one but less time or something). Getting the credit for the MK shoot isn't easy to get. In my opinion, it doesn't matter cause Randy is worth the extra money. Have you seen Disney's work? I think the pics are so far away, you can't tell if someone is smiling half the time.

Good luck!

 

[stevelamb121]

We are from the UK and have booked Randy for an intimate session after reading all the excellent feedback he gets on the forums!

does anyone have a rought idea of how much extra it is to have a MK photo shoot as I really want to do that

 

[hmgolden]

I believe the cost of a MK photo shoot in 2005 will be $800. It was $725 in 2004.

 

[D&R love Disney]

Randy is wonderful, we ended up with 180 pictures for our intimate wedding. We also used DPS for the MK shoot and got a credit. I hear it is more difficult to get that credit now