A CL ad you MUST see!

Ok...so I was looking through craigslist and came across this ad for a free wedding photographer..well, not free in their eyes...read on, it gets better!

Here's the heading:

LOOKING TO EXPAND OR BUILD YOUR WEDDING PORTFOLIO

the ad reads:

As the wedding coordinator and event design company for an upcoming wedding in September of this year at The Hostess House in Marion, IN we are seeking upcoming professional wedding vendors who are looking to build or expand their wedding portfolio.

Images from this wedding will be displayed on the couple's wedding website and will also be featured in our company's profile which can be seen on The Knot, Get Married, The Wedding Vendor and The Wedding Wire. All participating vendors will also have the opportunity to partner with our company as a vendor on our preferred vendor list for our future bridal and event clients.

Interested? Please feel free to visit the couple's wedding website at http://www.brucepropos​ed2rhonda.com or you can contact us via email at info@bruceproposed2rho​nda.com

We look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers!

So...what you have here is a wedding coordinator that is doing a wedding for free, asking for a photographer to shoot the wedding...for free..with the promise that your photos will be posted on the free coordinators website...AND the couples free wedding website!

SO...I HAD to look at the couples website...www.bruceproposed2rhon​da.com

Not only do they have the nerve to ask someone to plan the wedding, shoot the wedding, and cater the wedding...all for free...but they are asking people to DONATE money to their "dream honeymoon" and have set up a page for donations!

They are calling this a "Sponsored Wedding". Amazing! Oh...and it's not really a wedding, they are renewing their vows, they were actually married in 1989...

And you know - there certainly will be enough suckers jumping on this. It's amazing!

it's sad that people think technology today is cheap and shouldn't charge much or none at all

Well they have a few "sponsors" listed, but not many. I would at least call the couple creative. Better than couples mortgaging their future to throw a fancy party.

Apollo.11 wrote in post #11808127
Well they have a few "sponsors" listed, but not many. I would at least call the couple creative. Better than couples mortgaging their future to throw a fancy party.

I'm willing to bet every one of their "sponsors" are either family or friends. I think it's funny that the page says "welcome to family, friends, and wedding enthusiasts.." as if getting married is some sort of sport and people go around attending weddings for the fun of it. I think they've watched wedding crashers one too many times.

Scatterbrained wrote in post #11808199
I'm willing to bet every one of their "sponsors" are either family or friends. I think it's funny that the page says "welcome to family, friends, and wedding enthusiasts.." as if getting married is some sort of sport and people go around attending weddings for the fun of it. I think they've watched wedding crashers one too many times.

Agreed.

Cool, wonder if any enthusiasts would like to sponsor my lens addiction.

Scary, it is a trend.. the sponsored wedding thing.. I am getting requests more and more and more for them...

http://abcnews.go.com/​WNT/story?id=2179991&p​age=1

They started it and the masses have followed...and are being encouraged to do it...

http://trulyweddingfav​ors.com/articles/spons​ored-weddings

I would love to point my Boney Finger of Judgment at the couple but we had a photo booth (to use as favors) lined up to do the pics for free as they wanted to become a preferred vendor for the venue. We also had a honeymoon registry that paid for most of the 7 days in St. Lucia. Beats getting a bunch of candlesticks and place settings.

Now, when the photo booth backed out about 6 weeks out for a paying gig I didn't hold it against them.


For our photographer, caterer, and flowers we took no chances and page out a pretty penny.

I even jokingly offered our marketing dept. the opportunity to be title sponsor. They passed.

-F

As offended as many may be, celebrities do this all the time.

kjonnnn wrote in post #11809923
As offended as many may be, celebrities do this all the time.

Yep. Something tells me though that having my name splashed around People magazine as the "official photographer for Celebrity X" is going to get me a wee bit more publicity (and business) than being the sucker who shot Bruce and Rhonda's little shin-dig.

kjonnnn wrote in post #11809923
As offended as many may be, celebrities do this all the time.

That's a new one on me! I've always seen how much money celebrities spend, never who sponsored them.

edge100 wrote in post #11810156
Yep. Something tells me though that having my name splashed around People magazine as the "official photographer for Celebrity X" is going to get me a wee bit more publicity (and business) than being the sucker who shot Bruce and Rhonda's little shin-dig.

Just a bit...

You know how little league teams have the sponsors name on the back of their jerseys?

Get stickers printed up advertising your photography business and plaster them all over the wedding dress, every table, all backgrounds, everyone in the wedding party must wear a t-shirt with your name on both sides, your logo must appear on the cake in at least 3 places . . .

It's all good . . .

this could work out real well for the enterprising photographer, wink, wink

It's rude behavior, plain and simple. They are freeloading off the hard work of others.

Nobody should expect anything for free. Just rude.

I'd like to shoot their wedding for free and underexpose every single shot.

Then I'd give them a refund of all they paid.