Everything you need for a Midwest wedding

What kind of info are you looking for?
I've actually been there a handful of times for weddings myself...

electricpanther79 said:Hey there! Has anyone else had a wedding out in Indianapolis or the Dakota area this year?

Hey, can someone let me know if there are any shops in Indianapolis that carry cookie decorations? Like, I need this ASAP...

Kevin Martin8 said:Hey, can someone let me know if there are any shops in Indianapolis that carry cookie decorations? Like, I need this ASAP...

Check the shops in Vegas ☕

Carl Clark said:Check the shops in Vegas ☕

Wait, where on earth is that in Indianapolis???

on Republic Avenue

Hey, ladies! New here, so I’ve got a few questions (sorry if I missed anything earlier): has anyone actually eaten at Kopika? I’m already freaking out because I heard some bad reviews and now I'm starting to panic...

I really wanted to book Copernicus because the vibe there is incredible, but they turned us down once we mentioned having about 120 guests and wanting a Saturday (plus, we were a year out). They told us smaller weddings are Friday-only, so we had to walk away. I’ve heard some sketchy things too—like the servers don't hit all the tables at once, or they're slow to refill drinks and food... but honestly, that's just hearsay. I wasn't there long enough to know for sure.

Thanks, I heard something similar and now I’m freaking out... Honestly, let them try threatening us! Though, reading through these forums, it seems like everyone is dealing with the same headache, so maybe I'm just panicking over nothing.
I don't get how they turned you down. We’re hosting a small wedding too—only about 120 people—and they gave us a Saturday date a year in advance. Who knows what will happen...

Maybe they were just having a rough day and we caught them at a bad time 🤷 honestly don't sweat it. If the crew is solid and the music is hitting, everything else falls into place... easy enough to handle some grumpy servers 😁

Has anyone here hosted a wedding at Caracas, or maybe attended one there? I'm curious what you all think. What’s the capacity like, and how are the prices? Also, are restaurants generally more budget-friendly than dedicated wedding venues?
Thanks

rustyjackal26 said:Hey Joe Biden...😉 I did a little digging into the venues. Apparently, Tena's place is fantastic; everyone raves about it, and the pricing seems to be right in line with Jane's venue... We're looking at roughly 200-250 guests... I should probably check out the Hilton near Indianapolis as well...
A few months back, my dear, we were at a wedding in a small town, USA, at the Smith venue... man... it was incredible. 😍 The hall itself is beautiful and has this simple, clean aesthetic, but the service? Honestly, it was the best I've ever experienced. The staff—the guys and girls—were relentless in the best way possible. They were moving through the room all night, swapping out pizza, checking in to see if anyone needed anything, constantly refilling plates with meat, sides, and salads. They were cutting the cake and going table to table to offer it. Even the coffee was top-tier, served with those little cream containers. Total perfection...👍 Unfortunately, it's a bit further away than we'd prefer, so it's likely off the table for us. 😢 They had this jazz band that played incredibly well, but I haven't caught their name yet... I'll let you know when I find out. 😁

Listen, Teddy’s place isn't bad at all... and neither is Natalie’s spot in Greensboro... I wouldn't recommend the Hilton, though. I grew up in that area, so I know the layout well. TGI Fridays is a great choice, too. In fact, I was at a wedding there on August 4th and the service was absolutely phenomenal!!!!!

The vibe in Greensboro just doesn't hit the same as those Kunjevac nights...

Larry Cox4 said:The vibe in Greensboro just doesn't hit the same as those Kunjevac nights...

To be honest, those meats at the Hilton were always priced quite a bit higher than what you'd find elsewhere; back in the day, the owner had a bit of a prickly personality, though I'm not entirely sure if that's still the case...
I went ahead and put together a list of local delis in the area that might be a better fit for her tastes...

dustypanther12 said:Listen, Teddy’s place isn't bad at all... and neither is Natalie’s spot in Greensboro... I wouldn't recommend the Hilton, though. I grew up in that area, so I know the layout well. TGI Fridays is a great choice, too. In fact, I was at a wedding there on August 4th and the service was absolutely phenomenal!!!!!

Haha, yeah, TGI Fridays...🙂 the guys there are seriously awesome and I’m about 99% sure we’re going with them... they just haven't replied to my email yet, so I’ll have to give them a ring...🙂
As for the venue, we’re heading out to check it out in early October so we can compare the pricing between Jane and Ted... but honestly, I had a pretty rough experience over at Jane's, so I'm leaning towards booking Ted... everyone I know who has used them has nothing but good things to say...😉

Hi there to all the newly engaged ladies, brides-to-be, and everyone else getting hitched soon! Especially those in the Midwest area.
I’m new to this forum and, like most people here, I’m currently planning my wedding. I have a quick question regarding photographers—specifically Mijic and Oliver. If anyone has worked with either of them, I’d be incredibly grateful if you could shoot me a private message with your thoughts on their work and their pricing. I'm not sure if it's an open secret or not, but any insight would help. ;-)
I see plenty of mentions of Ogi, Toni, and Tref as solid alternatives, too. If anyone has some recent, up-to-date info, please let me know. I also noticed Mirror studio seems decent... hmm... :/
It feels a bit pointless reading through old posts from more than two years ago. Trends change, experiences evolve, and prices definitely go up. Even though my big day isn't for another 18 months or so, I’d really like to get everything finalized as soon as possible.

Anyway, hopefully someone will chime in.

