As most of my friends and clients know I am a very straightforward tell it like it is person. This blog post is to inform not just my future clients or existing clients to something that has become more and more commonplace in the wedding industry but all couples planning weddings. What you may ask? " Vendor Kick Backs". This is something that has taken place not once,  but many times over the last year to me and I am sure many other vendors. Instead of explaining in detail I will direct you to a photographer in Los Angeles who I have had the privilege of meeting and I respect his work and business morals. You can read exactly what this post is about here. "Kick backs" as he does a great job of explaining exactly what is taking place in our industry.

For me personally I have lost numerous jobs this year, from venues that no longer refer me because I refuse to give the managers kickbacks. These managers are on salary and should be referring brides to the best vendors they know, not the vendors giving them cash for every wedding they send to them. Also recently I had a wedding planner contact me for a wedding in Lake Placid, the planner will remain nameless as I feel that everything happens for a reason and eventually enough of her clients will realize that after seeing their wedding photos and wondering why they hired the photographer they did it will eventually come back to her. She not only wanted a kick back from me, but also actually revised my contract without my permission and put her kick back in my contract as a travel fee for $500 and sent my contract to the bride, then called me to inform me that her kick back should come from the travel fee she included on my contract, funny thing is I was not charging a travel fee for this wedding and when I do charge travel fees, they are for travel, not kick backs. Needless to say I won't be working with her or ever referring her for any weddings.

This post I am sure will not be  popular to the vendors asking for kickbacks, but I wouldn't want to work with them in the first place. So remember ask for referrals from friends and make your decision on vendors yourself, look at websites and hire the vendor that you feel will be the best fit for your wedding day. Any vendors I refer are being referred because they are the best in the industry and I feel like every Bride and Groom deserve the best possible service and honesty from all their vendors. I have never received a kick back in all my years in business and I do not intend to now. If I am already booked for your date I will gladly refer you to another photographer who I know will shoot your wedding and deliver amazing images and I do not ask them for kickbacks. The same goes for planners who I have worked with in the past or any other vendor for your wedding day, I am referring them because they are the best in the industry.

This does not mean that all vendors or locations are doing this, just the ones that feel like referring vendors for kickbacks is more important then providing quality vendors to their clients.