Cheers. ;-)

I used Oliver back in the fall, so feel free to pick my brain about anything. 😉
From what I've heard, Mijic charges a bit more than Oliver, but it really just comes down to what you're looking for—whether you want a second shoot date or a specific photographer's style and so on.
As for the idea that Ogi, Tony, or tref are viable alternatives to Oliver and Mijic? Not even close, especially tref 🤣. And honestly, Mirror's photo quality has been slipping lately.

For me, the photography, editing, and the big album set ended up being $5,600, plus whatever extra you pay for the specific photographer you choose—that’s how it worked for me. I got the photos back in about two weeks, and the album itself is actually solid.
And I don't see why people can't talk prices here; I've seen plenty of other threads where people discuss costs.

Nicole Hill35 said:I used Oliver back in the fall, so feel free to pick my brain about anything. 😉
From what I've heard, Mijic charges a bit more than Oliver, but it really just comes down to what you're looking for—whether you want a second shoot date or a specific photographer's style and so on.
As for the idea that Ogi, Tony, or tref are viable alternatives to Oliver and Mijic? Not even close, especially tref 🤣. And honestly, Mirror's photo quality has been slipping lately.

For me, the photography, editing, and the big album set ended up being $5,600, plus whatever extra you pay for the specific photographer you choose—that’s how it worked for me. I got the photos back in about two weeks, and the album itself is actually solid.
And I don't see why people can't talk prices here; I've seen plenty of other threads where people discuss costs.

Hey Nicole Hill35, thanks for getting back to me.

Ideally, I'd like the photo and video sessions to happen together, all part of one package. I don't need an endless amount of photos or a marathon video; I just want something simple. Does he offer set packages, or is everything negotiated based on what you want? Because $1867 it doesn't sound like that much money (depending on how many photos you actually got), and if the videographer isn't too expensive 😕

I really like Mijic, but I have a feeling he might be the most expensive—kind of like Daniel. I don't want to waste money if I can get the same quality cheaper and with less stress. Every dollar counts right now 🙂 especially since I read that John doesn't always shoot; sometimes it's someone else like Kreso. If I'm booking him, shouldn't he be the one doing the shooting? He's in high demand, but Oliver seems just as good. Even Mirror seemed decent, though it's my first time hearing about them, and I'm not sure how long they've been in business.

I think there are about 400 photos in the album, but you get both the raw and edited shots on the DVD.
When we sat down with Oliver, he walked us through everything—what kind of footage we wanted, camera specs, editing styles, the whole bit. He showed us portfolios from his cinematographers, and we just picked the style that clicked with us. He’s based in New York City and does a lot of music videos. We paid him $3,000, but honestly, it was worth every penny. The video turned out flawless. We got a short highlight clip, a 4.5-minute "best moments" reel, and about two hours of edited footage, plus we could grab all the raw footage from the entire day. In the end, the photo and video guys teamed up, but for me, it was worth
Mijic takes great photos, and Kreso does solid work too, but you need to book them immediately if you want one of them. It’s the same deal with Oliver. He manages a few different crews, so he coordinates who goes where.
I believe Mirror has been in the game a long time and used to have a stellar reputation. I was torn between him and Oliver, but Mirror couldn't find the time to meet up, so he suggested handling everything over email. It took him two weeks just to reply to an email. 🙄
I haven't heard that Daniel is the most expensive, though I didn't dig too deep into his pricing. I saw some of his work, and frankly, it felt over-processed—some of the photos were so heavily edited they didn't even look like us.

I’ve got a question about photographers too! I’d love to hear what you all think—specifically, does anyone have experience working with Brady from Savannah? What were their prices like?

Nicole Hill35 said:I think there are about 400 photos in the album, but you get both the raw and edited shots on the DVD.
When we sat down with Oliver, he walked us through everything—what kind of footage we wanted, camera specs, editing styles, the whole bit. He showed us portfolios from his cinematographers, and we just picked the style that clicked with us. He’s based in New York City and does a lot of music videos. We paid him $3,000, but honestly, it was worth every penny. The video turned out flawless. We got a short highlight clip, a 4.5-minute "best moments" reel, and about two hours of edited footage, plus we could grab all the raw footage from the entire day. In the end, the photo and video guys teamed up, but for me, it was worth
Mijic takes great photos, and Kreso does solid work too, but you need to book them immediately if you want one of them. It’s the same deal with Oliver. He manages a few different crews, so he coordinates who goes where.
I believe Mirror has been in the game a long time and used to have a stellar reputation. I was torn between him and Oliver, but Mirror couldn't find the time to meet up, so he suggested handling everything over email. It took him two weeks just to reply to an email. 🙄
I haven't heard that Daniel is the most expensive, though I didn't dig too deep into his pricing. I saw some of his work, and frankly, it felt over-processed—some of the photos were so heavily edited they didn't even look like us.

Regarding Daniel, you're right. That's why I didn't consider him. His photos all look the same, and I didn't really vibe with him when we met.

So, 400 photos sounds like a large package. I assume you had a big wedding; we’re planning for maybe 110 guests max. 😉
I assume Meyers also has a few collaborators for filming?😕

I suppose I'll need to think it over. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to send an inquiry to all three of them with our specific needs, just to see how the pricing compares. Most likely, whoever is available will win out. I want portraits of me and my fiancé, shots with all the guests, and something casual at home—plus some coverage of the reception. Same goes for the video.
The issue is that my boyfriend is in Germany, so I need to ask everything ASAP so that once he returns next year, we can take things easy while touring venues, booking the photographer, and the band. I haven't even started looking for a band yet. Who did you guys hire?